at home at the rhine and in america

8/10/2019 At Home at the Rhine and in America

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Petra Willnecker

At home at the Rhineand in America

A story about two emigrant families

History through the peoples eyes1715-1915, Germany and America


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Foreword

Bonn, Koblenzer Strae, around 1850

Before I left the house I went for a moment to my study. From the window I had a

free outlook on the Rhine and the lovely Seven Mountains. How often, gazing uponthis charming picture, had I dreamed of a quiet and beautiful life! Now I could inthe darkness distinguish only the outline of my beloved hills against the horizon.Here was my room quiet as ever. How often had I peopled it with my imaginings!Here were my books and manuscripts, all testifying of hopes, plans, and endeavors,which now perhaps had to be left behind forever. An instinctive feeling told methat all this was now over.

Carl Schurz, Reminiscences, Volume 1

It was the evening of May 10, 1849 in Bonn. The young Carl Schurz, a student atBonn University, said good-bye to his family and his home, to join the revolutionarydemocratic forces in a desperate attempt to save the achievements of therevolution 1848/49. We know they failed, Schurz barely escaped alive and had toemigrate, first to England, and in 1852 to the United States where he became animportant politician and almost a friend to President Abraham Lincoln.


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Introduction

History books tell us a lot of emperors and kings, princes and archbishops, but littleabout people like you and me. Little is known about those people who in the earlymodern age left their beloved homeland because they were suffering hunger and

hardships, or persecution for their beliefs. This story is about them.

It begins around 1700 in the Rhineland. Back then, our region belonged to the HolyRoman Empire of the German Nation, a conglomerate of a few big and medium andmany small and micro states. The princes decided as absolute rulers over theirsubjects. In our region, these were the Dukes of Berg and the Archbishops ofCologne.

Most of the villages on the right side of the Rhine were part of the Duchy of Berg(capital Dsseldorf), which was united with the Duchy of Jlich on the left side ofthe Rhine. In the end of the 17th Century, when the ruling dynasty in thePalatinate died out, the Duke of Berg became Prince-Elector of the Palatinate. By1700, Johann Wilhelm ruled, a strict Catholic. Even though his subjects on theLower Rhine fondly called him Jan Wellem, he was an absolutist ruler whotolerated no other confession than the Catholic. The towns of Knigswinter andIttenbach with the mountains Drachenfels and Wolkenburg on the right bank andlarge estates on the left bank belonged to the Archbishops of Cologne, who werePrince-Electors since the Middle Ages already. We will refer to them as Elector-Archbishop. From 1583 to 1761, the Archbishops came from the House ofWittelsbach from Bavaria. They held court in their residence in Bonn.

Archbishopric of Cologne and Duchy of Berg


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Twice he had been in Germany to promote settling in his colony. In 1683, 13Quaker and Mennonite families from Krefeld around Franz Daniel Pastorius, theOriginal 13 sailed on the Concord to North America. In Pennsylvania, theyfounded Germantown, today a part of Philadelphia.

Apart from the often-mentioned Carl Schurz, who comes from the Rhineland, andother historical figures all the people and places, such as the Merry Dragon Innand the Mirbi Creek Road in southeastern Pennsylvania are fictional. Anyresemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

North Americaaround1770


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Main Characters

As you wander through 200 years of German and America History, you'll meet manypeople. To make it easier for you, here is a list of the main characters, in the order ofthe four parts of this story.

In most cases, the German emigrants have kept their German names, such as Anton,

Johann, Heinrich and Niklas. The German family name Bergmann is quite common, andif you translate both syllables, you get Berg = mountain and Mann = man, so MountainMan.

New Homeland Pennsylvania

Anton Tombach, master-builder in the service of the Elector-Archbishop of CologneAndrew, also called Andy, his foster sonCathy, his wife, an Irish emigrantSean, her brother, Bradock, their fatherly friendLady Meredith, a noblewoman

Matthias Bergmann, a bailiff in the Duchy of BergAmbrose and Betty, Andy and Cathy's childrenLaurie and Emmet, Ambrose's childrenJohann and Jakob, Hessian soldiers

Subjects and citizens

Johann, now American citizenLaurie, his wifeJames, their son and and Jenny, their daughter, later Niklas Bergmann's wifeHeinrich Bergmann, emigrant from the Seven Mountains, later winegrower in Virginia

Rebecca, his wifeJoseph and Ben, their sons and Annelie, their daughter, later Lorenz Bergmann's wifeNiklas Bergmann, Heinrich's brother


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Harvey, Niklas' and Jenny's sonHedy, Heinrich's and Niklas' motherLorenz Bergman, a Forty-EighterAmber, Lorenz' and Annelie's daughter

Years of War

Heinrich Bergmann, now winegrower in VirginiaRebecca, his wifeJoseph and Ben, their sons Annelie, their daughter, Lorenz' Bergmann's wifeNiklas Bergman, Heinrich's brotherHarvey, Niklas' and Jenny's sonLorenz Bergmann, a Forty-EighterAmber, Lorenz' and Annelie's daughterLena Bergmann, winegrower from the Seven MountainsEmil Bergmann, her husband

The Land of Limitless Possibilities

Lorenz Bergmann, a Forty-EighterAmber, Lorenz' and Annelie's daughterLena Bergmann, winegrower from the Seven MountainsEmil Bergmann, her husbandSusanne, called Susan, their daughter


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New Homeland Pennsylvania

Colonial America

Already as a little girl Betty had enjoyed listening to her grandfather Anton whenhe spoke of his homeland. Once she had asked him which Indian tribes lived over

there at the Rhine. Anton had laughed heartily and then explained in a loving way

that Indians live in America only. From then on, Betty took a systematic approachand wrote down everything she learned about America and various

European countries.

Our first chronicler Betty is an emigrants child. Her father Andy and hergrandfather Anton are from the Rhine, her mother Cathy is Irish. They all had toflee. Now they run a country inn, the Merry Dragon. Yet, the wars between theEuropean powers England and France were fought out in North America too. TheAmerican War of Independence brought German soldiers into the land, and anencounter with the past.


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After many years of fighting, the War of the Spanish succession (1701-4) was finallyover. Elector-Archbishop Joseph Clemens of Cologne of the powerful Wittelsbachfamily, who had sided with King Louis XIV of France against Emperor Leopold I, hadbeen pardoned and was on this way back from his exile in France to his residencecity Bonn.

Anton and Andreas (1714, Seven Mountains)

It was no good news for Anton Tombach, a master-builder in the Elector-Archbishop's service. On the contrary, he was facing a long prison sentence, if notworse.

For many years, he had enjoyed working for the Elector-Archbishop, and there wasalways plenty of work to do. In the years after Nine Years War, rebuilding the manydevastated places was all that mattered. For months, Bonn had been besieged andfired upon until it had finally capitulated. Now large parts of the city lay in ruins.

In 1689, Dollendorf, Knigswinter and Rhndorf, villages on the right bank of theRhine, had been conquered and burned down by bands of soldiers. Anton's youngwife Lisbeth had lost her life.

In the Palatinate, whole areas were devastated, and many people cried for help.For Anton, it made no difference whose home he rebuilt; whether it was aCatholic, a Lutheran or a Mennonite family - he helped wherever he could. In aPalatine village, he had met Andreas, a Mennonite orphan boy who was living withdistant relatives. Overwhelmed by their desperate situation and spontaneousaffection, Anton had taken Andreas with him. He had him baptized as a Catholic,because otherwise the boy could not have stayed with him, but also made himfamiliar with the Mennonite faith.

Now Andreas lived with Anton's sister-in-law in Dollendorf, a village in the Duchy ofBerg. There she ran a small country inn named Zum Frhlichen Drachen, inEnglish Merry Dragon Inn. After the tragic death of his wife, the boy gave Antonnew courage. Often they went for a walk in the Seven Mountains. Up there in thehills, Anton would look for a piece of wood and carve a little toy boat from it. Ontheir way back along the small Mirbesbach creek Andreas would put their toy boaton the water and they would watch it float all the way down into the valley. SoonAndreas tried carving himself, and Anton quickly noticed how talented Andreas

was, and how much he enjoyed wood working. Soon Andreas helped repairingchairs in the inn, and was apprenticed to the Elector-Archbishop's carpenter.

Yet, peace had not lasted for long. Only a few years later, the War of the SpanishSuccession had broken out, and again the Elector-Archbishop of Cologne had sidedwith King Louis XIV of France. In 1703, Bonn had been bombed again. Anton hadprotested in impotent rage against his sovereign. Why did you bring the enemyinto our lands again?he had shouted at him, Hasn't there been enough suffering?Now the Elector-Archbishop would soon be back in Bonn. Perhaps he had forgivenhim, or at least was pragmatic enough to forget his master-builder's outburstbecause he had plans for a new palace in Bonn.1

1Elector-Archbishop of Cologne Joseph Clemens had Poppelsdorf Castle in Bonn built.


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Bonn and Siebengebirge around 1700

The Escape (1714, Seven Mountains)

But with the Elector-Archbishop his paymaster Precarius came back. He hatedAnton, since this one had uncovered his embezzlements. With his henchmen, he setoff to the Merry Dragon Inn to smash everything to pieces and to arrest Anton.Neighbors and the bailiff of Berg2sent for in all urgency could prevent the worst.Anton was devastated.

