Black Diamond or Death Star

©Taxiarchos228/Wikipedia

Schwarzer Diamant oder Todesstern was the title of a lecture by Dr. Markus Schröter, Head of the Historical Collections, Digitization, and Preservation Department at Freiburg's university library.

On April 20, 1455, on the day of his accession to the throne, Pope Calixtus III gave Archduke Albrecht IV permission to establish a studium generale in his city of Freiburg, in quo aeris viget temperies, victualium ubertas ceterarumque rerum ad usum vitae humanae pertinentium copia reperitur.*

*where the air is mild, food is plentiful, and there are large supplies of other things that are useful to man. 

 Initially, seven professors taught 214 students in the four faculties customary at the time: Artes (the seven liberal arts), Theology, Jurisprudence, and Medicine. Theology, which deals with the salvation of the soul, took first place, while medicine, which deals with the health of the mortal body, took last place among the faculties. 

At that time, professors lectured* on the subject matter in Latin using the few available books and put forward theses, which the students then had to write down and debate.

*They read aloud. In German, a university lecture is still called Vorlesung

The motto of the Collegium Sapientiae was 'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.'
The building was destroyed in the air raid of November 27, 1944.
Spolia of the burse were integrated into the new construction (©Andreas Schwarzkopf†/Wikipedia).

The students lived in burses (boarding houses) under strict rules. A well-known burse was the Sapientia that, in 1400, issued the rules in a book: Statuta collegii sapientiae Friburgensis (The Statutes of the College of Wisdom of Freiburg). These rules are illustrated with many colorful engravings.

 One of them informs about De Claue liberarye et eius custode (the key to the library and its guardian).  The Bursa Sapaetia had its own library, and since books were expensive, these treasures were kept under lock and key. Above the entrance door to the library is written "alpha io" (I am the beginning [of all knowledge]).

 
Red Baron was annoyed by the speaker, who kept moving his head back and forth in front of the colored engraving. To illustrate my blog with a perfect photo, I asked ChatGPT to produce an image without the head.

Here is the remarkable result. Now, five bookworm colleagues of the custodes sit in the library. The latter enters the library with a book in his hand to join his peers. Above the entrance door is written: Admonitio (admonition).

Amazing, since the inscription has also been changed to De Claritate litterrarum et eius custode (On the clarity of scriptures and its guardian). It's all my fault. You must ask ChatGPT the right question.

Latin school on Herrenstraße next to the Bursa Sapentiae
©Andreas Schwarzkopf†/Wikipedia

Latin was the language of instruction, and students were required to communicate in Cicero's language even in private. Local Latin schools tried to provide the necessary language skills, which were frequently inadequate.

Gymnasium Academicum on Bertoldstraße

In 1572, Freiburg sought to raise the educational level of its first-year students by establishing a Gymnasium Academicum, as a precursor to university studies.

In the following years, the Jesuits frequently tried to take over Freiburg's university. On the eve of the Thirty Years' War, their demand became more urgent, especially since the neighboring universities of Basel, Tübingen, and Strasbourg had become Protestant.

On February 6, 1618, Archduke Maximilian III sent a government delegation to the University of Freiburg and wrote from Innsbruck about the Jesuits that it should not only believe these gentlemen, but also promote their values, both as a whole and each of its individual members, as their zeal for the propagation of the true, only saving religion would naturally inspire them. As usual, the university senate refused to accept the takeover, arguing that Freiburg was sufficiently Catholic and that there was no need for further religious planting.

When Maximilian suddenly died in November 1618, all resistance was futile in view of the insistence of his fanatical successor, Archduke Leopold V.

The Jesuits' certificate of introduction dated November 16, 1620 reads: With the current school year, the fathers of the “Society” will begin in the late autumn to fill all the lower schools and the Faculty of Philosophy at the university, as well as three of the five positions in theology with their teachers, in order to teach the true faith in Freiburg.

The Jesuit University. Left the Jesuit Church, which is now the Catholic University Church.
In the cartouche, a picture of the Gymnasium Academicum

After Louis XIV's troops conquered Freiburg in 1677, the city became part of France. The French crown provided financial support to the Jesuits for the establishment of a Studium Gallicum. In 1682, les Frères began construction of a college along Bertoldstraße opposite the Gymnasium Academicum. On the upper floor, they set up a Jesuit library with 6000 books in two rooms.

