Jürgen Schlumbohm - Biography#

Jürgen Schlumbohm began his research in the field of conceptual history and then turned to social and economic history. With his colleagues Peter Kriedte and Hans Medick , he published the book "Industrialization before Industrialization" in 1977, which was also translated into English, Italian and Spanish. As a case study on proto-industrialization , Jürgen Schlumbohm researched the parish of Belm in the Osnabrück region; Coarse linen was produced there until the 19th century, which was used for clothing in America, not least for the slaves. Using the example of Belm in a micro-historical approach, he examined the social relationships in family and relatives as well as between farmers and landless people. He also worked in the field of historical demography and childhood history. More recently, he has done research on the history of childbirth and obstetrics. His book “Living Phantoms. A maternity hospital and its patients 1751–1830 ”is a micro-historical study of the maternity hospital of the University of Göttingen ( Accouchierhaus). The volume “Forbidden Love, Hidden Children. The Secret Book of the Göttingen Birth Hospital 1794–1857 “deals specifically with anonymous births. The detailed case histories give unusual insights into the secrecy strategies of men and women of the upper classes and show the consequences this had for them and their illegitimate children.