Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm (1844–1900)

Abstract

AbstractFriedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche – he was named after the emperor – was born on October 15, 1844 in Röcken, a small town in Saxony. His father was the local pastor; both of his grandfathers had been pastors. He attended first the University of Bonn and then that of Leipzig, where he trained to become a classical philologist. His work as a graduate student was deemed so good that in 1869, at the age of 24, he was awarded the chair of classical philology at the University of Basel. By 1870, despite having been promoted to full professorship, he had developed increasing doubts about his chosen academic career as a philologist. In late December 1888 he suffered what appears to be a mental breakdown while in Turin. He spent the next few years in a mental institution in Basel, most often heavily drugged. In 1890 he was released to the care of his mother in Naumberg, and in 1892 to that of his sister in Weimar. He died there on August 25, 1900.