Leben und Werk von Anastasius Grün

Anton Alexander Graf (count) von Auersperg (1806-1876), better known by his pseudonym Anastasius Grün, secured himself a modest position in German-language-literature because of the bold style of his poetry in Spaziergänge eines Wiener Poeten (Promenades of a Viennese Poet). Modest are also the facts generally known about him, and contradictory at the same time: a defender of liberalism and a pioneer of the Vormärz, agreedy aristocrat and a masterly translator of popular Slovene songs and friend of the important Slovene France Preseren, but also a German nationalist, liberal and loyal to the emperor. The Viennese Germanist Eduard Castle, in his preface to the poets collected work (Berlin: Bong [1909]) gives most expressive evidence ogf his thorough knowledge about the poet. The present work attempts at summarizing research on the poet carried out since, and based on, Castles publication and at correcting some miosconceptions. Two so far unaccessible sources were used: the poets literary buquest owned by the German language institute of the Graz University, and the Auerspger family archive kept by the Austrian State Archives in Vienna, which, in addition to a large number of private letters includes 6219 business letters of the editors, and correspondence with admirers and political institutions. These sources assist in shedding light on the usual clichés surrounding the image of Anastasius Grün and provide a more solid basis. Today, for instance, there is evidence of the influence by his parents-in laws family on the poet to the effect that he should discontinue his writiung unelcome with the authorities, or that hardly any of his occasional poems was the products of his own drive but occasioned by requests of a friend or editor.