Friedrich Schiller (also Friedrich von Schiller), German poet, historian and dramatist, was born on the November 10, 1759 in Marbach, Württemberg as the son of the military doctor, J. C. Schiller. His childhood and youth was spent in relative poverty, although he attended both village and Latin schools, and coming to the attention of Karl Eugen, Duke of Württemberg entered the Karlsschule in 1773 where he eventually studied medicine. In 1780 he obtained a post as regimental doctor in Stuttgart.
Following the performance of Die Räuber (The Robbers) in Mannheim in 1781 he was arrested and forbidden to publish any further works. He fled Mannheim in 1783 coming via Leipzig and Dresden to Weimar in 1787. In 1789 he was appointed professor of History and Philosophy in Jena. writing only historical works. He returned to Weimar in 1799, where Goethe convinced him to return to playwriting. He and Goethe founded the Weimar Theater which became the leading theater in Germany, leading to a dramatic renaissance. He remained in Weimar until his death at 46 from tuberculosis on May 9' 1805.
Plays
- Die Räuber or The Robbers (1781)
- Kabale und Liebe or Intrique and Love (1784)
- Don Carlos, Infant v. Spanien or Don Carlos (1787)
- Wallenstein (1800)
- Die Jungfrau von Orleans or The Maid of Orleans (1801)
- Maria Stuart or Mary Stuart (1801)
- Die Braut von Messina (1803),
- Wilhelm Tell or William Tell (1804)
Histories
- The Revolt of the Netherlands
- A History of the Thirty Years' War
Translations
- Euripides: Iphigenia in Aulis
- William Shakespeare: Macbeth
Quotations
- "Against stupidity the very gods themselves contend in vain." -- Maid of Orleans