Thursday, March 29, 2007

Ludwig Haber, 1843-1874


What follows is a very short book on the sad history of the murder of Ludwig Haber in 1874. Ludwig was businessman from Brieg in Silesia who set up as a trader in Japan at Hakodate, - one of the few ports open to foreigners at the time. He was nominated as German consul but the confirmation never reached him. This was one of the last of a series of such xenophobic murders, usually by samurai who were ready to sacrifice their own lives to rid the 'sacred soil of Japan' of foreigners.

1 comment:

Amos said...

Dear Mr. Fraenkel,

I recently came across your translation of B.L. Monasch's memoirs, which I read on microfilm at the Leo Baeck Institute in New York. Only after reading it did I discover your 1979 LBI article. I was wondering if I might be able to obtain a copy of your German (typed copy) of Monasch's original. In any case, I would love to hear from you.

Amos
New York

PS: The story of Haber and the Samurai is fascinating. Thank you for sharing it here.