Caroline Dorothea Elisabeth Ackermann (12 February 1752 – 21 October 1821) was a German actress and eldest daughter of Konrad Ackermann and Sophie Charlotte Bierreichel. She had one sister, Charlotte Ackermann, and one stepbrother

Friedrich Ludwig Schröder Friedrich Ludwig Schröder (3 November 1744 – 3 September 1816) was a German actor, Actor-manager, manager, dramatist and prominent freemasonry, masonic leader. He was born in Schwerin. Shortly after his birth, his mother, Sophie Charl ...

via her mother. Born in

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

(Danzig),

Royal Prussia Royal Prussia (; or , ) or Polish PrussiaAnton Friedrich Büsching, Patrick Murdoch. ''A New System of Geography'', London 1762p. 588/ref> (Polish: ; German: ) became a province of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, which was annexed follow ...

, she entered the stage at the age of four in the role of ''Annabella'' in

Lessing Lessing is a German surname of Slavic origin. The original Sorbian form, ''Lěsnik'', means either "forest dweller" or "woodman", ''lěs'' meaning "wood forest". People with the surname Lessing include a German family of writers, artists, musicians ...

's ''Miss Sara Sampson''. She was most active between 1769 and 1778 with roles include ''Orsina'', ''

Minna von Barnhelm ''Minna von Barnhelm or the Soldiers' Happiness'' (, ) is a ''lustspiel'' or comedy by the German author Gotthold Ephraim Lessing. It has five acts, was begun in 1763 and completed in 1767 – its author put the year 1763 on the official title ...

'', and ''Marie'' in ''

Götz von Berlichingen zu Hornberg (, ; 15 November 1480 – 23 July 1562), also known as Götz of the Iron Hand (German language, German: Eisenfaust), was a 16th-century Germany, German (Franconian) Imperial Knight (''Reichsritter''), mercenary and poet. He wa ...

'', as well as ''

Ophelia Ophelia () is a character in William Shakespeare's drama ''Hamlet'' (1599–1601). She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes and potential wife of Prince Hamlet. Due to Hamlet's actions, Ophelia ultima ...

'' in ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' which was very well received. She left the stage in 1778 and married Johann Christoph Unzer, who was a noted doctor and poet in

Altona Altona may refer to: Places Australia * Altona Beach, in Altona, Victoria, Australia * Altona Meadows, Victoria, Australia * Altona North, Victoria, Australia * Altona, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia ** Altona railway station ** Al ...

. Dorothea Ackermann After her marriage, she stopped appearing on the stage and chose instead to take part in upper-class urban life, which she could only now do as the wife of a renowned doctor. The marriage ended in 1796 with an ugly divorce. Her stepbrother acquired and destroyed all of the court documents that Unzer had allowed to be created. From 1797 until her death in 1821, Ackermann lived with her stepbrother at his home in

Rellingen Rellingen is a municipality in the district of Pinneberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated approximately 7 km east of Pinneberg, and 10 km northwest of Hamburg. Population as of December 31, 2007 is 13,746. The total land ...

References

1752 births 1821 deaths 18th-century German actresses German stage actresses Actresses from Gdańsk People from Royal Prussia Actresses from the Kingdom of Prussia {{Germany-stage-actor-stub