Emil Ludwig Collection
Scope and Contents
This collection documents the professional life of the author and journalist Emil Ludwig. There are only a few personal papers, such as biographical informational, contracts with publishers, documents concerning his tax affairs and his last will, which can be found in Series I.
The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence (Series II). Subseries 1 holds letters between Emil Ludwig and Abraham Tulin, his attorney in the United States, which are mainly related to Ludwig's immigration and the arrangement of new publishing contracts. Subseries 2 contains correspondence between Ludwig's attorneys Block and Tulin and publishers, lawyers and literary agents.
Series III holds writings by Emil Ludwig, such as manuscripts, newspaper and magazine clippings and offprints.
Dates
- Creation: 1925-1962
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1925-1948
Creator
- Ludwig, Emil, 1881-1948 (Person)
Language of Materials
The collection is in English and German.
Access Restrictions
Open to researchers.
Use Restrictions
There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact:
Leo Baeck Institute, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY, 10011
email: lbaeck@lbi.cjh.org
Biographical Note
Emil Ludwig (originally named Emil Cohn) was born in Breslau (now Worcaw, Poland) in 1881. He studied law, but chose writing as a career. He began as a dramatist and mainly wrote plays and novellas, while also working as a journalist. In 1906, he moved to Switzerland. During World War I, he worked as a foreign correspondent for the Berliner Tageblatt in Vienna and Istanbul. In the 1920s, he became well-known for his biographies, which combined fact, fiction and psychological analysis. His subjects included Goethe (1920), Bismarck (1922-1924), Napoleon (1925), and Michelangelo (1930). He also achieved international fame, and his novels were translated into 25 languages. Joseph Goebbels, who mentioned him in his journal, considered his writings dangerous. Consequently, Ludwig's books were amoung those burned by the Nazis on May 10, 1933.
In 1940, Emil Ludwig immigrated to the United States, where he continued to write. During his time in New York, he published The Mediterranean (1942), How to Treat the Germans (1943), and The Moral Conquest of Germany (1945). He returned to Switzerland after the war and died in Moscio, Italy, in 1948.
Extent
1 Linear Feet
Abstract
This collection documents the professional life of the author and journalist Emil Ludwig. The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence with lawyers and publishers regarding his writings. In addition, there are a few personal documents and manuscripts of his writings.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into four series.
- Series I: Biography and Personal Documents, 1925-1948
- Series II: Correspondence, 1933-1948
- Subseries 1: Correspondence between Emil Ludwig and Abraham Tulin, 1937-1948
- Subseries 2: Correspondence between Ludwig's Attorneys and Publishers, 1933-1945
- Series III: Manuscripts and Newspaper Clippings, 1939-1962
- Series IV: Various, 1943-1962
- Title
- Guide to the Papers of Emil Ludwig (1881-1948), 1925-1962 (bulk 1925-1948) AR 3441
- Author
- Processed by Richard Goebelt
- Date
- © 2005
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Description is in English.
Revision Statements
- 2010-03-23 : encoding of linking to digital objects from finding aid was changed from <extref> to <dao> through dao_conv.xsl
Repository Details
Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository
