Margot Begemann

Margot Begemann (actually: Margaretha Carolina Begemann ; born March 17, 1841 in Nuenen , Noord-Brabant , Netherlands ; † February 11, 1907 in The Hague ) had a love affair with the painter Vincent van Gogh in the summer of 1884, which resulted in the attempted suicide by the Margot took a dramatic turn.

Life

Margot Begemann was the daughter of the Protestant Reformed pastor Willem Lodewijk Begemann, who held office in the small town of Nuenen near Eindhoven from 1828 to 1874 . Margot was born in the local pastor's house ("pastorie") at Berg 26 and spent half of her life there. Today the building is called "Van Gogh House" because Pastor Theodorus van Gogh worked there from 1882 to 1885 as a successor to WL Begemann and his famous son, the painter Vincent van Gogh, spent some time there.

The family of Pastor Begemann lived from 1875 in the house Berg 24 next door, called "Nune Ville". Pastor Begemann had the house built towards the end of his term of office in order to move in with his wife and unmarried daughters after he retired. This is why Margot Begeman ("Margo" or "Go" for short) is sometimes referred to as the "neighbor's daughter" in Vincent van Gogh's biographies. Pastor Begemann died in 1876, his wife a few months later in January 1877. Neither of them lived to see Pastor Theodorus van Gogh's term in Nuenen.

The love affair between Margot Begemann and Vincent van Gogh developed in the spring of 1884 when Vincent's mother was in need of care because of a broken leg and the two met there. In the period that followed, Margot often accompanied the painter in his painting studies on site and in the surrounding landscape. Expressions by Vincent and Margot that they wanted to get married met resistance from both families. It was obvious that Vincent was unable to provide for a family and his reputation in the village was low. There was also a clear age difference. Margot was 43 years old, Vincent only 31.

Margot came under great pressure from her older sisters. One day in September 1884 she took strychnine and collapsed while walking with Vincent. Because of the small dose of poison and timely medical help, she could be saved. The relationship with Vincent came to an end afterwards, however, also because the painter - shortly after the death of his father in 1885 - left Holland forever. However, in 1889 he asked his sister Wilhelmina by letter to send Margot Begemann one of his pictures.

In 1968 the present city of Nuenen dedicated the "Margot Begemannstraat" to her.

Margot was not the only person in the Begemann family linked to the van Goghs. Pastor Vincent van Gogh from Breda, the painter's grandfather, had contact with Margot's father for decades during his tenure.

Margot's brother Jacobus Lodewijk also plays a special role in the relationships between the two families. In Nuenen he ran a textile factory founded by his father, in which Vincent van Gogh painted some of his famous weaver pictures. The existing Berg 65 building is now known as the "Begemannhuis" or "Jacobushuis".

The Begemann in Nuenen are descendants of a German Protestant pastor family from Detmold in what was then the Principality of Lippe . The ancestors can be traced back to Wendlinghausen near Lemgo.

literature

• Ton de Brouwer: Van Gogh en Nuenen. 2nd Edition. Van Spijk, Venlo / Antwerpen 1998, ISBN 90-6216-228-2 .
• Peter van Overbruggen, Jos Thielemans: Van domineeshuis dead Van Goghhuis, 1764–2014: 250 years pastorie Nuenen en hair bewoners. Nuenen 2014, OCLC 873812712 .

Web links

• Vincent van Gogh in Nuenen (Dutch)
• The Reformed Church of Nuenen (Dutch)
• Begemann in the Netherlands and their German origin