The bailiff ordered his men to arrest Precarius and his cronies. Then Precariusyelled, his voice sharp and accusing, Do you know whom you are protecting? Adamn friend of heretics! This man has rebuilt their houses, and this boy comes froma family of heretics! Who helps heretics is damned himself!Anton turned pale, andalso the bailiff was concerned. After a while he said, Anton, I know you, you arean honest man, but our sovereign here in the Duchy of Berg, the Prince-ElectorJohann Wilhelm, is Catholic and does not tolerate other confessions. Go away withyour boy to England or America, where there is tolerance in matters of religion. I'llarrange for a safe passage across the border. You let them go, just like that?Precarius yelled, beside himself with rage. Silence!the bailiff shouted, his voicelike thunder, you want to be a man of God? You are a damn Pharisee! You and youcronies came to take what you thought was the law into your own hands, and herein my district I will not tolerate vigilant justice! You will remain in custody untilyou have paid for the damage done here, and these two are long gone! Then heturned to Anton and Andreas, Come with me, for tonight you are safe in my house.

Tomorrow morning my coach will bring you to Dsseldorf, and there we will find aship for you.When they parted the next morning, the bailiff said strongly, Anton,don't let them cheat you out of this life. Find happiness!

Crossing the Atlantic (1714/15)

The coast of Europe became smaller and smaller, and soon it was out of sight.Anton was feeling anxious and heavy-hearted. So far, he hardly had time to cometo terms with what they had gone through - the last night at home in the bailiff'shouse, the escape on the Rhine to Rotterdam, from there London, and finally theway on board of the ship that would bring them into the New World.

2The Duchy of Berg was organized in districts, and each district had bailiffs to maintain law andorder.


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On the outside he had stayed calm and composed, and had done everything inorder not to endanger Andreas and the respectable bailiff. But now his grief andexhaustion overwhelmed him.

North America .. Anton had never thought about it. He knew that a lot of families

who had been persecuted for their religion had already left their beloved homesand dared to start a new life in North America. What hardships all these peopletook upon themselves! Their passage would last six to eight weeks. On the ship,countless people were huddled together; they had only little fresh air and littlefresh food. In their faces he saw exhaustion and melancholy, but alsodetermination, and hope for a better life in the New World.

He was glad to have Andreas with him. The boy's bright nature and eagerness forknowledge had soon appeared again. Often he was with a small group from Ireland:Bradock, an elderly gentleman, Cathy, a young girl, and her little brother Sean.Andreas had quickly made friends with Sean. At first, they had communicated in

sign language, now he was eagerly learning English. He carved toys for the littleboy, covertly throwing glances at his sister Cathy. Sean cheered with joy whenAndreas made small animals, above all dragons, come out of an old piece of wood.Seeing them so happy made Anton smile too.

Do you already have plans for your life in America?Bradock asked one evening.No,Anton replied, It all happened so fast. At home, I was a master builder in theElector-Archbishop's service, but I guess there are no Elector-Archbishops overthere in the New World.A master-builder, that's great!Sean exclaimed happily,Then you can extend our lady's house!

Now Bradock told their story. He had been bailiff on an estate in England thatbelonged to Lord Ambrose and Lady Meredith. Cathy and Sean were the children ofa deceased Irish kitchen aid. Lord Ambrose practiced tolerance towards allreligions, and Lady Meredith took good care of the children and even taught themto read and write. Soon, Lord Ambrose and Lady Meredith were a thorn in the eyesof religious zealots.

Then the War of the Spanish Succession broke out and also Lord Ambrose went towar. But first he made provisions for his wife. His brother-in-law, Lord Ruben, wasliving in the New World, in Pennsylvania, and should something happen to himself,

Lady Meredith and her entourage could live financially secured with Lord Ruben.Year after year the war lasted, and they saw Lord Ambrose only rarely. Then badnews was brought: Lord Ambrose had fallen in battle.

Lady Meredith was inconsolable. She made arrangements to sail with Bradock,Cathy and Sean into the New World. But she had underrated the greed of somerelatives who wanted to seize the whole inheritance. They hid a precious clock inher rooms, scheming to accuse her and her entourage of theft. The laws of thoseyears were so hard that people spoke of the Bloody Code, death penalty wasimposed already on minor offenses such as theft. Even if Lady Meredith, as anoblewoman, was punished less hard - all her assets would go to her relatives.

We owe it to our Cathy that we came out of it,Bradock said with a warm smile,She immediately sensed that we could not trust these relatives, and was vigilant.


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She watched how the clock was secretly brought into Lady Meredith'rooms. Seancontinued, Then Cathy got her violin and I got my flute, and we played so loudthat the whole house ran together and complained. Meanwhile Bradock got theclock from Lady Meredith's rooms and put it back to place.It was quite a pleasureto see their befuddled faces,Bradock said, But we all knew that we had to leave

as fast as can be. With the help of loyal relatives we made it.Cathy had beensilent, but there was a happy glow on her face, and Andreas secretly took herhand.

A little later, they met Lady Meredith in person. From what I hear Sean hasalready hired you to extend my house,she said with a big smile, I would like toconfirm his request, but you should know that it is only a small country house inthe midst of farm land at the Brandywine Creek in southeastern Pennsylvania. Iwould love to work for you,Anton said, And I thank you for the confidence youshow in me.

Brandywine Creek (1715)

Lady Meredith's small country house had become a jewel. Working together with hisfriends and Lady Meredith's brother Lord Ruben, who had given them a warmwelcome, they had quickly built an annex and outbuildings. Andreas, now calledAndy by most people, had skillfully turned some older pieces of furniture into realgems. Anton walked through the comfortable rooms and saw the happy faces of hisfriends. He too felt comfortable. His life back home had gotten off track, but hehad found friends, and thanks to them he could stand on his own feet and start anew life.

Lord Ruben, a very tolerant man, made contacts with the Mennonite communitiesin Pennsylvania and went there with Andy, to search for relatives. Everywherepeople were friendly with them, but they could not find any living relatives ofAndy. Thank you for helping me,the boy said to Lord Ruben on their way back,These people lead a very secluded life. Will it always be like that?To be honest,I don' know,Lord Ruben answered, perhaps some of them will open up a bit toour way of life, whereas others will prefer to stay apart. But don't forget that theMennonites are a part of your heritage and honor it, whatever other religions mighttell you.

Anton and Andy settled near the Brandywine Creek. Brandywine, Bradock hadsaid, Brandy and Wine, that sounds like a good place for us. Anton hadimmediately felt comfortable. Here it is almost like back home in the SevenMountains, at the Mirbesbach creek. On the way back home from the hills weplaced wooden toy boats on the water, and watched them all the way down intothe valley.Well then,Bradock said with a beaming smile, Then you can soon dothat here with our children and grandchildren!

A new life (around 1725, America)

For ten years Anton had been living in New World. He had a fine stone house at the

Brandywine Creek near Chadds Fort. He and Andy had helped building a countryroad which had been named Mirbi Creek Street in his honor. The German nameMirbesbach was too complicated, Bradock had said, so it became Mirbi Creek.


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In the evening Anton often made a walk along the Brandywine Creek, talked to hisneighbors, or just sat down on a wooden bench and enjoyed the peace around him.He was deeply grateful for his life in the New World, his town, the beautiful naturearound him and the people who had long become very dear to him. And yet, his oldhomeland, the Seven Mountains and the Rhine, remained in his heart. Every nowand then a ship brought letters from his sister-in-law, and Anton was delightedwhen he could send a letter back to her. More and more people are settling downhere and so our town is growing every day,he wrote, now we have a house foreach family, fruit and vegetable gardens, a mill, and soon we will also have achurch, for my grandchildren will be baptized here.Anton smiled as he thought of

his foster son Andy and his daughter-in-law Cathy. Their childhood friendship hadbecome love, the two had married and Lady Meredith had insisted on hosting herprotge's wedding. Bradock had brought a violin and Sean a flute, and they all haddanced until late in the night.

Now Andy and Cathy had jointly opened a country inn named Merry Dragon Inn.Bradock and Sean supplied them with fresh bread and vegetables from their farm.Above the entrance was a large, cheerful-looking dragon carved by Andy himself.On the lawn around the inn small yellow flowers with black heads grew, the Black-eyed Susan that are native to the East Coast of the United States. My Lisbeth

would have liked it here,Anton had said softly to Andy, she always loved fieldflowers.And now Andy and Cathy were proud parents of a little boy whom theyhad named Ambrose, in honor of Lady Meredith's beloved husband.

Redemptioners (around 1730, America)

Anton's skills as a master-builder had quickly spread, and so many people asked himfor advice. One day he was visiting farmer Jonas who was building a new house forhis family. Slowly, they walked around the building and Anton was satisfied withthe work done so far. It's a fine house,he said, and as to the chimney, I suggest..Smilingly the farmer interrupted him. It would be best to explain that to my

craftsman Hannes right away, he said, Look, there he is. By the way, you canspeak German with him.Slowly they went over to Hannes. Is he a new settler inour town?Anton asked.

