Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, b. 02.07.1724 in Quedlingburg, d. 14.03.1803 in Hamburg, son of the jurist Gottlieb Heinrich Klopstock, living in Quedlinburg, and Anna Maria Schmidt, daughter of a shopkeeper in Langensalza. After studies of theology in Jena prefers to become a poet instead; freed from the need to earn his daily bread by a nominal position and a salaire given to him by the Danish king, lives as a poet since 1751 in Kopenhagen, since 1770 in Hamburg. 10.06.1754 first marriage, to Margareta (Meta) Möller (d. 1758), daughter of a Hamburg businessman. 30.10.1791 second marriage, to Elisabeth Dimpfel, daughter of a Hamburg businessman and widowed von Winthem, a niece of his first wife. Because of his "Messias", he is the celebrated German poet of his time.

During his lifetime, there was a real cult concerning this poet. For his funeral, in the Hamburg city district Ottensen, tens of thousands showed up. Charlotte de Boor writes on 19.03.1803 to her brother in Paris: "... Morgen früh fahren Mutter und Hanchen nach Altona um Klopstocks Leichenfeier in der Kirche zu Ottensen mit anzusehen. Schwanke hat eine eigene Musik dazu gefertigt, viele junge Mädchen - unter anderem Heisen, Gaben, Momsens - werden singen. Die Folge wird außerordentlich groß werden das Ganze wahrscheinlich sehr feierlich... das diplomatische Corps, von Hamburgern wer Lust hat, der altonaer Rath, das altonaer Militär, wird mitgehen. Ich habe ein Heer von Gründen warum ich zu Hause bleibe ..."
(Tomorrow morning, mother and Hanchen will travel to Altona, to take in Klopstock's funeral in the Ottensen church. Schwanke has produced music specially for this, many young girls - among them the Heises, Gabes, Momsens - are going to sing. The procession is going to be extraordinarily big, the whole thing probably very solemn ... the diplomatic corps, from Hamburg whoever wishes, the Altona city council, the Altona military, all are going to participate. I have an army of reasons for staying home ... )

[...] How his admirers thought of the poet, one can tell perhaps best from the picture created by Maria Elisabeth de Boor in 1792: she poses him in front of a bust of Homer in simple clothing, a kind of christian reincarnation of the antique `Poeta vates', declaiming, as one can easily read on the page he holds in his hand, verses from his ode `The goodbye' which point to his spiritual mission. The painter probably belonged to the `Lesegesellschaft' (reading club), founded by Klopstock, which comprised the inner circle of the Klopstock admirers, and is likely to have matched the Hamburg notion of an `ideal' portrait. [1]

The picture now belongs to the Museum for Hamburg History.

Archiv der Familie de Boor

Museum for Hamburg History