Fritz Epstein
Encyclopedia
Fritz T. Epstein was a scholar and expert on the Soviet Union, born in Saargemünd, Alsace-Lorraine
, then part of Germany
, in 1898. He emigrated to the United States in the mid-thirties, and after an illustrious career, died in 1979. He was married to a Bertelsmann, by whom he had two children.
Paul Epstein
and Alice Betty (née Wiesengrund). On his mother's side he was thus related to Theodor Adorno, since Alice Betty was Adorno's aunt. He graduated to Heidelberg University where his studies were interrupted by the outbreak of World War I
. He served in a sound-direction-finding unit (Schallmesstrupp)on the Western Front
, and took part in General Ludendorff
's Kaiserschlacht or final offensive
in 1918.
At war's end he renewed his studies, focusing on Eastern European history successively at Jena
, Frankfurt am Main and Berlin, where he received his PhD
, with a dissertation on the court and administration of Russia
from the 15th to the 17th century, in 1924. He undertook his Habilitation
schrift at the University of Hamburg
, under Richard Salomon
, from 1926 to 1931, and Frankfurt University from 1932 to 1933, on the International Relations
of the Soviet Union
and the Allied Intervention
in the post-revolutionary period of civil war
of 1917-1921.
With the Nazi seizure of power
in 1933, his Habilitation and any prospect of a career was blocked and he thus moved to London
in 1933, with the assistanmce of the Academic Assistance Council (AAC) and subsequently to the United States
(1936) to escape Nazi persecution. He was appointed to the faculty of Harvard University
in 1937, and taught there until 1943. During the war he was engaged to work for the U.S. State Department. From 1948 to 1951 he worked as Curator
of the Central European and Slavic Collections at the Hoover Institution
, Stanford University
.
In 1962, he joined the faculty of Indiana University
as professor and curator of the Slavic collections. Epstein retired in 1969 and returned to Germany to live. He died on December 6, 1979
Alsace-Lorraine
The Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine was a territory created by the German Empire in 1871 after it annexed most of Alsace and the Moselle region of Lorraine following its victory in the Franco-Prussian War. The Alsatian part lay in the Rhine Valley on the west bank of the Rhine River and east...
, then part of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, in 1898. He emigrated to the United States in the mid-thirties, and after an illustrious career, died in 1979. He was married to a Bertelsmann, by whom he had two children.
Life
Epstein was the son of mathematicianMathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
Paul Epstein
Paul Epstein
Paul Epstein was a German mathematician. He was known for his contributions to number theory, in particular the Epstein zeta function....
and Alice Betty (née Wiesengrund). On his mother's side he was thus related to Theodor Adorno, since Alice Betty was Adorno's aunt. He graduated to Heidelberg University where his studies were interrupted by the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He served in a sound-direction-finding unit (Schallmesstrupp)on the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
, and took part in General Ludendorff
Erich Ludendorff
Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff was a German general, victor of Liège and of the Battle of Tannenberg...
's Kaiserschlacht or final offensive
Spring Offensive
The 1918 Spring Offensive or Kaiserschlacht , also known as the Ludendorff Offensive, was a series of German attacks along the Western Front during World War I, beginning on 21 March 1918, which marked the deepest advances by either side since 1914...
in 1918.
At war's end he renewed his studies, focusing on Eastern European history successively at Jena
Jena
Jena is a university city in central Germany on the river Saale. It has a population of approx. 103,000 and is the second largest city in the federal state of Thuringia, after Erfurt.-History:Jena was first mentioned in an 1182 document...
, Frankfurt am Main and Berlin, where he received his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
, with a dissertation on the court and administration of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
from the 15th to the 17th century, in 1924. He undertook his Habilitation
Habilitation
Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
schrift at the University of Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, under Richard Salomon
Richard G. Salomon
Richard Georg Salomon was an historian of eastern European medieval history and historian of the Episcopal Church in the United States, who taught at the University of Hamburg in Germany and at Kenyon College and its Episcopal Church seminary Bexley Hall in Ohio USA.-Early life and education:The...
, from 1926 to 1931, and Frankfurt University from 1932 to 1933, on the International Relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and the Allied Intervention
Allied Intervention in the Russian Civil War
The Allied intervention was a multi-national military expedition launched in 1918 during World War I which continued into the Russian Civil War. Its operations included forces from 14 nations and were conducted over a vast territory...
in the post-revolutionary period of civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
of 1917-1921.
With the Nazi seizure of power
Machtergreifung
Machtergreifung is a German word meaning "seizure of power". It is normally used specifically to refer to the Nazi takeover of power in the democratic Weimar Republic on 30 January 1933, the day Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of Germany, turning it into the Nazi German dictatorship.-Term:The...
in 1933, his Habilitation and any prospect of a career was blocked and he thus moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1933, with the assistanmce of the Academic Assistance Council (AAC) and subsequently to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(1936) to escape Nazi persecution. He was appointed to the faculty of Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1937, and taught there until 1943. During the war he was engaged to work for the U.S. State Department. From 1948 to 1951 he worked as Curator
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
of the Central European and Slavic Collections at the Hoover Institution
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded in 1919 by then future U.S. president, Herbert Hoover, an early alumnus of Stanford....
, Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
In 1962, he joined the faculty of Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
as professor and curator of the Slavic collections. Epstein retired in 1969 and returned to Germany to live. He died on December 6, 1979
Works
- (editor) Heinrich von Staden, Aufzeichnungen ueber den Moskauer Staat, Friedrichsen, Hamburg 1930, 2nd., ed. 1964
- Fritz T.Epstein, War-Time Activities of the SS-Ahnenerbe in Baron Max Beloff, (ed.) On the track of tyranny: essays presented by the Wiener Library to Leonard G. Montefiore, on the occasion of his seventieth birthday, Ayer Publishing, 1960 pp.77-95.
- Stefan Müller-Doohm,Adorno: a biography, (tr. Rodney Livingstone), Polity, 2005.
- G. L. Weinberg, 'Note: Fritz T.Epstein, 1898–1979,' Conference Group for Central European History of the American Historical Association. pp. 399ff.