René Schickele (4 August 1883 – 31 January 1940) was a German-French writer, essayist and translator. Schickele's most famous work is the novel trilogy ''Das Erbe am Rhein'' (1925–31): ''Maria Capponi'' (1925), ''Blick auf die Vogesen'' (1927) and ''Der Wolf in der Hürde'' (1931).

Early life and education

Schickele was born in

Obernai Obernai (Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Owernah''; ) is Communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin Departments of France, department in Alsace in north-eastern France. It lies on the eastern slopes of the Vosges mountains. Obernai is a rapidly g ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

, the son of a German vineyard owner and police officer and a French mother. He studied literature, history, science and philosophy in

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Career

Together with

Otto Flake Otto Flake (29 October 1880, Metz – 10 November 1963) was a German writer. Early life Flake was born on 29 October 1880 in Metz. He attended high school in Colmar and studied German philology, philosophy and art history at the University of St ...

and

Ernst Stadler Ernst Maria Richard Stadler (11 August 1883 — 30 October 1914) was a German Expressionist poet, writer and translator. As a poet, he was part of the early German expressionist movement. Born in Colmar, Alsace-Lorraine, and educated in Strasb ...

, he published several magazines as well as poetry. His work as a writer is characterized by tension between French and German culture in Alsace. After Flake's marriage to Dr.

Minna Flake Margareta "Minna" Flake (née Mai; November 27, 1886 – February 12, 1958) was a German born physician and socialist who fled Germany during World War II and settled in New York City. Early life Margareta Mai was born on November 27, 1886, in W� ...

ended in 1911, Schickele had a daughter with Minna in 1917, Renate "Renée" Miriam Flake. After the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he moved to

Badenweiler Badenweiler (High Alemannic: ''Badewiler'') is a health resort and spa in the Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, historically in the Markgräflerland. It is 28 kilometers by road and rail from Basel, 10 kilome ...

, remaining passionately committed to the understanding between Germany and France. In Badenweiler he met

Annette Kolb Annette Kolb (pseudonym of Anna Mathilde Kolb) was an author, journalist, emigrée and pacifist. Life Kolb was born on 3 February 1870 in Munich, the daughter of a French pianist mother and a German landscape architect father. She was an auth ...

and Emil Bizer. As early as 1932 he became aware of the risk of being arrested by the Nazis and emigrated to

Sanary-sur-Mer Sanary-sur-Mer (, literally ''Sanary on Sea''; ), popularly known as Sanary, is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, Southeastern France. Sanary-sur-Mer is located in coastal Provence on the Mediterranean S ...

in the South of France. He only wrote one book in French, ''Le Retour'' (1938), expressing his disappointment over the failure of reconciliation between Germany and France and establishing his painful decision for the Democratic France.

Death

He died of heart failure in

Vence Vence (; ) is a commune set in the hills of the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France, north of Nice and Antibes on the Mediterranean coast. Ecclesiastical history The first known Bishop ...

a few months before the invasion of the German army.

Personal life

Schickele was the grandfather of the American composer

Peter Schickele Peter Schickele (; July 17, 1935 – January 16, 2024) was an American composer, musical educator and parodist, best known for comedy albums featuring his music, which he presented as being composed by the fictional P. D. Q. Bach. He also hoste ...

Works (selection)

