Bettina von Arnim facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bettina von Arnim
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Bettina von Arnim as drawn by Ludwig Emil Grimm in the early 1800s
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| Born | Elisabeth Catharina Ludovica Magdalena Brentano 4 April 1785 Frankfurt am Main |
| Died | 20 January 1859 (aged 73) Berlin |
| Resting place | Wiepersdorf |
| Pen name | Beans Beor |
| Occupation | Writer, publisher, composer, singer, visual artist |
| Language | German |
| Literary movement | Romanticism |
| Spouse | Ludwig Achim von Arnim |
| Children | Gisela von Arnim |
| Relatives | Sophie von La Roche (grandmother) Clemens Brentano (brother) Christian Brentano (brother) Franz Brentano (nephew) Lujo Brentano (nephew) Herman Grimm (son-in-law) |
Bettina von Arnim (born Elisabeth Catharina Ludovica Magdalena Brentano) was a German writer, composer, and artist. She lived from April 4, 1785, to January 20, 1859.
Bettina was a very creative person. She was a writer, publisher, composer, singer, and visual artist. She also supported young artists and worked to help people in society. She was a key figure in the Romantic era, a time when art and feelings were very important.
She was friends with many famous people, including the writer Goethe and the composer Beethoven. Other well-known musicians like Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn, Robert and Clara Schumann, and Johannes Brahms admired her talents.
As a composer, Bettina von Arnim had a unique style. She mixed folk melodies and old themes with new harmonies and rhythms. Her music became a part of the Romantic era's sound. Her brother, Clemens Brentano, was a famous poet, and her husband, Achim von Arnim, was also a well-known Romantic poet. Her daughter, Gisela von Arnim, also became a writer.
Her Life and Family
Bettina von Arnim was born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. She came from a large family of Italian merchants called the Brentano family. Her grandmother, Sophie von La Roche, was a novelist. Her brother, Clemens Brentano, was a great poet who wrote many songs and plays. He encouraged her to read poetry, especially Goethe's works. From a young age, her family called Bettina 'the kobold', which means a playful spirit.
From 1794 to 1797, Bettina went to a convent school in Fritzlar. Later, she lived with her grandmother and then with her brother-in-law, Friedrich von Savigny, a famous lawyer. She became good friends with Karoline von Günderrode.
In 1807, Bettina met Goethe in Weimar. She admired him greatly and they exchanged letters. However, their friendship ended in 1811 after a disagreement involving Goethe's wife.
In 1811, Bettina married Achim von Arnim, a famous Romantic poet. They lived first at Wiepersdorf castle and then in Berlin. They had seven children together.
After Achim died in 1831, Bettina continued to be active in public life. In 1835, she published a book called Goethe's Correspondence with a Child. This book was presented as letters between her and Goethe, but much of it was made up. Even so, it was praised as a work of fiction.
She kept writing and inspiring others until she passed away in Berlin on January 20, 1859, at the age of 73. She was surrounded by her children. Her grave is in the Wiepersdorf churchyard.
Her Work and Achievements
Between 1806 and 1808, Bettina helped collect folk songs for a famous book called Des Knaben Wunderhorn. This book was a team effort with her brother and future husband. Many of these songs were later set to music by composers like Gustav Mahler. The collection became very important for the Romantic style in music and poetry.
From 1808 to 1809, she studied singing, composing, and piano in Munich. She released her first song under the name Beans Beor, a pseudonym she sometimes used. Bettina also sang in the Berliner Singakademie and composed music for poems.
Even though her family duties after her marriage in 1811 made her less productive, some of her songs from that time have been found and published. Bettina von Arnim was the first composer to set the poet Hölderlin's work to music.
She was an inspiration to many people who wanted new ideas in Prussia. She supported social movements and spoke up for people who were treated unfairly, including the Jewish community. She published some works that challenged the government, but her friendship with the King of Prussia protected her.
After her husband died in 1831, Bettina continued to support the creative community. She published a collection of seven songs to publicly support the Prussian music director Gaspare Spontini, who was facing difficulties at the time.
Her Books
- Goethe's Correspondence with a Child, 1835: A book of letters, partly real and partly fictional, between her and Goethe.
- Die Günderode, 1840: Fictional letters with her friend, the poet Karoline von Günderrode.
- Dies Buch gehört dem König (This Book Belongs to the King), 1843: A book about social issues.
- Clemens Brentanos Frühlingskranz (Clemens Brentano's Spring Wreath), 1844: A collection of real letters to and from her brother.
- Ilius Pamphilius und die Ambrosia, 1848
- An die aufgelöste Preußische Nationalversammlung, 1849
- With Gisela von Arnim: Das Leben der Hochgräfin Gritta von Rattenzuhausbeiuns, 1840
- "Tale of the Lucky Purse" (Erzählung vom Heckebeutel): A story that shows the social problems of the time, especially poverty. It uses the idea of a magical purse that never runs out of money, like in the old tale of Fortunatus.
Her Legacy
In 1847, a German-American settlement in Texas was named Bettina after her. It was founded by people who shared her progressive ideas, but it only lasted for about a year.
Part of a large statue of Goethe, designed by von Arnim and made by sculptor Carl Johann Steinhäuser, was shown in a museum in Weimar in 1911.
An opera called Bettina, which first played in Berlin in 1987, tells the story of her friendship with Karoline von Günderrode.
From 1991 until 2001, Bettina von Arnim's picture was on the German 5-Deutsche Mark banknote.
In 2006, the German government turned Künstlerhaus Schloss Wiepersdorf, the von Arnims' estate, into a literary institute. It now has a museum dedicated to the literary works of the von Arnim family.
Images for kids
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In Spanish: Bettina von Arnim para niños