Brandywine Creek today


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No,Jonas replied, He's a redemptioner, an indentured servant. When he went onboard of the ship, he committed himself to work for several years for an Americanemployer without being paid, and so he came to me. In return, I paid the captainfor the passage on board of his ship.

Hannes and Anton got to know each other well while working on Jonas' house. Thefarmer was delighted and he often smoked a pipe with Anton in the evening. Youlike this young men, don' you? he asked one evening. Yes, Anton said simply.Jonas nodded. He's a good fellow,he said, And also keen and well-educated. Hisservice time with me will end soon, and he deserves a chance. And then he addedwith a mischievous smile, And you are already thinking about recruiting him as ateacher for your new school, aren't you? Go ahead and ask him!And while Antonwas marveled and at a loss for words, he concluded: After all, we want brightkids!And the day of farmer Jonas' house warming party, one saw a happy Hanneswelcoming his little protgs and their parents.

Why do the shoot at each other in America? (1741-1748, Europe and America)

Ambrose had gotten a sister whom they had named Betty, after Anton's belovedLisbeth. Both children were proud of their Merry Dragon Inn. Sometimes theyshowed the guests their rooms or laid the breakfast table for them. They werethrilled to meet people from different parts of America, and sometimes peoplewho came from even farther away places.

Then, in spring 1744, the guests' faces were aggrieved, and the conversations wereabout serious issues. Up in the north of America, Great Britain and France fought

bitterly over the St. Lawrence River. Ambrose' and Betty's hearts went out to thepeople who had settled there. Why do Great Britain and France not allow theAmericans to live in peace?they asked their father, Why do they shoot at eachother even here in North America? Andy was aggrieved, too. When the majorpowers were at war, the civilians suffered most, he and Anton had gone throughthat and knew all too well. The great powers in Europe, which are Great Britain,France, Austria and Russia, have been fighting for decades already against eachother,he explained, Each country strives to be the most powerful, or at the leastto prevent another country from gaining more power. Therefore, they do not wantothers to have colonies either. Anton added, troubled with worries, They arefighting again in Europe too. Frederick II of Prussia has attacked Austria.

Another war over a European crown had broken out, this time over the Austriansuccession. Emperor Charles VI (1711-1740) in Vienna had no son, so he had pushedthrough an edict called the Pragmatic Sanction to ensure that his daughter MariaTheresa could inherit the Archduchy of Austria. Only after many years ofnegotiations and concessions the European princes had finally consented. FrederickWilliam I of Prussia on the other hand, the Soldier King (1713-1740), had evenspoken in a favor of the Pragmatic Sanction. In return, the Emperor had promisedhim the Duchy of Jlich-Berg3.

3For a long time already the monarchs of Prussia and the dynasties of the Palatinate had beenfighting over the Duchy of Jlich-Berg.


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He was also Prince-Elector of Brandenburg and as such a loyal subject to EmperorCharles VI. But the Emperor had played with marked cards, neither he nor theNetherlands, England or France wanted a strong presence of Prussia in the west ofGermany. He had kept the King of Prussia interested until he could take thePragmatic Sanction for granted, then he had given the Duchy of Jlich-Berg to the

House of Pfalz-Sulzbach.

In 1740 died in quick succession Frederick William I in Potsdam and Charles VI inVienna. Now Frederick II was King of Prussia (1740-1786). After the Emperor'sbetrayal, he felt that he did not owe the House of Habsburg anything. At the headof his troops, he invaded Austria's rich land Silesia. In the following two Silesianwars (1741-1742 and 1744-1745) he was able to keep it.

The captains worries, Seven Years War (1754-1763, America and Europe)

In late summer, Anton felt that the end of his life was not far off. Andy and Cathy,

Ambrose and Betty, his entire family wanted to say goodbye to him. Hesitantly,they walked to his bedside. Betty gave him a posy of Black-eyed Susan. These arefor your Lisbeth up there in heaven,she said softly, So she'll know immediatelythat it's you.Surrounded by all his dear ones, Anton went for his last journey.

Shortly afterwards his friends Lady Meredith and Lord Ruben died. But thefriendship between the two families helped them through the time of grief, andthey knew that they would always be there for one another.

Many guests came in the Merry Dragon Inn, and sometimes British soldiers too.

Among the regulars was an elderly British captain who enjoyed talking to Andy. Onthat evening in 1754, he only sat there staring in silence. It's just a few monthsuntil the end of my period of service,he finally said, And although I like America,I want to spend my retirement back home in England. But now I'm not sure whenthat will be possible, if it will be possible at all, I have orders to start with mysoldiers now that the situation with the French is getting worse. Many of our peoplewant to go into the Ohio Valley, but the French claim it to, and up north ourgovernment wants to push the French out of Acadia and the St. Lawrence Riverarea.

Thoughtfully Andy said good-bye to the captain. I wish you all the best,he said

warmly, and may you get back to your England sound and safe.But inside he wasnot so sure. The positions of Great Britain and France were irreconcilable, bothbrought Indian tribes on their side - and after all, actually it was Indian land. A fewmonths later, the French and Indian War broke out.

For a long time the French had the upper hand because they had the majority ofIndian tribes on their side, then the British could turn the tide. In 1758, Britishcolonists and regiments drove the French off the Ohio Valley, two naval victories1759 destroyed the French fleet. Quebec fell in September, Montreal surrendered ayear later. In the Peace of Paris 1763, France had to cede all colonies in NorthAmerica to Great Britain. Only the Mississippi Delta remained French.

Also in Europe there was fighting again. Queen Maria Theresa in Vienna had not putup with the loss of Silesia.


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Her foreign minister had been able to forge an alliance with Russia, Saxony, andeven France, Habsburg's age long enemy. The Seven Years War (1756-63) began.Only Great Britain was on Prussia's side, yet it only provided financial assistance tokeep the French troops bound in Europe. Frederick's victories over the ImperialArmy and the French made him popular, but he also suffered terrible defeats. The

war brought Prussia close to the edge, but in the end it was next to Great Britain,France, Austria and Russia the fifth major power in Europe.

Which Indians live at the Rhine? (around 1763)

Andy's thoughts went back home. Although the smaller states did their best to keeptheir territories out of the battles of the great, the recurrent marches-through ofvarious armed forces brought hardships and distress. But Andy also thought of thesoldiers: for many of them, the army was the only way to get something to eatregularly, and to know that in case of an injury at least the family would besupported. Moreover, many men were forced by fraud or by force into military

service. He was glad that his children would be spared from that.

From childhood on Ambrose and Betty had been eager for knowledge andadventuresome. They knew their little town and its surroundings well, andwhenever their uncle Sean came for a visit, they would paddle with him up anddown the Brandywine Creek. Betty was very interested in the cultures of thepeople living around them. The Indians, the children or grandchildren of Europeanimmigrants who were born in America, and the people from England, Ireland or oneof the German states who had just arrived in the New World. Already as a little girlshe had enjoyed listening to her grandfather Anton when he spoke of his homeland.Once she had asked him which Indian tribes lived over there at the Rhine. Antonhad laughed heartily and then explained in a loving way that Indians live in Americaonly. From then on, Betty took a systematic approach and wrote down everythingshe learned about America and various European countries.

Later she fell in love with Simon, whose family owned a publishing house inPhiladelphia. He asked her to write for him and contribute her knowledge. Distrustoften comes from ignorance,he said. There, in Philadelphia, both worked with asociety that supported newcomers during the first months. Not only that, thanks tothe publishing house's good contacts to the individual colonies in North America onone side and the German states and Great Britain on the other, they could also

help many families to stay in touch with their relatives in the Old World.

Ambrose had inherited his father's talent for woodworking. In his workshop next tothe Merry Dragon Inn, he crafted tables, chairs, benches and cabinets for the diningroom and the guest rooms. Together with Sean he had built a front porch. Soonalso friends, neighbors and guests ordered furniture at Ambrose's workshop, and forthe wine-growers he made wine barrels. When he met his love Rachel and theystarted a family together, he added cradles and children's furniture to his range ofproducts. Ambrose almost burst with pride when he placed a table and chairsespecially crafted for small guests on the front porch of the Merry Dragon Inn. Andyand Cathy were very proud of their two children. Since they both were so busy, the

parents could probably not retire yet.


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Never mind,Andy said, as he sat on a quiet evening with his Cathy on the frontporch, A German proverb says: Age does not defend you against love, but lovedefends you against age.

Pennsylvania State House / Independence Hall 1752

Proclaim Liberty thoughout all the Land (1776, America)

Andy, who had come to North America as a youth, was now a grandfather. Ambroseand his wife Rachel had a son, Emmett, and a daughter, Laurie. Betty and herhusband Simon had a son, Randolph. He and Cathy had been granted a long, happylife together before she died in peace.

