Univ.-Prof. Dr. Arnold Rudolf Herdlitczka

Arnold Rudolf Herdlitczka was born the son of an imperial and royal artillery officer. Artillery officer and attended the Academic Grammar School in Vienna, where he graduated in 1914. He then began his studies at the Technical University in Vienna, where he joined the Aargau student fraternity. At the same time, however, he was called up to the k. u. k. Like his father, he initially served in the artillery, but then switched to the air force. He took part in the campaigns in the Carpathians, Montenegro and Albania (last rank: first lieutenant). As he was accepted as a career officer, he only left military service in April 1919.

After this, Arnold Rudolf Herdlitczka continued his studies at the Technical University. In 1921, he transferred to the Faculty of Law and Political Science at the University of Vienna (Dr. iur. 1925). He then became a librarian at the Austrian National Library, where he worked until March 1935. During this time, he began his academic career and habilitated in Roman law at the Faculty of Law and Political Science at the University of Vienna in 1931.

In 1935, Arnold Rudolf Herdlitczka was appointed associate professor of this subject at the Faculty of Law and Political Science at the University of Innsbruck. In his inaugural lecture, he praised the importance of Christianity for the development of European law. Towards the end of 1937, he was already proposed for a full professorship, but this plan was thwarted by the Anschluss in March 1938.

Arnold Rudolf Herdlitczka was dismissed on November 30, 1939, not least because of his inaugural lecture, but appealed against this decision, so that this measure was not set until March 1, 1940. From May 1941, he worked in a building society credit company.

After the war, Arnold Rudolf Herdlitczka was immediately rehabilitated at the University of Innsbruck and appointed a full university professor on November 8. In the academic years 1948/49 and 1953/54 he was Dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Science and in the academic year 1955/56 Rector of the University of Innsbruck. He retired in 1967, but held the chair until a successor was appointed and then remained an honorary professor at the University of Salzburg until 1971.