THE SCIENTIFIC SPIRIT IN GERMANY. 



159 



furthered her cause most powerfully by founding that 

 great institution of culture, which more than anything 

 else is characteristic of the German mind, in which it 

 has found its most perfect expression, and where it can 

 be most exhaustively studied the system of the German 

 universities. 



" There is no people," says Mr James Bryce, " which 

 has given so much thought and pains to the development 

 of its university system as the Germans have done none 

 which has profited so much by the sel^ices universities 

 render none where they play so large a part in the 

 national life." l If it is correct to say that this system 

 owed its foundation to the German princes, it is equally 

 true that its development is the work of the German 

 people. 2 It may be doubtful whether, without the 



2. 



Develop- 

 ment of the 

 universities 

 by the 

 people. 



1 See James Bryce's preface to 

 the English translation of Conrad's 

 valuable book, ' The German Uni- 

 versities for the last Fifty Years,' 

 Glasgow, 1885, p. xiii. 



2 A great deal has been written 

 about the German universities. 

 For the purposes of a History of 

 Thought, I confine myself to a 

 reference to the valuable writings 

 of F. Paulsen, ' Geschichte des 

 gelehrten Unterrichts auf den 

 deutschen Schulen und Universi- 

 tiiten,' Leipzig, 1885, and two 

 essays in the 45th volume of 

 Von Sybel's ' Historische Zeit- 

 schrift,' 1881. The succeeding 

 phases of mediaeval and modern, 

 of Roman Catholic and Protestant, 

 of the thought of the Church, the 

 Renaissance, the classical and the 

 modern ideals, are all reflected in 

 the foundation and reform of the 

 universities and high schools of 

 Germany and the surrounding 

 countries. The first foundation*, 

 in imitation of the universities of 



Paris and of Italy, were Prague 

 1348, Vienna 1365, Heidelberg 

 1386, Cologne 1388, Erfurt 1392, 

 Wiirzburg 1402, Leipsic 1409, 

 Rostock 1419. A second epoch 

 under the influence of the human- 

 istic studies begins in the middle 

 of the fifteenth century and adds 

 eight new foundations Greifswald 

 1456, Freiburg 1457, Trier 1457, 

 Basel 1459, Ingolstadt 1472, Tubin- 

 gen 1477, Mainz 1477, Wittenberg 

 1502, Frankfort on the Oder 1506 

 (Paulsen, 'Geschichte,' p. 14). A 

 third epoch begins with the Refor- 

 mation. The first Protestant uni- 

 versity is Marburg, founded by 

 Philip of Hesse, 1524. Melanch- 

 thon's influence is everywhere deci- 

 sive. Tubingen is reconstituted by 

 Duke Ulrich 1535 ; Leipsic by Duke 

 George 1539. Basel, after three 

 years' suspension, is reopened 1532. 

 Frankfort on the Oder is reopened 

 by Joachim of Brandenburg 1537, 

 who also founds the new University 

 of Konigsberg 1541. Greifswald is 



