Ludwig Börne was born on 6 May 1786 as Juda Löb Baruch in the house Rost in the Frankfurt Judengasse. His father, the wealthy and famous banker Jakob Baruch, raised him with traditional religious values. He first studied medicine in Berlin, where he associated with the circle of Henriette Herz, then in Halle, Heidelberg and Giessen. In 1808 he gained his doctorate in political science at Giessen. Following the emancipation of the Jews in 1811, as a result of which Jews were able to enter the public service, he became an administrative official at the city hall, but was immediately dismissed when emancipation was rescinded. In 1816, on the instruction of the Jewish community, he wrote an official memorandum arguing the case for the emancipation of the Jews. He dedicated himself to this task throughout his life, even after his conversion to the Protestant faith in 1818. Two years later he started his career as a journalist by publishing the periodical "Die Wage ( The Scales"). He achieved fame above all through his "Letters from Paris", in which he campaigned for a liberal social order and freedom of the press. He became famous as a fighter for democracy, civil justice, and fundamental human rights. After 1832 he lived in Paris, dying there on 12 February 1837.