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GRAETZ, HEINRICH (1817–1891)

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Originally appearing in Volume V12, Page 315 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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GRAETZ, HEINRICH (1817–1891) , the foremost Jewish historian of See also:modern times, was See also:born in See also:Posen in 1817 and died at See also:Munich in 1891. He received a desultory See also:education, and was largely self-taught. An important See also:stage in his development was the See also:period of three years that he spent at See also:Oldenburg as assistant and See also:pupil of S. R. See also:Hirsch, whose enlightened orthodoxy was for a See also:time very attractive to Graetz. Later on Graetz proceeded to See also:Breslau, where he matriculated in 1842. Breslau was then becoming the headquarters of See also:Abraham Geiger, the See also:leader of Jewish reform. Graetz was repelled by Geiger's attitude, and though he subsequently took See also:radical views of the See also:Bible and tradition (which made him an opponent of Hirsch), Graetz remained a See also:life-See also:long foe to reform. He contended for freedom of thought; he had no See also:desire to fight for freedom of See also:ritual practice. He momentarily thought of entering the rabbinate, but he was unsuited to that career. For some years he supported himself as a See also:tutor. He had previously won repute by his published essays, but in 1853 the publication of the See also:fourth See also:volume of his See also:history of the See also:Jews made him famous.

This fourth volume (the first to be published) dealt with the See also:

Talmud. It was a brilliant resuscitation of the past. Graetz's skill in piecing together detached fragments of See also:information, his vast learning and extraordinary See also:critical acumen, were equalled by his vivid See also:power of presenting personalities. No Jewish See also:book of the 19th See also:century produced such a sensation as this, and Graetz won at a See also:bound the position he still occupies as recognized See also:master of Jewish history. His Geschichte der Juden, begun in 1853, was completed in 1875; new See also:editions of the several volumes were frequent. The See also:work has been translated into many See also:languages; it appeared in See also:English in five volumes in 1891–1895. The History is defective in its lack of objectivity; Graetz's judgments are sometimes biassed, and in particular he lacks sympathy with See also:mysticism. But the history is a work of See also:genius. Simultaneously with the publication of vol. iv. Graetz was appointed on the See also:staff of the new Breslau See also:Seminary, of which the first director was Z. See also:Frankel. Graetz passed the See also:remainder of his life in this See also:office; in 1869 he was created See also:professor by the See also:government, and also lectured at the Breslau University.

Graetz attained considerable repute as a biblical critic. He was the author of many bold conjectures as to the date of See also:

Ruth, See also:Ecclesiastes, See also:Esther and other biblical books. His critical edition of the See also:Psalms (1882–1883) was his See also:chief contribution to biblical exegesis, but after his See also:death Professor Bacher edited Graetz's Emendationes to many parts of the See also:Hebrew scriptures. A full bibliography of Graetz's See also:works is given in the Jewish Quarterly See also:Review, iv. 194; a memoir of Graetz is also to be found there. Another full memoir was prefixed to the " See also:index " volume of the History in the See also:American re-issue of the English See also:translation in six volumes (See also:Philadelphia, 1898). (I.

End of Article: GRAETZ, HEINRICH (1817–1891)

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