Christine Enghaus
Encyclopedia
Christine Enghaus, pseudonym
of Johanne Louise Christine Engehausen, (February 9, 1815 – June 29, 1910) was a German actress and wife of the German playwright
Friedrich Hebbel.
, and grew up under poor circumstances in a large family.
She had work early to contribute to the living of the family, because her father died before she turned seven. On the initiative of her mother, she was sent to the children's ballet
at the state theatre at Braunschweig (Braunschweiger Hoftheater) at the age of seven. Due to her artistic talent
she soon had little roles in plays and was finally discovered and supported by K. Köchy.
of the state theatre in Braunschweig. She had her breakthrough in 1833 when she played Joan of Arc
in Bremen
and was immediately hired to play in this city. Soon after she played in the city theater of Hamburg
where she was first spotted on stage by her later husband, Friedrich Hebbel. In 1840, already famous, she was engaged to play at the Burgtheater
and belonged to the ensemble until 1875.
and mostly personified tragic
female characters from her husband's plays. She had two children: Emil (1846–1847) and Christine (1847-1922). She died in Vienna
at the age of 95.
s exist with her as the leading character (see literature section).
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
of Johanne Louise Christine Engehausen, (February 9, 1815 – June 29, 1910) was a German actress and wife of the German playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
Friedrich Hebbel.
Early years
Christine Engehausen was born in BraunschweigBraunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
, and grew up under poor circumstances in a large family.
She had work early to contribute to the living of the family, because her father died before she turned seven. On the initiative of her mother, she was sent to the children's ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
at the state theatre at Braunschweig (Braunschweiger Hoftheater) at the age of seven. Due to her artistic talent
Skill
A skill is the learned capacity to carry out pre-determined results often with the minimum outlay of time, energy, or both. Skills can often be divided into domain-general and domain-specific skills...
she soon had little roles in plays and was finally discovered and supported by K. Köchy.
Breakthrough
Starting in 1829, Enghaus belonged to the ensembleMusical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
of the state theatre in Braunschweig. She had her breakthrough in 1833 when she played Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...
in Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
and was immediately hired to play in this city. Soon after she played in the city theater of Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
where she was first spotted on stage by her later husband, Friedrich Hebbel. In 1840, already famous, she was engaged to play at the Burgtheater
Burgtheater
The Burgtheater , originally known as K.K. Theater an der Burg, then until 1918 as the K.K. Hofburgtheater, is the Austrian National Theatre in Vienna and one of the most important German language theatres in the world.The Burgtheater was created in 1741 and has become known as "die Burg" by the...
and belonged to the ensemble until 1875.
Marriage to Friedrich Hebbel
Christine Enghaus and Friedrich Hebbel married in Vienna on May 26, 1846. After the marriage, Enghaus stayed in Vienna but also played in WeimarWeimar
Weimar is a city in Germany famous for its cultural heritage. It is located in the federal state of Thuringia , north of the Thüringer Wald, east of Erfurt, and southwest of Halle and Leipzig. Its current population is approximately 65,000. The oldest record of the city dates from the year 899...
and mostly personified tragic
Tragedy
Tragedy is a form of art based on human suffering that offers its audience pleasure. While most cultures have developed forms that provoke this paradoxical response, tragedy refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of...
female characters from her husband's plays. She had two children: Emil (1846–1847) and Christine (1847-1922). She died in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
at the age of 95.
Nachleben
The importance of Christine Enghausen (amongst other things, a safe source of money for her husband) can also be seen in the fact that two novelNovel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s exist with her as the leading character (see literature section).
Literature
- Waldemar Augustiny: Elise und Christine. Die beiden Frauen im Leben Friedrich Hebbels. Heide: Boyens 1986 ISBN 3-8042-0366-3
- Else Hoppe: Die Ebenbürtigen. Christine Engehausens Ehe mit Friedrich Hebbel, Braunschweig 1943
- Garzmann, Schuegraf, Pingel: Braunschweiger Stadtlexikon - Ergänzungsband, Braunschweig 1996
- Hans Knudsen: Hebbel, Christine. In: NDBNeue Deutsche BiographieNeue Deutsche Biographie is a biographical reference work published in German by the Historical Committee at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities and printed by Duncker & Humblot in Berlin. It is the successor to the Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie...
Bd. 8, S. 159 f.