Julius von Payer
Encyclopedia
Julius Johannes Ludovicus Ritter
von Payer (2 September 1841 – 19 August 1915) was an Austro-Hungarian arctic
explorer and an Arctic landscape
artist.
Born Julius Payer, his father Franz Anton Rudolf Payer was a retired officer who died when Julius was only fourteen. Payer attended k.k. cadet school in Lobzowa near Kraków
(now Poland
). Between 1857 and 1859 he studied at the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt
(near Vienna
). In 1859 he served as a sub-lieutenant with the 36th. infantry
regiment
in Verona
, Northern Italy
. He participated in the 1859 Battle of Solferino
. Between 1860 and 1863 he served at the garrison in Verona, Italy. In 1863 Payer was assigned as a history teacher to the cadet
school in Eisenstadt
, Austria. After promotion to the rank of lieutenant
first class he was posted to the garrison
of Venetia.
In 1862 he started exploratory tours of the Italian
Alps and Hohe Tauern
in his free time. From 1864-1868 he explored the Adamello-Presanella
Group and the Ortler Alps
. He was the first to climb Adamello (3554m). His tours resulted in creating a detailed topographical map at a scale 1:56,000. Due to his achievements, Payer was transferred to the Austrian Military Cartographical Institute in Vienna.
On 24 June 1866 he was heroic at the Battle of Custoza
seizing two gun
s and was decorated.
In 1868 he was invited by the German geographer August Petermann to participate in the 1869-1870 2nd German North Polar Expedition
(Germania under Carl Koldewey
).
In 1871 he participated in the preliminary Austro-Hungarian expedition to Novaya Zemlya
, with Karl Weyprecht
.
From 1872-1874 he led the Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition
with Karl Weyprecht
.
In 1874 he resigned from the army because of political maneuvers against him and his brother officers' doubts about his discovery and his sledge journeys.
On 1 October 1874 he got 44 Gulden (Austrian currency) for the discovery of Franz Joseph Land. On 24 October 1876 he was elevated to the Austrian nobility
which entitled him and his descendants to the style of Ritter von in the case of male and von in the case of female offspring.
In 1877 Ritter von Payer married the ex-wife of a banker from Frankfurt am Main. They later had two children, Jules and Alice.
From 1877-1879 he studied painting at the Städelsches Institut in Frankfurt / Main. From 1880-1882 he continued his study of art at the Akademie der bildenden Künste in München
.
From 1884-1890 he worked as a painter in Paris
.
In 1890 he divorced his wife, returned to Vienna and founded a painting school for ladies.
In 1895 he planned a trip for painting to Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord
in northeastern (Greenland
).
In 1912 he planned (at the age of seventy) an expedition in a submarine to the North Pole
.
He died in 1915.
Ritter
Ritter is a designation used as a title of nobility in German-speaking areas. Traditionally it denotes the second lowest rank within the nobility, standing above "Edler" and below "Freiherr"...
von Payer (2 September 1841 – 19 August 1915) was an Austro-Hungarian arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
explorer and an Arctic landscape
Landscape
Landscape comprises the visible features of an area of land, including the physical elements of landforms such as mountains, hills, water bodies such as rivers, lakes, ponds and the sea, living elements of land cover including indigenous vegetation, human elements including different forms of...
artist.
Born Julius Payer, his father Franz Anton Rudolf Payer was a retired officer who died when Julius was only fourteen. Payer attended k.k. cadet school in Lobzowa near Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
(now Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
). Between 1857 and 1859 he studied at the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt
Wiener Neustadt
-Main sights:* The Late-Romanesque Dom, consecrated in 1279 and cathedral from 1469 to 1785. The choir and transept, in Gothic style, are from the 14th century. In the late 15th century 12 statues of the Apostles were added in the apse, while the bust of Cardinal Melchior Klesl is attributed to...
(near Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
). In 1859 he served as a sub-lieutenant with the 36th. infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
in Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, Northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. He participated in the 1859 Battle of Solferino
Battle of Solferino
The Battle of Solferino, , was fought on June 24, 1859 and resulted in the victory of the allied French Army under Napoleon III and Sardinian Army under Victor Emmanuel II against the Austrian Army under Emperor Franz Joseph I; it was the last major battle in world...
. Between 1860 and 1863 he served at the garrison in Verona, Italy. In 1863 Payer was assigned as a history teacher to the cadet
Cadet
A cadet is a trainee to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. The term comes from the term "cadet" for younger sons of a noble family.- Military context :...
school in Eisenstadt
Eisenstadt
- Politics :The current mayor of Eisenstadt is Andrea Fraunschiel ÖVP.The district council is composed as follows :* ÖVP: 17 seats* SPÖ: 8 seats* Austrian Green Party: 2 seats* FPÖ: 2 seats- Castles and palaces :...
, Austria. After promotion to the rank of lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
first class he was posted to the garrison
Garrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
of Venetia.
