Schiller, Friedrich von.

about two major works: his Geschichte des Abfalls der Vereinigten Niederlande von der Spanischen Regierung and his Geschichte der merkwürdigsten Rebellionen und Verschwörungen aus den mittlern und neuern Zeiten, urging his publisher to start work on the former, informing him that he would gladly give him the remainder of his Verschwörungen, but he is unable to do so since Göschen has told him that a shortage of paper would delay the publication of his "Niederländische Revolution", adding that he has promised Göschen the fifth volume of his journal Thalia by the time of the Easter Fair, a task which will occupy him for 10 or 12 days; Schiller also discusses in great detail the vignette for the title-page of the Geschichte des Abfalls, for which he would like an emblem of civil liberty ("republikanische Freiheit"), and suggests an artist who might be able provide this, namely Oeser, and for whom this would only be the work of a few hours; he proposes that the emblem should incorporate five various elements - namely the liberty of the state, the eradication of the papacy, trade, the arms of the republic (which should also represent concord) and images of war - which he stresses should be worked in to the design without artificiality, adding, however, that if this can't be done, the simple symbol of liberty, the hat, should be used, with a few suitable decorations; in the closing section of the letter, Schiller mentions the proposed map for the Abfall der Niederlande, discusses the paper of the edition and acknowledges receipt of the two packets he sent him



...Zur Vignette hätte ich gern ein Emblem der republikanischen Freiheit gehabt und dazu weiß ich in der Geschwindigkeit keinen Künstler - als einen einzigen, der mir gewiss genug thun würde nehmlich Oesern. Wenn Sie es ihm auftragen und von ihm erhalten, so machen Sie mir in der That eine Freude damit. Eine solche Zeichnung kostet ihm einige Stunden. Ich wünschte darin zerschiedenes ausgedruckt: 1) Freiheit des Staats, 2) Ausrottung des Papstthums 3) Schiffart und Handel 4) das Wappen der Republick welches zugleich Zeichen der Eintracht ist, sieben zusammengebundene Pfeile. 5) Sinnbilder des Kriegs. Diese 5 Begriffe müßten alle auf eine einfache ungekünstelte Art in der Composition verbunden werden.
   Geht es aber nicht an, so nimmt man das bloße Sinnbild der Freiheit: einen Hut, welcher mit einigen paßenden Nebenzierrathen verbunden wird...  



3 pages, 4to (22.8 x 18.6cm), integral autograph address panel ("Herrn S. L. Crusius / berühmten Buchhändler in Leipzig / beigestoßen"), Weimar, 4 March 1788, seal tear, affecting one word, creasing, splitting along folds, a few tiny holes on folds

Nationalausgabe, xxv (1979) no.14, pp.22-23 and 448-449 

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing where appropriate.
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A marvellous, lively letter by Schiller to the Leipzig publisher Siegfried Lebrecht Crusius (1738-1824) concerning the publication of his Geschichte des Abfalls der Vereinigten Niederlande von der Spanischen Regierung and his Geschichte der merkwürdigsten Rebellionen und Verschwörungen aus den mittlern und neuern Zeiten (Leipzig: Crusius, 1788). Schiller's attention to every detail of the publication process, as revealed in the letter, is remarkable, and is especially apparent in his detailed suggestions for the title vignette.

The two works discussed in the letter were the product of Schiller's enthusiastic engagement with historical themes in the year following his arrival at Weimar in July 1787, the Geschichte der merkwürdigsten Rebellionen und Verschwörungen being a collection of monographs on rebellions and conspiracies, edited and assembled by the writer. Originally to have included his own monograph Der Abfall der vereinigten Niederlande (which Schiller, in a letter of 5 November 1787, had requested Crusius to remove from the Verschwörungen), in the event the volume contained none of his own writings.

The engraver, painter and director of the Leipzig Kunstakademie Adam Friedrich Oeser (1717-1799) had been acquainted personally with Schiller since April 1785. He was also a celebrated teacher, counting Goethe among his drawing students. Georg Joachim Göschen (1752-1828), the Leipzig bookseller mentioned by Schiller in the letter, was on friendly terms with the writer and had published his Don Carlos the preceding year. He also published the first collected edition of Goethe's works (Goethes Schriften, 1787-1790).