Der Deutsche Merkur

Cover "Der Deutsche Merkur"

Der Deutsche Merkur
Weimar 1773 – 1789
(from Februar 1773 on: Der Teutsche Merkur)
Der Neue Teutsche Merkur Weimar 1790 – 1810
incl. «Anzeiger» 1783 – 1787, «Intelligenzblatt» 1800 – 1808
Suppl. «Monatsberichte» 1805 – 1808
ed. by Christoph Martin Wieland

46.200 pages on 201 microfiches
1993, ISBN 3-89131-100-1

Diazo (negative): EUR 2,780.– / Silver (negative): EUR 3,336.–

With Christoph Martin Wieland's Teutscher Merkur a different type of periodical appeared which, for the first time, brought a broad variety of topics and literary forms closer to the readers of journals. Poetic articles as well as reviews, philosophic and scientific treatises, political essays, descriptions of travels, and biographies can be found here. Also, for years Wieland kept his promise to first publish each of his own works in the Merkur.

Being in no way a programmatic periodical, its program depended on the coming and going of its different editors. That is why there are distinct phases which can be traced back to Jacobi, Merck, Bertuch, Reinhold, and Böttiger.

While, in its first stage, the Merkur thoroughly challenged the young writers of the «Sturm und Drang»-period, after all, it did integrate their works when Goethe moved to Weimar. This short phase was followed by a series of scientific articles after Bertuch joined the editorial staff. Wieland reinforced these writings with his anti-supernaturalistic essays. When his son-in-law, Carl Leonhard Reinhold, began to contribute to the periodical, the Merkur (next to the Berlinische Monatsschrift) particularly popularized Kant's philosophy. This stage only ended after Reinhold had left Jena and Böttiger took over his place. Under his leadership the Merkur became more like an archaeologic-antiquarian journal. It was also during this period that Wieland himself – an important political publicist as he was – once again became active in writing.

The numerous prejudices held against the Teutscher Merkur did not succeed in limiting its influence: The Teutscher Merkur can be seen not only as one of the most long-lived but also as one of the great German periodicals.

Among the staff members were some of the most important literary men and scientists of their time: B.R. Abeken, J.J. Bodmer, J.W. v. Goethe, F. Frhr. v. Hardenberg (Novalis), J.G. Herder, M. Herz, Chr. F.W. Hufeland, I. Kant, F.A. v. Kleist, J.G. Meusel, F. Schiller, A.W. Schlegel, F. Schlegel, and G.J.G. Seume.

(taken from P. Hocks, P. Schmidt: Literarische und politische Zeitschriften 1789 – 1895)