In 1773, Emperor Joseph II abolished the Jesuit Order in his territories. In the period following, all books were concentrated in the Old University building on Rathausplatz. The building is now part of Freiburg's town hall.

©Wikipedia

The premises soon became too small. So in 1783, the Gymnasium Academicum was converted into the university library. In 1825, historian Heinrich Schreiber described the interior as follows: "On the lower floor, there are two spacious, high, and bright halls on the right and left, whose ceilings are supported by columns. A wide staircase leads to the main hall above them and the front hall, which extends over two floors and is decorated with a row of columns running along all the walls and a gallery above. Adjacent to these are two smaller halls, furnished in the same manner, which are connected to the main hall by high, vaulted passageways."

With the number of books increasing, the University planned a new building.

The library was built on Rempartstraße and opened in 1902. Following the construction of Kollegiengebäude I in 1911, the Rempartstraße formed a small campus between the library and the faculty building. Indeed, the president of Harvard University, Charles William Eliot, once described a university library as the heart of the university. Admire the rare female student at that time.

In 1972, the students had to leave the building in a hurry because the library was in danger of collapsing due to being overloaded with books. 

©Stadtarchiv Freiburg

Fortunately, construction of a new library had already started. The building on Werthmannplatz was erected in the Brutalist style and became operational in 1978.

Major defects, such as refurbishment costs and asbestos contamination, led in 2006 to the decision to build a new library. The intention was to preserve parts of the old, which meant that only the three underground cellars, i.e., the book storage areas and the elevator shafts of the old building, were retained from the superstructure.

The new UB opened on July 23, 2015. Extra 3, the satirical program on Norddeutscher Rundfunk, gave the building the title "The craziest university library in Germany." One deficiency was the blinding effect due to reflected sunlight.

The other reason for the "crazy" title was that, with 10,000 students per day, the reading rooms proved too cramped. Students stood in line before the library opened at 7 AM, then rushed to the reading rooms and blocked a seat for the whole day.

Would you like to take a break?
Please use the break timers. Reserved workspaces without break timers may be occupied by others.
After use, please return them here (©NDR).

But where there's a problem, there's also a solution: German inventiveness created the break timer.

Red Baron likes the building

Dr. Schröter spoke pro domo when he cited Andrew McDonald, "The library is the central academic focus of the university and plays a strong social role in the learning, teaching, and research processes in the institution."

**

Ship of Fools

Fools looking backward populate a ship without sails or a rudder. 

Sebastian Brant, Professor beider Rechte (canon and civil law) at Basel University, wrote the book titled Daß Narrenschyff ad Narragoniam in 1494, on the eve of the Reformation.

 

In his lecture 'The fool as a guide to the right way of life', Professor Nikolaus Henkel gave examples of pages from Brant's book. He started with the first one, alluding to a Büchernarr (sic! a fool obsessed with books), which lamely translates into English as 'bibliomaniac'.

The title of the page 'Of Useless Books' fits Red Baron well.

I walk ahead in the dance of fools, For I see many books around me, Which I neither read nor understand.           Of Useless Books That I sit at the front of the ship, That truly has a special purpose. This is not without reason: I always rely on books, I have a great treasure trove of books, Even if I rarely understand a word, I still hold them in high esteem: I am happy to ward the flies off them. When people talk about the sciences, I say: "I have them at home!" For it is enough for me to be surrounded by books. ... Since I know little Latin. I know that vinum means "wine," Gucklus a fool, And that I am called "domine doctor!" My ears are hidden, Otherwise, one would soon see the miller's animal.

