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The German Cultural Heritage

1850-1899

Please start with the sound file. The notes below are referenced in the sound file.

Sound Files:

1. Sound File Nr. 1 (The Late 19th Century) (15 mins.) (mp3)

2. Sound File Nr. 2 (The Continuing Rise of Bismarck's Prussia) (13 mins.) (mp3)

3. Sound File Nr. 3 (The Establishment of the German Empire (Reich) (15 mins.) (mp3)

4. Sound File Nr. 4 (Keller, Wagner, Nietzsche, Ludwig II) (17 mins.) (mp3)

5. Sound File Nr. 5 (The End of the 19th Century) (20 mins.) (mp3)

1851 Theodor Storm writes Immensee.

1853 Outbreak of the Crimean War. Ludwig Tieck dies. Adelbert Stifter writes Colorful Stones.

1854 Jeremias Gotthelf dies. Eduard von Mörike writes Mozart on the Journy to Prague. In the United States the Republican political party is founded.

1856 + H. Heine; + Robert Schumann; G. Keller: The People of Seldwyla. O. Ludwig: Between Heaven and Earth. Wilhelm Busch: Max and Moritz.

1857 + J. v. Eichendorff; A. Stifter: Nachsommer; The world's first elevator is installed by Otis in New York.

1858 Minnesota becomes a U.S. state.

Did you know?  Still today there are more people in Minnesota of German origin than of any other nationality.

1859 War between Austria and France. Fritz Reuter: Ut mine Stromtid. Charles Darwin: Origin of the Species. Richard Wagner: Tristan and Isolde.

A scene from Wagner's operatic love story, Tristan und Isolde

1860 Unification of Italy. Lincoln becomes the U. S. president.

1861 American Civil War through 1865. End of slavery in the U.S.A.

1862 Otto von Bismark is appointed chancellor by Kaiser Wilhelm I. Death of Ludwig Uhland. Birth of Gerhart Hauptmann. Birth of Arthur Schnitzler.

1863 Death of Friedrich Hebbel. Birth of Arno Holz.

1864 The Geneva convention of the Red Cross under the leadership of Henri Dunant. Wilhelm Raabe publishes The Hunger Pastor. Birth of Frank Wedekind. Birth of Ricarda Huch.

1865 Death of U. S. president, Lincoln.

1866 War between Prussia and Austria. Birth of Friedrich Rückert. In the U.S.A. the Klu Klux Klan is founded.

1867 Karl Marx: Das Kapital. A. Nobel invents Dynamite. A. Stifter: Witiko. Birth of Ludwig Thoma.

1868 Death of A. Stifter. Birth of Stefan George.

1869 Founding of the Social Democratic Party in Eisennach by Bebel and Liebknecht. Opening of the Suez Canal.

1870 Franco-Prussian War. Birth of Ernst Barlach. J. D. Rockefeller founds the Standard Oil Company.

1871 Founding of the 2nd German Empire by Bismarck. Map. Ludwig Anzengruber: The Oath Breaking Farmer. Birth of Heinrich Mann. Chicago burns.

1872 Death of Franz Grillparzer. Franz Grillparzer: Brother Battle in the House of Habsburg. C. F. Meyer: First Novelles. Wilhelm Busch: Pious Helen.

1874 G. Keller: The People of Seldwyla II. Birth of Hugo von Hofmannsthal.

1875 Death of E. Mörike. Birth of Thomas Mann. Birth of Rainer Maria Rilke. Birth of Annette Kolb. Mark Twain: Tom Sawyer.

1876 Theodor Storm: Aquis submersus. Birth of Else Lasker-Schüler. Birth of Gertrud von Le Fort. Death of U. S. General Custer. First performance of The Ring of the Nibelungen (Richard Wagner, Bayreuth.)

Richard Wagner's Opera The Ring of the Nibelungen

1877 G. Keller: Züricher Novellen. Birth of Hermann Hesse. T. Edison invents the grammaphon.

1878 Berlin Congress; socialist laws in Germany. Birth of Alfred Döblin. Birth of Georg Kaiser. Birth of Hans Carossa.

1879 G. Büchner: Woyzeck

1880 Birth of Robert Musil.

1881 Birth of Stefan Zweig.

1882 Alliance of Germany, Austria and Italy.

1883 Death of Richard Wagner. Death of Karl Marx.. F. Nietzsche: Thus Spoke Zarathustra. Birth of Franz Kafka.

Neuschwanstein Castle	Friedrich Nietzsche

1884 Birth of Ricarda Huch.

1885 Daimler and Benz build the first internal combustion powered automobiles. Birth of Ina Seidel. Birth of Fritz von Unruh.

Mercedes JELLINEK, for whom the Mercedes car was named.	Click  on Mr. Daimler's picture to see a slide show on the Mercedes.  You may have to pull down from "Slideshow" on your bar at the top of the screen to "View Slideshow" to start the show.  Push the Esc button when you are done.

1886 Death of Franz Liszt. Birth of Gottfried Benn.

1887 Birth of Georg Heym. Birth of Georg Trakl.

1888 T. Storm: Der Schimmelreiter. Death of T. Storm. Richard Strauß: Don Juan..

1889 G. Hauptmann: Before Sunrise. A. Holz und J. Schlaf: Papa Hamlet.

1890 Bismarck is dismissed from office by Kaiser Wilhelm II. Death of G. Keller. Birth of Franz Werfel.

1891 Alliance between France and Russia. F. Wedekind: Awakening of Spring.

1892 G. Hauptmann: The Weavers. S. George: Algabal.

1893 Rudolf Diesel invents the Diesel motor. G. Hauptmann: Hannele's Rise to Heaven and The Beaver Coat. F. Wedekind: Lulu; H. v. Hofmannsthal: Death and the Fool.

1895T. Fontane: Effie Briest. Birth of Ernst Jünger.

1896 The first Olympic Games of modern times in Athens. Birth of Carl Zuckmayer.

1897 M. Halbe: Mother Earth. S. George: The Year of the Sole. Death of Johannes Brahms. 1898 Death of C. F. Meyer. Death of T. Fontane. Birth of Berthold Brecht. 1899 R. M. Rilke: The Loves and Death of the Cornet Christoph Rilke. Birth of Elisabeth Langgässer. Birth of Erich Kästner.