After winning the French and Indian War, Great Britain was the dominant colonialpower. But when it imposed new taxes on the American colonies to cover the highcosts of war without granting them political participation, it sparked outrage -many Americans were tired of the mother country's imposing its will on thecolonies. According to English law, there could be no taxation withoutrepresentation. That led to boycotts and acts of resistance such as the Boston Tea

Party. Great Britain then passed a series of penal laws, the Intolerable Acts orCoercive Acts

One evening Ambrose came back from a visit to his sister in Philadelphia. Overthere people are incredibly angry too,he said, Now Great Britain wants to punishus. They have passed a series of laws: Boston harbor is closed for trading, meetingsin the cities are forbidden, all British officials are freed from the jurisdiction of thecourts of Massachusetts, and we must provide quarters for British soldiers. That isintolerable. When English soldiers tried to seize munitions stored by a colonialmilitia, the American Revolutionary War broke out.

On July 4, 1776, Ambrose and his entire family had met in Philadelphia, because itwas a very special day.


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Today, the Declaration of Independence of the 13 North American colonies,adopted by the Second Continental Congress, would be read out in public. Bettypointed at the bell tower of the Pennsylvania State House: Listen, the bell, sheexclaimed, today it is rung because we and all people can hear the Declaration ofIndependence. I have something for you, her husband Simon whispered in his

Betty's ear, and pulled a small booklet out of his pocket. New HomelandPennsylvania,Betty read, and then cheered with joy. There were all her articles,printed and bound!

The American Revolutionary War (1775-1781, America)

But would England let its colonies go? Also among the Americans, there wereloyalists and people undecided, only a third wanted to go to war with GeneralWashington. Andy too was very thoughtful. He felt that the end of his long life wasnot far off, and he wanted a peaceful evening of life.

As a youth, he had fled and never wanted to see death, war invalids and burnedvillages and fields again. But at stake here were his children, his grandchildren andthe generations to come after them. They had come to North America to live infreedom, how could they now bow to a distant government that did not grant themany political participation? Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness ..all men arecreated equal, he repeated in thought the words of the Declaration ofIndependence. Andy knew all too well what it was like to be at the mercy of amonarch. Ambrose, his son, Emmett, his grandson, and Simon, his son-in-law,would fight in General Washington's army. Resolutely, he set out to Sean, to workout a plan to supply the Continental Army.

Soon, the war came to the Brandywine Creek. At the end of July 1777, Britishtroops marched towards Philadelphia. General Washington and his soldiers wantedto stop them at the Brandywine Creek, but were defeated on September 11, 1777,and had to withdraw. On September 26, 1777, the British marched intoPhiladelphia.

The Mercenaries from Hesse (1776-1781, America)

Many Americans were outraged that the British government had hired a whole armyabroad and now send it against them. Since most foreign troops came from Hesse,

soon all foreign soldiers were called Hessians.When a Hessian was caught, peoplelet him feel this outrage, although in general no harm was done to them.

George Washington himself had pointed out that many Hessian were non-volunteers. He had German prisoners quartered in places inhabited by Germanimmigrants. When they saw how their compatriots in America lived as free peopleon their own land, free to shape their lives themselves, thus Washington hoped,they would not fight against the Americans anymore and perhaps even stay in theNew World. At the same time, he was strictly against integrating deserted Hessiansinto his army. Yet, for most Hessians subjects, desertion was no option anyway.Should they desert, a relative would have to serve in their place. So many soldiers

held out in captivity until the end of the war and worked for Americans.


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Two captive soldiers had been sent to Andy's town. Jacob was a Hessian, and beingseparated from his family caused him a great deal of pain. As to Johann, whohelped in the Merry Dragon Inn, Andy was not sure. By the way you speak I thinkyou are not from Hesse, right? he finally asked, To be honest, it brings backmemories.At these words Johann looked up. No,he said, as he saw the sincere

friendliness of the elderly gentleman, I come from the Rhine, from the Duchy ofBerg. I have been friends with Jacob for a long time, and when I visited him for hiswedding in Kassel, it happened. We celebrated until late, and during the night mypapers were stolen, and I was brought to the barracks.

Andy nodded sympathetically. What will you do when all this is over?he asked. Idon't know, Johann answered, As you see, a bullet injured my right arm, so Icannot serve in the Hessian army any more, and I do not want it either, but in thatcase they will hardly take me home with them. To stay here would meanemigration, and that is banned by our sovereign, Prince-Elector Charles Theodoreof Pfalz-Sulzbach. So I would probably be punished at home. Andy nodded

affectedly. Yes, I know, that would probably happen to you,he said, You know, Icome from the same region. My foster father and I were forced to flee back then,and we owe our escape to a very respectable bailiff of the Duchy of Berg. Had henot helped us, we would have ended up in prison.

Memories of Great-uncle Matthias

Immediately Johann fell silent. After a while he said, Then you are the son of thatmaster-builder whom great-uncle Matthias Bergmann helped escape back then?Now Andy fell silent, too. What has become of him?he finally asked, Father and Ihave always prayed that he did not suffer damage. Great-uncle Matthias hadmany grudgers,Johann said, And, needless to say, they went right away to theDuke of Berg, the Prince-Elector Johann Wilhelm and discredited him. He could notremain a bailiff, but since he was highly estimated by most people and also JohannWilhelm was well aware of his ability, he granted him a pension. Since then, themen of our family have been assigned to work in all regions of the Electorate,wherever our Prince-Elector needed our services: Dsseldorf, the capital of theDuchy of Berg, the residence in Mannheim and the castle in Schwetzingen. So weBergmanns are a big, wide spread clan. Also in the Seven Mountains I still havefamily.

When he saw Andy's concerned face, he added, Don't you worry, great-uncleMatthias never regretted that he helped you back then. For our family and formany people at home he was a hero, and we children all wanted to become likehim. I'm glad that I have met you, Andy finally said, Although I wish thecircumstances were better. We are deeply in debt to your family, and now you cancount on us.

A little later, Andy became very weak and could not leave his bed. While his familycared for him in the most loving way, they knew that they would soon have to bidfarewell. Johann too hardly left Andy's side. Don't be so sad,Andy said, I havehad a long, fulfilling life. That is much more than I could ever hope for back then

as an orphan boy in the Old World. It was wonderful to build up a new life for ushere and to see you all grow up.A little later he died.


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Peace and a lucky coincidence (1781, America)

For a long time, the Americans were no match for British and Hessian troops, butthanks to the military support of France and the training by the Prussian GeneralFriedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, they won the decisive Battle of Yorktown in 1781,

and the English commander Cornwallis surrendered. In the Peace of Paris 1783, theUnited States of America were recognized as an independent state. Finally the warwas over, and the joy was great when Ambrose, Simon and Emmett returned soundand safe. Also Jacob, the Hessian, could soon go back home to his family.

Johann was happy for them, and yet he felt a bit lost. Ambrose had invited him tomanage the Merry Dragon Inn with him and take it over in a few years, but Johannhesitated. It is because of Emmett, right?Ambrose asked, You think that as myson, he should take over the Merry Dragon Inn. That honors you, but ..you know,Emmett was on General Washington's staff, and now of course he wants toparticipate in building up our own country, how could I deny him that? He himself

would be pleased if you stayed, especially,Ambrose paused and smiled broadly,Especially since you are very fond of his sister Laurie, and I happen to know thatshe is very fond of you!

Johann and Laurie got married in the garden of the Merry Dragon Inn, and a littlelater their children James und Jenny were born. Johann was a bit sad that hisfriend Jacob could not share his new happiness with him, but they wrote to eachother regularly. You won't believe who has just made a Rhine tour, stood in aletter of 1784, Thomas Jefferson, the American envoy to France! He is a highlyeducated man and very interested in wine-growing.

The new capital Washington D.C. (1801, America)

After the American victory, some exciting years went by. In 1787, the constitutionof the United States was signed in Philadelphia; it was the first of the moderndemocratic world. In 1789, George Washington became the first President. Since hehad no permanent seat of government yet, first New York and then Philadelphiabecame his capitals. At the Potomac, the new capital Washington was built withthe office residence of the President, the White House. In 1800, President JohnAdams could move in. A year later, Thomas Jefferson became President, and hemade sure right away that his official residence was open to visitors. On a summer

Sunday of that year, Johann's family met on Pennsylvania Avenue in front of theWhite House, eager to see the President's official residence. John and Laurie wouldhave loved to have her father Ambrose and his sister Betty with them, but both haddied a short time ago.

Then they went on to the Capitol, where Emmett showed them the Library ofCongress, the newly founded Research Library of Congress. First of all we have tobuild up everything, he said. James was fascinated. When it is ready, we willhave all the knowledge in the world gathered together here,he marveled, whenI'm grown up, I want to work here!

It also was a good opportunity to say goodbye to Laurie's cousin Randolph. He wasan officer in the U.S. Navy and would soon sail with his squadron into theMediterranean Sea and fight the Barbary States.


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For decades already, their pirate ships had been attacking American ships andcapturing sailors. As the young United States had no navy, they paid ransoms andtributes. That greatly annoyed Jefferson, back then American envoy to France. Butnow the United Sates had strong ships, now he could demonstrate military strengthand force the pirates to their knees.


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Subjects and Citizens

From the Napoleonic Era to the Civil War

Niklas was thoughtful. Not only the issues,he said, Above all the people. Now Ilive as a free man in a free country, in a state that is supported by its citizens.

