Kaspar Hauser: Voorbeeld Eener Misdaad Gepleegd Tegen De Geestvermogens of Het Zieleleven Eens Menschen”

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Kaspar Hauser: Voorbeeld Eener Misdaad Gepleegd Tegen De Geestvermogens of Het Zieleleven Eens Menschen” KASPAR HAUSER HET KIND VAN EUROPA Door Paul Heldens Nijmegen, 29 november 2012 Verbeterde en uitgebreide versie Jenseits aller historischen Forschung, aller wissenschaftlicher Akribie, ist die zum Mythos gewordene Figur des Kaspar Hausers ein Symbol jeglichen Menschheitsschickals: Wir alle kommen, ich weiß nicht woher, und gehen, ich weiß nicht wohin. Wir alle begehen und erleiden ‘Verbrechten am Seelenleben des Menschen’, und wir alle sind Sünder und Opfer der ‘Trägheit des Herzens’ 1 Hermann Pies 1 Hermann Pies IV (1928), pag. 9. NL: “Voorbij alle historisch onderzoek, alle wetenschappelijke nauwgezetheid, is de tot mythe geworden figuur van Kaspar Hauser een symbool voor het mensheidslot van iedereen: wij allen komen, ik weet niet waar vandaan, en gaan, ik weet niet waar naar toe. Wij allen begaan en ondergaan ‘misda- den tegen het zieleleven van de mens’ en wij allen zijn daders en slachtoffers van de ‘traagheid van het hart’.” 2 INHOUDSOPGAVE TEN GELEIDE........................................................................................................................5 I. OVER LEVEN EN DOOD VAN KASPAR HAUSER................................................................8 Onbekend zijn geboorte....................................................................................................8 Het Kind van Europa.........................................................................................................9 Allermerkwaardigste misdaad .......................................................................................10 Een raadsel van zijn tijd..................................................................................................12 Crux voor pedagogen......................................................................................................14 Geruchten, beweringen en feiten n.a.v. een aanslag ......................................................16 Naar Ansbach ..................................................................................................................19 Duister zijn dood.............................................................................................................20 II. VOORTLEVEN IN EUROPA..............................................................................................25 Lastercampagne ..............................................................................................................25 De zon brengt het aan de dag .........................................................................................26 III. DE DNA-ONDERZOEKEN VAN 1996 EN 2002 ..............................................................31 “Schönster Krimi aller zeiten“ (1996) ...........................................................................31 “Die haben etwas anderes untersucht als wir” (2002) ..................................................34 IV. ONTWIKKELINGEN IN DE PERIODE 2003-2012..........................................................36 Enkele recente publicaties..............................................................................................36 Roep om een derde DNA-onderzoek ..............................................................................41 De verdwenen doodskisten van Pforzheim....................................................................42 Het spook van Europa.....................................................................................................44 Doodskist van prinsje N.N. toch niet verloren?..............................................................45 V. RUDOLF STEINER OVER KASPAR HAUSER ...................................................................46 VI. THEORIEËN OVER KASPAR HAUSER............................................................................49 Spekulaties en geruchten................................................................................................49 Feuerbachs geheime Mémoire van 1832 .......................................................................50 Merkers openbare anti-Hausergeschrift van 1830........................................................51 Pro en contra...................................................................................................................52 Zeven theorieën over Kaspar Hauser .............................................................................54 De bedriegertheorie nader beschouwd..........................................................................56 Geloof versus ongeloof....................................................................................................59 VII. LITERATUUROVERZICHT ............................................................................................62 