Alexander von Humboldt collection

Collection

Identifier: ACCN 2913

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Alexander von Humboldt collection (1805-1817) contains two documents written in Spanish that describes the Kingdom of New Spain, modern day Mexico, during the period of the Spanish Bourbon monarchy.

Dates

1805-1817

Creator

Humboldt, Alexander von, 1769-1859 (Person)

Language of Materials

Collection materials are in Spanish .

Conditions Governing Access

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Conditions Governing Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Biographical Sketch

Alexander von Humboldt was a Prussian born scientist who lived from 1769 to 1859, and from a young age he was interested in botany, biology, geography, and geology. He received a diploma from the Freiberg School of Mines in 1792 and then worked for several years for the Department of Mines surveying and improving the mines in Prussia. He spent much of his personal life during his young adulthood studying the flora and fauna of central and southern Europe and attending university lectures with his friend and fellow scientist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. After the death of his mother in 1796, he traveled to Paris where he met Aimé Bonpland, a botanist and physician, and together they hoped to join the savants of Napoleon's military campaign in Egypt, but the deteriorating situation in North Africa prevented them from traveling across the Mediterranean Sea. They instead made their way to Madrid, where Humboldt proposed an expedition to survey the Bourbon monarchy's holdings in the Americas. Due to the desire of the Spanish Crown to reform the administration of their kingdom, as well as Humboldt's willingness to fund the expedition himself, permission was granted to sail to and study the colonial Spanish Americas. Humboldt and Bonpland landed in Venezuela, and during their expedition from 1800 to 1804 they traveled by foot through huge sections of modern day Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, and Cuba, all the while taking measurements and samples of the local plants and rock formations, drawing maps and depictions of the wildlife, surveying the land and various mines, and studying the architecture and lifestyle of the native populations. Humboldt made his return to Europe after visiting the United States, where he met with President Thomas Jefferson to discuss the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. After making his way back to France, Humboldt spent the majority of his time and personal wealth publishing the "Political Essay on the Kingdom of New Spain" and the 30 volume set of the "Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equatorial Regions of the New Continent." For his contributions to science he was acknowledged throughout Europe, and he was made a foreign member of the Royal Society of London, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, several American philosophical and scientific groups, and, after the South American revolutions, he was granted citizenship by the Mexican government and recognized by Simón Bolívar as "the real discoverer of South America." After exhausting his personal funds, he became reliant on the stipend he received from the Prussian monarchy as the king's chamberlain and was ordered back to Berlin to more closely serve the crown. He frequently served on diplomatic missions for Prussia, and King Frederick William IV held him in special esteem. In 1829, Humboldt embarked on an expedition and survey of Russia under the intense supervision of the Czar, which prevented him from conducting research to his satisfaction. He did, however, published two works from the observations he made during the Russian expedition, "Fragmens de géologie et de la climatologie asiastique" and "Asie Centrale." Later in his life, Humboldt wished to combine all of his previous work and experience and he began writing "Kosmos," which was published in five volumes between 1845 and 1962, one of which was published posthumoulsy. Humboldt's combination of Romantic literary style and precise scientific descriptions, later dubbed Humboldtian science, influenced many of his contemporaries and successors, including Charles Darwin, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Edgar Allen Poe. Humboldt never married, but had many close friendships and intimate relationships with men throughout his life, and he left his estate to his servant Seifert, who had traveled to Russia with Humboldt.

Extent

0.25 Linear Feet (1 Box)

Additional Description

Abstract

The Alexander von Humboldt collections (1805-1817) consists of two documents, hand written in Spanish, describing the Kingdom of New Spain, modern day Mexico, during the period of the Spanish Bourbon monarchy providing statistical data.