Egmont is a play by Goethe telling the tale of the 16th centuryFlemishCount of Egmont who is sentenced to death by the occupying Spaniards. A young woman called Klärchen tries to rescue him, but fails and commits suicide. A play (noun) is a common form of literature, usually consisting chiefly of dialog between characters, and usually intended for performance rather than reading. ... Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (pronounced [gø tə]) (August 28, 1749 – March 22, 1832) was a German writer, humanist, scientist, and philosopher. ... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Definitions Flanders (Dutch: Vlaanderen, French: Flandre or Flandres) has two main designations: a historical region (the County of Flanders), and an administrative region of Belgium (the Flemish Region and the Flemish Community). ... Count of Egmont Lamoral, Count of Egmont (November 18, 1522 - June 5, 1568) was a general and statesman in Flanders just before the start of the Eighty Years War. ... Suicide (from Latin sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the act of intentionally ending ones own life. ...
The play is probably less well known today than the Egmont overture that Ludwig van Beethoven wrote for it. He also wrote incidental music for the entire play, but only the overture is performed with any frequency today. Beethoven was late in finishing the piece, only completing his music in time for the third performance of the drama. Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized December 17, 1770 – March 26, 1827) was a German composer of Classical music, the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras. ... Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program or some other form not primarily musical. ... Overture (The Who) is also a song by the rock band The Who. ...
External links
An English version of Goethe's Egmont (translation by Anna Swanwick) (http://www.bartleby.com/19/3/)
The overture introduces the audience to the main characters and the themes of the play: Egmonts strength of character, Klärchens love for him, and the proclamation of the Netherlanders victory over the Spanish.
Ludwig von Beethoven was born in December of 1770 in Bonn, Germany, the second-oldest child of the court musician and tenor singer Johann van Beethoven.
The play was put to rest for five years until the great German actor Iffland arrived in Weimar and expressed interest in playing the role of Egmont.
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