Where do these citizens come from, and what do they contribute? Just think of ourfamily. You and Jenny, you were born here. In our home, most people were

subjects, some even serfs. Then the French came and did away with serfdom. Nowthe Prussians rule and want to turn back time. We must write all this down, and

continue what your Great Aunt Betty has begun.

Our second chronicler is Niklas Bergmann. After the Napoleonic Wars, hunger andhardship prevail. As their farm could not produce enough to feed all of them, he,his brother and mother emigrate to live with distant relatives in the USA. Yet, timeand again their thoughts go back to the old homeland, where many people live indire poverty.

In 1848/49, revolution breaks out in Germany, but eventually it fails. Therevolutionaries must flee among them Carl Schurz, who became a greatstatement in the USA, and also the Bergmann brothersnephew Lorenz. While atthe Potomac the new capital came into being, no stone remained unturned in

Europe. The French Revolution shattered Europe's monarchies, soon war broke out.

Gottfried Kinkel and Carl Schurz


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Napoleon and the Rhine Frontier (1794-1803, Germany)

In 1794, French troops occupied the left bank of the Rhine, in October Bonn andCologne fell. De facto, the Rhine was now the border between the RevolutionaryFrance and the Holy Roman Empire, although it was not recognized as such yet.

One year later, King Frederick William II of Prussia left the coalition againstFrance, and in the same year French troops crossed the Rhine.

After Napoleon's victory in Italy, Emperor Francis II had to formally acknowledgethe Rhine as border between France and the Empire; the occupied left bankbecame French territory. Four years later, on February 8, 1801, the treaty ofLunville was concluded; it confirmed the annexation of the left bank by Franceand obliged the Holy Roman Empire to compensate those princes who had lostterritories there.

When Johann Bergmann in far away America read these news, he realized at once

that there was only one way to do these compensation - to take away land fromsome princes on the right side of the Rhine. Soon after one could read it in thesupra-regional newspapers. In 1803, a committee of the Reichstag (Imperial Diet)had passed a resolution on how to settle these compensations, referred to as theReichsdeputationshauptschluss4. Ecclesiastical states would be secularized andgiven to other, usually neighboring secular principalities. Moreover, almost allsmall states lost their sovereignty and became part of other, bigger states. Johannput down his newspaper. Why do they express it in such a complicated way?hethought, Although it is formally correct. The fact is that Napoleon drew a newmap of Germany.

The Louisiana Purschase (1803, America and Europe)

Also President Jefferson in Washington watched the conqueror in Paris withconcern. France still possessed New Orleans at the Mississippi delta, and this riverwas a very important trade route for the Americans. Moreover, Napoleon's troopsstood in Haiti, and the Emperor planned to suppress a revolt in Haiti and then re-conquer the vast, formerly French Louisiana territory. Jefferson acted - perhaps itwould possible to buy New Orleans and its surroundings from France. At first, theAmerican ambassador in Paris did not get far, only when many French soldiers diedof yellow fever in Haiti and almost all of Europe stood against France, Napoleon

was willing to compromise. He could not use another front against him, but heneeded money for his campaigns.

Then Emmett, Johann's brother in law, rushed into Johann's house and broughtsensational news: President Jefferson would send his close confidant James Monroeas an extraordinary envoy to Paris. I'm on Monroe's staff!Emmett said excitedly,And on the ship some cabins are free, you two can sail with us to France and thengo to the Rhine!

4In English: Principal Conclusion of the Extraordinary Imperial Delegation.


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A trip to the Rhine (1803, Germany)

A few weeks later, Johann still felt as if he was living a dream. On board ofMonroe's ship, they had sailed across the Atlantic to France and had spent somewonderful days with Emmett in Paris. Then Laurie and he had continued their

voyage through the Alsace to Strasbourg.

When they came to the Rhine, Johann's feelings had overpowered him. Fortunately,his old friend Jacob from Kassel was there and invited them into a wine tavern. Hewould accompany them to Coblenz and from there he would travel back to Kassel.Now they were on a ship sailing down the Rhine, past Mannheim, the residence cityof the Prince-Elector, Speyer with its magnificent cathedral, the Loreley rock,many castles, Coblenz and Linz ..then finally they saw the Drachenfels and theother hills of the Seven Mountains.

Rhine and Siebengebirge around 1800

Johann wondered - would he recognize his family there, and would they recognizehim? But when their ship docked in Knigswinter, all ran towards him and Laurieand gave them a big hug. There stood Hedy Bergmann with her sons Heinrich andNiklas and Hedy's brother Ewald, on whose farm at the bottom of the lbergmountain they were living since the death of her husband. Yes, Johann,Hedy saidafter they all had recovered their breath, We live through turbulent times here inthe Rhineland. Over there on the left side of the Rhine is now France. The Duke ofBerg, Maximilian Joseph of the Bavarian Wittelsbach dynasty, is a great friend ofFrance. The Archdiocese of Cologne has been secularized, it has disappeared fromthe map. The town of Knigswinter with the hills Drachenfels and Wolkenburg are apart of Nassau-Usingen now.

Again and again Johann and Laurie had to tell them about America. Yes, ourPresident Thomas Jefferson was elected by the people,Johann said, I could votetoo.And here we still have serfdom,Niklas Bergman said lowly. Over there onthe left side of the Rhine, French law already applies - Libert, Egalit, Fraternit,and I really hope that a bit of that will come to us too. Niklas and Heinrich and

showed them the Seven Mountains and the Mirbesbach creek that Laurie'sgrandfather Andy had told her about so often. Also the street she lived at wasnamed after the small stream.


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For Laurie, as an American, it was not unusual that her friends and neighbors hadtheir roots in different countries. And yet, she was deeply touched to see the placewhere her grandfather had played as a boy. She pulled a small wooden dragon ofher pocket and gently placed it on the ground. That's from grandfather andAnton,she said softly, They didn't even have time to say goodbye.

In the evening, Heinrich said admiringly, That was a beautiful wooden dragon,your grandfather must have been gifted.Yes,Laurie replied with a big smile, Hereally was. Our daughter Jenny has inherited his talent. She makes pottery, all ourdishes in the Merry Dragon Inn are hand-made by her. There are motifs from all thecountries our family and our friends come from, and of course dragons over andover again. I assume that soon we will be known not only for our cuisine, but alsofor Jenny's dishes! Meanwhile, the American and French diplomats in Paris hadcome to an agreement, and James Monroe was planning his return. So also thehappy days at the Rhine came to an end. When they parted, Johann said, If youever need help, write me, you are more than welcome to come and live with us.

We are not rich, but we can finance the passage.

On the journey back to America they got a bottle of Rhine wine, which Emmettwould forward to President Jefferson after their return. The President liked Rhinewine, and had not succeeded in growing wine on his estate Monticello yet. Andafter all, without Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe, their voyage would nothave been possible.

Grand Duchy of Berg (1806-1814, Germany)

After the defeat of Emperor Francis II in the Battle of Three Emperors at Austerlitz,events came thick and fast. 16 princes grouped together into the Confederation ofthe Rhine(1806) under Napoleon's protection, most of the others joined later untilfinally only Prussia, Austria, Danish Holstein and Swedish Pomerania were left out.De facto, the Holy Roman Empire did not exist anymore. Pushed by Napoleon,Francis II abdicated and declared the abolition of Holy Roman Empire. From nowon, he was Emperor of Austria.

In March 15, 1806, the Duke of Berg, who was also King of Bavaria, ceded the duchyto Napoleon, who enlarged its territory and elevated it to Grand Duchy of Berg.Also Knigswinter with the mountains Wolkenburg and Drachenfels now became

part of the new Grand Duchy. By decree of March 26, 1806, Napoleon assigned it tohis cavalry general and brother-in law Joachim Murat. When Murat became King ofNaples in 1808, Napoleon took over himself. On February 12, 1808, serfdom wasabolished in the Grand Duchy of Berg, on January 1, 1810, the French Franc wasintroduced and the Code Civil, also referred to as Code Napolon, entered in forceand assured that all people were equal before the law. Administration andeconomy were reorganized along the lines of the French model, the manorialsystem was abolished, allowing freedom of trade, and in 1812, a uniformjurisdiction followed. Many changes were changes for the better. But Napoleon alsoforcibly enlisted soldiers from the Confederation of the Rhine to fight in hiscampaigns. Military service in the French army became mandatory, since 1806 the

Grand Duchy of Berg had to recruit 5,000 men a year for Napoleon's wars.


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Soldiers from Berg fought against Prussia and in Spain. It was a strain on allfamilies.

Continental System and the Invasion of Russia (1807-1813, Europe)

Although the Grand Duchy of Berg had close economic ties to France, Napoleonaccepted its decline for the sake of his continental system. The Rhine was thecustoms border, also goods from Berg were classified as hostile and taxed at ahigh rate. As a result, Berg was de facto cut off from the French and Dutchmarkets. Soon the economy had reached a lot, people impoverished, hunger andpoverty spread.

