Free Cities were cities having an independent government of their own, and virtually forming states by themselves. The name was given to certain cities of Germany which were members of the German Confederation, and exercised sovereign jurisdiction within their own boundaries. At the time of the French Revolution the free or 'imperial' cities numbered no fewer than fifty-one; but all except Hamburg, Lubeck, and Bremen, had been deprived of their special privileges by the start of the 20th century. Research Free City
Andreas Schluter was a German sculptor and architect. He was born in 1664 at Hamburg and died in 1714. He was for a time architect to the Sobieskis and worked at Warsaw. In 1694 he was appointed court architect at Berlin, and in 1695 co-director of the academy. Research Andreas Schluter
Christian Karl Josias Chevalier Bunsen was a German diplomatist and scholar. He was born in 1791 at Korbach, in the principality of Waldeck, 1791 and died in 1860. In 1815 he made the acquaintance of Niebuhr, who shortly after procured for him the post of secretary to the Prussianembassy at Rome. In 1824 he was appointed charge d'affaires, and afterwards minister. After a stay of twelve years in Rome he was sent, as Prussian minister, first to Switzerland, and then to England, where he remained until the breaking out of the Eastern difficulty in 1854. In his official capacity he won the esteem of all, and with Britain especially he was connected by many ties. His later years were spent at Heidelberg and at Bonn exclusively in literary pursuits. Among his best-known works are Die Verfassung der Kirche der Zukunft (The Constitution of the Church of the Future), Hamburg, 1845;
Aegyptens Stelle in der Weltgeschichte (Egypt's Place in the World's History), Hamburg, 1845; Hippolytus und seine Zeit (Hippolytus and his Time), London, 1851; and lastly, his greatest work, Bibelwerk furdie Gemeinde (Bible Commentary for the Community), the publication of which was unfinished at his death. His Memoirs, by his widow, were published in 1868. Research Christian Bunsen
Christian Stolberg (Count bon Stolberg) was a German poet and critic. He was born in 1748 at Hamburg and died in 1821. Educated at Gottingen, he became one of the patriotic literary group known as the Hainbund (Sylvan League). Research Christian Stolberg
Fauvelet de Bourrienne was a French diplomatist. He was born in 1769 and died in 1834. Educated along with Bonaparte at the school of Brienne, where a close intimacy sprang up between them. Bourrienne went to Germany to study law and languages, but returning to Paris in 1792 renewed his friendship with Napoleon, from whom he obtained various appointments, and latterly that of minister plenipotentiary at Hamburg. Notwithstanding that his character suffered from his being involved in several dishonourable monetary transactions, he continued to fill high state offices and in 1814 was made prefect of police. On the abdication of Napoleon he paid his court to Louis XVIII, and was nominated a minister of state. The revolution of July, 1830, and the loss of his wealth affected him so much that he lost his reason, and he died in a lunatic asylum in 1834. His Memoires sur Napoleon, le Directoire, le Consulat, l'Empire et la Restauration are valuable. Research Fauvelet de Bourrienne
Friedrich Adolphus Von Flotow was a German composer. He was born in 1812 and died in 1883. He studied music in Paris, but his early operas were not popular with Parisian opera-house directors, so he had to content himself with performances in the aristocratic private theatres. At length the Naufrage de la Meduse was successfully produced at the Renaissance Theatre in 1839. This was followed by L'Esclave de Oamoens (1843), and L'Ame en Peine (1846), performed in London as Leoline. Alessandro Stradella was first performed at Hamburg in 1844, and his most successful work, Martha, at Vienna in 1847. Among his other works are Indra (1853), La Veuve Grapin (1859), L'Ombre (1869), and L'Enchanteresse (1878). He was director of the court theatre at Schwerin from 1855 to 1863; the last years of his life were chiefly spent at Vienna. Research Friedrich Flotow
Friedrich Gerstacker was a German novelist and travel writer. He was born in 1816 at Hamburg and died in 1872. He wandered on foot through the USA from 1837 to 1843, earning a living by various employments - as a sailor, stoker, innkeeper, woodcutter, and trapper and hunter in the prairies of the west, to find that his diary, sent to his family, had been published and made him renowned as a writer. He then took up writing as a career. He returned to Germany in 1843. In 1849 Gerstacker was engaged on behalf of the German government to collect information which might be useful to German emigrants. The results were published under the title of Reisen in 1853. He afterwards made voyages to South America, to Egypt, the West Indies, and other places, which are described in his Neue Reisen (published in 1868). Amongst his many romances (most of which may be had in English) are Die beiden Straflinge (1856), Im Busch (1864), General Franco (1865), Californische Skizzen (1856), and others. Research Friedrich Gerstacker
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