Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von

AUTHOR, POET, COUNCILLOR (GERMANY)
BORN 28 Aug 1749, Frankfurt am Main, Hessen: Hirschgraben - DIED 22 Mar 1832, Weimar, Thüringen
GRAVE LOCATION Weimar, Thüringen: Historischer Friedhof (Alter Friedhof, Neuer Friedhof, Friedhof vor dem Frauentor), Poseckscher Garten (Fürstengruft)

Son of the imperial councillor Johann Caspar Goethe. From 1765 he studied law in Leipzig, but in bored him and he spent much of his time in society. He lived a wild life and afther three years he returned to Frankfurt with a hemorrhage of the lungs and a tumor on the neck. After he recovered, in 1770 he continued his law studies in Strasbourg.

In 1772 the son of a preacher named Johann Jerusalem committed suicide. This event was the inspiration for Goethe's "Die Leiten des jungen Werthers" (1774, translated as "Sorrows of Young Werther").

In Sep 1775 Duke Karl August invited him to Weimar, where he was offered a permanent situation as privy councillor at the court in 1779. This appointment resulted in a scandal, since Goethe was no nobleman. Goethe became the friend and companion of the Duke and was became the rising star of society in Weimar.

In 1786 he travelled to Italy for two years. This experience made him feel like reborn. In Rome he stayed with the painter Tischbein, with whom he also travelled in Italy.

Back in Germany he met Christiane Vulpius in 1788. She went to live with him and bore him five children. In 1789 Goethe became a member of the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts and in 1790 he travelled to Italy for the second time. In Venice he studied art, but this visit was a dissapointment for Goethe, whose love for Italy soon cooled down.

He became the director of the new theatre in Weimar and in that position he was more visible for the citizens. His famous friendship with Schiller started in 1796. They first met in 1794, but after they saw each other again in 1796 a close friendship ensued that only ended with Schiller's death in 1805. Schiller stimulated Goethe's creativity and the latter returned to poetry. Meanwhile, Schiller wrote his great works "Wallenstein" and "Maria Stuart".

After Schiller died Goethe completely lost his interest in literature for a while. The French army ransacked Weimar in 1806 and in these troubled days he finally married Christiane on 19 Oct 1806.

On 2 Oct 1808 he visited Napoleon, who resided in Erfurt at the time. Napoleon told Goethe he had read Werther about seven times and invited him to Paris. A few days later they met again in Weimar. After Napoleon's defeat in Russia he travelled through Weimar during the night of 15 Dec 1812 and he sent his greetings to Goethe.

Goethe was 81 years old when he completed the second part of his dramatic "Faust" on 22 Jul 1831. He had started working on "Faust" 57 years earlier. He died in March of the next year in Weimar.

Family
• Son: Goethe, Julius August Walter
• Wife: Vulpius, Christiane (1806-1816, Weimar: Jakobskirche)

Related persons
• corresponded with Bagration, Catharina
• knew Becker-Neumann, Christiane
• met Beethoven, Ludwig van
• was a friend of Behrisch, Ernst Wolfgang
• was a friend of Bethmann-Unzelmann, Friederike Auguste
• was a friend of Boisserée, Sulpice
• knew Brentano, Antonie
• inspired Brodzinski, Kazimierz
• corresponded with Byron, George Noel Gordon
• has a connection with Carus, Carl Gustav
• was written about by Chamberlain, Houston Stewart
• met Constant de Rebecque, Benjamin
• was a friend of Coudray, Clemens Wenzeslaus
• was sculpted by Eberlein, Gustav
• employed Eberwein, Carl
• was written about by Eckermann, Johann Peter
• supported Facius, Angelika Bellonata
• admired Gellert, Christian Fürchtegott
• was visited by Grillparzer, Franz
• met Grimm, Ludwig Emil
• was admired by Gundolf, Friedrich
• has a connection with Hase, Carl von
• knew Herz, Henriette
• knew Hölderlin, Friedrich
• had as physician Hufeland, Christoph Wilhelm
• was a friend of Hummel, Johann Nepomuk
• was opponent of Jagemann, Caroline
• was painted by Jagemann, Ferdinand Karl Christian
• had a relationship with Kanne, Anna Katharina
• was a friend of Kauffmann, Angelica
• was painted by Kauffmann, Angelica
• was a friend of Kestner-Buff, Charlotte
• met Kleist, Heinrich von
• knew Körner, Johann Christian Friedrich
• was opponent of Kotzebue, August von
• was painted by Kügelgen, Gerhard von
• cooperated with La Roche, Karl, Ritter von
• was a friend of Lavater, Johann Caspar
• was written about by Ludwig, Emil
• influenced Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Felix
• was a friend of Meyer, Johann Heinrich
• admired Milder-Hauptmann, Anna
• was a friend of Müller, Friedrich Theodor Adam Heinrich von
• met Napoleon I Bonaparte
• wrote about Neuber, Friederike Caroline
• corresponded with Neureuther, Eugen Napoleon
• was visited by Nöggerath, Johann Jacob
• was teacher to Oels, Karl Ludwig
• helped Preller, Friedrich
• had work illustrated by Ramberg, Johann Heinrich
• employed Riemer, Friedrich Wilhelm
• met Robinson, Henry Crabb
• met Rohden, Johann Martin von
• corresponded with Runge, Philip Otto
• had work translated by Sabatier, François
• was visited by Sand, Karl Ludwig
• was sculpted by Scheffer, Cornelia
• was a friend of Schiller, Friedrich von
• was painted by Schmeller, Johann Joseph
• knew Schopenhauer, Adele
• admired Schröter, Corona
• met Schwab, Gustav
• knew Schwerdgeburth, Carl August
• was painted by Seidler, Louise
• was written about by Stahr, Adolf
• was a friend of Stein, Charlotte von
• was painted by Stieler, Joseph
• met Thackeray, William Makepeace
• knew Tieck, Ludwig
• knew Varnhagen von Ense, Karl-August
• knew Varnhagen von Ense, Rahel
• supported Vulpius, Christian August
• helped Wagner, Johann Martin von
• knew Weber, Carl Maria von
• knew Werner, Zacharias
• knew Willemer, Marianne von
• employed Wolff, Pius Alexander

