Editing Gottfried Semper (section)

=== Dresden period (1834–1849) ===
[[File:Dresden Hoftheater J C A Richter.jpg|thumb|200px|Dresden, Interior of the first Hoftheater (Semper Oper)]]
On September 30, 1834, Semper obtained a post as Professor of Architecture at the [[Hochschule für Bildende Künste Dresden|Königlichen Akademie der bildenden Künste]] (today called the Hochschule) in Dresden thanks largely to the efforts and support of his former teacher Franz Christian Gau and swore an oath of allegiance to the King (formerly Elector) of Saxony, [[Anthony Clement of Saxony|Anthony Clement]]. The flourishing growth of Dresden during this period provided the young architect with considerable creative opportunities. In 1838–1840 a synagogue was built in Dresden to Semper's design, it was ever afterward called the [[Semper Synagogue]] and is noted for its [[Moorish Revival]] interior style.<ref>H.A. Meek, The Synagogue, Phaidon, 1995, p. 188</ref> The Synagogue's exterior was built in romanesque style so as not to call attention to itself. The interior design included not only the Moorish inspired wall decorations but furnishings: specifically, a silver lamp of eternal light, which caught Richard Wagner and his wife Cosima's fancy. They gave a great deal of effort to have a copy of this lamp.<ref>Colin Eisler "Wagner's Three Synagogues", Artibus et Historiae 2004, Vol. 25/Nr. 50</ref><ref>Eytan Pessen, Zusammenhängende Reliquien, eine Geschichte über Richard Wagner und Gottfried Semper, pp. 1–22, Semperoper Dresden, Erchien in Wagnerjahr 2013, Spielzeit 2012–2013 & 2013–2014</ref> Semper's student, [[Otto Simonson]] would construct the magnificent [[Moorish Revival]] [[Leipzig synagogue]] in 1855.

[[File:Denkmal für Gottfried Semper 1887 Ki 00042-02.tif|thumb|left|150px|Monument for Gottfried Semper in Zürich (1887)]]
Certain civic structures remain today, such as the Elbe-facing [[Semper Gallery|gallery]] of the [[Zwinger Palace]] complex. He designed the Dresden Hoftheater in 1841, which burned down in 1869. It was rebuilt in 1878 by his son to Semper's plans and today is called the [[Semperoper]]. Other buildings also remain indelibly attached to his name, such as the Maternity Hospital, the Synagogue (destroyed during the Third Reich), the Oppenheim Palace, and the ''[[Villa Rosa (Dresden)|Villa Rosa]]'' built for the banker Martin Wilhelm Oppenheim. This last construction stands as a prototype of German villa architecture.

On September 1, 1835, Semper married [[Bertha Thimmig]]. The marriage ultimately produced six children.

A convinced Republican, Semper took a leading role, along with his friend [[Richard Wagner]], in the [[May Uprising in Dresden|May 1849 uprising]] which swept over the city. He was a member of the Civic Guard (Kommunalgarde) and helped to erect barricades in the streets. When the rebellion collapsed, Semper was considered a leading agitator for democratic change and a ringleader against government authority and he was forced to flee the city.

He was destined never to return to the city that would, ironically, become most associated with his architectural (and political) legacy. The Saxon government maintained a warrant for his arrest until 1863. When the Semper-designed Hoftheater burnt down in 1869, King [[John I of Saxony|John]], on the urging of the citizenry, commissioned Semper to build a new one. Semper produced the plans but left the actual construction to his son, Manfred.

"What must I have done in 48, that one persecutes me forever? One single barricade did I construct - it held, because it was practical, and as it was practical, it was beautiful", wrote Semper in dismay.<ref>Letter to Heinrich Hübsch, January 1852</ref>