Johann Matthias Schröckh

Johann Matthias Schröckh, also Schroeckh, ( born July 26, 1733 in Vienna, † August 1, 1808 in Wittenberg ) was a German historian and literary scholar, poet and physician.

Life

As the grandson of Lutheran Seniors Matej Bel in Pressburg he wanted to be like his grandfather theologian. To this end, he began his studies in 1751 at the University of Göttingen and listened with enthusiasm the lectures of the church historian Johann Lorenz Mosheim and of the orientalist Johann David Michaelis. From his uncle, Karl Andreas Bel 1774 moved to the University of Leipzig, he continued his studies and received there on March 4, 1755 the academic degree of Master of Philosophy. He habilitated on March 6, 1756 became in 1762 associate professor of philosophy.

On October 26, 1767 followed a reputation as a full professor of poetry at the University of Wittenberg, which he took over from existence reasons. Nevertheless, he held it firmly, continue its started in Leipzig lectures on church history, scholarly history and the history of theology and attended the University of Wittenberg, a trend-setting position in that department. After the departure of Johann Daniel Ritter he took over in 1775, the long sought Professor of History. How Schröckh in Leipzig was curator of the university library, he knew in Wittenberg from 1767 as a side office, the line of the Wittenberg University Library.

Schröckhs day began fünf clock with writing. At seven clock, winter at eight, he appeared for the first time before his listeners. He then devoted himself to different things, so the academic circulation, the censorship of historical works, novels, the Witten Bergische weekly paper, literary magazines, such as the " General German Library", which was printed in Wittenberg since 1775, and has written reviews. Then the historian continued the writing. 12 clock opened the lunch a prolonged period of rest and relaxation. He contributed 15 clock before the second part of his college, which closed at times with a Tutorial.

The total number of his daily lectures was formerly five, later three. The last part of the working day, the evening hours of 18 to 21.30 clock was determined again for writing. It corresponded to these adapted to literary activity order that the Easter and Michaelmas holidays for the writing of books and reviews were used. The development of historical works was of course the quality of his lectures conducive.

Schröckhs visiting companies was limited to participation in worship and in meetings, insofar as it charged him the official duty. " Pleasure trips " led him occasionally in the near Wörlitz. The former variety social life before his eyes had to feel this life as a lonely contemporaries. Nevertheless Schröckh was an informed man. He lived "in his study as on a waiting, of which there are near and far much to see " In this regard already was dealing with a few confidants -. Johann Daniel Ritter, Franz Volkmar Reinhard, Karl Ludwig Georg Nitzsch and Stephan Wiesand, quite productive. Frequently he received by traveling scholars and strangers formed.

He used to read newspapers and magazines political, literary and non-profit content, the fashion writer August Lafontaine, August von Kotzebue and English novels. His favorite authors were Lucian, Horace and Tacitus, Swift, Voltaire and Wieland. His humanity was expressed in Aid and Attendance for " Jew and Greek, friend and foe ." He granted foreign students advances, contributed to the grade of the Wittenberg school teachers in, kept his library interested openly gave young writers publishers, gave scholars and students council, paid visits to the sick, even with his craftsmen from.

The former boom of the University of Wittenberg contemporaries led back to the work of professors like Johann Matthias Franz Volkmar Reinhard and Schröckh. It came back more guests from Hungary, Finland, Courland and other parts of Europe to the Leucorea. It boasted Schröckhs pragmatic, non-partisan nature of the history lecture, his "reasonable, moderate and tolerant way of thinking ", its cosmopolitan position in the representation of science and the " liberal treatment of the churches and universal history." His large-scale lectures on the history of all the arts and sciences, including theology of Augustus and birth of Christ to, reaffirmed the universal history teachers claim his faculty also in this special field. He read a three-year cycle on church history, German imperial history, European countries history, diplomacy and Saxon history. his lectures were among the wealthiest at the University of.

Schröckhs works can be classified into three groups: biography, universal history and church history. Its educational mission occurred in the drafting of a four-part " general world history for children " and " textbook of general world history for the use in the first of the Youth " to light. Its importance lay in the source -based, sammlungsdeskriptiven, popular science of church history. He saw in the Reformation, the Repristination of the ideal early Christianity and the Enlightenment in the ideal state seitheriger higher development. Luther appears to him as " liberators and early reconnaissance ." Reformation and Protestant Enlightenment stood in continuity with the original message of Jesus who have rediscovered Luther ".

His real life's work is the 43 -volume, ranging from the beginnings to the 18th century church history. Of which introduces the " History of Christian Churches " in 35 volumes until the Reformation. Your joins the eight-volume " History of Christian Churches since the Reformation " to. His work also influenced the writings of Catholic church historian and the Catholic church history lessons. For much of his literary work Schröckh has created the improvement of his living conditions sake. He particularly regretted the time spent on the " associations rich patchwork " of William Guthrie and John Gray, General World History from the Creation to the Present Time. "

The prolific church historian, to the University of Frankfurt (Oder), and the city of Riga competed, also knew in the summer terms of 1776 and 1800, the Rector of the Wittenberg Academy and was until his death as one of the leading professors of the same. Schröckh died as a result of a fall from a ladder.

Selections

• Textbook of general world history for the use in the first of the Youth, Berlin and Stettin 1774
• Historia religionis et ecclesiae Christianae, 1777
• General World history for kids, 4 T., Leipzig 1779-1784
• Introduction to Universal History: Berlin 1757 reworking of Hilmar Curas
• History of Christian Churches since the Reformation, Leipzig 1804-1808
• History of Christian Churches, 35 Bd, Frankfurt and Leipzig, 1768-1803