Events
29/10/1772The son of the preacher Johann Jerusalem commits suicide. This led to Goethe's writing "Die Leiten des Jungen Werthers". After the work was published many further suicices were committted. 
7/11/1775Goethe arrives in Weimar. His engagement with the banker's daughter Elisabeth 'Lili' Schöneman was broken and he had enough of Frankfurt am Main. He accepted the invitation of the young Duke Karl August of Saxe-Weimar. He arrived at five o'clock in the morning in Weimar. 
5/9/1779Goethe is appointed privy councilor in Weimar 
12/9/1779Goethe travels to Switzerland for the second time. He was in the company of the Duke of Saxe-Weimar and he met many old acquaintances. 
13/1/1780Goethe returns from Switzerland to Weimar 
3/9/1786Goethe leaves from Karlsbad for Italy. He had permission from the Duke of Saxe-Weimar to visit Italy. His desire to see Italy had grown over time and he would only return to Weimar in 1788. 
29/10/1786Goethe arrives in Rome. He stayed with the painter Tischbein. 
23/4/1788Goethe leaves Rome to return to Weimar 
18/6/1788Goethe returns from Italy to Weimar. He had visited Rome, Naples and Sicily. He wrote about his travels in his book "Italienische Reise". Shortly afterwards he was released from his government duties in Weimar and he his reponsibilities were concentrated on culture and arts. 
12/7/1788Goethe meets Christiane Vulpius for the first time. She spoke to him at the Park an der Ilm in Weimar on behalf of her brother, the author Christian Vulpius. A long affair resulted and in 1806 they would finally marry. [Vulpius, Christian August][Vulpius, Christiane]
10/2/1789Goethe becomes a honorary member of the Prussian Academy of Arts 
31/3/1790Goethe arrives in Venice. He had come to Venice to welcome Anna Amalia, the mother of Duke Karl August of Weimar. But his love of Italy had cooled by this time. 
17/12/1791Premiere of Goethe's "Der Gross-Coptha" at the Ducal Theatre in Weimar. It was a comedy in five acts that Goethe had written in the summer of 1791. The music was by Johann Friedrich Kranz. 
2/10/1808Goethe on audience with Napoleon at the palace in Erfurt. It was the first meeting between the two and Talleyrand, Berthier and Savary were there as well. When he was first invited in 1806 Goethe had excused himself for health reasons and during Napoleon's second visit to Weimar, Goethe was in Karlsbad. Napoleon spoke to Goethe about "Die Leiden des jüngen Wethers" and Goethe observed that the emperor knew it very well. [Napoleon I Bonaparte]
6/10/1808Goethe meets Napoleon during the Court Ball in Weimar. It was their second meeting, after Napoleon had received him in Erfurt four days before. Napoleon invited Goethe to come to Paris to write a Caesar tragedy. In his opinion there was no good work yet on this subject. On 14 Oct 1808 Goethe received the Légion d'Honneur. [Napoleon I Bonaparte]
0/7/1812Beethoven and Goethe meet in Teplice. Both were in that city at the time and Bettina von Arnim arranged their first meeting. They saw each other several more times during the next days. [Beethoven, Ludwig van]
15/12/1812Napoleon passes through Weimar on his way back from Russia. It happened during the night and he sent his greetings to Goethe. [Napoleon I Bonaparte]
29/7/1814Johann Wolfgang Goethe arrives in Wiesbaden. He stayed in Hotel Adler before he moved to Hotel Bären where his friend C.F. Zelter stayed as well. He met many people in Wiesbaden and on Sundays he was often invited by Friedrich August von Nassau to dine at Schloss Biebrich. He would leave Wiesbaden om 12 September 1814. 
4/8/1814Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is visited by Johann Jacob von Willemer and his stepdaughter Marianne in Wiesbaden. Goethe knew him for a long time and Willemer's stepdaughter Marianne Jung was with him. Within a short time Willemer would marry Marianne, allthough he had formally adopted her. A secret love affair between Goethe and Marianne would develop afterwards. [Willemer, Marianne von]
21/7/1815Goethe travels from Wiesbaden to Cologne. Between 21 July and 31 July he travelled down the Rhine to Cologne. There he visited the Cathedral and several private collections, including that of Franz Walraf. 
22/8/1815Goethe leaves Wiesbaden. He was accompanied by Sulpiz Boisserées. [Boisserée, Sulpice]
15/8/1823Anne Milder-Hauptmann performs in Marienbad for Goethe. Goethe wrote afterwards that she managed to make four small songs big and the remembrance of her performance brought tears into his eyes. [Milder-Hauptmann, Anna]
20/10/1828Nöggerath dines with Goethe. He was on his way back to Bonn from the Verein der Naturforscher in Berlin and he was very welcome. He told Goethe about the mineralogical circumstances in the area around Bonn. [Nöggerath, Johann Jacob]
28/8/1829Goethe's "Faust" is performed in Leipzig. The occasion was Goethe's 80th birthday. Rosalie Wagner played Gretchen to great acclaim. [Marbach, Johanna Rosalie]
12/5/1945The Coffins of Goethe and Schiller are returned to the Fürstengruft in Weimar. Gauleiter Fritz Sauckel had them transported to Jena and ordered to blow them up when the allied troops would arrive. This was avoided. [Schiller, Friedrich von]

