Gustav Falke

Gustav Falke
Gustav Falke, 1905
Born	11 January 1853 Lübeck
Died	8 February 1916 Hamburg
Occupation	writer
Nationality	Germany
Literary movement	impressionistic lyric poetry

Gustav Falke (11 January 1853 – 8 February 1916) was a German writer.

Falke was born in Lübeck to merchant Johann Friedrich Christian Falke and his wife Elisabeth Franziska Hoyer. The historians Johannes and Jacob von Falke were his uncles, translator Otto Falke his cousin.

He worked in a bookstore in Hamburg since 1868, then moved to Essen, Stuttgart, and Hildburghausen. He returned to Hamburg in 1878, where he was educated in music by Emil Krause to become a piano teacher. In 1888 he married his former piano student Anna Theen. They had two daughters and a son.

Falke started to publish his works in the 1890s and was introduced into the Hamburg literaty society around Otto Ernst, Jakob Löwenberg, Emil von Schoenaich-Carolath, and Detlev von Liliencron. Much of his work was impressionistic lyric poetry inspired by Liliencron, Richard Dehmel, and Paul Heyse. He also wrote conservative, "folk" pieces, following Eduard Mörike and Theodor Storm. He also wrote children's books in rhyme and prose. With the advent of World War I, he volunteered to write war propaganda as well, for which he was awarded the Prussian Roter Adlerorden.

Falke died in Hamburg.