Albrecht Schöne (17 July 1925 – 21 May 2025) was a German

Germanist German studies is an academic field that researches, documents and disseminates German language, German literature, literature, and culture in its historic and present forms. Academic departments of German studies therefore often focus on Culture ...

. From 1960 to 1990 he was a professor of

German philology German studies is an academic field that researches, documents and disseminates German language, German literature, literature, and culture in its historic and present forms. Academic departments of German studies therefore often focus on Culture ...

at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen (, commonly referred to as Georgia Augusta), is a Public university, public research university in the city of Göttingen, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1734 ...

Life and career

Schöne was born on 17 July 1925 in Barby an der Elbe. He was the firstborn. After graduating from secondary school he immediately performed his

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer military, volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Few nations, such ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was made

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

. Schöne subsequently worked as a

lumberjack Lumberjack is a mostly North American term for workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees. The term usually refers to loggers in the era before 1945 in the United States, when trees were felled us ...

until 1947. From 1947 to 1951, he studied German literature, history, philosophy, theology and psychiatry at the universities of

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

Göttingen Göttingen (, ; ; ) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. According to the 2022 German census, t ...

and

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

. In 1952, Schöne took his Ph.D. from the University of Münster. In 1953, he took a position as research assistant at the Department of German Philology at the University of Göttingen. He performed his

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excelle ...

in 1957. In 1958, he became associate professor of modern German philology at the University of Münster. In 1960, he became full professor of German philology. He was President of the between 1980 and 1985. He held visiting professorships at universities in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. Schöne retired in 1990. In 2020, he published his memoirs. Schöne died on 21 May 2025, at the age of 99, about 2 months shy of his 100th birthday.

Research

Schöne's research focused on the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

era, the

Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment (also the Age of Reason and the Enlightenment) was a Europe, European Intellect, intellectual and Philosophy, philosophical movement active from the late 17th to early 19th century. Chiefly valuing knowledge gained th ...

and the 20th-century. In his work he combined philology with theology, art history and the natural sciences. He wrote with new insights on

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

and

Georg Christoph Lichtenberg Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (; 1 July 1742 – 24 February 1799) was a German physicist, satirist, and Anglophile. He was the first person in Germany to hold a professorship explicitly dedicated to experimental physics. He is remembered for his p ...

Awards and honours

Schöne became a member of the

Göttingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities The Göttingen Academy of Sciences (name since 2023 : )Note that the German ''Wissenschaft'' has a wider meaning than the English "Science", and includes Social sciences and Humanities. is the oldest continuously existing institution among the eig ...

in 1966. In 1980, he became a member of the

Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung The Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung (in English German Academy for Language and Literature) was founded on 28 August 1949, on the 200th birthday of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, in the Paulskirche, Frankfurt, Paulskirche in Frankfurt. I ...

. He was elected a corresponding member (living abroad) of the

Austrian Academy of Sciences The Austrian Academy of Sciences (; ÖAW) is a legal entity under the special protection of the Republic of Austria. According to the statutes of the Academy its mission is to promote the sciences and humanities in every respect and in every fi ...

in 1982. The same year he was also appointed corresponding member of the

Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities () is an independent public institution, located in Munich. It appoints scholars whose research has contributed considerably to the increase of knowledge within their subject. The general goal of th ...

. In 1983, Schöne won the

Johann-Heinrich-Merck-Preis Johann-Heinrich-Merck-Preis is a literary prize of Hesse awarded by the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung since 1964. Since 2013 the prize winner receives €20,000. The award is donated by the Merck Group in memory of the German author ...

of the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung. Schöne was elected a foreign member of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...

in 1985. In 1987, he became a corresponding member of the

North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences, Humanities and the Arts The North Rhine-Westphalia Academy for Sciences, Humanities and the Arts (''Nordrhein-Westfälische Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Künste''), shortly known as NRW is a learned society in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia. With more than 28 ...

. In 1990, Schöne received the '' Orden Pour le Mérite für Wissenschaften und Künste''. In 1991, he won the Carl Zuckmayer Medal. He became an international honorary member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

in 1992. On 24 August of the same year, he was awarded the Knight Commander's Cross in the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. Schöne was awarded the

Austrian Decoration for Science and Art The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Austria, Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian Decoration for Science a ...

in 1993. In 1995, he was awarded the of the city of

Pforzheim Pforzheim () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany. It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the ...

. In 2015, he received the . He became an honorary member of the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities in 2016. Schöne won the 2017 Einhard-Preis.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schone, Albrecht 1925 births 2025 deaths Corresponding Members of the Austrian Academy of Sciences Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences German Germanists Germanic studies scholars Goethe scholars Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Members of the German Academy for Language and Literature Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences People from Barby, Germany Recipients of the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class) Academic staff of the University of Göttingen University of Münster alumni Academic staff of the University of Münster German prisoners of war in World War II