December 15, 1878 Birth of Hans Carossa (1878-1956) in Tölz, Germany. Carossa was a physician who wrote successful novels and poetry. He was a great admirer of Goethe. Among his works are Dr. Bürgers Ende (1913), Der Arzt Gion (1931) and Führung und Geleit (1933). He was awarded the Swiss Gottfried Keller Prize in 1931, and the Goethe Prize … [Read more...]

December 14, 1788 Death of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach in Hamburg. He was the son of Johann Sebastian and Maria Bach. His first position was that of harpsichordist to Friedrich II of Prussia. In 1767 he became music director in Hamburg. In addition to the great music he composed, he is noted for his book, Versuch über die wahre Art das Klavier … [Read more...]

December 13, 1769 Death of the Enlightenment writer, Christian Furchtegott Gellert, in Leipzig. December 13, 1769 Immanuel Kant is offered a position at the University of Erlangen. Immanuel Kant was serving as a Privatdozent (teaching for student fees) at the University of Konigsberg when the professorship at Erlangen was offered. He … [Read more...]

December 12, 1776 Death of Johann Christoph Gottsched in Judithenkirch, Germany (now in Russia). Gottsched was a writer and literary critic. He was a professor of poetry at the University of Leipzig from 1730 and a professor of logic and metaphysics from 1734. Among his theoretical works on literature his Versuch einer kritischen Dichtkunst … [Read more...]

December 11, 1748 Death of Ewald von Kleist. On 11 October 1745 he independently invented the Kleistian jar which could store electricity in large quantities. He communicated this discovery to a group of Berlin scientists in late 1745, and the news was transferred in a confused form to Leyden University where it was further investigated. … [Read more...]

December 10, 1520 Martin Luther takes a papal bull which threatens to excommunicate him and publicly burns it in front of the Elster Gate in Wittenberg. December 10, 1872 Birth of Ludwig Klages in Hannover, Germany. Klages was a professor at the University of Munich in natural sciences. He was the inventor of handwriting analysis. He … [Read more...]

December 9, 1437 Death of Sigismund, the Holy Roman Emperor from 1433-1437, in Znojmo, Bohemia (born near Nürnberg, Germany). He was the last emperor of the House of Luxembourg. In 1396 he assembled and led an army against the Turks, who had penetrated as far as Serbia, but he was badly defeated in the campaign. It was Sigismund who invited Jan … [Read more...]