Johann in America was very concerned. His thoughts were with Hedy and her sonswho served in Napoleon's army. Now the Emperor was planning the invasion ofRussia - that plan is insaneJohann thought. But Napoleon was determined, androde to Russia at the head of his Grande Arme, reinforced by contingents from

Prussia, Austria and the Confederation of the Rhine. The campaign ended indisaster. Napoleon himself escaped in a sleigh. Of his troops, only 18,000 returnedhome, of the 500 soldiers from Berg only about 190. General Yorck, commander ofthe Prussian regiments in the Grande Arme and a Prussian patriot, signed a trucewith the Russian General Diebitsch, without being authorized by the Prussian King(Convention of Tauroggen of December 30, 1812). It turned out to be start of theWars of Liberation.

In summer 1813, Prussia, Great Britain, Sweden, Austria and Bavaria stood againstNapoleon. In the Battle of Leipzig on October 16-19, 1813, also referred to as theBattle of the Nations, Napoleon's army was defeated and had to retreat toFrance. The allies chased them and got to the Rhine, the Confederation of theRhine fell apart. In the Great Duchy of Berg, the French top-ranking officials tookthe treasury and left. De facto, the Great Duchy did not exist anymore.

British-American War (1812-1814, America)

In those days Johann's family moved even closer together. Laurie's cousin Randolphserved in the US Navy, and although the United States were neutral, again andagain American vessels were captured by British ships and Americans were forciblyrecruited. The British Royal Navy blockaded American harbors. Finally President

James Madison (1809-1817) declared war on England. In spite of their numericalsuperiority, it did not go well for the Americans.

Johann's daughter Jenny had fallen in love with a soldier whom she had met whenthey visited Randolph's unit. As he would soon leave for the front, they had gottenmarried in all haste, despite Johann's concerns. He could understand the youngman's anger against Great Britain all too well, after all he had been forciblyrecruited himself. But he saw that the soldier got more and more under theinfluence of the war hawkswho demanded the conquest of large parts of Canada.Johann, however, wished a life in peace and freedom for his children and hisgrandchildren, and conceded the same to the Canadians and Indians.

On his last visit, Jenny barely recognized her husband, as he was all obsessed withthe conquest of Canada.


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When she said that the people there only defended their land, he yelled that herfather had come to America as a British mercenary, and her family could hardly begood Americans. That was more than Jenny could bear. After the war they wouldseparate. A few months later she got the news that her husband had been killed inthe war. His troops had attacked the Canadian city of York and were about to rob

and burn private houses. This was against all law, and Jenny's husband washorrified. He tried to stop his men, but they just shouted him down. In close-fight ashot rang, and he was dead. In the end, his good side won,Johann said, Let usremember him that way.

In August 1814, the British raided Washington and burned down public buildingsincluding the White House and the Capitol with the Library of Congress, inretaliation for American attacks in Canada.

Waterloo and the Congress of Vienna (1814-15, Germany)

These were days of anxious waiting for Johann and his family. His daughter Jennywas a widow and his son James was inconsolable after his Library of Congress hadbeen burned down. Moreover, he had not received any news from his family at theRhine. Finally he got a letter. Both Bergmann sons, Heinrich and Niklas, wereamong the few survivors of the Russian campaign, but they had suffered a lot, andNiklas had kept a stiff leg from a war injury. Nevertheless, both had fought in theLandsturm vom Siebengebirge together with a Prussian unit.

In January 1814, the French had to evacuate Cologne, in March 1814, the left bankof the Rhine was re-conquered. A little later the Allies rode into Paris. Napoleonhad to abdicate and go into exile on the island of Elba. But the situation remaineduneasy. At the Congress of Vienna 1814/15, the European statesmen debated overa new order, but did not come to an agreement. Instead, Napoleon acted. OnMarch 1, 1815, he and some hundred men landed in southern France. Many peoplehailed him, and troops that should have fought him defected to him. Quickly theallies found an agreement and took up arms again. At Waterloo, Napoleon wasdefeated by the British and Prussians under Wellington and Blcher. He was exiledto St. Helena in the South Atlantic and died there in 1821.

The White House after the fire


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Restoration (1815-1848, Germany)

After the victory over Napoleon, the statesmen of Europe gathered at the Congressof Vienna restored the old order. The whole of the Rhineland, Westphalia, andsome other territories fell to Prussia. The German states remained and grouped

together into a loose German Federation(1815-1866). Its supreme authority wasthe parliament in Frankfurt. Yet, its members were not, like today, freely electedrepresentatives, but envoys of the individual states, Austria had the presidency.The monarchs were satisfied, but many people were deeply disappointed.

A time of restoration began. King Frederick William III of Prussia broke his promiseto give his people a constitution. More than anyone else, the Austrian statesmanPrince Metternich dominated this time. In his eyes, freedom of opinion, freedom ofthe press and freedom of assembly as well as the struggle for national unity meantagitation and a threat to security - therefore, he and other princes oppressed themby might and main. The Burschenschaft student movement, who struggled for a

unified German nation and a progressive, liberal political system, was prohibited,professors and students were put under supervision by the state, newspapers andbooks were censored. Suspicious persons were considered demagogues andprosecuted. Among them were men of great merits like the Prussian statesman andgenerals.

Hunger and great need the Bergmanns leave (1815-1848, Germany)

After 20 years of war, life in the countryside was very hard: many soils wereruined, there was too little to live on, almost no medical care and infant mortalitywas very high. In winter 1816/17, it came to a famine after several bad harvests. 5(*5) Hunger and despair drove many people away from their homes, in those yearsmass emigration to America began.

Rhine, Knigswinter and Siebengebirge

5Today we know that it had to do with the eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia. The eruptioncaused global climate anomalies, and 1816 became a "Year without summer".


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Also Hedy Bergmann worried a lot, she knew that their farm could not produceenough to feed all of them. Again and again she thought of Johann's offer to comeover and live with him in America. She knew she could count on him, and yet it washard for her. Heinrich conjured her, Mother, I love my homeland, and during theterrible months in Russia, the thought of you and home kept me alive. But look

around you, how can we get enough to eat for all of us? When we give the farm toUncle Ewald, at least he and his family will have enough to live from, and we willbuild a new life for us over there in America with Johann and Laurie. And that iswhat we deserve, mother, a life! Over there, in the New World, they have evenwritten it down in the Declaration of Independence. Life, Liberty and the Pursuit ofHappiness, for all people, and all men are created equal!

His brother Niklas had been silent all the time. How could he, with his stiff leg,help his family? Finally he said, Mother, Heinrich is right, you two should build upa new life for yourselves with Johann. Heinrich knew what was going on in hisbrother. It's the three of us or no one at all,he said firmly, And you, my brother,

you will draw and write. Remember how you drew a lot of comrades still in thefield, and for some of you even wrote letters. How many could have hardly stayedin touched with their families if you hadn't been there for them? Don't think that aman with a bad leg does not have anything to give to others anymore. Of courseyou will come with us!

Transatlantic Cousins (1815-1848, America)

A few months later, Hedy Bergmann and her sons had left the Old World, althoughparting had been hard for all of them. Her American family gave them a very warmwelcome. Niklas, Heinrich, James cried excitedly, I've been waiting eagerly tomeet you! Father says that you, Niklas, draw and write, and that you, Heinrich, canfix almost everything. I work in the Library of Congress, and the fire destroyed it.We need you!

Soon, the three young men were inseparable. Niklas and Heinrich were most of thetime with James in Washington and helped re-build the city after the fire. Henrywas out and about with the engineers and architects. As word about his abilitiesgot around quickly, he was summoned to help with other major projects, amongthem even in the construction of the Erie Canal from New York City to Buffalo atthe Erie Lake.

Niklas worked with James at the Library of Congress. After the devastating fire,Thomas Jefferson had offered Congress to buy his personal library as areplacement, and it included some 6,500 books on philosophy, literature andscience in different languages! Niklas read, sketched and catalogued. After theyears in the Napoleonic army, he spoke French well and could also help translatedocuments in French. He was glad that he could contribute his services, and yet hefelt they were so insignificant; he deeply wanted to give more of himself to thepeople who had welcomed him so kindly. James sensed that Niklas had not foundhis place in his new life yet. On the weekends he often took his sister Jenny andJames on a countryside tour. One Sunday they saw from afar Monticello, Jefferson's

estate. His library is so enormous,Niklas said, he must esteem education.Yes,he does,James agreed, And he is convinced that all issues are important for ourlegislation.


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Niklas was thoughtful. Not only the issues,he said, Above all the people. Now Ilive as a free man in a free country, in a state that is supported by its citizens.Where do these citizens come from, and what do they contribute? Just think of ourfamily. You and Jenny, you were born here. In our home, most people weresubjects, some even serfs. Then the French came and did away with serfdom. Now

the Prussians rule and want to turn back time. We must write all this down, andcontinue what your Great Aunt Betty has begun.What are you waiting for?Jamesinterrupted him with a big smile.

From then on, Niklas was often seen with paper and pen. Also at the weekends hewas often so wrapped up in his work that he even forgot about the meals untilJenny came for him. Then he realized that was she was not only being thoughtful,but wholeheartedly fond of him. And when he finished the first pages of his bookletSubjects and citizens, he knew: Niklas Bergmann had found his place in his newlife. A few days later he proposed marriage to Jenny.

