Schulpforta was the elite boarding-school to which Nietzsche gained admission. On September 29, 1858, he left the Naumburg Domgymnasium just prior to his second term of Untertertia after receiving a scholarship from the Landesschule Pforta. Nietzsche's gymnasium grades were mediocre, except in religion. However, his deceased father had been an employee of the state, and it was not uncommon for their children to receive admission to Pforta upon a satisfactory examination. Poor results on his Pforta entrance exam set Nietzsche back a year. See Thomas Brobjer, "Why did Nietzsche Receive a Scholarship to Study at Schulpforta?" In: Nietzsche-Studien (2001) 30:322-28.

Nietzsche started feeling homesick at Schulpforta, realizing, more than ever, that since his father's death he had been a "homeless" boy, untethered from the world.

A note (KGW 1/2 13[10]) written by Nietzsche, and placed by an editor before the poem (KGW 1/2 13[11]), reads: "Die Vergangenheit ist mir lieber als die Gegenwart; aber ich glaube an eine bessere Zukunft." (I'm more fond of the past than the present; but I believe in a better future.)

On July 28, 1862, Nietzsche sent prose, poetry (including this poem), and his photograph along with a letter to his friend and classmate at Schulpforta, Raimund Granier (1843-1909). The 1862 photograph — now owned by The Nietzsche Channel — and poem were published together in "Jugendporträt und Jugendgedicht Friedrich Nietzsches." Der Welt-Spiegel. No. 94, November 23, 1902, 1. An explanation of the photograph and poem was published the following day in Der Zeitgeist, another supplement to the Berliner Tageblatt. See Friedrich Dernburg, "Neues aus Nietzsches Jugend. Unbekannte Verse und Entwürfe Friedrich Nietzsches." Der Zeitgeist. No. 47, November 24, 1902, 1f. The other items Nietzsche sent to Granier included "Euphorion" — fragments of a novel written while on vacation in Gorenzen. See "Euphorion. Chap. I." In: Nietzsche's Writings as a Student. The Nietzsche Channel, 2012, 75-78. Lastly, "Schweifen, o Schweifen!" may have been influenced by Joseph von Eichendorff. Cf. the penultimate stanza of Eichendorff's "Die Nachtigallen."

Nietzsche's crisis of conscience began to take shape as he prepared to enter university, under the pressure of pleasing his family by studying theology and continuing the family's long line of Lutheran pastors. The title and date of the poem were added at some point by an editor. The title alludes to the biblical verse of Acts 17, 23. The original manuscript was published for the first time in: Pan. Jhrg. 3. 1897. Heft 2, 102a. In Nietzsche's undated manuscript of the poem, we see a few changes:
— "Mich seine Stimme wieder riefe" was originally in the second person: "Mich dein Stimme wieder riefe."
— "Das Wort: Dem unbekannten Gotte:" was originally "Das Wort: Dem unbekannten (Worte:) Gotte:" but Nietzsche settled on the ending "Gotte:"
— "Sein bin ich, ob ich in der Frevler Rotte" was originally "Sein bin ich, ob ich ihn der Frevler Rotte": "ihn" was crossed out diagonally, either in its entirety, or just the "h".
For further information, see: Karl Pestalozzi, "Nietzsches Gedicht 'Noch einmal eh ich weiter ziehe ...' auf dem Hintergrund seiner Jugendlyrik." In: Nietzsche-Studien. Bd. 13. Berlin, New York 1984, 101-110. Cf. Chira Conterno, "Nietzsches 'Dem unbekannten Gott.'" In: Christian Benne, Claus Zittel (eds.), Nietzsche und die Lyrik. Ein Compendium. Stuttgart: Metzler, 2017, 78-88.

Under the veneer of respectability, Nietzsche still feels somewhat like a lonely outcast, but starts to gain his confidence when he receives his appointment to the University of Basel. This dedicatory poem appeared in copies of his inaugural lecture at Basel, delivered on May 28, 1869 under the title Über die Persönlichkeit Homers (On the Personality of Homer), and subsequently published as Homer und die klassische Philologie (Homer and Classical Philology).

In November 1869, Cosima Wagner asked Nietzsche to help her obtain a Christmas present, a print of Albrecht Dürer's Melancolia 1 (1514), for Richard Wagner (who was fond of Dürer's works). Nietzsche bought a copy for her in June 1870. This poem was composed in Gimmelwald in 1871, when Nietzsche was on vacation with his sister and his friend Carl von Gersdorff. It was first published in "Gedichte von Friedrich Nietzsche." In: Das Magazin für Litteratur. Jahrg. 63. Nr. 27. 07-07-1894, 851f. For further information, see Christoph Landerer, Marc-Oliver Schuster, "'Begehrlich schrie der Geyer in das Thal.' Zu einem Motiv früher Wagner-Entfremdung in Nietzsches Nachlaß." In: Nietzsche-Studien (2005) 34:246-55.

Another poem inspired by Albrecht Dürer's Melancolia 1 (1514), and also composed in 1871 while on vacation in Gimmelwald.

