Geschichte der Zoologie und der zoologischen Anstalten in Jena 1779-1919

The Forgotten “Old-Darwinian” Synthesis: The Evolutionary Theory of Ludwig H. Plate (1862–1937)

“…Yet, despite Plate's extraordinary importance for a historical reconstruction of the "pre-synthetic" period in 20th century evolutionary biology, only a few authors have so far described and analyzed Plate's evolutionary theory [Uschmann, 1959]; [Penzlin, 1994]. Therefore, the primary objective of this paper is to show the "true colours" of the German "old-Darwinian" movement as it is represented in the works of Plate.…”

History of Ecological Sciences, Part 47: Ernst Haeckel's Ecology

“…He owed the position to Carl Gegenbaur (1826–1903), whom he had known at Würzburg. Gegenbaur became his closest friend and collaborator (Nordenskiöld 1928:499–503, Uschmann 1959:27–33, Coleman 1978). Aside from numerous journeys, Haeckel spent the rest of his life at Jena.…”

“…Repetition and a clear definition possibly helped establish his term, oecologie, for there were alternative suggestions available (Schurig and Nothacker 2001). In 1907 he established a Phyletisches Museum at the university, partly financed with royalties from his books (Uschmann 1959:165–175, Di Greogorio 2005:526–527). When his successor as director of the museum did not run it as Haeckel had expected, he turned his home into a museum—Ernst Haeckel‐Haus (photos of both buildings in Smit 1967 and Richards 2008).…”

Darwinism's Tragic Genius: Psychology and ReputationRobert J. Richards. The Tragic Sense of Life: Ernst Haeckel and the Struggle over Evolutionary Thought. xx + 512 pp., apps., figs., bibl., index. Chicago/London: University of Chicago Press, 2008. $39 (cloth).

“…The coverage is guided by psychological interest and the need for rehabilitation; on Haeckel as institute director and teacher, for example, Georg Uschmann's history remains unsurpassed. 12 Richards uses most of the main printed sources, especially the rich published letters, while leaving most of the vast periodical literature and voluminous archive for others to exploit. That is understandable, but a book motivated by Haeckel's bad reputation could usefully have engaged more thoroughly with the biographical tradition.…”