Ludwig Van Beethoven: Timeline

1770	(16 Dec) - Beethoven born at 515 Bonngasse (no.20 today). Baptised at St.Regimus church (17 Dec).
1773	(24Dec) - Death of grandfather (Ludwig Van Beethoven).
1777	Fire ravaged palace at Bonn.
1778	(26Mar) - First public concert at Cologne (Sternengasse).
1779	Musical tuition from Gilles Van den Eeden (piano) & Tobias Pfeiffer. Violin instruction from F.G.Rovantini & Franz Ries. Organ - Willibald Koch & Zenser.
1781	Studies regularly with C.G.Neefe .
1782	Becomes deputy court organist to Neefe. First published work - 9 variations on a March by Dressler. Beginning of friendship with G.Wegeler & Breuning family.
1783	Violist in court orchestra. 3 Sonatas published (dedicated to Elector Maximillian Friedrich).
1784	(Feb) - Officially Neefe's assistant. Death of Elector (15Apr) - succeeded by M.Franz (son of Empress Maria-Theresa).
1785	Granted salary of 100 Florins.
1787	(7-20Apr) - First visit to Vienna. Possibly met Mozart. Mother dies (17Jul) - (consumption). Baby sister dies (25Nov).
1788/9	Returns to old posts (organist & viola in court orchestra). Death of Emperor Joseph. Meets Waldstein family.
1790	(Dec) - Haydn & Salomon arrive in Bonn (en route to London).
1791	(Dec 5) - Death of Mozart.

1792	(Jul) Haydn in Bonn again (return journey). Beethoven leaves Bonn (2nd Nov). Arrives in Vienna (10th Nov) - Waldstein probably played a major role in the arrangement of this trip and may have persuaded the Elector to grant Beethoven an annuity). Father dies (18th Dec) - Franz Ries acts on Beethoven's behalf in Bonn regarding payment of salary.
1793	Lessons with Haydn. Beethoven may have visited Eisenstadt with Haydn. Haydn helps Beethoven in financial matters. Beethoven studies with J.B.Schenk.
1794	Bonn occupied by the French. (Elector flees). Haydn visits England again. Beethoven studies counterpoint with Albrechtsberger & vocal writing with Salieri. Beethoven's brother Caspar, arrives in Vienna. (He tried at first to emulate Ludwig's success, but later became a banker). Wegeler arrives from Bonn.
1795	Beethoven's other brother, Johann arrived to study at the university.
1796	Concert tour with Prince Lichnowsky to Prague, Dresden, Berlin. Possible first signs of deafness.
1797-9	Increased friends amongst the aristocracy (Scharwzenberg, Liechenstein, Moritz, Odescalshi). Signs of deafness apparent.
1800	Piano contest with D.Steibelt at Count Fries. Lichnowsky grants an annuity of 600 Gulden p.a.
1801	S.V.Breuning arrives in Vienna. Letters to Wegeler & Amenda expressing concern over deafness. Death of Elector Max Franz.
1802 (Oct)	'Heiligenstadt Testament' - (letter addressed to his brothers in which Beethoven reveals his despair over his increasing deafness).
1803	Archduke Rudolph becomes a friend and pupil. Work on the 'Eroica' symphony at Heiligenstadt.
1804	Living with S.Breuning (May-Oct), but moves to Molkerbastei after row with Breuning. Beethoven scratches out dedication of 'Eroica' symphony to Napoleon, after Napoleon declares himself Emperor.
1805	Intimate friendship with Josephine von Deym (neé.Brunswick) - cooling off towards November. Work on 'Fidelio'. - French invade Vienna (13-27Nov).
1806	Caspar Beethoven marries Johanna Reiss; their son Karl is born (4 Sep).
1807	Disagreement with brother, Johann over finance.
1808	Haydn's last public concert (27Mar). Friendship with Countess Erdödy. Offer to go to Kassel under Jerome Bonaparte - (600 Ducats p.a). Beethoven accepts but later changes mind due to friends guaranteeing annual income. Razumovsky quartet formed.
1809	Contract: Kinsky, Archduke Rudolph, Lobkowitz - guaranteeing income of 4000 Florins p.a. for life. Vienna shelled by French (11/12May). Haydn dies.
1810	Friendship with Therese Von Malfatti. Friendship with Bettina Brentano.
1811	Devaluation of currency (20 Feb) causes financial difficulties. Friendship with Amalie Sebald
1812	Meeting with Goethe at Teplitz (Jul). Letter to "Immortal beloved". Life mask and bust of Beethoven by Klein. Tries to stop marriage of brother Johann at Linz to Therese Obermayr.
1813	Wellington wins battle of Vittoria (21Jun). Collaboration with Maezel - "Wellington's victory" spreads Beethoven's fame and success. (Legal dispute with Maezel over this work later followed).
1814	Friendship with Schindler. Razumovsky palace destroyed in fire (3Nov). 'Fidelio' revised. Financial position improves. Congress of Vienna grants Beethoven 4000 Florins. Highly Successful concerts and recognition .
1815	Financial matters in connection with contract settled. (Arrears paid-payments continue until Beethoven's death). Caspar Beethoven dies (15Nov) - Beethoven is made co-guardian of Karl along with Karl's mother. Given freedom of the city of Vienna.
1816	Start of legal proceedings for sole-guardianship of Karl. Karl sent to boarding school. Invitation to visit London. Death of Prince Lobkowitz (16Dec).
1817	Friendship with Nanette Streicher renewed (She helps domestically)
1818	More legal proceedings over Karl, as he runs away from school to his mother. London firm of Broadwood send Beethoven a piano.
1819	"Missa solemnis" begun. Karl under mother's guardianship; Beethoven still responsible for his education. Beethoven purchases 8 bank shares from the investments made in 1816 with Steiner as a legacy for Karl.
1820	Legal dispute over Karl finally settled in Beethoven's favour.
1822	Schuppanzigh returns to Vienna. Deepening of friendship with F.Grillparzer. 'Fidelio' revival. New operatic projects contemplated ("Mesuline"). Work on 'Choral' symphony & last quartets. Reconciliation with brother Johann (temporary).
1823	Karl leaves school. Trouble with eyes. Quarrels with Schindler.
1824	Beethoven is sent inscribed gold medal from Louis XV111. Helps Karl's mother financially. Serious row with Schindler, Schuppanzigh & M.Lichnowsky over the financial disaster of the first performance of the 'Choral' symphony. Receives piano from the firm Konrad Graf. Meets his old teacher Schenk ( who he hasn't seen since 1790's).
1825	Friendship with Karl Holz. Becoming more possessive and neurotic over Karl.
1826	Karl attempts suicide (6th Aug): Beethoven devastated. Goes with Karl to his brother's estate at Gneixendorf (Aug). On return to Vienna (1/2Dec) he catches a chill and is confined to bed. Start of final illness - First operation (20Dec).
1827	Karl joins army (2Jan). Reconciliation with Schindler. Has further 4 operations. Visited by Schubert, Hummel, Zmeskall. Philharmonic society in London send £100. Reconciliation with Dr.Malfatti. Makes will leaving all to Karl. Dies (26Mar-4.45p.m.) 28Mar: Autopsy performed by Dr.Johann Wagner. Petrous portion of the temporal bone was sawn through and removed. Cause of death Cirrhosis of the liver accompanied by dropsy. Death mask and drawing made by Dannhauser. 29Mar: 20,000 people gather outside the 'Schwarzpanierhaus' for the funeral (3.00.p.m). Procession leaves the Schwarzspanierhaus at 3.30p.m. Hearse drawn by 4 horses. 5.00p.m.-Church service at the Dreifalteskeitkirche. Taken to the Wahring cemetry, where at the gates Grillparzer's funeral oration was read by Anschutz. 3rd April 1827 - Mozart's Requiem sung at the parish church of the Augustinian monks. 5th April 1827 - Cherubini's Mass sung in the Karlskirche. April 1827 - Auction of Beethoven's belongings.

