Felix Rosenberg—Student, Writer, Traveller

Abstract The letters written by Felix Rosenberg (1865–1923) to his family, which were donated to the Wiener Holocaust Library in 2011, describe an assimilated German-Jewish student’s youth and young adulthood in the German Empire. Three of these letters are presented here for the first time in translation, along with contextualizing information about Rosenberg, his letters, and the circumstances in which they were written. Although by no means a well-known historical figure, Rosenberg’s exceptional powers of observation and narration allow us to witness his life and times with extraordinary clarity. Through their important insights into nineteenth-century political circumstances, society, and German-Jewish life, the letters in this collection represent a significant contribution to social history and add a remarkable young person’s perspective to established accounts of the time. Archivist Howard Falksohn provides an introduction detailing the historical circumstances of Jewish life in the German Empire, as well as information on the Rosenberg family and the Rosenberg collection’s history. Anna Norpoth, the transcriber and translator of the letters, shows through a close reading of various letters how Rosenberg introduces us to late nineteenth-century cultural experiences, travel adventures, and university life, whilst also taking his first steps into adulthood. Three of Felix Rosenberg’s letters from 1883 and 1888, translated and annotated by Anna Norpoth, form the final section of this piece.