Historical dictionary of German Theatre

UNRUH, FRITZ VON

(1885-1970)
Playwright. Unruh enjoyed brief notice as anExpressionistplaywright in the aftermath of World War I, whenGustav Hartungdirected some of the plays he had written before and during the war. The best of them wereEin Geschlecht(A Generation, 1918), premiering in Frankfurt am Main, andVorder Entscheidung(Before the Decision, 1914).Platz(Place) premiered in 1920.Max Reinhardthad earlier premiered hisOffiziere(Officers, 1911), andLouis Ferdinand, Prinz von Preussen(Louis Ferdinand, Prince of Prussia, 1913) premiered in Darmstadt. Unruh was the son of a Prussian general, and he entered the Prussian officer corps himself, but later resigned his commission and became a pacifist. He emigrated to the United States in 1932 and remained there for two decades; upon his return to postwar Germany, he attempted to revive his playwriting career, but with little success.

  1. unruh, fritz von—poet and playwright erstwhile Prussian officer who became a pacifist during World War I. He was born in Koblenz to an aristocratic family his ancestors had served the Pru...Historical dictionary of Weimar Republik