Therese Elssler (; 5 April 1808,

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

- 19 November 1878,

Merano Merano (, ; ) or Meran () is a (municipality) in South Tyrol, Northern Italy. Generally best known for its Spa town, spa resorts, it is located within a Depression (geology), basin, surrounded by mountains standing up to Height above mean sea ...

) was a dancer. The sisters Therese and Fanny Elssler were both dancers, the former born in 1808, the latter in 1810, both in the

suburb of

Gumpendorf Mariahilf (; ; "Mary's help") is the 6th municipal Districts of Vienna, district of Vienna, Austria (). It is near the center of Vienna and was established as a district in 1850. Mariahilf is a heavily populated urban area with many residential bui ...

. They were daughters of Johann Florian Elssler, the personal

scribe A scribe is a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of Printing press, automatic printing. The work of scribes can involve copying manuscripts and other texts as well as ...

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

. They received their first lessons at Friedrich Horschelt's children's ballet in the

Theater an der Wien The is a historic theatre in Vienna located on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district. Completed in 1801, the theatre has hosted the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music. Since 2006, it has served prim ...

. They studied dancing with

Jean-Pierre Aumer Jean-Louis Aumer (21 April 1774 – 6 July 1833), also referred to as Jean-Pierre Aumer, was a French ballet dancer and choreographer. Early life and career as a dancer Aumer was born in Strasbourg of a manual labourer and non-theatrical parents ...

and danced from 1817 to 1825 on the stage of

Theater am Kärntnertor or (Duchy of Carinthia, Carinthian Gate Theatre) was a prestigious theatre in Vienna during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Its official title was (Imperial and Royal Court Theatre of Vienna). History The theatre was built in 170 ...

and then continued their ballet education in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

with the great Gaetano Gioja. They celebrated their first major triumphs in Berlin in 1830. After they had made a stir and acquired fame and considerable wealth through their art and charming appearance in the capitals of Europe and America, they resigned from the stage in 1841. Fanny's last performance was in 1851 in Vienna. After that, she lived on an estate in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

until 1854, then moved to Vienna. On 20 April 1850, Therese married Prince Adalbert of Prussia

morganatically Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spouse ...

. King

Frederick William IV of Prussia Frederick William IV (; 15 October 1795 – 2 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, was King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 until his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to as the "romanticist on the th ...

created her Baroness of Barnim. They had one son, Adalbert von Barnim, born in 1841 who died in 1860 during an expedition on the

Nile The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...

. Prince Adalbert died in 1873. After that, she lived in

Bad Homburg Bad Homburg vor der Höhe (, ) is the district town of the Hochtaunuskreis, Hesse, Germany, on the southern slope of the Taunus mountains. Bad Homburg is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. The town's official name is ''Bad Homburg ...

. She died on 19 November 1878 in

. She was buried under the name ''Therese von Barnim'' on the

Invalidenfriedhof The Invalids' Cemetery () is one of the oldest cemeteries in Berlin. It was the traditional resting place of the Prussian Army, and is regarded as particularly important as a memorial to the German Wars of Liberation of 1813–15. History Th ...

in Berlin. Her grave is marked with a restitution grave stone.

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References and Sources

* * (additional entry) * (additional entry) {{DEFAULTSORT:Elssler, Therese Ballerinas from the Austrian Empire Dancers from Vienna 1808 births 1878 deaths German baronesses Morganatic spouses of German royalty