America to the Americans the Monroe Doctrine (1823, America)

In 1821, the entire Bergmann family was in Washington. James Monroe, on whoseship Emmett, John and Laurie had sailed to Europe about twenty years ago, wassworn in for his second term as the 5th President of the United States. In theafternoon, James had invited them at to a celebration in his house.

Do you like the wine?a cheerful voice asked behind Heinrich. He turned around -there stood a young woman who looked at him expectantly, It's from our vineyardin Virginia. You know, when a President from Virginia is sworn in, we should drink atoast on him with wine from Virginia, shouldn't we? Of course, Heinrich saidspontaneously, but then he, who never had been at a loss for words, did not findanything to say - he had just met the woman of his dreams.

President Monroe was concerned. In the Old World, the absolute monarchies hadrestored their power after the French Revolution and Napoleon, and now crackedon republican and liberal ideas and institutions. The monarchs of Russia, Austria,Prussia and France had joined forces in the Holy Alliance, to jointly defend theold order. It almost seemed that the restoration in the Old World would even beextended into the New World. During the Napoleonic wars in Europe, the coloniesin Latin America had raised against Spain and Portugal. When the rulers, with the

help of the Holy Alliance, tried to re-impose their rule and Russia claimed Alaska,President James Monroe gave a clear warning: We owe it, therefore, to candorand to the amicable relations existing between the United States and those powersto declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend theirsystem to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety.With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have notinterfered and shall not interfere. But with the Governments who have declaredtheir independence and maintained it, and whose independence we have, on greatconsideration and on just principles, acknowledged, we could not view anyinterposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in any othermanner their destiny, by any European power in any other light than as the

manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States.6

6Quoted from the Monroe Doctrine, available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monroe_Doctrine


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Bergmann and Mountain Man (1820-50, America)

Peace and safety,Johann repeated the words of the Monroe Doctrine. After allthe years, he and his family had been granted that. And what a fabulous family didhe have! He, the former prisoner of war, had married into the family of the man

whom his great-uncle had once helped to escape. His two children James andJenny were happy. James lived with his family in Washington, he was taken up withhis work for the Library of Congress. James would make his way.

Jenny and Niklas had gotten married and now managed the Merry Dragon Inn. Theyhad a son, Harvey. Laurie had been right, soon the Merry Dragon Inn was also wellknown for Jenny's beautiful dishes. On her plates and cups big and small dragonscavorted, flying over mountains and valleys or swimming across a big river. Whereis that scenery?she was often asked. It is great grandfather's and Niklas' home,the Seven Mountains at the Rhine. My father too comes from the Rhine, and so wekids are born with a fondness for dragons,she said smilingly, Over there in the

Seven Mountains is a hill, the Drachenfels, on which allegedly once a mythicaldragon lived. The famous Lord Byron from England wrote a poem about it, TheCastled Crag of Drachenfels.

In quiet hours Niklas, often sat on the front porch, drawing. One loved his littleworks and many neighbors asked him to draw themselves and their homes for theirrelatives in the Old World. Not only that, he supported the small school in his townand helped many children learn to read and write. Once a week they came to himin the Merry Dragon Inn, then sat at the table that Jenny's grandfather Ambrosehad made for children, and each child got a plate made by Jenny, covered with

pastry, and then they read together.Heinrich lived with his wife Rebecca on her family's vineyard in the ShenandoahValley in Virginia. Johann had visited him there. His skin tanned and carryingbaskets filled with grapes under his arms, he came out of the vineyard, followed byhis two sons, Joseph and Ben. Soon they would have a little sister. Mountain Man'sBliss,he said, smiling and pointing to his children, and that was the name of hiswines - Mountain Man's Red Blissand White Bliss. One could see that Heinrichwas happy. Johann smiled even more. Now their family name Bergmann had notonly been translated into the English version Mountain Man, but had become a bitof a program.

Johann was happy. Also Hedy Bergmann was granted many happy years in America.Soon the young generation would take over, and they were best friends. He feltthat his life time was reaching an end, and he looked with gratitude upon his life. Afew months later he died in peace, and shortly thereafter his wife Laurie died too.

No time for books Industrialization (1820-50, Germany)

For some years now Niklas and Heinrich Bergmann had been living in America. Itwas a good life, they had worked hard and could live in financial security now.Above all, they were happy that their children could grow up free and without

hunger. But time and again their thoughts went back to their old homeland, wheremany people were in great need. More and more people came to America, hopingfor a better life. Among the newcomers in their neighborhood were many children.


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Often Niklas invited them to the Merry Dragon Inn, and then they read together,Grimm's Fairy Talesfrom Germany and The Last of the Mohicansfrom America.

Niklas' son Harvey was dismayed to see that so many of the children could not read.His father told him about the hardships these families had had to endure. In his

homeland, he assumed, some 3/4 of people were illiterate. Sure, the Prussiangovernment paid attention to education, going to school was even compulsory, butin many peasant and working class families the need was so great that the childrenhad to work too, and could not go to school.

Back then, many people worked in the home industry, they made nails and knives,span and wove to make a living for themselves and their families. Also small scalefarmer families whose land did not feed them all earned money by working athome. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars, more and more industrial productsfrom England came to Germany, and also here industrialization began. But thehome industry could not withstand industrialization. The more machines were

developed and in use, the more people lost their jobs. One mechanical loomreplaced 200 workers, that was a catastrophe for the weavers, and starvationwages, women or even child labor could not change anything. Many craftsmenimpoverished, especially those whose products competed with industry. At thesame time, countless impoverished peasants and jobless craftsmen moved to theindustry cities, hoping to find work in the factories, what again forced down thewages. Working conditions were generally terrible, laws to protect the workers didnot exist, and the conditions of living were disastrous. Despite strenuous work,many people could not make a living for themselves and their families and becamedestitute. We speak of a time of pauperization.

Political oppression (1837, Germany)

On that day in 1837, when Niklas wanted to read another fairy tale by the BrothersGrimm with his little guests, his smile seemed a bit forced. He had received mailfrom his cousin Hermann Bergmann in Germany, a letter and newspaper articles.Before we read on, I need to tell you something,he said, We have read manytales of the Brothers Grimm here together, and I told you about them. Jakob andWilhelm Grimm did not collect only German fairy tales, but tales from all aroundthe world, translated them and promoted understanding for other cultures. Forthem, respect and love for one's own language and culture meant respecting other

cultures as well. But now they are in danger. They were professors at theUniversity of Gttingen7(*7), a city in the Kingdom of Hanover. For about 125 years,the crowns of Hanover and England have been united in the person of a singlemonarch, but now that personal union has been dissolved, and the new King ofHanover has abolished the quite liberal constitution. This is a violation of law, andseven professors of the University of Gttingen, among them the Brothers Grimm,have protested against it. Now they are expelled from the country, only becausethey have protested with other professors against a violation of the constitution.

When he saw the bewildered faces of his listeners, he said: You grow up in a freecountry with a President elected by the people. In my homeland, it is very

different.

7Gttinger Seven


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There kings and emperors rule, and after the victory over Napoleon, they want toturn back time, back to absolute monarchy, where the monarch has no restraints instate and political matters. Many upright men are considered to be demagogues,that means persons who deceive and incite the people. The authorities pursuethem for 'revolutionary activities', Among them are men of great merits, and now

also the Brothers Grimm.

Then he smiled, after all, Cousin Hermann also writes that many people are on thecourageous professors' side. Wherever they go, they are warmly received, peopleadmire them and even collect money for them.

The Frontier (1830-1850, America)

Niklas' and Jenny's son Harvey had grown up and was a bright young man. He tookmuch interest in the events in America and Europe and worked as a freelancejournalist for the publishing house of his mother's family in Philadelphia. He

traveled west through the new settlements areas to Texas and reported about theland and the people. You have a lot of my Great Aunt Betty in you,Jenny oftensaid to him, She too was very interested in the many different cultures that cometogether here. Niklas was a little sad because he saw his son only rarely, butHarvey had smilingly reminded him of his own words, Daddy, you said it yourselfonce. It is important that we write about all the people who make our country.

In those years, the United States pushed their border, the frontier further andever further westwards. Deeper and deeper the White Man penetrated into Indianterritory, more and more Indians were displaced from their traditional lands andforced into reservations. President Andrew Jackson (1829-1837) hated the Indians.During his presidency, the controversial Indian Removal Act (1830) was adopted.Thousands died on the Trail of Tears, the forced migration of the Cherokee in 1838.Among the opponents of the law was Congressman Davy Crockett from Tennessee.In 1836, he went to Texas to join the settlers who fought for Texas' independencefrom Mexico. He is one of the defenders of the Alamo in San Antonio in 1836 andwas killed in fight. But eventually Texas won its independence from Mexico and in1845 joined the United States. Also more and more immigrants from Germanysettled in the Midwest and Texas, many through the services of the GieenEmigration Societyand the Adelsverein. After winning the war against Mexico in1848, Nevada, Utah, Arizona and parts of New Mexico fell the United States. With

the Oregon Treaty of 1846, the territory of the present states of Oregon,Washington and Idaho came to the USA. In 1848, the California Gold Rush drewhundreds of thousands to the West Coast.