VIII AFBEELDINGEN & FESTSPIELE ..................................................................................70 Over de afbeeldingen ......................................................................................................70 Kaspar Hauser Festspiele ...............................................................................................70 IX. BIJLAGE: Het Vaderland – 17 december 1933..............................................................71 3 Aquarel door Kaspar Hauser N.B. Alle publicaties waar in de tekst en in de noten naar verwezen wordt, staan in het litera- tuuroverzicht op pag. 62 e.v. Alle citaten uit oorspronkelijk Duitse literatuur zijn door de auteur van dit document in het Nederlands vertaald. 4 TEN GELEIDE anneer men in een digitale encyclopedie, de Encarta/Winkler-Prins van 2006 bij- W voorbeeld, het lemma over Kaspar Hauser opzoekt, dan kan men daar onder meer het volgende lezen: “Hauser, Kaspar (30 april 1812 ? – Ansbach 17 dec. 1833), beroemd geworden vondeling, vertoonde zich op 26 mei 1828 voor het eerst te Neurenberg. Hij kon nog nauwelijks lopen en praten, maar wel zijn naam schrijven. Hij had brieven bij zich voor de commandant van een regiment lichte cavalerie, waarin stond dat zijn vader bij dat regiment had gediend en dat de zoon ook daarin moest worden opgenomen. Al- lerlei pedagogen hielden zich met zijn ‘geval’ bezig. Hij verklaarde grootgebracht te zijn in een donkere, lage ruimte en daaruit pas kort tevoren te zijn bevrijd. Op 17 okt. 1829 werd waarschijnlijk een eerste moordaanslag op hem gepleegd. Anderen beweren dat hij zichzelf een wond toebracht om weer in de getaande belangstelling te komen. Hij werd onder onopgehelderde omstandigheden vermoord. Het is niet duidelijk of Kaspar Hauser een bedrieger was, dan wel de zoon van groothertog Karel van Baden en Stépha- nie de Beauharnais.” In alle grote gedrukte encyclopedieën – Winkler-Prins, LaRousse, Brittannica, Brock- haus – vindt men overeenkomstige beschrijvingen met dezelfde strekking, waarbij de mogelijkheid van een zelfmoordpoging in plaats van een dodelijke moordaanslag in 1833 wordt opengelaten. Als mogelijke geboortedatum wordt de uit de aard van de zaak fictieve datum aangegeven die op een van de twee briefjes stond, die Kaspar Hauser bij aankomst in Neurenberg bij zich had nl. 30 april 1812. De werking van de aldus beleden wetenschappelijke terughoudendheid is dat Kaspar Hauser nog altijd een wat dubieuze figuur blijft en dat aan de z.g. bedrieger- of zelfmoordtheorie de facto alle ruimte wordt gegeven. De zeer populaire internet-encyclopedie WikiPedia is voor steeds meer mensen een belangrijke, zo niet de belangrijkste bron van informatie geworden. De informatie die in de Duitse, Engelse en Nederlandse WikiPedia over Kaspar Hauser wordt gegeven is weliswaar uitgebreider dan die in de gedrukte wetenschappelijke encyclopedieën, maar blijkt die vrijblijvende wetenschappelijke terughouding te hebben ingeruild voor de neurologisch-psychiatrische variant van de reeds genoemde bedrieger- of zelfmoord- theorie: geen moord, maar zelfmoord, geen opsluiting in een kerker en al helemaal geen erfprins van Baden. Het verschil met de klassieke bedriegertheorie is dat Kaspar Hauser niet langer als een doortrapte oplichter wordt neergezet, maar als een psychiatrisch pa- tiënt die zelf geloofde in de onzin die hij uitkraamde. Ivo Striedinger was de eerste die in 1933 deze psychiatrische versie van de bedriegertheorie lanceerde. In de publicatie van het resultaat van het DNA-onderzoek door Der Spiegel in 1996 bracht de neuroloog- psychiater Günther Hesse naar voren dat het “epidermolysis bullosa” was waaraan Kas- par Hauser leed, een vrij zeldzame huidziekte. Die opvatting is inmiddels onhoudbaar gebleken. Met name Peter Jozef Keuler (1997) vocht de verklaring van Hesse aan. Daar- om domineert tegenwoordig de “histrionische persoonlijkheidsstoornis” (Karl Leonhard 1970) of een andere hysterische persoonlijkheidsstoornis als wetenschappelijke verkla- ring voor het veronderstelde leugenachtige en aanstellerige gedrag van Kaspar Hauser. De Duitse WikiPedia heeft sinds 2007 de opvatting van Striedinger overgenomen en de- ze op spitsvondige wijze in de geest van Leonhard en Keuler verder trachten te onder- bouwen. De Engelse versie sluit daar nauw bij aan. De Nederlandse WikiPedia is wat voorzichtiger en oppert nog de mogelijkheid van een speciale vorm van autisme. 5 De historische onderzoekingen van met name Adolf Bartning (1874-1929), Fritz Klee (?-?) en Hermann Pies (1888-1983) zijn beslissend geweest om de feiten te ontdoen van het omvangrijke spinrag van onjuistheden, misverstanden, aantijgingen en laster, dat tot op de dag van vandaag aan de figuur van Kaspar Hauser kleeft. Het is vooral Karl Heyer (1888-1964) geweest die op grond van die ware feiten het unieke karakter van het ver-
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