188. - Tschirnhaus, Ehrenfried Walther von (1651–1708)

Summary

Tschirnhaus is a central figure in the early German Enlightenment. He attended the University of Leiden from 1668 to 1675, and was introduced to Spinoza by Pieter van Gent and Hermann Schuller in the fall of 1674. He quickly earned Spinoza’s trust and when he left Holland in May 1675, going to London, Paris, and Rome, he brought with him a manuscript copy of the Ethics prepared by Pieter van Gent. Spinoza’s correspondence with Tschirnhaus, from October 1674 to July 1676, contains some of the most interesting discussions of Spinoza’s metaphysics (Ep57, Ep59–60, Ep65–66, Ep80–83). Moreover, much of Spinoza’s correspondence with Schuller, from late 1674 to November 1675, discusses questions originally formulated by Tschirnhaus, then transmitted by Schuller (Ep58, Ep63–64, Ep70, Ep72). The late correspondence with Tschirnhaus is notable for pushing Spinoza on the questions of physics and the production of finite bodies from infinite substance. While in London in 1675, Tschirnhaus discussed Spinoza’s philosophy with Robert Boyle and Henry Oldenburg, and apparently did much to appease rising worries about Spinoza’s character and to promote his philosophy (Ep63).