**A charismatic servant of the Lord: genre author Franz Heinrich Achermann.** Photo: Jürg Studer, editing: Swiss National Museum

Switzerland’s Karl May

Franz Heinrich Achermann (1881–1946) is no longer remembered today. Nonetheless, the Lucerne clergyman wrote about 40 novels and dramas and was once Switzerland’s most widely read author of books for young people.

Michael van Orsouw

Michael van Orsouw has a PhD in history and is a performance poet and author. He regularly publishes historical books.

Website: geschichte-texte.ch

It was the Walliser Volksfreund newspaper that described Franz Heinrich Achermann as “the famous Swiss author of genre fiction” following his passing in 1946, referring to him as the “Swiss Karl May”; he was subsequently described in Valais as the “dashing” writer who portrayed “public sentiment accurately” with his “humorous and catchy punchlines”. These characterisations show that we are not talking about a forgotten giant of world literature but about an author who did not consider himself above dipping into his box of tricks and drawing on modern didactics: he combined major issues with identifiable characters, using humour, verve and clarity – he was something of a Johannes Mario Simmel of Swiss youth literature. Or, as the local Valais newspaper called him: “Switzerland’s Karl May”.

Franz Heinrich Achermann hunting — **Franz Heinrich Achermann was likened to...** Rundbrief Schweizer Volksbuchgemeinde, X/1971

**... famous German author Karl May.** Wikimedia

A Catholic clergyman

Let’s start at the beginning: Franz Heinrich Achermann (1881–1946) was from St. Erhard in the canton of Lucerne, his parents were teachers, he grew up in a house with the charming name “Eselhüsli” (little donkey house) and became a Catholic clergyman. After he was ordained, he was appointed curate and vicar in Schaffhausen (1908–1913), Oberdorf (canton of Solothurn) (1913–1920), Basel (1920–1929) und Kriens (canton of Lucerne) (from 1930). Achermann was very popular. When taking confession, people always queued to see him, and the church doors had to be left open during his sermons as so many people wanted to listen to him.

**Achermann in his liturgical vestments: he was a vicar in the cantons of Basel, Lucerne, Schaffhausen and Solothurn.** Michael Schärli

Achermann the vicar was a gifted storyteller with an eye for a punchline: he called Marienheim retirement home the “Chrampfadere-Klub” (varicose vein club). He would also make a witty reference to Swiss children’s character ‘Doktor Gütterli’ when admonishing pupils who trickled in late to lessons. Moreover, he was a passionate hunter who rarely missed out on a convivial evening playing the card game Jass. In a nutshell, he was, as local Kriens historian Jürg Studer said, a “dashing servant of the Lord”.

From vicar to author

In addition to his time-consuming duties serving the Catholic church, Franz Heinrich Achermann wrote over 40 novels and dramas. Although he was compared to German author Karl May, he preferred to write about the prehistoric period than the Wild West. This interest stemmed from his time in Solothurn at the foot of the Jura mountains when he played an active role in prehistoric digs and research. Achermann wrote entertaining youth novels, such as Der Jäger vom Thursee (The Hunter from Thursee), Der Schatz des Pfahlbauers (The Pile-Dweller’s Treasure) or Kannibalen der Eiszeit (The Ice Age Cannibals). This made Achermann Switzerland’s most widely read author of books for young people during his lifetime. Achermann was also interested in Swiss history, especially that of central Switzerland where he came from. He researched the story of hermit Brother Klaus, Nidwalden’s struggle against the Constitution of the Helvetic Republic of 1798 and the drama of the Swiss mercenaries who were loyal to the king during the French Revolution in Paris in 1789.

**Title page of the novel ‘Der Schatz des Pfahlbauers’ by Franz Heinrich Achermann, 1918.** Verlag Otto Walter / Swiss National Museum

All Achermann’s stories, whether from the prehistoric era or the 18th century, centred on people who experienced great poverty and fateful encounters but who were really looking for love. He described his method in the foreword of Die Jäger vom Thursee: “May this story in novel format serve one sole purpose: building love for wherever is now home and deepening interest in its illustrious past.” His 31 novels favoured quantity over quality. The newspaper Neue Zürcher Nachrichten referred to a “highly individual writing style”, which “was in no way prudish”. This enabled Achermann “to connect with countless eager readers throughout German-speaking Switzerland”. Other contemporaries were more critical. Germanists Severin Perrig and Beat Mazenauer wrote in Achermann’s biography:

Thoughts had to be put down on paper immediately, leaving little to no time to refine the language, which is why the choice of words and verbal imagery were a snapshot of his state of mind at that particular time. (…) His was an easygoing, uncontrolled, sometimes even unsophisticated style of storytelling.

Extract from the 1994 biography ‘Der Missionar der innersten Wildnis’ (The Missionary from the Innermost Wilderness).

His habit of writing quickly and tendency to label characters as either good or evil reflected the author and vicar’s personality. The style and content of his work matched the emotional and nationalist zeitgeist of the early 20th century. In the classroom, he brought his stories to life with striking scenes or musical accompaniment. Some anecdotes seem odd when viewed from a modern perspective and point to an impulsive or even exuberant personality. Rumour has it he pinched a boy’s neck to show him what it felt like to be executed by guillotine. He reportedly grabbed a girl who was late to her religious education class so hard that her coat buttons flew off. However, he only taught religion for the first ten minutes, then he told stories with a strong moral message. Achermann was a psychological and physical force of nature. Maybe that’s why he remained a vicar and never became a priest.

The “people’s poet” is no more

Achermann died of lung cancer at the age of 64. His funeral on 22 April 1946 was talked about for decades in Kriens. It started with an almost endless procession of mourners through the village ‒ one of the biggest crowds ever seen at a funeral in Kriens. Even Bishop Franziskus von Streng came to bid farewell to the popular man of God. Wind ensemble music and a church choir accompanied Achermann to his final resting place. Catholic and local associations as well as the Swiss Students’ Association were also present bearing decorated banners.

**Franz Heinrich Achermann’s gravestone refers to his career as a ‘Volksdichter’ (people’s poet).** Jürg Studer

There was a popular story about Achermann in circulation at that time. During the Second World War, Achermann was said to have always carried a pistol beneath his cassock. When the war ended on 8 May 1945, he allegedly fired the pistol from the second-floor window of St. Gallus vicarage in Kriens. “Have you totally lost it?”, asked a colleague. “No, I had kept these bullets for Adolf. But he doesn’t need them now...”, answered Achermann as he shot a crow from a tree.

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