Book: Between pulpit, gymnasium and family Albert Baut-a Belzig churchman

Albert Baur's childhood was during the anti-Napoleonic wars of liberation. Part of the patriotic efforts of those years was the gymnastics movement, founded and popularized by “Turnvater” Jahn. As a seven-year-old, Baur is said to have approached Jahn on the street and asked if he could come to gymnastics. Thus contact was made, and from 1812 Albert visited the gymnastics center. In Jahn's writings, Baur is mentioned several times; he calls him his brother and praises his gymnastic skills, which the latter soon passed on in Sunday “gymnastics games”. He kept this up when he worked as a deacon in Belzig from 1836 on. Here he did gymnastics with young people, including girls, which was completely unusual at the time, and developed suggestions for appropriate gymnastics clothing. In 1862, Baur founded the Belzig Gymnastics Club.

He was active in the German gymnastics movement with speeches and writings. He performed his ecclesiastical duties with great dedication. Musically and literarily extremely educated, he enriched the social life of the city together with his wife Luise. Pulpit, gymnasium and family were the fixed points in the life of this Belzig churchman.