To mark the publication of her new book on Georg Forster, Andrea Wulf will give a lecture at the Natural History Museum Mainz.
Georg Forster (1754–1794) was a naturalist, travel writer, and scholar of the European Enlightenment. As a teenager, he took part in James Cook’s second voyage around the world and subsequently published acclaimed travel accounts. Later, he served as professor and librarian in Mainz and played a leading political role during the Mainz Republic. The lecture explores Forster’s travels, his scholarly and political work, as well as his ideas about the equality of all people and his views on different cultures.
Andrea Wulf lives in London and writes historical non-fiction for an international audience. Her book The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World became an international bestseller and received numerous awards. Her new biography, The Traveller: Georg Forster and the Discovery of Humanity, will be published by Bertelsmann in September 2026.
The event is jointly organised by the Leibniz Institute of European History, the Collaborative Research Centre “Human Differentiation” at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, and the Natural History Museum Mainz.
Date: Wednesday, 30 September 2026, 6:30 p.m.
Venue: Natural History Museum Mainz, Reichklarastraße 1, Mainz.
Please note: The lecture will be held in German.
© Andrea Wulf
