author
Ernst Moritz Arndt
1769–1860
A fierce voice of the Napoleonic era, this German writer and historian mixed political passion with poetry and helped shape the language of national feeling in the 19th century. His work also reflects the tensions of his time, from early attacks on serfdom to later nationalist polemics.
2 Audiobooks
Kater Martinchen
by Ernst Moritz Arndt
Märchen und Sagen
by Ernst Moritz Arndt
About the author
Born on December 26, 1769, on the island of Rügen, then under Swedish rule, Ernst Moritz Arndt became known as a German historian, writer, and poet. He studied at Stralsund, Greifswald, and Jena, and early in his career he argued against serfdom, a cause that set him apart before he became widely known for his political writing.
Arndt rose to prominence during the years of resistance to Napoleon. His patriotic songs, pamphlets, and prose made him an influential voice in the German national movement, and his writing helped express the mood of national awakening in the early 1800s. He later taught at the University of Bonn and remained a public figure well into old age.
Today, Arndt is remembered both for his literary and historical work and for the strong nationalism in his writing. That legacy has made him an important but also debated figure: admired for his role in anti-Napoleonic resistance and reformist energy, yet often discussed critically for the harsher and exclusionary ideas found in some of his work.