Katharina Fröhlich

Katharina Fröhlich; Miniature by Moritz Michael Daffinger , 1823.

Merry yard with a fountain

Katharina (Kathi) Fröhlich (born June 10, 1800 in Vienna ; † March 3, 1879 ibid) was the "eternal bride" of the Austrian writer and playwright Franz Grillparzer .

Life

Katharina Fröhlich was born in Vienna in 1800 as the third of four daughters; her parents were the impact manufacturer Matthias Fröhlich (April 14, 1756– August 24, 1843) and his wife Barbara, née Mayr (1764–1841). In 1821 Katharina Fröhlich met Franz Grillparzer, with whom she became engaged . In 1849 Grillparzer rented a room from Katharina Fröhlich and her sisters Anna, Josephine and Barbara at Spiegelgasse 21 in Vienna. This shared apartment lasted until Grillparzer's death in 1872. Grillparzer, who never kept his marriage promise to Katharina Fröhlich, left all his possessions to the sisters.

Fröhlich handed the legacy of Grillparzer over to the City of Vienna and donated the Franz Grillparzer Prize , which until 1971 was awarded every three years for “the relatively best German dramatic work that has been performed on a renowned stage over the past three years and not before has been awarded a prize by another party “was awarded.

Shortly before her death, she founded the Schwestern-Fröhlich-Foundation with the aim of supporting artists and scientists. For example, Marie Eugenie Delle Grazie , Georg Heinrich Kührner and Jakob Julius David were supported by the foundation.

Fröhlich died in 1879 and was buried in the Hietzinger Friedhof in Vienna, where her grave, now dedicated to honor, is still to this day (group 7, number 53).

In 1928/1929 a residential complex with 149 apartments was built in Malfattigasse in Vienna, which was named in honor of Katharina Fröhlich's Fröhlichhof .

Grillparzer's home furnishings can be viewed in the Wien Museum Karlsplatz .

literature

• Happy Katharina (Kathi). In: Austrian Biographical Lexicon 1815–1950 (ÖBL). Volume 1, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 1957, p. 373.
• Johann Gunert :  Happy, Katharina. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 5, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1961, ISBN 3-428-00186-9 , p. 650 f. ( Digitized version ).
• Joseph August Lux: Grillparzer's romance novel . Bong, Berlin 1912.
• Max Prels: Grillparzer's eternal bride . Runge, Berlin 1922.

Web links

Commons : Katharina Fröhlich  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Entry on Katharina Fröhlich in the Austria Forum  (in the AEIOU Austria Lexicon )