Heinrich Heines Winters Tale (Germany, 1844)

One evening at home in the Merry Dragon Inn, Harvey found his father Niklas allimmersed in a book. What are you reading, father? he asked, You look sad.Niklas looked up. Oh, Harvey. That's Germany. A Winter's Tale, by HeinrichHeine. At home it is forbidden, and I got in on the most venturesome ways fromParis.

Harvey too knew Heine, the poet from Dsseldorf, who loved his native Rhinelandand was now living in exile in Paris. His father and Heine felt the same.


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Niklas loved his new home in America, and yet he kept his old homeland at theRhine in his heart. Yes,he said, The newspapers mention that Heine's works areforbidden in Germany. They have been banned for years already, Niklasconfirmed sadly, You know his poem The Night on the Drachenfels', I have oftenread it to you. That night, October 18, 1819, Heine celebrated with other students

from Bonn University the anniversary of the Battle of Leipzig, on top theDrachenfels where there is a monument in honor of two brave men who died in theWars of Liberation. But that was forbidden. The Prussian authorities reactedimmediately and banned the students' participating in fraternities or any otherleagues.

When The Night of the Drachenfels' was published in 1827 in the Book of Songs',Heine's works were already censored.Sadly Niklas said, In 1843, Heine went hometo Germany again, this is the theme of Germany. A winter's tale.' It is a politicalpoem in which he decries the restoration policy and King Frederick William IV ofPrussia callousness towards the poor people's plight. Already in October 1844 it wasbanned8(*8), in December an arrest warrant was issued against Heine. At the sametime it is a personal poem, through mockery and irony you feel his deepattachment to the homeland. I know, Harvey said, You feel the same deepattachment, and you love this country, too. You have a big heart, father!

Lorenz must flee March Revolution (1848/49, Germany)

In May 1848 one saw a new decoration at the Merry Dragon Inn. Next to theAmerican flag there was a black, red and golden one. Beaming with joy, Niklasshared the news from Germany, This is the new national flag! Our old homeland isfinally united, and for the first time there is a freely elected Parliament!

The great social need and pent-up anger against the restoration policy had finallyerupted in the March revolution. Caught by surprise and off guard, the rulers of thesmall and medium German states had given in to the demands of March andappointed liberal ministers, the March ministers. The Federal Council had

released censorship of the press and declared black-red-golden as national flag.8In the same year, Heine's poem "Die schlesischen Weber" ("The Silesian Weavers") was banned.He wrote it when the Prussian military violently crushed the uprising of weavers in Silesia in 1844.

Rhine, Nonnenwerth and Drachenfels around 1830


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For the first time there had been free elections for a National Assembly for all ofGermany, and the march of the parliamentarians, among them Jakob Grimm, intoSt. Paul's Church in Frankfurt on May 18, 1848, had been a happy day. Everywhereblack-red-golden flags had been waved and people had cheered for theparliamentarians.

But while the National Assembly was discussing about a new constitution, it wasovertaken by reality. The fights continued and in November/December governmenttroops crushed the revolutionary movements, in Vienna and Berlin the old powersregained control. When in April 1849 the National Assembly finally adopted aConstitution and offered the crown to King Frederick William IV of Prussia, it wasfar too late. The king refused, and the National Assembly was dissolved. A secondrevolutionary wave went through Germany, mainly Saxony, Baden, the Rhineland,Westphalia and the Palatine - democrats took up arms again to force the monarchsto accept the constitution. Prussian troops under Prince William crushed thesecond revolutionary wave in Baden and the Palatinate. Many revolutionaries had

to flee abroad, among them Friedrich Hecker, Franz Siegel and Carl Schurz, whobecame known in the United States as Forty-Eighters.

At the beginning of 1850, the Bergmann brothers received an urgent letter fromtheir cousin Hermann in the Rhineland. His son Lorenz had to flee and was on hisway via England to North America to them. He had had just enough time in Londonto telegraph the name of the ship that would bring him to New York. You willprobably know about the revolution,Hermann wrote, in our region there weredemocratic clubs too. Many Democrats rallied around Gottfried Kinkel fromOberkassel, professor at Bonn University, and his young student Carl Schurz from

Liblar. In the night of May 10/11, 1849, they both marched at the top of 120citizens to the arsenal in Siegburg, to get the Landwehr's weapons stored there. Butthe operation failed, the soldiers crushed it, and now the Prussian police are afterthem.The Bergmann brothers knew what severe consequences the victory of thereaction had: the press was strictly censured, assemblies were forbidden anddemocrats had to fear house search, spying, confiscation, even harassment by thepolice and arrest.

The Great Famine (1845-1848)

A few weeks later Niklas and Heinrich Bergmann, now seasoned gentleman, stood

on the pier in New York and waited for Lorenz. At last they found him, but he wasnot alone. Clung to his hand, hidden behind his back were two emaciated children,behind them their mother stood shyly. I've met them on the quay, they are fromIreland and they do not know where to go,Lorenz said, You cannot imagine themisery on some ships. You don't mind that we take them with us, do you?Thatwent without saying. Heinrich and Niklas Bergman had heard of the terrible faminein Ireland. Also in their town people had collected money for Ireland.

For many desperately poor people emigration was the last resort, also in Germany.After poor harvests in the years 1845 and 1846, the prices for staples food such asbread and potatoes raised many times over. In many areas there were famines that

could hardly be alleviated by government policies. The municipalities did not havethe money to assist needy families.


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In the years from 1845/1847 until 1855 the biggest mass emigration of the 19thcentury to North America occurred, 80,000 people alone in 1847.

Whose country is this, anyhow? (1850, America)

Lorenz had settled in well. He had met all members of his American family and waseager to learn about the country and its people. Moreover, he had found hispersonal happiness: Annelie, Heinrich's daughter, was the woman of his life. Withher he would soon take over the Merry Dragon Inn. Also his Irish protgs had beenwarmly received. They lived in a small house nearby and mother Heather, a skilledseamstress, helped with the washing and mending in the Merry Dragon Inn. Morethan that, she had insisted on making new curtains and table cloths. They wereexquisite and soon her skills were so well known that she could open her ownbusiness. But the orders from the Merry Dragon Inn remained her favorite ones.From revolutionary to innkeeper, Lorenz thought, a bit sarcastic, what a career.But the Merry Dragon Inn had long become more than a place where one could eat,

drink and spend the night. It was a meeting place - here all guests were welcome,as long as they were honest and tolerant people.

That could not be taken for granted in those days. As reaction to the huge influx ofimmigrants, a nativist movement had formed that demanded that whites born inAmerica should be better treated than immigrants. Their political arm became theanti-Irish-Catholic American Party, founded in 1854 and better known as KnowNothings, who claimed severe limits on immigration and a long time of waiting forimmigrants to become American citizens. Here we all are a community, but it'snot like here in other parts of the country,Heather said to Lorenz one evening,Most Irish are Catholics, that alone is causes distrust. The nativists consider themto be subjects to the Pope in Rome and hostile to American values. Many Americansalso fear that the Irish take away their job, since they accept even the hardest andmost dangerous work for low wages. Sometimes anxiety even leads to hatred. I'veheard from New York that there are fights for dominance in slum areas.9

Carl Schurz in the United States (1852, America)

One evening Harvey came back from Philadelphia and brought sensational news.Would you believe who's in town? he cried, Carl Schurz! This is an incrediblestory! After the failed assault on the arsenal in Siegburg, Kinkel and Schurz had

gone to Baden to join the Baden-Palatinate uprising. But the revolutionaries wereno match for the Prussian troops. Kinkel was wounded and taken prisoner. At last,only the fortress at Rastatt remained in the hands of the revolutionaries. Schurzwas enclosed there with others, the situation was hopeless and finally theycapitulated. The Prussians executed many revolutionaries by firing squad.

As Schurz was a Prussian citizen, they would have executed him too, but in the lastmoment he could escape through a sewer tunnel. A year later he rescued Kinkel ina daring action from Spandau prison and fled with him to England. There he met hiswife and they decided to go to America, and now he's here in Philadelphia. I'dlove to have a chance and see him, Niklas Bergmann said, he must be a

daredevil.

9The theme of "Gangs of New York"


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Years of War

Civil War in the USA,Austro-Prussian andPrussian-French war

Lorenz hat uns viele Deiner Artikel geschickt, Harvey, sagte Lena, ichbewundere die Art, wie Du ber Euer Land und seine Menschen schreibst, die doch

so unterschiedlich sind, und wie Du allen gerecht werden mchtest und Dich vorkeinen Karren spannen lsst. Du darfst jetzt nicht aufgeben. Und schreibe auch die

Geschichte Eures Stdtchens weiter, schreibe von einer Familie, die seit

Generationen ber den Ozean hinweg zusammenhlt.

Harvey Bergmann, Niklas son, is a political journalist. He takes great interest inthe events in America and Europe, and he knows the dark side of politics very well.

The years of war in the USA have affected also the Bergmann family deeply. Butthey stick together, across the Atlantic Ocean. Harveys German relatives, Emil andLena, help with reconstruction. And it is Lena who encourages him to continue hisfathers work. For Harvey, this is his gift to the next generation.

Destroyed houses in Chambersb

at home at the rhine and in america

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