Im Narrentanz voran ich gehe, Da ich viel Bücher um mich sehe, Die ich nicht lese und verstehe.         Von unnützen Büchern Daß ich im Schiffe vornan sitz, Das hat fürwahr besondern Witz. Nicht ohne Ursache ist das: Auf Bücher ich mich stets verlaß, Von Büchern hab ich großen Hort, Versteh ich selten auch ein Wort, So halt ich sie doch hoch in Ehren: Will ihnen gern die Fliegen wehren. Wo man von Wissenschaften reden tut, Sprech ich: »Daheim hab ich sie gut!« Denn es genügt schon meinem Sinn, Wenn ich umringt von Büchern bin. ... Dieweil ich wenig kann Latein. Ich weiß, daß vinum heißet »Wein«, Gucklus ein Gauch, Und daß ich heiß': »domine doctor!« Die Ohren sind verborgen mir, Sonst sah man bald des Müllers Tier.

The other example Professor Henkel showed concerns Procrastination, an art we are all familiar with, and Red Baron in particular with apartment keeping.

Whoever sings "cras, cras*" like a raven Will remain a fool until the grave; Tomorrow he will have an even bigger cap. *lat. tomorrow      On Seeking Procrastination He is a fool whom God commands To mend his ways today And renounce his sins, To embrace a better life, And who cannot mend his ways right away, No, he sets himself a deadline for the next day And sings "cras, cras!" like the raven, Not knowing if he will live that long. Many fools have been lost, Who always sang, "Tomorrow! Tomorrow!" As for sin and folly, People rush to them as soon as possible. As for God and doing what is right, That creeps up slowly now, People always seek to postpone it. "Tomorrow is better to confess than today! We'll learn to do right tomorrow!" So says many a lost son... That same tomorrow never comes, It flees and melts like snow; Only when the soul cannot remain, Then tomorrow dawns, Then the body is oppressed by pain, So that it does not think of the soul. So also in the desert perished Many Jews*, not a single one Was to reach that land Which God promised with a gentle hand. Those who are not capable of repentance today Will have even more to suffer tomorrow. Those whom God's voice calls today Do not know whether it will call them tomorrow. Therefore, many thousands are now lost. Who swore to better themselves tomorrow! *4. Moses 14:22 f

Wer singt »cras, cras*« gleichwie ein Rab. Der bleibt ein Narr bis hin zum Grab. Hat morgen eine noch größere Kapp. *lat. morgen        Vom Aufschubsuchen Der ist ein Narr, dem Gott gebeut, Daß er sich bessern soll noch heut Und soll von seinen Sünden lassen, Ein besser Leben anzufassen, Und der nicht gleich sich bessern mag, Nein, Frist sich setzt zum andern Tag Und singt »cras, cras!« des Raben Sang, Und weiß nicht, ob er lebt so lang. Viel Narren sind verlorngegangen, Die allzeit: »Morgen! Morgen!« sangen. Was Sünd und Narrheit sonst angeht, Da eilt man zu so früh wie spät; Was Gott betrifft und Rechtes tun, Das schleicht gar langsam näher nun, Dem suchen Aufschub stets die Leute. »Morgen ist besser beichten denn heute! Wir lernen Rechttun morgen schon!« So spricht gar mancher verlorener Sohn. Derselbe Morgen kommt nimmer je, Er flieht und schmilzt gleichwie der Schnee; Erst wenn die Seel nicht bleiben kann, Dann bricht der morgige Tag heran, Dann wird von Schmerz der Leib bedrängt, Daß er nicht an die Seele denkt. So sind auch in der Wüste vergangen Der Juden viel*; es sollte gelangen Kein einziger in jenes Land, Das Gott verhieß mit milder Hand*. Wer heut nicht fähig zur Reue ist, Hat morgen noch mehr, was ihm gebrist. Wen heute beruft die Gottesstimm, Weiß nicht, ob sie ruft morgen ihm, Drum sind viel Tausend jetzt verloren, Die morgen sich zu bessern schworen! *4. Moses 14, 22 f.

In view of my advanced age, I added the following page.

I'm already standing close to the pit, The executioner's knife is stabbing me in the ass*, But I won't give up my foolishness!          About Old Fools Foolishness won't let me be old; I am very old, but completely unwise, A wicked child of a hundred* years, Show the bells to the inexperienced, I give the children a command And make myself a will, Which I will regret after my death. With bad examples and knowledge I drive what my youth learned. That my wickedness may reap honor, I wish and boast boldly of shame, How I have ruined all the lands and made much water murky; I always practice evil, I am sorry that I can no longer accomplish it as before. But what I can no longer do Should remain recommended to my Heinz. *A modern description of being close to the end is "having one foot in the grave."

