M: "I shall never forget the friendly suburb of Neubrandenburg with its clean streets, with its handsome church [...], the light blue mirror of its lake, the foliage of its beech trees. I shall never forget any of it."
F: And yet in June 1863, Luise and Fritz Reuter say goodbye to their native Mecklenburg and move to Eisenach, at the foot of Wartburg Castle.
M: Or rather: they emigrate. Because in those days, a move from Mecklenburg to Thuringia was tantamount to relocating to a foreign country. While the people of Mecklenburg were shocked that their national hero Reuter was leaving them, Fritz and Luise were looking forward to a quiet life with no financial worries. As Luise noted:
F: "Our immediate future has been decided; we are moving to Eisenach, and by Midsummer's Day, because we can only get a garden flat there in spring [...]. Reuter considers this change [...] decidedly for the best, and so do I, as far as his health is concerned..."
M: As soon as they arrived, Reuter waxed lyrical about the beautiful city and revelled in the sight of the donkeys trotting up to Wartburg Castle. As one of Germany's most famous authors, he had no problems finding his feet in Eisenach. Before long, he was socialising in the "Goldener Löwe", an inn where the town's notables met at the "Tuesday Club".
All depictions: © museum.de
