Adventures with Beethoven

Scene Three

“Immortal Beloved”

The “Immortal Beloved” Letter

“My angel, my all, my own self.” 

These words open a ten-page letter found in Beethoven’s papers by his secretary Anton Schindler shortly after the composer’s death. The letter was a passionate plea; Beethoven was pouring his heart out to the woman he loved, at times he was so carried away with emotion that the words can hardly be read. He also laments the fact that they are not together. The question remains, to whom was this letter written? Beethoven simply addressed the letter to Unsterbliche Geliebte or “Immortal Beloved.” But who was this woman who captured Beethoven’s heart? For almost two hundred years scholars have debated and there is still not a clear consensus. 

Beethoven was a man of great passion and emotion, which can be seen in both his work and his relationships. Unlike the previous generations of composers, Beethoven’s music is often closely related to his own emotional state and gives us clues as to how he was feeling at certain points in his life. Many of his compositions were dedicated to those closest to him, including to several women who may have been his “Immortal Beloved,” which may help us in the search for the woman who inspired Beethoven’s passionate letters. 

The letter was found in Beethoven’s desk and kept by his secretary, Schindler, until his own death in 1864. In accordance with Schindler’s will, his sister took possession of the letter. She sold the document to the Berlin State Library in 1880, where it remains in the collection. The letter had a date and month, but not a year. It took scholars until the 1950s to figure out an accurate date for when the letter was written. Using watermarks in the paper historians were able to date the letter to 1812. Beethoven had been in Prague (then part of the Habsburg empire, now the capital of the Czech Republic) where he most likely had spent time with his Beloved. From there he spent the night in a hotel in the town of Teplitz, where he wrote the impassioned letter, before traveling on to the village of Karlsbad where the couple would meet again. 

The text of the letter repeats questions and concerns about whether or not Beethoven and this woman can actually be together. Since we don’t know for certain the recipient of this letter, we don’t know the reason why the couple could not have a more forthcoming relationship. Over Beethoven’s lifetime, and his various relationships with women, there were often obstacles to marriage in each one. 

Beethoven had a complicated understanding of relationships, especially marriage. Like many children, Beethoven had an idealized image of his mother. He described her as kind, loving, and his best friend. His home life, and his parent’s marriage, were far from ideal. Although Maria, Beethoven’s mother, came from a fairly wealthy family, she was not held in high regard by Ludwig Sr., her father-in-law. Maria had married a valet for the Elector of Trèves when she was sixteen, they had a son within the year; however, the child died in infancy. Shortly after, her husband died as well, leaving Maria a widow at only eighteen. This fact, along with his incorrect assumption that Maria was a chambermaid, led Ludwig Sr. to oppose the marriage between Maria and Johann. Maria’s family was also uncertain about the marriage, but did offer to host a wedding celebration, but Ludwig Sr. refused to go to her hometown of Ehrenbreitstein and insisted the wedding take place in Bonn. 

Maria and Johann’s marriage was often troubled, especially because of Johann’s alcoholism. Compounding Maria’s grief was the loss of three more children as infants. Although there is no concrete evidence that Johann was abusive to Maria, he was harsh with the children, especially with young Ludwig as his musical talent became apparent. Johann’s continued alcohol abuse lowered his job prospects and he never fully achieved his potential. Maria referred to marriage as “a chain of sorrows.” Although we are looking at this relationship as an outsider and from a removed perspective, it does seem like Beethoven’s earliest childhood memories would have been colored by the unhappy and unfulfilling marriage that his parents endured. 

Early Love Interests 

Like many people, Beethoven had adolescent infatuations and crushes. As a young man Beethoven spent much of his time in the von Breuning household. At the age of fifteen Beethoven was hired by Helene von Breuning to teach two of her children, Eleonore and Lorenz, piano lessons. Beethoven visited the home almost daily, often eating meals there and Helene acted as a mother figure to Beethoven. Over time, Beethoven developed feelings for Eleonore; however, they never had a real relationship, perhaps because he was a little too forward in his physical advances than would have been acceptable at the time. In surviving letters after Beethoven moved to Vienna, the pair seems to have remained friendly and Beethoven dedicated several early works to her. 

Next, there was a girl from Cologne named Johanna von Honrath who spent time in Bonn visiting the von Breunings. Nothing came of this relationship since Johanna went back home to Cologne. 

Beethoven may also have been interested in Nannette Streicher, who became well-known for her piano building skills. Although Beethoven had a long relationship with Nannette, the likelihood that it was romantic seems dubious. 

The next person to attract Beethoven’s attention was Maria Anna Wilhelmine von Westerholt-Gysenberg, the daughter of a minor noble family. In 1790 Beethoven was hired to teach Anna piano lessons and traveled with the family first to their summer home in the country and then to their palace in Münster. He then returned with the family to Bonn that winter. The family was musical and Beethoven composed trios for flute, bassoon, and piano for the family to perform together. As Anna’s abilities grew, she performed several benefit concerts and Beethoven possibly wrote a piano sonata for her. Although she was affectionate toward Beethoven, the sixteen-year-old eventually rejected Beethoven’s advances because he was not of the proper class for her to even consider a relationship with him. The sonata written for her was never found and was perhaps lost in a castle fire in 1899. 

In order to be recognized as a member of the highest echelon of society, families would have to provide proof that their lineage had an unbroken line of at least sixteen aristocratic ancestors, eight on each side of the family, going back to a person’s great-great-grandparents. Only that far back would a marriage between a lesser noble, or even perhaps a member of the middle class, be tolerated. (Even then this disastrous choice was called a horrible dictu or horrible tale.) Because lineage was so important and had direct effects not only on the individual but their children and grandchildren, the choice of a suitable spouse was taken very seriously. Beethoven did not have a noble title or lineage. Although his talent and artistry attracted attention from the nobility, he would never have been considered as an appropriate candidate for marriage to the daughters of noble Viennese society, even those not in the uppermost classes. 

Although not considered as a future spouse, Beethoven did spend a great deal of time in the company of many noble families, often as a piano teacher. In this capacity Beethoven frequently spent a great deal of time with his teenage female students, for whom learning to play an instrument was a required social grace. Beethoven would sometimes travel with the family to their country estates or other homes to continue these lessons. 

Beethoven developed feelings for more than one of his pupils during his lifetime. One of these students was Countess Giulietta Guicciardi, whom Beethoven met through the Brunsvik family. Guicciardi began lessons with Beethoven in 1801 when she was sixteen. Beethoven wrote to a friend that she was “...a sweet, enchanting girl, who loves me and whom I love.” However, they both realized that a marriage could not happen due to their age and class differences. Guicciardi went on to marry Count von Gallenberg, who was an amateur composer. Beethoven did dedicate his Piano Sonata No. 14 to her, the famous Moonlight sonata. 

See the following sections for more about the women who may have been the person for whom Beethoven intended “Immortal Beloved.”