Schon steh ich an der Grube dicht, Im Arsch das Schindermesser* sticht Doch meine Narrheit laß ich nicht!            Von alten Narren Die Narrheit läßt mich nicht sein greis; Ich bin sehr alt, doch ganz unweis, Ein böses Kind von hundert Jahren, Zeig dem die Schellen, der unerfahren, Den Kindern geb ich Regiment Und mach mir selbst ein Testament, Das wird nach meinem Tod mir leid. Mit schlechtem Beispiel und Bescheid Treib ich, was meine Jugend lernte; Daß meine Schlechtigkeit Ehre ernte, Wünsch ich und rühm mich dreist der Schande, Wie ich beschissen alle Lande Und hab gemacht viel Wasser trübe; Im Schlechten ich mich allzeit übe, Es tut mir leid, daß ichs nicht mehr Vollbringen kann so wie vorher. Doch was ich jetzt nicht mehr kann treiben, Soll meinem Heinz empfohlen bleiben; *Eine moderne Beschreibung der Todesnähe ist "mit einem Fuß im Grabe stehen".

Well, there are two corrections to the text: I am not 100 but only 90 years old, and my son, named Andreas, passed away and won't inherit anything.

Professor Henkel ended his lecture paying homage to a colleague and friend who died in 2009. Manfred Lemmer was Professor of German literature at the University of Halle in the former GDR.

Manfred Lemmer at the Basler Fasnet 1995.
Chancellor Helmut Kohl holds a copy of the Narrenschiff edition
published by Professor Lemmer in his hands.

Lemmer was a specialist on "Das Narrenschiff" and published an edition altering the woodcut on the title page.

The ship of fools sails under the flag of the GDR. The motto of the GDR was "Forward forever, backward never," although the most backward-looking figure is Erich Mielke, head of the Stasi. Next looking to him stands Justicia*. Both have their nakedness uncovered.

*Red Baron recognized the female figure as Red Hilda, the notorious Minister of Justice Hilde Benjamin. Professor Henkel disagreed.

In the front left, a People's Police officer is beating a citizen. And in the crowd is bald Johannes R. Becher, Minister of Culture, womanizer, poet, and author of the GDR national anthem: Auferstanden aus Ruinen (Risen from the Ruins). He is groping a female comrade's breasts.

The present world is full of fools at the helm of Government ships. I found a cartoon that takes an iconic painting as its model: King Trump crosses the Delaware River with his Administration, while J. D. Vance drowns Miss Liberty.

Here is a black and white photo of the original painting:

As a strong supporter of Europe's Revolutions of 1848, Emanuel Leutze painted at Düsseldorf in 1849 the Übergang Washingtons über den Delaware, hoping to encourage Europe's liberal reformers with the example of the American Revolution. This first version at the Kunsthalle Bremen was destroyed by fire on September 5, 1942, following a bombing raid.

Is the allegory well chosen? I learned that Washington's crossing was the moment when, by duping the British troops, the American Revolution sailed from near-death to survival. Well, the Trump boat is a Narrenschiff.

**

Altdorf

Last weekend, Red Baron attended a 90th birthday party in Postbauer-Heng near Nuremberg.

A son of the jubilee, Gernot Arp, professor of geology and paleontology at Göttingen University, offered to take those interested on a geological excursion to the former university town of Altdorf. Nearby, there is a unique geological formation.

Altdorf in the Topographia Frankoniae 1648.
The university buildings are on the upper left.

When I hear the word Altdorf, I automatically think of William Tell, but Old Village is a common name in "German" lands.

Students at Altdorf University listen to their lecturer

Hadn't Wallenstein once studied in Altdorf, not far from the site of one of his greatest triumphs?

In August 1632, Gustaf Adolf had made himself at home in Nuremberg. Wallenstein had fortifications built on the hills on the north bank of the Rednitz near the Alte Veste in Zirndorf and waited until the Swedish king was forced to leave Nuremberg due to a lack of provisions.

