Fun Facts Friday: Nikolaus Lenau

Nikolaus Lenau (13 August, 1802 – 22 August, 185) was an Austrian poet who was born in what today would be Hungary.

Books by, or about Nikolaus Lenau*

Fun Facts about Nikolaus Lenau:

1. The poet was born as Nikolaus Franz Niembsch Edler von Strehlenau in the Kingdom of Hungary, now Lenauheim, Banat.
2. Mr. Lenau’s father was a Habsburg official.
3. The poet went to the University of Vienna. He studied Hungarian law at Pozsony (now Bratislava). Later he studied medicine.
4. He started writing poems because he was unable to make a living in any profession.
5. Money inherited from his grandmother allowed Nikolaus Lenau to write full time.
6. In 1827 Mr. Lenau published his first poem.
7. During his life he lived in Stuttgart, Baltimore, Ohio, and Indiana. He finally settled in Vienna.
8. In 1844 Mr. Lenau started showing signs of mental issues.
9. He was put in an asylum, under restraint for the remainder of his life.
10. On Mr. Lenau’s grave there is a replica of an open book with an extract from his poems An Frau Kleyle and Vergangenheit.

Books by, or about Nikolaus Lenau*

Zohar – Man of la Book
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account