born Dec. 26, 1769, Schoritz bei Gartz, Swed.
died Jan. 29, 1860, Bonn, Ger.
Swedish-born German prose writer, poet, and patriot.
He rejected the Lutheran ministry at age 28 and eventually became a professor of history at Greifswald and Bonn. Among his important works is the huge Spirit of the Times , 4 vol. (1806–18), a bold call for political reforms that expressed German national awakening during the Napoleonic era. Not all of Arndt's poems were inspired by political ideas; Gedichte (1804–18) contains many religious poems of great beauty.