Johann Christian Ritter
Encyclopedia
Johann Christian Ritter (born 1755-7-25, died 1810-9-9) was a German in the service of the Dutch East India Company
who came to South Africa
in 1784. He was the first to print in the Cape
, the earliest record is an almanac titled "Almanach voor't jaar 1796".
He was in the service of the Dutch East India Company
when he arrived at the Cape Colony in the later half of 1784 and was appointed by them in 1794 to print government notices, forms and so forth.
In the 10 years before be received the started to print he bound books, he may have been a book binder by trade when he arrived at the Cape though it may be that he took on this work through familiarity, having been the son of a bookbinder.
He died at the age of 55.
He undertook to print official forms and handbills as well as almanacs. The surviving (1796) almanac was printed in 1795. As he also printed almanacs for at least the years 1795 and 1797, so he would likely have started his printing in 1794 or before but none of his earlier work has been discovered. His almanac did not bring him any great financial reward, having been used by many to copy out of by hand, notwithstanding some factual errors relating to dates of lunar eclipses. Only one copy of the first leaf is known to exist in the Sir George Grey Collection of the South African Library
and this one may be a proof sheet.
Soon after 1797 when the British took occupation of the Cape, permission to print was transferred to Messrs Walker and Robertson who had questionable ties with the briefly serving governor Sir George Yonge even though Ritter and Harry Harwood Smith, a printing contemporary of his, had petitioned for the printing rights.
Ritter's press may also have been used in 1799 by V.A. Schoonberg
for printing the first book in South Africa which was also the first printed religious text in South Africa. It was used to print a military proclamation in 1799 as it was the only available press.
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
who came to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in 1784. He was the first to print in the Cape
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
, the earliest record is an almanac titled "Almanach voor't jaar 1796".
History
J.C. Ritter was born in 1755 either in Bayreuth or Hof an der Saale, these are cities less than 50km distant from each other in Germany and may have referred to the same place. He was the Son of the book binder Georg Stephan Ritter and his wife Johanna Dorothea (nee. Leidenforst). He married Barbara Fuhrmann of Danzig and they had no children and she died after him in 1813-6-9.He was in the service of the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
when he arrived at the Cape Colony in the later half of 1784 and was appointed by them in 1794 to print government notices, forms and so forth.
In the 10 years before be received the started to print he bound books, he may have been a book binder by trade when he arrived at the Cape though it may be that he took on this work through familiarity, having been the son of a bookbinder.
He died at the age of 55.
Legacy
It is not certain if he brought the small hand-press with him or if the press only arrived later when he prepared for printing or was appointed to the task.He undertook to print official forms and handbills as well as almanacs. The surviving (1796) almanac was printed in 1795. As he also printed almanacs for at least the years 1795 and 1797, so he would likely have started his printing in 1794 or before but none of his earlier work has been discovered. His almanac did not bring him any great financial reward, having been used by many to copy out of by hand, notwithstanding some factual errors relating to dates of lunar eclipses. Only one copy of the first leaf is known to exist in the Sir George Grey Collection of the South African Library
National Library of South Africa
The National Library of South Africa is the agency of the government of South Africa which maintains a national library of all published materials relating to the country.-Creation under the National Library Act:...
and this one may be a proof sheet.
Soon after 1797 when the British took occupation of the Cape, permission to print was transferred to Messrs Walker and Robertson who had questionable ties with the briefly serving governor Sir George Yonge even though Ritter and Harry Harwood Smith, a printing contemporary of his, had petitioned for the printing rights.
Ritter's press may also have been used in 1799 by V.A. Schoonberg
Valentine Alexius Schoonberg
Valentine Alexius Schoonberg a Bavarian retail merchant and/or a missionary based at the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa . He was suspected of being a co-conspirator with individual/s being held at the Castle after sentencing for capital crimes...
for printing the first book in South Africa which was also the first printed religious text in South Africa. It was used to print a military proclamation in 1799 as it was the only available press.
See also
Global spread of the printing press - to see how printing spread to the European colonies, often political or religious limitations restricted the spread of printing faster than the public might have desired.Further reading
- An Account of Travels Into the Interior of Southern Africa Google scan of the relevant page
- Anne Lindsay Barnard, "The Cape Diaries of Lady Anne BarnardLady Anne BarnardLady Anne Barnard , née Anne Lindsay, eldest daughter of James Lindsay, 5th Earl of Balcarres was born at Balcarres House, Fife, Scotland. She was author of the ballad Auld Robin Gray and an accomplished travel writer, artist and socialite of the period...
, 1799-1800", Van Riebeeck Society, (1999) (have not found copy or online access) - Aribert A Lamperstorfer, Article "Johann Christian Ritter, Pionier des südafrikanischen Buchdrucks" in Gutenberg-JahrbuchGutenberg-JahrbuchThe Gutenberg-Jahrbuch is an annual periodical publication covering the history of printing and the book. Its focus is on incunables, early printing, and the life and work of Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the modern printed book...
, (1976) p. 364-371 (have not found a copy or online access) - Gesine Krüger, Schrift - Macht - Alltag: Lesen und Schreiben im kolonialen Südafrika, ISBN-10: 3412201162 refers to JC Ritter in a footnote and cites Fransie Rossouw, South African Printers and Publishers 1975-1925. From a South African Bibliography to the Year 1925, Cape Town 1987, p131
- Conradie, Elisabeth, Hollandse skrywers in Suidafrika, pp. 222ff. is cited by Hoge, J
- Smith, Anna H, The spread of printing. Eastern hemisphere, South Africa, Amsterdam, Vagendt, 1971 is mentioned in Lewin Robinson, AM
- Lloyd, ACG, The birth of printing in South Africa, South African Libraries, Vol 1, No 1, p11-13 cited by Schmidt-Pretoria, Werner
External links
- Comments on scope of the Collection donated in 1861 by Sir George Grey, past governor of the Cape Colony, to the South African LibraryNational Library of South AfricaThe National Library of South Africa is the agency of the government of South Africa which maintains a national library of all published materials relating to the country.-Creation under the National Library Act:...
containing the earliest South African printed specimen and many other manuscripts, incunabula and books.