Diplomacy from the underground. The remarcable career of Alexander Horn (1762-1820)

The project Diplomacy from the underground. The remarkable career of Alexander (Maurus) Horn ( 1762-1820) examines important historical events like the French Revolution and the Revolutionary wars and their effects under the perspective of a Benedictine librarian. Horn developed during the years of the Revolution: from a faithful priest to a diplomat, a bookseller and later a secret agent. He was born on 28 June 1762 in Scotland and, after his move to Regensburg, was known under the name Maurus. He acted in Regensburg as a librarian. The French Revolution prompted him to become politically active. His love for books and old manuscripts didnt extinct insofar as he traded with incunabula, manuscripts and rare prints. His desire for political participation was represented from approximately 1790 in his work as officious officer for visits and events at the Perpetual Imperial Diet in Regensburg. There he rose to a Chargé dAffaire, until a cabal of Napoleon let him dive into the underground. From about 1805 Horn worked as a secret agent in Linz, Brno, Vienna or Znojmo and sent reports to London. In 1809 he played an important role as a mediator in terms of English subsidies for the revolt in the Tyrol. In 1810 he went to London and lived on government payments until he moved to Frankfurt in the year 1813. Horn died in 1820. Important research-guiding questions are: In ascertaining the negotiating processes and social realities of diplomatic, political and socio-cultural relationships, might a close focus on a rather unknown actor provide more essential insight? Does the subsequent shift of perspective regarding known historical events such as the French Revolution or the Revolutionary Wars stimulate new interpretative approaches? How much leeway and decision-making competence has a semi-official actor, and which role does Horn play or which position does he have in his networks? In the focus of project is Maurus (Alexander) Horn, a by now carelessly treated actor of historical research, who has left a large number of official diplomatic and secret documents. These are to be analyzed from different angles. In particular, the life f Horn plays a crucial role, since he had different profiles as a clergyman, bookseller, diplomat and secret agent, all of which were represented differently in the sources. Methodologically innovative are the bonds on the so-called underground research: a network and representation analysis is performed to fathom on the one hand stereotypes, perceptions and beliefs, on the other hand constellations of persons, informants and secret information itself. As Horn has also left correspondence, his room for maneuver and possibilities for intervention can be filtered out. The project leads to several new insights and has got the ability to connect with various disciplines.

The project "Diplomacy from the Underground" dealt with the life and the different roles of Alexander (Maurus) Horn (1762-1820). He was a Benedictine monk, book agent, official diplomat, conspiracy theorist and adventurer. The project focused on his manifold contacts by letter, his diplomatic reports and his autobiography. As a book agent Horn had an excellent reputation throughout Europe due to his specialization and he played a central role in the market for old prints (Gutenberg Bible) and incunabula, which exploded around 1800. As a diplomat, he had a difficult position from the beginning, as he could not be officially accredited because of his Catholic faith. Due to his participation in a conspiracy to assassinate Napoleon, he became persona non grata. From 1805 onwards, he functioned as a diplomat in the underground, lived his life by night and was always worried about being murdered by French soldiers. His friendship with important military officers and politicians in the Austrian Empire helped him to serve at least part of his time in Prague as an official Chargé d'Affaires. His role in the distribution of British money for the suffering Tyroleans, who no longer belonged to the Empire, and in building up the Alpine Insurrection Conspiracy earned him the wrath of Metternich and he was removed from Austria. For a short time, he returned to the continent in 1813/14 as part of a diplomatic mission, but was no longer officially accredited. He spent the rest of his life in Frankfurt on the Main as a book agent. In addition to these important biographical details, Horn played a decisive role in the formation of the anti-illuminati conspiracy theory, which was originally a reaction of German freemasons to the secret society of the Illuminati founded in Ingolstadt in 1776. Horn had dealings with various Illuminati in Regensburg and developed an extreme defensive attitude against the Illuminati because of his personal involvement in the French Revolution. He most likely supplied John Robison, an Edinburgh professor of natural philosophy, with German-language books and sources. Robison wrote "Proofs of a Conspiracy" (1797) from this material, which is still read and reprinted today. Through the intensive study of Horn's role in this context, it was possible to gain significant new insights into 18th century conspiracy theories and their later reception. For example, Robison's notebook, with which he used to write "Proofs of a Conspiracy", could be found. A particular highlight is Horn's autobiography. He wrote it in 1812 and it is a unique source in that it provides information about Horn's early years. In the autobiography, Horn reflects his fate and his life so far in the style of a sometimes exaggerated self-fashioning.