Lukas Gajdos on “From a Pressburg Mill to the Qing Court, via Zoom
From a Pressburg Mill to the Qing Court – Ernst Ludwig at His Imperial and Royal Majesty’s Service
WHAT: An online discussion with RASBJ Council member Lukas Gajdos about his accidental discovery of Ernst Ludwig – an Austro-Hungarian diplomat, who grew up on the same street as him and served in China from 1900 until 1909, followed by Q&A.
WHEN: April 15, Wednesday, 19:00-20:00 Beijing Standard Time
WHERE: Online via Zoom
HOW MUCH: free for RASBJ members and associates worldwide
HOW TO BECOME AN RASB MEMBER OR ASSOCIATE: If you’re a non-member and wish to become a member (or, for PRC passport-holders, to become an associate), please befriend Treasurer John Olbrich on Wechat at johnobeijing and send him your name, nationality, mobile number and email address plus the annual subscription amount (or, for aspiring associates, the suggested donation) of RMB 300 for those resident in China, RMB 200 for those resident overseas, and RMB 100 for students. RASBJ members and associates enjoy free access to RASBJ Zoom events and have been emailed login details; if you become a new RASBJ member by April 14 you’ll be sent login details for this event.
MORE ABOUT THE EVENT:
RASBJ council member Lukas Gajdos covers political and cultural relations at the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Beijing and has attempted to use this position to highlight historical links between (present-day) Slovakia and China, including events to commemorate Ladislav Hudec (“The Man Who Changed Shanghai”) and comprehensive research about the previously unknown visit of Milan Rastislav Štefánik, a co-founder of Czechoslovakia, in China in late 1918 and early 1919 (published in the 2018 RAS China Journal).
His latest project aims to conclude this trilogy by introducing the life and career of Ernst Gottfried Ludwig, who was born in what was then known as Pozsony/Pressburg/Prešporok and became one of the first graduates of Chinese at the Konsularakademie in Vienna. Following his graduation, Ludwig spent nine years as an Austro-Hungarian (vice)consul in Shanghai, Beijing, and Tianjin against the backdrop of the last full decade of the Qing rule over China.
