The directory «Plots»

Petzold Alfons
(1882—1923)

Alfons Petzold was born on 24th September 1882 in Vienna. He was the son of Friedrich Petzold, a paper-hanger and upholsterer, and of the latter's wife; Maria Schusters. The boy received his elementary school education in Vienna and Szegedin and tben, at the age of 15 years, entered the grammar school of the Brothers of the Christian Schools in Pressbaum. He did quite well at school but when he attempted to obtain a skilled trade he found himself persecuted by the masters and older boys so that he had to earn his living by manual labour which affected his health. The death of his father from haemoptysis caused him to fall ill with pleuritis and the death of his mother in a traffic accident led to a complete breakdown. For a time Alfons Petzold lived in doss-houses and in the sewers but was rescued from this existence by a friend, Ludwig Ruppmeier, who helped him back into a normal life. However in 1908 he succumbed himself to haemoptysis and almost died from this illness. As a boy Alfons Petzold had been encouraged by his mother to study German literature and poetry and he had written libretti for the Vienna stage. Now he combined his experiences as a worker and a socialist with his poetry and his poems were brought to the notice of Lady Mühlwerth-Gärtner and the actor Ferdinand Gregori. He was sent to a T.B. nursing home at Alland where he met his first wife Johanna Kraml in 1911. When she died in 1914 he married Hedwig Gamillscheg with whom he lived in Kitzbühel. His poems were published as 'Strange Music' (1909), 'Trotz alledem' (1911) and 'Der Stahlerne Schrei' (1916). Of his five autobiographic novels the most important was 'Das rauhe Leben' (1920) and he also wrote sketches and short stories. Alfons Petzold died on 26th January 1923 at Kitzbühel.

Austria, 1973, Alfons Petzold