In 1862 he started exploratory tours of the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Alps and Hohe Tauern
Hohe Tauern
The Hohe Tauern or High Tauern are a mountain range on the main chain of the Central Eastern Alps, comprising the highest peaks east of the Brenner Pass. The crest forms the southern border of the Austrian state of Salzburg with Carinthia and East Tyrol, while a small part in the southwest belongs...
in his free time. From 1864-1868 he explored the Adamello-Presanella
Adamello-Presanella
The Adamello-Presanella Alpine group is a mountain range in the Italian Alps. It is part of the Southern Limestone Alps. It is located in the provinces of Trentino and Brescia...
Group and the Ortler Alps
Ortler Alps
The Ortler Alps are a mountain range in the central Alps of Italy. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps or the Southern Limestone Alps....
. He was the first to climb Adamello (3554m). His tours resulted in creating a detailed topographical map at a scale 1:56,000. Due to his achievements, Payer was transferred to the Austrian Military Cartographical Institute in Vienna.
On 24 June 1866 he was heroic at the Battle of Custoza
Battle of Custoza (1866)
The Battle of Custoza took place on June 24, 1866 during the Third Italian Independence War in the Italian unification process.The Austrian Imperial army with the old Venetian Army, led by Archduke Albert of Habsburg, defeated the Italian army led by Alfonso Ferrero la Marmora and Enrico Cialdini,...
seizing two gun
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
s and was decorated.
In 1868 he was invited by the German geographer August Petermann to participate in the 1869-1870 2nd German North Polar Expedition
German North Polar Expedition
German North Polar Expedition was a short series of mid-19th century German expeditions to the Arctic. The aim was to explore the North Polar Region and to brand the newly united, Prussian-led German Empire as a great power...
(Germania under Carl Koldewey
Carl Koldewey
Carl Christian Koldewey was a German Arctic explorer. He led both German North Polar Expeditions.-Life and career:...
).
In 1871 he participated in the preliminary Austro-Hungarian expedition to Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya , also known in Dutch as Nova Zembla and in Norwegian as , is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean in the north of Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe, the easternmost point of Europe lying at Cape Flissingsky on the northern island...
, with Karl Weyprecht
Karl Weyprecht
Karl Weyprecht, also spelt Carl Weyprecht, was an Austro-Hungarian explorer. He was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He is most famous as an Arctic explorer, and an advocate of international cooperation for scientific polar exploration...
.
From 1872-1874 he led the Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition
Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition
The Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition was an expedition that ran from 1872–74 and discovered Franz-Josef Land. According to Julius von Payer, one of the leaders, the journey was to find the north-eastern passage. It actually explored the area northwest of Novaya Zemlya. According to the...
with Karl Weyprecht
Karl Weyprecht
Karl Weyprecht, also spelt Carl Weyprecht, was an Austro-Hungarian explorer. He was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He is most famous as an Arctic explorer, and an advocate of international cooperation for scientific polar exploration...
.
In 1874 he resigned from the army because of political maneuvers against him and his brother officers' doubts about his discovery and his sledge journeys.
On 1 October 1874 he got 44 Gulden (Austrian currency) for the discovery of Franz Joseph Land. On 24 October 1876 he was elevated to the Austrian nobility
Austrian nobility
Historically, the Austrian nobility was a privileged social class in Austria. The nobility was officially abolished in 1919 after the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Former noble families and their descendants are still a part of Austrian society today, but they no longer retain any specific...
which entitled him and his descendants to the style of Ritter von in the case of male and von in the case of female offspring.
In 1877 Ritter von Payer married the ex-wife of a banker from Frankfurt am Main. They later had two children, Jules and Alice.
From 1877-1879 he studied painting at the Städelsches Institut in Frankfurt / Main. From 1880-1882 he continued his study of art at the Akademie der bildenden Künste in München
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
.
From 1884-1890 he worked as a painter in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
In 1890 he divorced his wife, returned to Vienna and founded a painting school for ladies.
In 1895 he planned a trip for painting to Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord
Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord
Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord is a major fjord system in East Greenland, bounded by Suess Land and Ymer Island to the South, and Frænkel Land, Andrée Land and Gauss Peninsula to the North...
in northeastern (Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
).
In 1912 he planned (at the age of seventy) an expedition in a submarine to the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
.
He died in 1915.
See also
- The Austro-Hungarian polar expedition led by Julius von Payer was selected as main motif for the Austrian Admiral Tegetthoff Ship and The Polar Expedition commemorative coin minted on 8 June 2005. The reverse side of the coin shows two explorers in Arctic gear (one of them resembling von Payer) with the frozen ship "Admiral Tegetthoff" behind them.
- Payer IslandPayer IslandPayer Island is an island in Franz Josef Land, Russia. Its area is 160 km².Payer Island is part of the Zichy Land subgroup of the Franz Josef Archipelago....