Die Jammer des alten Grafes. Autoreflexion der Krankheit in persönlicher Korrespondenz des Aris- tokraten am Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts

Abstract

References about diseases of the author or authors of diaries and correspondence appears in their content just rarely, more often are relations of health problems of family members, husband, wife, children, relatives and other aristocrats familiar with the writer. It is therefore all the more valuable to find and analyze a set of letters which include the author’s own reception of his illnesses. Such files are preserved as a part of the estate of Count Maurice Pálffy, stored in the Slovak National Archives in Bratislava. It provides a rare possibility of insight in the privacy of the late 19th century aristocracy living. Particularly suitable for these purposes are letters from the last years of Moritz Pálffys (1894 - 1897) life. These letters, mainly descriptions of the health problems of the writer, are main issue of this study.