The University Library Freiburg (German Universitätsbibliothek Freiburg, UB) is the library of the University of Freiburg

University of Freiburg

The University of Freiburg , sometimes referred to in English as the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.The university was founded in 1457 by the Habsburg dynasty as the...

. As an academic

Academic library

An academic library is a library that is attached to academic institutions above the secondary level, serving the teaching and research needs of students and staff...

 and research library

Research library

A research library is a library which contains an in-depth collection of material on one or several subjects . A research library will generally include primary sources as well as secondary sources...

, the University Library caters to students and staff of the University of Freiburg, the University of Education Freiburg, the Catholic University of Applied Sciences Freiburg, and the Protestant University of Applied Sciences Freiburg

Protestant University for Applied Sciences Freiburg

The Protestant University of Applied Sciences Freiburg is a university of social work, diakonia and religious education. It is a confessional, state-approved university located in Freiburg. The responsible body is the Protestant regional church of Baden...

. The library is open to interested members of the public as well.

History

When the University of Freiburg was founded in 1457 the libraries were most commonly attached to the respective faculties. In 1755, the various libraries were finally joined to form a common library and a new hall was constructed to house the inventory of books. The abolition of the Catholic order Society of Jesus

Society of Jesus

The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...

 in 1773 marked the end of the Jesuit presence at the university. The Jesuit order had been in charge of large parts of the university since 1620. Due to the suppression of the order, large collections of books from Jesuit libraries were transferred to University of Freiburg, leading to a rapid expansion of the University Library's stock. The secularization and reforms

Josephinism

Josephinism is the term used to describe the domestic policies of Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor . During the ten years in which Joseph was the sole ruler of the Habsburg Monarchy , he attempted to legislate a series of drastic reforms to remodel Austria in the form of the ideal Enlightened state...

 introduced by Emperor Joseph II of Austria subsequently caused the disbandment of several monasteries, further contributing to the increase in books.

The creation of a commission dedicated to acquiring literature in 1795 as well as the professionalization of the library direction led to a continuing prosperous growth of the library and its inventory. After the library had moved into a gothic revival building in 1903, numerous reforms to the organization were enacted. Various publications and exhibitions showed a new emphasis on public presence. During Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

, the University Library like the University of Freiburg itself complied with the racist laws and censorship of the regime. Due to the timely evacuation of many of books, the library was able to prevent the destruction of large quantities of its inventory during World War II, despite significant damage to the library building. The post-war years are characterized by reconstruction and the reorganization as well as expansion of the library's stock.

A new building was constructed in 1978 to house the library and its inventory, which by now had grown to become very extensive. New catalogs were introduced and a university library system including faculty libraries was implemented. In recent years, the expansion of digital volumes and new media has been a focus of the development of the University Library Freiburg. The podcasting

Podcasting

A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...

 service offered by the library was selected as a landmark in the initiative Germany - Land of Ideas sponsored by the German government and the Federation of German Industries.

Buildings

The first hall serving as location for the University Library mentioned above was expanded in 1822 to ensure its continuous use. In 1903, the library moved to a gothic revival building, which is today known as the Kollegiengebäude IV (KG IV). In 1978, the University of Freiburg constructed a new building across from the Kollegiengebäude II and next to the Freiburg Theater.

The building consists of three underground and six above-ground floors. Due to structural damage and dated features, the University Library building is currently undergoing extensive renovation including a completely new facade in accordance with university plans for a new campus layout. The university called for architects to submit their proposals for the new building in 2006, with a team from Basel

Basel

Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...

 winning the bid.

In 2008 the University Library moved its stock and services out of the main building and into temporary locations. The former municipal hall (ehemalige Stadthalle Freiburg), now designated Universitätsbibliothek 1 (UB1), and a building next to the student cafeteria (UB2) now serve as the core locations of the University Library until construction on the main building is completed in 2012/2013. The UB1 location is open 24 hours daily for students.

Volumes and media

With an inventory of approximately 3.6 million volumes, the University Library Freiburg is one of the largest libraries in the state of Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...

. In 2007, the library saw over 2 million borrowings by around 36,000 active users.

External links

• University Library Freiburg (in German)
• University of Freiburg