A poem dedicated to Franz Overbeck, written on the back cover of a copy of Nietzsche's work, Unzeitgemäße Betrachtungen I: David Strauss. Der Bekenner und der Schriftsteller (Untimely Meditations I: David Strauss: the Confessor and the Writer), next to a copy of the front cover of Overbecks 1873 work, Ueber die Christlichkeit unserer heutigen Theologie. Streit- und Friedensschrift. (On the Christianity of Our Present Theology. A Pamphlet of Polemics and Peace.) Nietzsche and Overbeck had their two works bound together into two single volumes, which they then presented to each other as a token of their unbreakable friendship.

This initial draft of Nietzsche's 1884 poem "Der Wanderer" (The Wanderer) was written in a 07-18-1876 letter to Erwin Rohde. Nietzsche's untitled poem is also contained in Nachlass, Sommer 1876 17[31] (From Nietzsche's Notebooks, Summer 1876 17[31]). It was written after hearing of Rohde's engagement to Valentine Framm (1859-1901), the daughter of a lawyer from Rostock. In Nietzsche's 1884 titled version, the poem was completely rewritten after the line: "Und gießest süßen Herz-Verdruß" (And pour sweet troubles of the heart).

A dedicatory poem that Nietzsche purportedly sent to Richard Wagner and Cosima Wagner along with the book, Menschliches, Allzumenschliches (Human, All Too Human). See Nachlass, Frühling-Sommer 1877 22[92].

This initial draft of Nietzsche's 1884 poem "Im deutschen November" (In the German November) was written while Nietzsche was on sabbatical in Rosenlaui in 1877 (see Nachlass, Frühling-Sommer 1877 22[93].)

This initial draft of Nietzsche's 1884 poem "Am Gletscher" (On the Glacier) was written while Nietzsche was on sabbatical in Rosenlaui in 1877 (see Nachlass, Frühling-Sommer 1877 22[94].) The preliminary title was "Sommer im Hochgebirge" (Summer in the High Mountains). Its subject is a sick young boy whom Nietzsche encountered on his walks to the Rosenlaui glacier. Nietzsche consoled the child, who eventually succumbed to his illness. For Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche's account of Nietzsche and the sick boy, see Der einsame Nietzsche. Leipzig: Kröner, 1922, 33. English translation in Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche, Paul V. Cohn (trans.), The Lonely Nietzsche. New York: Sturgis and Walton, 1915, 23. Cf. Sander L. Gilman, Begegnungen mit Nietzsche. 2. Aufl. Bonn: Bouvier, 1985, 342.

The first version of this poem was written to Lou Salomé in early November 1882. The second version below was written in 1884. The first version is as follows: "Freundin — sprach Columbus — traue / Keinem Genueser mehr! / Immer starrt er in das Blaue, / Fernstes zieht ihn allzusehr! // *** / Wen er liebt, den lockt er gerne / Weit hinaus in Raum und Zeit — — / Über uns glänzt Stern bei Sterne, / Um uns braust die Ewigkeit. // *** / Meiner lieben Lou." (Friend! — spoke Columbus — keep / Trust in a Genoese no more! / He always stares into the blue deep, / Is drawn out there too far! // *** / He likes to lure the one he loves / Farther out into space and time — — / Star upon star shine above us, / Eternity rushes around us. // *** / To my dear Lou.)

See Nachlass, Juli-August 1882 1[107] (From Nietzsche's Notebooks, July-August 1882 1[107]). First published in "Gedichte: Spruchartiges 1882-1885." In: Nietzsche's Werke. Erste Abtheilung. Band VIII. Der Fall Wagner. Götzen-Dämmerung. Nietzsche contra Wagner. Der Antichrist. — Gedichte. Leipzig: Naumann, 1895, 333-343 (340). Originally, this poem seems to have started not as a general linguistic panegyric but rather a poetic critique of the German language in particular: "Lebend'gem Worte bin ich gut:" was originally "Ich bin dem deutschen lebend'gem Worte gut" (I am well-acquainted with the German lively word). View Nietzsche's manuscript of the poem at Nietzsche Source, in Notebook N-V-9, 180; 179; 178.

The eighth poem from "Scherz, List und Rache" (Joke, Cunning and Revenge) in Die fröhliche Wissenschaft (The Joyful Science).

This poem (see Nachlass, Sommer-Herbst 1882 3[2]) was written just prior to Nietzsche's Also sprach Zarathustra, 1 (Thus Spoke Zarathustra, 1). It eventually found its way into the book — in a different form — in the chapter, "Vom Baum am Berge" (On the Tree on the Mountainside). In this chapter, Zarathustra advises a dismayed youth who is sitting against a tree, which Zarathustra then anthropomorphizes: "Dieser Baum steht einsam hier am Gebirge; er wuchs hoch hinweg über Mensch und Thier. (This tree stands lonely here in the mountains; he grew high above man and beast.) / Und wenn er reden wollte, er würde Niemanden haben, der ihn verstünde: so hoch wuchs er. (And if he wanted to talk, he would have no one who could understand him: so tall has he grown.) / Nun wartet er und wartet, — worauf wartet er doch? Er wohnt dem Sitze der Wolken zu nahe: er wartet wohl auf den ersten Blitz?" (Now he waits and waits, — yet what is he waiting for? He dwells too close to the seat of the clouds: perhaps he waits for the first lightning?)

March 14, 1883: a poem dedicated to the composer August Bungert, on the occasion of his birthday and written in a copy of Morgenröte (Dawn).

A poem written in a letter to Resa von Schirnhofer at the end of November 1884. The second line in the initial draft reads "jeder Christ treibt Juden-Schacher —" (every Christian carries on haggling like a Jew —). See Nachlass, Gedichte und Gedichtefragmente Herbst 1884 28[2] (From Nietzsche's Notebooks, Poems and Fragments of Poems Fall 1884 28[2]). Curtis Cate claims the poem — with its "daily flatter" remark — was written as a response to a recommendation by an acquaintance in Zurich to stay in Mentone at the Pension des Étrangers. Mentone turned out to be inhospitable due to its windless climate. Cf. Curtis Cate, Friedrich Nietzsche. Woodstock, NY: Overlook Press, 2005, 458.

Earlier titles for this poem were: "Der Barde spricht" and "Yorick unter Deutschen" ("The Bard Speaks" and "Yorick Among Germans"). Nietzsche's inspiration was the French writer Stendhal. His source was probably Stendhal, or perhaps Paul Bourget. See Stendhal, Promenades dans Rome. Vol. 2. Paris: Lévy, 1853, 233: "Vengo adesso di Cosmopoli. / (Vous voyez en moi un véritable cosmopolite.)" (You see in me a true cosmopolitan.) Stendhal used this loose quotation of a line from an opéra bouffe, and adopted it as his motto. Also in Stendhal, Rome, Naples et Florence. Paris: Lévy, 1854, 67: "vengo adesso di cosmopoli." Cf. Paul Bourget, "Psychologie Contemporaine. Notes et Portraits: Stendhal (Henri Beyle). [III. Le Cosmopolitisme de Beyle.]" In: La Nouvelle Revue. Tome dix-septiéme. Juillet-Août. Paris: 1882, 890-925 (911). The first line of the poem, "Ô peuple des meilleurs Tartuffes" (O people with the best Tartuffes), alludes to the hypocritical priest who is the eponymous hero of Molière's 1664 comedy.

See explanatory note above for "Es geht ein Wandrer ..." This poem was first published in "Gedichte von Friedrich Nietzsche." In: Das Magazin für Litteratur. Jahrg. 63. Nr. 27. 07-07-1894, 853.

The initial draft of this poem was written while Nietzsche was on sabbatical in Rosenlaui in 1877 (see Nachlass, Frühling-Sommer 1877 22[93].) It was first published under the title "Der Herbst" [The Autumn] in "Gedichte von Friedrich Nietzsche." In: Das Magazin für Litteratur. Jahrg. 63. Nr. 28. 07-14-1894, 882f.

See explanatory note above for "Um Mittag, wenn ..." This poem was first published in "Gedichte von Friedrich Nietzsche." In: Das Magazin für Litteratur. Jahrg. 63. Nr. 30. 07-28-1894, 943f.

See Nachlass, Gedichte und Gedichtefragmente Herbst 1884 28[64] (From Nietzsche's Notebooks, Poems and Fragments of Poems Fall 1884 28[64]). The first part of the poem "Abschied" [Farewell] was first published under the title "Vereinsamt" [Loneliness] in "Ungedruckte Gedichte von Friedrich Nietzsche." In: Das Magazin für Litteratur. Jahrg. 63. Nr. 45. 11-10-1894, 1430-1431. In 1895, the title "Vereinsamt" was again used in Friedrich Nietzsche, Nietzsche's Werke. Erste Abtheilung. Band VIII. [...] Gedichte. Leipzig: Naumann, 1895, 358. It was published under that title until it was corrected by the editors of KGW. The second part of the poem "Antwort" [Reply] was first published in 1895 as a separate poem until being corrected as part of "Der Freigeist." Montinari's postscript in KGW VII/3, p. 246 lists several preliminary titles that Nietzsche gave to the poem: two titles that Nietzsche crossed out ("An die Einsiedler" [To the Hermit] and "Aus der Winter-Wüste" [From the Winter Wasteland]); and two titles he did not cross out ("Im Deutschen Spätherbste" [In the German Late Autumn] and "Mitleid hin und [wieder] her" [Pity Now and Then]). View Nietzsche's manuscript of the poem at Nietzsche Source.

This poem, originally titled "Einsiedlers Sehnsucht" (Hermit's Longing), was written at the end of November 1884 and dedicated to Heinrich von Stein: "Dies ist für Sie, mein werther Freund, zur Erinnerung an Sils-Maria und zum Danke für Ihren Brief, einen solchen Brief!" (This is for you, my esteemed friend, in memory of Sils-Maria and in gratitude for your letter, such a letter!) Nietzsche made a few changes to the poem, including the title "Aus hohen Bergen" ("From High Mountains"), and used it as the "Aftersong" of Beyond Good and Evil.