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University and City Library of Cologne

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  • Exlibris von Franz Thorbecke
  • Franz Thorbecke (1875-1945)
  • Marie Pauline und Franz Thorbecke: Im Hochland von Mittel-Kamerun, 1919

Thorbecke - Expedition to Kamerun

Today, Franz Thorbecke's books can be found in the University and City Library. The partition of the library is the result of the circumstances of the war and post-war period, because the emeritus, who moved from Cologne to Thuringia in 1942/43, had left his books in the care of the university. After Thorbecke had died on August 12, 1945 in Winterstein in the Thuringian Forest, his widow sold the private library to the USB in 1949.

Biographical notes on Franz Thorbecke

Franz Thorbecke was a German geographer. He was born on November 8, 1875 in Heidelberg. After his studies in Heidelberg and Göttingen he first started teaching. In 1907 he took part in an economic-geographical expedition to the German colony of Cameroon. The research results he obtained were the basis for Thorbecke's dissertation on "The Manenguba Highlands" in 1911. In the same year, the German Colonial Society appointed him head of another expedition to Cameroon, which lasted until 1913. In 1917 Thorbecke was appointed to the geographical chair of the Cologne School of Economics. After reopening the University of Cologne in 1919, Thorbecke became professor of the Geographical Institute. Africa, colonial aspects and economic geography formed the focus of Thorbeckes scientific work. He was emeritus in 1942. His richly illustrated major work "Im Hochland von Mittel-Kamerun" was published from 1914 in four parts. The last part (4,2) was published by his wife Marie Pauline Thorbecke in 1951.

Franz Thorbecke studied geography, mathematics and natural sciences at the Universities of Heidelberg and Göttingen. From summer term 1898 to autumn 1903 he was scientific assistant of Professor Alfred Hettner at the Geographical Seminar of the University of Heidelberg and assistant editor of the "Geographische Zeitschrift" (1901-1907). From the winter semester of 1909/10, Thorbecke was a part-time lecturer in economic geography at the Mannheim School of Economics. On his first expedition to Cameroon (1907/08) he accompanied Professor Kurt Hassert, who he replaced after his retirement in 1917 at the geographical chair of the Cologne School of Economics. The first trip was followed by an expedition to Cameroon, now led by Thorbecke, on behalf of the German Colonial Society. In 1913/14 and 1916 Thorbecke had already taken over the representation of the Ordinaries in Heidelberg and Marburg for one semester each. He habilitated in the winter semester 1914/15. At the end of 1916 Throbecke accepted the reputation of the Städtische Handels-Hochschule in Cologne. From 1919 to 1942 Thorbecke was a professor at the Geographical Institute of the University of Cologne. Franz Thorbecke's wife, the ethnologist, photographer and painter Marie Pauline Berthold (1882-1971), accompanied and supported his research. She illustrated the complete works and published her own travel diary "Auf der Savanne" (1914). Throughout her life she made a significant contribution to Thorbecke's scientific work, especially since he had almost gone blind for years.

The collection of Franz Thorbecke

In 1943, Thorbecke had already granted the right of first refusal for his private library. It was a condition that the book collection remaining in Cologne was taken by Corsten from Thorbecke's private apartment and stored from the bombing raids. The library director agreed and initiated the takeover and outsourcing. In 1949 Thorbeckes widow offered the books for sale. The purchase was financed by the USB and the University of Cologne. Subsequently, some works from Franz Thorbeckes possession were transferred from the Geographical Institute to the UCL. At the beginning of the 1950s, the library was further divided by the transfer of around 650 titles to the Economic and Social Geographical Institute, founded in 1950 and headed by Thorbecke pupil Theodor Kraus. These books and maps were given to the Institute on permanent loan. The The Thorbecke family had transferred a large ethnological collection to the city of Mannheim after the Cameroon expedition in return for a travel allowance of 10,000 Marks. The collection is located in the Reiss-Engelhorn-Museums (rem) in Mannheim.  Marie Pauline Thorbecke's ethnological photographs of the trip were donated to the Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum für Völkerkunde in Cologne.  Part of Franz Thorbecke's estate (mainly institute files) is kept in the archives of the University of Cologne (UAK).

Selected Literature (German)