Schaefer, Albert

Pedagogue

born: 23.02.1903 in Wiesbaden

died: 13.12.1974 in Wiesbaden

As a pupil at the Oranienschule, Schaefer founded a Wandervogel group. Throughout his life, he belonged to the "Freideutschen Kreis". After graduating from high school in 1922, he studied German, history, art history, geography and theology in Tübingen, Freiburg in Breisgau, Munich, Kiel and Frankfurt am Main and completed his doctorate in 1929 with a thesis on "Grillparzer's relationship to Prussian-German politics".

From 1946 he worked as a teacher in Wiesbaden, from 1953 as a senior teacher. He was particularly interested in Goethe, art history and his native Nassau. He was chairman of the Goethe Society in Wiesbaden from 1961 and offered members a sophisticated program of lectures and readings for many years.

In his work "Goethe in Wiesbaden and on the Rhine" (1965), he summarized all the events that the poet experienced during his two spa and bathing stays in 1814 and 1815. In 1969, he published a book on the history of Wiesbaden. The publication "Begegnung mit dem Rheingau" did not appear until after his death (1976). He was a member of the Historical Commission for Nassau. For many years, he was also involved in the church council of the Marktkirchengemeinde and was chairman of the Evangelische Gesamtkirchengemeinde Wiesbaden from 1967-73.

Schaefer was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit in 1969 and the Citizens' Medal in Gold in 1973.