Finally, on September 3, Gustaf Adolf sought a military decision. Again and again, he sent his troops to attack the well-entrenched imperial forces, but in vain.

Wallenstein wrote to his emperor, Ferdinand II, "The king has suffered a tremendous blow in this enterprise ... and although Your Majesty had valor and courage to spare before, this occasion has confirmed them even more, seeing how the king, having brought all his power to bear, has been repulsed, and the title of invictissimi belongs not to him but to Your Majesty." Well, Wallenstein kisses the but of his commander.

Gustav Adolf not only lost his aura of invincibility but also a third of his troops. Many of his mercenaries deserted and seamlessly joined Wallenstein's forces.

The university building in Altdorf

Gustaf Adolf fell in the Battle of Lützen in November 1632, and the University of Altdorf closed its doors in 1809 during the Napoleonic era.

The campus in 2026. Note: the fountain is still in place.

The main building of Altdorf’s former university is now a social-diaconal facility focused on people with disabilities, named after Johann Heinrich Wichern.

If you want something, you have to want it completely; half-heartedness is the same as nothing.

Wichern is widely known as the inventor of the Advent wreath.

But I digress.

Before we visited the geological site, we went to the Museum in Atdorf, which houses impressive fossils found during the excavation of the Ludwigskanal.

The Ludwigskanal at the Dörlbach incision near Altdorf

At the beginning of the 19th century, Bavarian King Ludwig I ordered the construction of an artificial waterway to be built between Kelheim on the Danube and Bamberg on the Main. The project started in 1836 and took 10 years to complete.

The idea of building a navigable connection between the Rhine and Main rivers and the Danube was not new. Common theories assume that Charlemagne, then still King of the Franks, had the so-called Fossa Carolina (also known as Karl's Ditch) built in 793.

The Dörlbach incision for the Ludwigskanal in 1845, with the old road bridge

The Ludwigskanal was 173 km long and had 100 locks. However, the ships were too small for mass transport, and soon the powerful railroad entered the market.

      

In 1950, the canal was abandoned after many sections had already been destroyed during World War II. In 1992, a modern Main-Danube Canal was inaugurated, but it proved uneconomical too and is now used only for tourist boat trips and water sports.

At the museum, Prof. Arp gave an introduction to Earth's history before our group admired the exhibit.

Timeline of Earth's history

A map in the museum shows the geological formation through which the Ludwigskanal was built.

Pachycormus,
the thick-bodied fish, lived in the time period of 189-60 million years ago

Ammonites

Ichtyosaur (Stenoteropterygius quadriscissus)

Ichthyosaurs are land animals that returned to the sea and transformed their limbs back into flippers. The number of finger joints and finger rays increased, especially between 182 and 174 million years ago.

Altdorf black marble

Black marble from Altdorf with its fossil inclusions was à la mode and correspondingly expensive.

According to the museum director, this tobacco box made from black marble is the “most expensive” item of the exhibition.

Geological cross-section through the terraced slope of the Dörlbach incision for the Ludwigkanal. 

Using a display board, Prof. Arp explained the geological situation of the Dörlbach incision.

Climate change, ocean currents, and mass extinction

The rock sequence cut into Dörbach reflects a striking shift from a cold, glaciated period to a warm period. The cause is believed to be the simultaneous strong volcanic activity in the southern hemisphere of the Earth and the resulting increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide. As temperatures rose, sea levels rose sharply, and ocean circulation decreased. This led to salt stratification in the water and ultimately to a lack of aeration of the sea floor. This was followed by species extinction and the formation of facies sludge in the Posidonia shale. 

Only the slow degradation of carbon dioxide over 2-3 million years and the further opening of the epicontinental sea to the Arctic led to gradual re-aeration and mixing with bottom-contacting ocean currents. Evidence of this can be found in so-called belemnite battlefields and a more species-rich bottom fauna in the Jurassic marl. (Gernot Arp, University of Göttingen).

(©James Albright)

The most impressive find during construction of the Ludwig Canal was a 1.5-meter-long ichthyosaur skull.

 

Tunnelling of the Ludwigskanal at Schwarzenbach (©Brunzerus/Wikipedia)

On our way back to Postbauer-Heng, we passed the tunnel at Schwarzenbach. What a technical achievement in the middle of the 19th century.