Images

Temporary replica of Goethe's garden house, only a few hundred meters away from the original in Weimar.
Picture by Androom (30 Apr 1999)

 

The coffins of Goethe and Schiller in the Fürstengruft at the Friedhof vor dem Frauentor in Weimar.
Picture by Androom (30 Apr 1999)

 

The statue of Goethe and Schiller in Weimar.
Picture by Androom (30 Apr 1999)

 

Goethe's garden house in Weimar.
Picture by Androom (05 Feb 2005)

 

The house where Goethe visited Lavater in Zürich at the Obere Zäune 11.
Picture by Androom (18 Aug 2005)

 

The statue of Goethe at the Burggarten, Vienna.
Picture by Androom (20 Aug 2007)

 

The Goethe museum at Ilmenau.
Picture by Androom (05 Mar 2009)

 

Statue of Goethe at the Villa Borghese Park, Rome.
Picture by Androom (25 Jan 2010)

 

Goethe Memorial at the Schloss-Herrngarten in Darmstadt.
Picture by Androom (28 apr 2013)

 

Goethe statue at the Goetheplatz, Frankfurt am Main.
Picture by Androom (03 May 2013)

 

The statue of Goethe and Schiller in Weimar seen from behind.
Picture by Androom (01 Aug 2016)

 

Bust of Goethe at Miramar near Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
Picture by Androom (25 Aug 2022)

 

Sources
• Blumenfeld, Carl, Goethe, Taschen, 1986
Biografisch Worterbuch zur Deutsche Geschichte, Francke Verlag, München, 1975
• Gorys, Erhard, Thüringen, Artemis Reis- en Cultuurgids, Kok Lyra, Kampen, 1996
Winkler Prins Encyclopedie (editie 1909), 1909
A meeting of genius: Beethoven and Goethe, July 1812 | Gramophone
Goethe's Birth and Education
Goethe in Wiesbaden | Landeshauptstadt Wiesbaden
Objekt-Metadaten
Rosalie Wagner - Stadtwiki Dresden
Goethe in Wiesbaden | Landeshauptstadt Wiesbaden


Goethe, Julius August Walter

Published: 01 Jan 2006
Last update: 25 Sep 2022