1845	(Aug 12) - Inauguration of the Beethoven monument in Bonn. Many Princes, scholars and artists attended including Liszt, Queen Victoria.
1863	(Oct13) - First exhumation of both Schubert and Beethoven in order to better preserve the body by placing it in a metal casket within a bricked-in vault. Gerhard Breuning (who as a 13 year old boy had known Beethoven) was present, and noted the compact thickness of Beethoven's skull in comparison to the 'almost feminine thinness' of Schubert's. Another striking feature was the presence of a fine gold filling in the last left molar - a rarity for the 1820's. Both skulls were photographed by J.B.Rottmayer and plaster casts were made by Wittman. As a member of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Gerhard Breuning had custody of Beethoven's skull - In his own words " what stormy feelings passed through my mind evoking such powerful memories, as I had possession of that head for a few days, cleaned from it bits of dirt, took plaster casts of the base of the skull for Professor Romeo Seligmann, kept it by my bedside overnight, and in general proudly watched over that head from whose mouth, in years gone by, I had so often heard the living word!"
1864-67	First critical complete edition of Beethoven's works published by Breitkopf & Hartel, Leipzig.
1888	(Jun22) - 4 pm - During the second disinterment, the casket was opened and scientists were allowed twenty minutes to examine and measure the bones. Photographs were again taken. The composer Anton Bruckner was present and Bruckner was a very traditional Catholic with a reverence for relics, such as the remains of saints. For him composers like Beethoven were "saints," and when Beethoven and Schubert's remains were exhumed for reburial close to each other in the Central Cemetery in Vienna, Bruckner insisted upon being present and in handling the remains of Beethoven, even being the one to put Beethoven's skull back in the casket after examination by physicians. Afterwards he was proud of the fact that he might have lost a lens out of his pince nez glasses in handling Beethoven's bones and that the lens might have ended up being buried with Beethoven!
1889	Foundation of the Beethoven-house society and purchase of the house where he was born.
1927	The Beethoven-Archiv is founded.