Heinrich Heine (1797-1856)

Death: 17th February 1856
Location: Cimetière de Montmartre, Paris, Ile-de-France, France
Cause of death: Chronic lead poisoning
Photo taken by: Guittoun

Buy books by Heinrich Heine

German poet, journalist, essayist, and literary critic best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music by composers such as Franz Schubert. His radical political views led to many of his works being banned by German authorities; Heine spent the last 25 years of his life as an expatriate in Paris.

Among the thousands of books burned on Berlin's Bebelplatz in 1933 by Nazis, were works by Heinrich Heine. To commemorate the terrible event, one of the most famous lines of Heine's 1821 play Almansor is engraved on a plaque at the site:

"Das war ein Vorspiel nur, dort wo man Bücher verbrennt, verbrennt man auch am Ende Menschen." 

("That was but a prelude; where they burn books, they will ultimately burn people as well.")

Photo taken by: OTFW