Lenau, Nikolaus (actually N. Franz Edler von Niembsch Strehlenau) * 13 8. 1802 Csatád (Lenauheim, Romania), † 22 8. 1850 Vienna, poet and epic poems. Studied in 1819 in Vienna Jus, medicine, philosophy and agriculture and was F. Grillparzer , F. Raimund , A. Green as good violinists with J. Strauss father and J. Lanner known. In 1831 he went to Heidelberg to Stuttgart, where his first volume of "Poems" (1832) with the "Reed Songs" was released. In 1832 he went to America, but returned disappointed far back after a year and lived alternately in Swabia and Austria. His last 6 years were spent in a psychiatric clinic. Lenau's work is determined by world-weariness and melancholy, in succession to Lord Byron, he led a restless life, several engagements failed. Autobiographical trains with the drama "Faust" (1835), an epic series of scenes where the hero ends by suicide. In his later epic poems "Savonarola" (1837), "John Zizka (1838/42) and" The Albigensian "(1842), he turned to historical and revolutionary materials; fragment was the dramatic poem" Don Juan "(1844). Lenau was in his nature poetry to a new kind of expressive language. Also significant is Lenau's political poetry. "Faust" and "Don Juan" encourages F. Liszt, Berlioz and Strauss R. to musical creations. Lenau's trip to America inspired F. Kürnberger to his novel "The America-tired" of. Founded in 1964 the Ministry of Education an International N. Lenau Prize (since 1965 "Austrian State Prize for European Literature").