**

Out from the Shadows into the Light

Germans are humorless, according to a well-known stereotype. Well, humor is a tricky quality, but Red Baron is convinced that my compatriots are not without it.

On the other hand, Germans are notorious Nörgler (grumblers). They bitch and moan about everything, usually adding that everything used to be better in the past.

Yes, some things were better in the past, and will get worse in the future, when Chancellor Friedrich Merz declared in August that Germany's social welfare programs were unsustainable and needed an overhaul. "We simply can no longer afford the system we have today," he said in a speech, adding, "This will mean painful decisions. This will mean cuts."

A declining number of young people has to support a growing number of elderly people.

The Washington Post addressed the issue and titled an editorial "The decline of the welfare state has boosted the rise of the far right."

The fact that cuts to the social safety net will be necessary in the future is grist to the mill for those who know how to deal with it.

For the right (AfD), the problem is solved by deporting lazy foreigners who are a burden on the German social system.

And for the left (Die Linke), it's even simpler: Tax the rich.

These solutions appeal not only to right- or left-wing voters. They are, however, too simplistic.

But is it really so bad in old Germany?

At the turn of the year, Deutsche Telekom News' editorial team published a list comparing Germany's economic and political situation with those of other countries.

I have reorganized the list, added some graphics and personal comments, and I want to share the results with my readers.

The global crises are also affecting all people in this country, and do not suggest that world peace will arrive any time soon. Politically and economically, 2025 was unfortunately not a year that gave much cause for confidence and hope.

But humans would not be humans if they did not manage to strive for the light even in dark times. Because, viewed sine studio et ira, things are developing better in this country than the daily barrage of bad news would suggest.

Germany undoubtedly faces significant problems and must overcome many challenges simultaneously. However, there are only a few countries in the world that are better equipped to tackle those than the Federal Republic, as ten facts may show:

World ranking in 2024

1. Germany still has the largest gross domestic product in the EU, but, as the third-largest economy in the world, it cannot really compete with giants such as the US and China.

 

2. The standard of living is exceptionally high by global standards; Germany ranks in 7th place on the UN Human Development Index.


3. Life expectancy in Germany at 81.7 is also well above the global average of 73.5 years. Still, it is 4.1 years lower than the number one, Hong Kong, and 2.5 years lower than the European forerunner, Switzerland. Note that Red Baron is now at 90.5

4. Germany's unemployment rate is well below the EU average and one of the lowest in Europe, even among young people; the dual education system is considered a guarantee of success.

5. Because German companies invest heavily in research and development, their innovative strength is not only well above the EU average, but also above the European Commission's target.

    

6. Germany has been consolidating its position as a leading export nation for years; customers all over the world are clamoring for many German products. Still, my country looks poor compared with the ten times smaller Netherlands.

7. Despite huge debt packages that were recently voted in the Bundestag, public finances remain comparatively stable in my country. With a debt ratio of less than 65 percent, Germany is in a much better position than Japan (230 percent), Italy (137 percent), and the US (125 percent).

 

8. According to an OECD study, Germany is particularly attractive to highly qualified professionals.

9. The Federal Republic also ranks among the best internationally in terms of the rule of law, performing particularly well in categories such as "order and security" and "civil justice."

10. Despite all the doom and gloom and criticism from the US, freedom of expression and freedom of the press are well established in Germany. While Scandinavian countries and Switzerland have a GxR Score of freedom of expression and information above 90, Germany is on par with the US at 86. The UK, strangely, scores only 79.

Without sugarcoating the situation, these are good conditions for not necessarily increasing prosperity, but for maintaining it and ensuring a free, stable society in Germany.

Out of the shadows and into the light. That should be an apt headline for the political program, economic initiatives, and social impulses for the coming year. All it takes is enough people to get involved to overcome the current challenges.

My country fellows should not dwell on grievances and abuses, but clearly identify problems and seek solutions. Since these solutions are not easy, our government has referred the issues to mandated committees with clear deadlines.

Looking at all this, Germans must not forget their humor, which brings us back to the beginning of the blog.

Happy New Year, Everybody

**