Ludwig Timotheus Spittler

Timothy Ludwig Freiherr von Spittler (* November 11, 1752 in Stuttgart, † March 14, 1810 ) was a German historian of Church History, Political History and History.

The son of a pastor in Stuttgart he was determined innately for theological career. The Rector of the Gymnasium, Johann Christian Volz (1721-1783) sparked his interest in history.

In 1771 he went into the Tübingen Seminary, where he pursued philosophical and theological studies, including churches in the area and the history of dogma. His models were Johann Salomo Semler and Lessing. In 1775 he completed his theological studies and undertook summer 1776 trip to Weimar, Göttingen, Wolfenbüttel, Berlin and Halle, where he also visited Lessing. In 1777 he appeared as Repetent back into the Tubingen one, in 1778, he became professor at the Georg-August -Universität Göttingen. In 1797 he left the academic career and in 1806 minister in Württemberg and curator of the University of Tübingen. Since 1782, he was a member of the Göttingen Masonic " Augusta at the three flames ." 1784 and 1789 to 1793 he held the office of the Worshipful Master.

Together with the historian Johann Christoph Gatterer ( in Göttingen since 1759 professor, founded 1764/66 a Royal Historical Institute in Goettingen), the constitutional lawyer Johann Stephan Putter and the historian August Ludwig von Schlozer he founded the historical school in Göttingen.

As the founder of the Hanoverian State Historical Research in 1786, he wrote his history of the principality of Hanover since the Reformation. Together with the Göttingen professor Christoph Meiners he was from January 1787 to August 1791 the Göttingische Historical magazine out. Spittler, Schlozer and Ernst Brandes belonged to the Hanoverian Whigs.