Which subject did Gotthold Ephraim Lessing begin studying at the University of Leipzig?

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German dramatist and critic Gotthold Lessing — Gotthold Ephraim Lessing Gotthold Lessing, detail of an oil painting by Georg May, 1768; in the Gleimhaus, Halberstadt, Germany.

When Gotthold Ephraim Lessing entered the University of Leipzig in the autumn of 1746, he began his studies in theology.1

Although he was enrolled as a theology student, his primary interests were in literature, philosophy, and art. Later, after briefly returning home, he received his parents' consent to study medicine upon his return to the university.1