Ludwig Grass
Portrait by Ludwig Kühlenthal c. 1850
Personal details
Born
Josef Johann Ludwig

24 August 1789
Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Died29 November 1860
Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Parent(s)Christoph Grass
Maria Josepha Zech

Josef Johann Ludwig, more commonly known as Ludwig Grass (24 August 1789 – 29 November 1860) was a physician and political figure from Liechtenstein.

Early life

Grass was born on 24 August 1789 in Vaduz to the son of doctor Christoph Grass and his mother Maria Josepha Zech as one of two children. He attended high school in Feldkirch and from 1807 to 1813 he studied medicine in the University of Vienna and Landshut, where he received a directorate in 1813.[1] In 1811 he became member of Corps Bavaria in Munich.[2]

Medical career and patronage

It was in Vienna that Grass met Peter Kaiser, with whom he remained friends with his whole life. In December 1813, he started working as a physician in Vaduz. Besides Gebhard Schädler, he was the only academically trained doctor in Liechtenstein at the time and he often treated many of his sick patients free of charge. From 1820 to 1829 he was a member of the Graubünden Medical Association.[1]

Grass was a prominent proponent of the expansion of education in Liechtenstein and donated a considerable amount of his wealth towards this. He supported the opening of the first girls school in Vaduz in 1845 and in 1852 he donated two houses and it's surroundings to be used as teacher's apartments. As a result of this, a new primary school was built, which was also intended to provide space for a new high school to be built.[1] In 1857 he donated 20,000 Guilders (approximately 222,000 Swiss francs today) in order to fund the building of a state high school in Vaduz, which was opened in 1858.[3]

Political career

When his childhood friend Michael Menzinger became a state administrator in 1833, Grass became politically active in Liechtenstein. He supported the liberal ideas against the absolute monarchy of Aloys II and the movement by his friend Peter Kaiser, which led to the 1848 Liechtenstein revolution led around Kaiser.[1][4] On 22 March 1848, the people's committee appointed a three-person committee to lead the Liechtenstein revolutionary movement, which included Kaiser, Grass and Karl Schädler. Together, they managed to maintain order in Liechtenstein.[4]

He was elected as a member of the constitutional council on 27 July 1848, tasked with creating the draft for a new Liechtenstein constitution. On 20 May 1849 Grass was elected to the district administrator, where he was a member of the five-person committee intended forward suggestions for the issues to be dealt with by the district administrator, Karl Schädler.[1]

Grass died on 29 November 1860 in Vaduz, aged 71 years old.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rheinberger, Rudolf (31 December 2011). "Grass, Ludwig (Josef Johann Ludwig)". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  2. ↑ Kösener Corpslisten 1996 (in German) (1 ed.). Bad Kösen, Germany: VAC. 1996. pp. 104, 27.
  3. ↑ Bleyle, Annette (31 December 2011). "Realschule". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  4. 1 2 Quaderer, Rupert (31 December 2011). "Revolution 1848". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 24 December 2023.
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