Georg Forster
German naturalist, ethnologist, travel writer, journalist, and revolutionary (1754-1794) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Johann George Adam Forster, also known as Georg Forster[nb 1] (German pronunciation: [ˈɡeːɔʁk ˈfɔʁstɐ], 27 November 1754 – 10 January 1794), was a German naturalist, ethnologist, travel writer, journalist and revolutionary. When he was young, he went with his father. Johann Reinhold Forster on many scientific trips. One of these was James Cook's second trip to the Pacific. Forster wrote about this trip in the book A Voyage Round the World. The book helped contribute to the ethnology to people in Polynesia. It still is a respected work. Because of this book, Forster was let into the Royal Society when he was 22. He was thought to be one of the founders of modern scientific travel literature.
Georg Forster | |
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Born | 27 November 1754 (1754-11-27) |
Died | 10 January 1794(1794-01-10) (aged 39) |
Spouse | Therese Heyne |
Children | Therese Forster |
Awards | Fellow of the Royal Society, 1777 |
Scientific career | |
Fields | natural history, ethnology |
Influenced | Alexander von Humboldt |
Author abbrev. (botany) | G.Forst. |
Signature | |
Forster went back to Continental Europe after his trips. Forster decided then to have many jobs in education and learning. He taught natural history at the Collegium Carolinum in the Ottoneum, Kassel (1778–84). He then worked at the Academy of Vilna (1784–87). In 1788, he was the head librarian at the University of Mainz. Here, he did lot of scientific work on essays on botany and ethnology . He also translated and wrote a lot of books about travel and exploration. For example, he wrote a German translation of Cook's diaries.
Forster was a large figure in the Enlightenment in Germany. He talked closely with many of his close friends. His ideas, writings and personality influenced Alexander von Humboldt. Humboldt was a famous scientist in the 19th century.[5] When France took control of Mainz in 1792, Forster played a big role in the Mainz Republic (the earliest republican state in Germany). During July 1793 and while he was in Paris as a delegate of the young Mainz Republic, Prussian and Austrian coalition forces regained control of the city and Forster was declared an outlaw. Forster was not able to go back to Germany. He was separated from his friends and family. In early 1794, he died in Paris of illness.