The Diplomacy of Doing Good. Alexander von Humboldt the Patron

Abstract

Gaius Maecenas, a wealthy Roman knight during the era of the Emperor Augustus, could hardly have imagined that it would take more than one and a half millennia before he found a truly worthy successor in Alexander von Humboldt. When Maecenas died in 8 B.C. his path to immortality was assured. After all, he had set an example of selflessness, and generously helped a number of poets. His name thus went on to become synonymous with the diplomacy of doing good.