Satter, Karl (1880-1949)

Satter, Karl

LAWYER (AUSTRIA)

BORN 20 Oct 1880, Zagreb - DIED 13 Nov 1949, Wien
GRAVE LOCATION Wien: Evangelischer Pfarrfriedhof Simmering, 11., Simmeringer Hauptstraße 242 (Gruppe 14, Reihe 13, Nummer 28)

Karl Satter was the son of an inspector of banks. He was a fellow student of the actress Ida Orloff. He was also a classmate of Anton Wildgans at the Volksschule bei den Piaristen in Vienna and he and the young author were best friends for a long time. In 1905/1906 he played minor roles at the City Theater in Graz under the name of Herr Moll. Ida asked him to marry her after friendship with Gerhart Hauptmann had come to an end and they married on 23 July 1907. After his father died on 27 December 1907 he was able to lead a comfortable life. Ida had mainly married to be able to live an independent life free of scandal and Satter's friend Wildgans had advised against the marriage. They formally divorced in 1908. However, they kept their proof of divorce in reserve and they stayed together for ten years and had three children.

Satter became a doctor juris in 1910 in Vienna, but he soon tired of practical work in a court of law. Ida didn't get along well with Wildgans and the latter blamed her for poisoning his relations with Karl. In 1914 Satter fled to Kopenhagen with Ida to escape from justice after he had refused military service in Austria as a pacifist. In Kopenhagen he worked as a private teacher. In 1917 they split up for good. Ida was pregnant of their third child at the time. In 1923 he obtained a teaching position at Vienna University in private international law and he also worked as an advisor to banks. In 1941 he finally became a professor, but he lost his position in 1945. He didn't receive a pension and was very poor during the last years of his life. He died in 1949 in Vienna.

After his death, Heinrich Satter published an article followed by a book about his mother Ida's relationship with Gerhart Hauptmann. Hauptmann's diaries were only released after his son Benvenuto Hauptmann had died in 1965.

Family
• Wife: Orloff, Ida (1907-1908) (divorce or separation)

Related persons
• was a friend of Wildgans, Anton

Images

The grave of Karl Satter at the Evangelischer Pfarrfriedhof Simmering, Vienna.
Picture by Androom (15 Aug 2019)