* ''Sommernächte''. Straßburg 1902. * ''Pan. Sonnenopfer der Jugend''. Straßburg 1902. * ''Mon Repos''. Berlin, Leipzig 1905. * ''Voltaire u. seine Zeit''. Berlin, Leipzig 1905. * ''Der Ritt ins Leben''. Stuttgart, Berlin, Leipzig, 1906. * ''Der Fremde''. Berlin 1909. * ''Weiß u. Rot''. Berlin, 1910. * ''Meine Freundin Lo''. Berlin 1911. (Erweiterte Fassung 1931). * ''Schreie auf dem Boulevard''. Berlin 1913. * ''Benkal der Frauentröster''. Leipzig 1914. * ''Die Leibwache''. Leipzig 1914. * ''Mein Herz mein Land''. Leipzig 1915. * ''Das Glück''. Rudolstadt 1919. * ''Der neunte November''. Berlin 1919. * ''Die Genfer Reise''. Berlin 1919. * ''Wir wollen nicht sterben!'' München 1922. * ''Ein Erbe am Rhein''. Berlin 1925 (Späterer Titel: Maria Capponi; Band 1 von Das Erbe am Rhein). * ''Symphonie für Jazz''. Berlin 1925. * ''Blick auf die Vogesen''. Berlin 1927 (Band 2 von Das Erbe am Rhein). * ''Der Wolf in der Hürde''. Berlin 1931 (Band 3 von Das Erbe am Rhein). * ''Die Witwe Bosca''. Berlin 1933. * ''Liebe und Ärgernis des D. H. Lawrence''. 1935. * ''Die Flaschenpost''. Amsterdam 1936. * ''Le Retour''. 1938. * ''Werke in 3 Bänden'', herausgegeben von Hermann Kesten. Köln, Berlin 1959. * ''Überwindung der Grenze''. Essays zur deutsch-französischen Verständigung. Herausgegeben von Adrien Finck. Kehl, Straßburg, Basel 1987. . * ''Großstadtvolk Jahr'': k.A.

Literature

* Friedrich Bentmann (Hrsg.): ''René Schickele. Leben und Werk in Dokumenten''. 2. Aufl. Carl-Verlag, Nürnberg 1976, . * Albert M. Debrunner: ''Freunde es war eine elende Zeit! René Schickele in der Schweiz 1915–1919''. Huber, Frauenfeld 2004, . *

Hanns Heinz Ewers Hanns Heinz Ewers (3 November 1871 – 12 June 1943) was a German actor, poet, philosopher, and writer of short stories and novels. While he wrote on a wide range of subjects, he is now known mainly for his works of horror, particularly his tril ...

, Victor Hadwiger,

Erich Mühsam Erich Mühsam (6 April 1878 – 10 July 1934) was a German Antimilitarism, antimilitarist anarchism, anarchist essayist, poet and playwright. He emerged at the end of World War I as one of the leading agitators for a Federalism, federated Bavari ...

, René Schickele: ''Führer durch die moderne Literatur. 300 Würdigungen der hervorragendsten Schriftsteller unserer Zeit''. Revonnah Verlag, Hannover 2006, (korrigierter und kommentierter Neudruck der Erstausgabe erlin 1906von Arne Glusgold Drews und Danielle Winter). * ''Jahre des Unmuts. Thomas Manns Briefwechsel mit René Schickele 1930–1940'', hrsg. von Hans Wysling und Cornelia Bernini, Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 1992, * Annemarie Post-Martens (Hrsg): ''Rene Schickele. Die blauen Hefte. Edition und Kommentar'' ("Edition Text"; 5). Stroemfeld Verlag, Frankfurt/M. 2002, (2 Bde.). * Holger Seubert: ''Deutsch-französische Verständigung: René Schickele''. Verlag Eberhard, München 1993, . * Hans Wagener: ''Rene Schickele. Europäer in neun Monaten''. Bleicher, Gerlingen 2000, .

References

External links

*
René Schickele im Zentralen Verzeichnis digitalisierter Drucke (zvdd)
*
René-Schickele-Gesellschaft

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schickele, Rene 1883 births 1940 deaths 20th-century French essayists 20th-century French male writers 20th-century French novelists 20th-century French translators 20th-century German essayists 20th-century German male writers 20th-century German novelists 20th-century German translators Exilliteratur writers French male essayists French male novelists French writers in German German male essayists German male novelists Members of the Academy of Arts, Berlin People from Alsace-Lorraine People from Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald People from Obernai People from Var (department) Writers from Baden-Württemberg Writers from Grand Est Writers from Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur