LIEBER, MAURIZIO. — Politician and publicist, born in Blankenheim on 1 October 1790, died in Kamberg on 29 December 1860.
In 1831 he published in Frankfurt a vigorous work in defence of ecclesiastical celibacy; a few years later he conducted an effective campaign against the Prussian government, which had imprisoned the archbishop of Cologne, Monsignor von Droste-Vischering (Die Gefangenehmung des Erzbischofs von Köln und ihre Motive, Frankfurt 1837–1838). In the Nassau Parliament and in the press he continued his battle in support of the Church and its rights; he participated as an expert in ecclesiastical affairs in the episcopal conferences of Würzburg (1848) and Freiburg (1851); he was one of the founders of the Katolischer Verein Deutschlands and presided over its Congresses in Breslau (1849) and Salzburg (1857).
When a serious crisis broke out between Church and State in the Rhenish provinces in 1853, he entered the struggle with a book that caused a great sensation: In Sachen der oberrheinischen Kirchenprovinz (Freiburg im Breisgau 1853). Alongside his political and journalistic activity, he devoted himself to social welfare and founded a hospital in Kamberg, in addition to several other charitable institutions. His son Ernesto (1838–1902), following in his footsteps, was one of the leaders of the Catholic Party in the German Parliament.