Rudolf Kneifel

Rudolf Kneifel was an Austrian writer born in Freistadt, Upper Austria, in 1881. Archival material describes him as both a military officer and an author, and in his own letters he said he had served as an artillery officer in the old Austro-Hungarian army before turning more fully toward literary work.

Those same letters sketch a remarkably mobile life. He wrote that he traveled widely after the First World War, lived for periods in cities including Rome, Paris, Budapest, Holland, and Istanbul, and later worked largely in tourism. He also said that from 1940 onward he was devoted exclusively to writing, though he had already published before 1914.

Kneifel appears to have written entertainment fiction as well as dramatic works, and surviving records mention novels, novellas, newspaper pieces, and many unpublished manuscripts. Project Gutenberg lists works under his name, showing that at least part of his writing continued to circulate long after its original publication.