Hans Leybold

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Hans Leybold (2 April 1892 - 8 September 1914) was a German poet and nihilist, whose small body of work was a major inspiration behind much of the Dada movement, in particular the works of his close friend Hugo Ball. Although Leybold died two years before the emergence of Dada, his absurdist writings and poems represent an important stage in the development of expressionist movement in Germany.

Born into a middle-class family in Frankfurt am Main, Leybold was raised in Hamburg where he completed his schooling in 1911 and joined the German Army, where he impressed his superiors so much he was offered a commission. At this point Leybold traveled to Munich to study German literature, and whilst there he fell in with the crowd of German poets and authors who would head the Dada movement post-war. These luminaries included Richard Huelsenbeck, Emmy Hennings, Klabund [1], Johannes R. Becher and most especially of all, his particular friend Hugo Ball. It was Ball who interested Leybold in the literary arts, and soon the two of them were soon producing poetry together under the pseudonym Ha Hu Baley. With these authors, Leybold experimented wildly with his technique and imagery in his poetry, seeking both to develop his skills and deconstruct poetry itself. Unsurprisingly, his studies went neglected, and instead he began to edit and contribute to expressionist magazines, such as Die Aktion and his own work, the short lived Revolution.

In August 1914 the First World War erupted, and Leybold was immediately called up as an active reservist, ending the halcyon days at a stroke. Less than a month later, Leybold was seriously wounded during operations near Namur and was evacuated to a casualty clearing hospital, where on the 8 September aged 22, he committed suicide by gunshot to the head. His death was never fully explained, although a rumour persisted that he had syphilis, and had given up on survival following his wound. His works were collected together many years after his death, as he never had a book published independently, and he is now recogised as one of the most important influences both on Dadism and German expressionism itself.

[edit] Manifesto

The introduction to his magazine Revolution, in which Leybold and his comrades explain their outlook on life.

"Protect yourself against responsibilities! Hit out: against old household rubbish! And if some valuable piece gets torn up in the process: what does it matter? You respected people! You well-polished ones! You bigwigs! We ought to stick our tounges out at you! Boys, you'll say. Old men! we'll reply"