Karl Friedrich Becker (11 March 1777 – 15 March 1806) was a German educator and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

. His most noted work was ''World History for Children and Teachers of Children'' (german: Weltgeschichte für Kinder und Kinderlehrer) which was widely used and much edited and revised by other noted historians after Becker's death.

Biography

Becker was a native of

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

. He studied history and philosophy at the

University of Halle Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (german: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg), also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg and the largest and oldest university in ...

, and after finishing his studies, worked as a tutor in

Cottbus Cottbus (; Lower Sorbian: ''Chóśebuz'' ; Polish: Chociebuż) is a university city and the second-largest city in Brandenburg, Germany. Situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree, Cottbus is also a major railway junction with exte ...

. From 1798 to 1800 he was a schoolteacher in

, but due to poor health had to resign from teaching and devote his time to literary and historical work. Becker died on 15 March 1806 at the age of 29. His grave is preserved in the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

''Friedhof I der Jerusalems- und Neuen Kirchengemeinde'' (Cemetery No. I of the congregations of Jerusalem's Church and New Church) in

Berlin-Kreuzberg Kreuzberg () is a district of Berlin, Germany. It is part of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Mitte. During the Cold War era, it was one of the poorest areas of West Berlin, but since German reunification in 1990 it has b ...

, south of

Hallesches Tor The Hallesches Tor was located in today's Berlin district Kreuzberg south of Mehringplatz. Today, as a historic monument listed underground station on the site of the former gate bears the name ''Hallesches Tor''. It is a major transfer point f ...

Works

Becker is remembered today as author of the nine-volume ''Weltgeschichte für Kinder und Kinderlehrer''. This work was published in Berlin between 1801 and 1805, and after his death was continued, edited and revised by numerous authors. Karl Ludwig Woltmann added a tenth volume, and Karl Adolf Menzel two more. Wilhelm Adolf Schmidt's edition of 1860-67 contains 20 volumes, including Karl Eduard Arnd's ''Geschichte der letzten vierzig Jahre'' and its continuations to 1867. The same author's ''Geschichte der Jahre 1867-1871'' (1st vol., 1872) also served as a supplement. Johann Wilhelm Löbell was an editor. Though gaining in fullness and accuracy, the revisions lost something of the charm of Becker's original presentation. Other publications by Becker include: * ''Tales from history for young people'' (german: Erzählungen aus der Alten Welt für die Jugend; 3 vols., 1801-1803, Halle; 4th vol. by Günther, 1842, containing ''Die Perserkriege''; 9th and revised ed. by Eckstein, 1857; later edition by

Hermann Masius Hermann Masius (7 January 1818 – 22 May 1893) was a German educator who was a native of Trebnitz (today a borough of Könnern). He studied theology in University of Halle, Halle, and later was director of a gymnasium in Halberstadt. In 1860 he ...

, 1873) * ''Poetry from the Viewpoint of the Historian'' (german: Die Dichtkunst aus dem Gesichtspunkt des Historikers; Berlin, 1803)

References

*“Becker, Karl Friedrich” in ''

Meyers Konversations-Lexikon ' or ' was a major encyclopedia in the German language that existed in various editions, and by several titles, from 1839 to 1984, when it merged with the '. Joseph Meyer (1796–1856), who had founded the publishing house in 1826, intended t ...

'' (4th edition) * * * * ''Portions of this article are based on a translation of the article on Karl Friedrich Becker from the German Wikipedia.''

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Karl Friedrich 19th-century German historians German schoolteachers 1806 deaths 1777 births Writers from Berlin German male non-fiction writers