Markus Herz
Encyclopedia
Marcus Herz (January 17, 1747 – January 19, 1803), was a Jewish German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

 and lecturer
Lecturer
Lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a position at a university or similar institution, often held by academics in their early career stages, who lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...

 on philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...

.

Born in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

 to very poor parents, he was destined for a mercantile career, and in 1762 went to Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...

, East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...

. He soon gave up his position as clerk and attended the university of Königsberg
University of Königsberg
The University of Königsberg was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as second Protestant academy by Duke Albert of Prussia, and was commonly known as the Albertina....

, becoming a pupil of Kant
KANT
KANT is a computer algebra system for mathematicians interested in algebraic number theory, performing sophisticated computations in algebraic number fields, in global function fields, and in local fields. KASH is the associated command line interface...

, but was obliged to discontinue his studies for want of means. He thereupon became secretary to the wealthy Russian Ephraim, traveling with him through the Baltic Provinces
Baltic provinces
The Baltic governorates , originally the Ostsee governorates is a collective name for the administrative units of the Russian Empire set up at the territories of Swedish Estonia, Swedish Livonia and, afterwards, of Duchy of Courland and Semigallia .-History:The Treaty of Vilnius of 1561 included...

. On August 21, 1770, he traveled from Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

 and acted as respondent when Kant
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher from Königsberg , researching, lecturing and writing on philosophy and anthropology at the end of the 18th Century Enlightenment....

 presented his Inaugural dissertation
Inaugural dissertation
An inaugural dissertation is a presentation of major work by a new professor or doctor, in writing and/or in public speech, to inaugurate their professorship or doctorship. This academic ritual is traditional in much of Europe , although it is becoming less common in some countries and institutions...

 at the University of Königsberg
University of Königsberg
The University of Königsberg was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as second Protestant academy by Duke Albert of Prussia, and was commonly known as the Albertina....

 for the post of ordinary professor. In 1770 he had returned to Germany and studied medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....

 in Halle, where he became an MD
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...

 in 1774, in which year he established himself in Berlin, being appointed physician at the Jewish hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....

. Beginning in 1777, he delivered public lectures on medicine and philosophy, which were well attended by the students and the principal personages of the Prussian capital. At some of them even members of the royal family were present.

Herz married in 1779 Henriette de Lemos
Henriette Herz
Henriette Herz née De Lemos is best known for the "salonnieres" or literary salons that she started with a group of emancipated Jews in Prussia....

; and their house was for a long time the rendezvous
Wiktionary
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 of Berlin's political, artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...

ic, and literary celebrities
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...

. In 1782 he became ill through overstudy, and had to give up his lectures till 1785, when a sojourn in Pyrmont
Bad Pyrmont
-External links:* * -Multimedia:*...

 restored his health. In 1791 he received the title of professor of philosophy at the academy and that of "Hofrath
Geheimrat
Geheimrat was the title of the highest advising officials at the Imperial, royal or principal courts of the Holy Roman Empire, who jointly formed the Geheimer Rat reporting to the ruler...

", but lectured only a few years, giving most of his time to his medical practise. Herz was a friend and pupil of Moses Mendelssohn
Moses Mendelssohn
Moses Mendelssohn was a German Jewish philosopher to whose ideas the renaissance of European Jews, Haskalah is indebted...

, and was also well acquainted with Lessing
Lessing
Lessing - German family of writers and artists*Johann Gottfried Lessing pastor primarus in Kamenz, well respected, published theologian, translator and father of Gotthold Ephraim Lessing and Karl Gotthelf Lessing...

. For many years, Herz corresponded with Kant and their letters are considered to be of philosophical importance. He died in Berlin.

Literary works

Herz was the author of:
  • Betrachtungen aus der Spekulativen Weltweisheit, Königsberg, 1771;
  • Freimüthige Kaffeegespräche Zweier Jüdischer Zuschauerinnen über den Juden Pinkus, Berlin, 1772, a satirical essay;
  • Versuch über die Ursachen der Verschiedenheit des Geschmacks (or Versuch über den Geschmack), Mitau, 1776;
  • Briefe an Aerzte, Berlin, 1777–84;
  • Grundriss der Medizinischen Wissenschaften, ib. 1782;
  • Versuch über den Schwindel, ib. 1786, 2d ed. 1791, an important study;
  • Grundlage zu den Vorlesungen über die Experimental-Physik, ib. 1787;
  • Ein Sendschreiben an die Redaktion der Meassefim über das zu Frühe Beerdigen der Todten bei den Juden, ib. 1789.


Compulsory vaccination was strongly condemned by Herz, and in 1801 he wrote an open letter on the subject to Dr. Dohmeyer, under the heading "Ueber die Brutalimpfung".
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