Weissäcker, KARL

Weissäcker, KARL, an eminent German theologian, was born at Oehringen near Heilbronn, December 11, 1822, studied at Tübingen and Berlin, and became successively privat-docent in theology at Tübingen (1847), preacher (1848), court-chaplain in Stuttgart (1851), superior consistorial councillor (1859), and successor to Baur in the theological faculty at Tübingen (1861). He edited the Jahrbücher für Deutsche Theologie from 1856 to 1878, and made his name widely known by the profound learning and unusual lucidity of his Untersuchungen über die evangelische Geschichte (1864) and Das apostolische Zeitalter (1886-89). Other writings are on the epistle of Barnabas (1863), on the Tübingen theological faculty (1877), and a new translation of the New Testament (1875). He died 13th August 1899.—His brother, JULIUS WEISSÄCKER, historian, was born at Oehringen, 13th February 1828, studied theology at Tübingen, but early gave himself to historical studies at Berlin and Paris, habilitated as privat-docent in history at Tübingen, and filled chairs successively at Erlangen (1864), Tübingen (1867), Strasburg (1872), Göttingen (1876), and Berlin (1881). He died at Kissingen, 3d September 1889. Already he had written on the origin of the Pseudo-Isidorian decretals, when in 1860 he was called to Munich to undertake under Sybel's direction the editing of the Deutsche Reichstagsakten, which the then sitting Historical Commission had determined to publish. Of this vast work he lived to edit six volumes (1867-87; i.-iii., those under King Wenzel; iv.-vi., those under King Ruprecht, 1376-1410).