Born: 30 November 1817 · Died: 1 November 1903 · Age: 85
German classical scholar whose History of Rome won him the second-ever Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1902
Did you know?He remains the only writer of non-fiction to win the Nobel Prize in Literature and was one of its oldest recipients.
Quick facts
Date of birth30 November 1817
Date of death1 November 1903
Age at death85
NationalityGerman
BirthplaceGarding, Germany
Occupationhistorian of classical antiquity, numismatist, jurist
Editor's Take:
Theodor Mommsen was the greatest historian of ancient Rome in the 19th century. His History of Rome brought the Roman Republic to life with energy and strong opinions. He compared ancient politicians to those of his own day. He also led a vast project to collect and publish every known Latin inscription. That work is still used by scholars today. He was a liberal politician who opposed Bismarck. In 1902 he won the Nobel Prize in Literature. He is still one of very few historians to receive it.
Key Milestones
1854: History of Rome – first volume
1858: Berlin Academy – joins
1863: Latin inscriptions – corpus begins
1873: Parliament – Prussian deputy
Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen (German:; 30 November 1817 – 1 November 1903) was a German classical scholar, historian, jurist, journalist, politician and archaeologist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest classicists of the 19th century.
