No. 110/2019

32 HUMBOLDT KOSMOS 110/2019 was 45, imperial astronomer and – having discovered that planets move in ellipses – a famous man. At the zenith of his creativity, he took a year out to devote himself to his mother’s defence. In the end, the maltreated yet indomi- table woman was declared innocent. LIVELY SCENES AND QUOTATIONS Ulinka Rublack’s book about this little-known aspect of the great natural researcher appeared in English in 2015, won prizes and was translated into several languages. The German edition, “Der Astronom und die Hexe”, was pub- lished in 2018. Reviewers praised the book not just for being a well-researched and gripping account of Kepler’s trial but also for extending our view of a society on the eve of the Thirty Years’ War, caught between magic and sci- entific thought. It is a convincing picture that Ulinka Rublack draws, bursting with lively scenes and quotations, background information and analysis. It owes a lot to the unique set of sources on the Kepler case: the Central State Archive in Stuttgart holds two thick volumes about the trial which the historian studied in great detail during visits lasting several weeks. Her conclusion: “These trials weren’t pri- marily about individuals but about families defending their honour.” Johannes Kepler certainly wanted to save his mother from disgrace, but it was also his own reputation that was at stake. Although Kepler managed to rescue his own reputa- tion, posterity heaped opprobrium on his mother. In reports, novels and musical theatre – such as Paul Hin- demith’s opera “The Harmony of theWorld” – she is always portrayed as a quarrelsome, jealous old woman. Ulinka Rublack, on the other hand, presents the image of a cou- rageous woman with no formal education who, largely on her own, has to fend for herself and her children in a harsh world. This is the impression conveyed not only by the book but also by “Kepler’s Trial”, the opera based on it. Pre- miered in 2016, the piece was created in under a year at Cambridge University as a team production involving mathematicians, astrono- mers and historians. KEPLER’S TRIAL AS AN OPERA The hour-long opera can be viewed online and Ulinka Rublack occasionally uses some of the passages from it for staged readings for non-specialist audiences. What is it that attracts her to multi-media formats? The historian considers the question for a moment and replies, “For me, it’s all about the moments of intense insight. I love creat- ing moments like that and not just analysing culture, but making it myself.” Currently, a British film team is working on a cinema version of the Kepler book, scheduled for release in 2021. In the meantime, Ulinka Rublack and her husband, who teaches history in London, will perhaps have come to a decision about staying in the UK or relocating to Germany. The threat of Brexit is already looming large on the hori- zon, she says, even at elite universities like Cambridge. “We are receiving fewer international applications from pro- fessors and students, and it’s becoming more difficult to get funding.” The historian already has a presence in Germany – not just because of her academic work but also as the co-de- “ THESE TRIALS WERE PRIMARILY ABOUT FAMILIES DEFENDING THEIR HONOUR.” A CONTEMPORARY DRAWING of witch burning CLOSE UP ON RESEARCH