H.C. Andersen centret

1861

1861: Two booklets of Fairy-tales

In this year

Release in Geneva and Paris of Jules Jürgensen Jr.'s translation of some of HCA's fairy-tales, amongst others: "Dyndkongens Datter" (The Marsh King's Daugther). The book is titled Fantasies danoises and published by Joel Cherbuliez.

4 January

Returns to Copenhagen.

27 January

After dinner with "Father Collin", HCA is:

"At 8 pm at the king's, reading the new fairy-tales. The king himself served me sugar and water [presumably for a rum toddy], shook my hand three times, and I kissed his; he was so familiar and cordial. "How ever do you think of all this!" he said, "where ever does it come from! Do you really have all this inside this head". When out and about I have nothing, but within the confines of home it all streams forth"
(the diary). In an unpublished letter to Mrs Scavenius dated 8th February, HCA says that these are "all those stories and fairy-tales I finished at Basnæs".

20 February

Reads aloud for 800 people at the Workers' Association, "which now has approximately 25,000 members" (unpublished letter dated 8th February to Mrs Scavenius).

2 March

Release of Nye Eventyr og Historier. Anden Række (New Tales and Stories. Second Series).The booklet includes "Tolv med Posten" (Twelve by the Mail), "Skarnbassen" (The Beetle), "Hvad Fatter gjør, det er altid det Rigtige" (What the Old Man Does is Always Right), "De Vises Sten" (The Stone of The Wise Man), "Sneemanden" (The Snowman), "I Andegaarden" (In the Duck Yard), "Det nye Aarhundredes Musa" (The New Century's Goddess). Reads the new fairy-tales at the Students' Association on this day.

7 March

Reads aloud during a visit one evening with Monrad, the Minister for Ecclesiastical Affairs and Public Instruction.

9 March

Reads aloud for the Workers' Association ("thundering applause", the almanac).

20 March

Reads aloud once more for the Workers' Association and receives the same response.

1861: Travelling with Jonas Collin Jr.

4 April

Departure from Copenhagen to Sorø, where Jonas Collin Jr. also arrives on the following day, in order to accompany HCA on a journey to Italy. They travel via Korsør-Flensburg, Harburg, Kassel, Frankfurt to Basel (in Basel from 9-11th April). Sees the painter G.A. Amberger while in Basel).

11th - 13th April

In Neuchâtel, where they meet Jules Jürgensen, father and son. They continue via Geneva, Lyon and Avignon to Marseille. On through Toulon and by stagecoach (at night) from here to Nice.

18th - 21st April

In Nice. The journey then continues from there by stagecoach around Monaco, through Oneglia and Savona to Genoa (stopping here 22nd-25th April). By ship from Genoa to Livorno and from there to Civita vecchia and then to Rome.

28th April - 29th May

In Rome. Sees Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson almost daily and finds him to be a very enthusiastic in his response. HCA also associates with Johann Bravo, a painter from Holstein who was also the Danish Consul in Rome. Also seeks out the painter Albert Küchler at the convent Bonaventura, where Küchler is now a monk (Küchler's fate provided Vilhelm Bergsøe with inspiration for one of the figures in Fra Piazza del Popolo (From Popolo Square)). Küchler and HCA thereafter meet on a few occasions. Tells Küchler about his fairy-tales and his readings for the Workers' Association. Moreover, HCA meets the English poet Robert Browning and the Norwegian folk-story collector P.C. Asbjørnsen.

29 May

The trip continues via Civita vecchia, from there by steamship to Livorno, and on via Pisa and Florence (where he and Jonas Collin Jr. remain from 31st May - 4th June). They then return to Livorno and continue from here by ship to Genoa, then travelling via Turino to Milan (here from 10th - 12th june). HCA is increasingly annoyed with his young travelling companion. From Milan they continue via Isola Bella, Domodossola, through Simplon to Brig and St. Maurice (arriving 16th June).

17th - 22nd June

In Bex. Commences work here on his story "Alpejægeren" (The Alpine Hunter) (the diary, 18th) in other words "Isjomfruen" (The Ice Maiden). They continue to Montreux (here from 22nd - 28th June). Here he meets the wife and daughter of the Swedish publisher Lars Johan Hiertas. Then on to Lausanne.
In Lausanne (on 28th June) a letter arrives concerning the impending death of Jonas Collin, senior (the diary). HCA usually calls Jonas Collin "the father", but in this diary entry merely calls him "old Collin". This indicates that in recent years HCA had undergone a process of liberation from the significant father figure that Collin represented. This process meant that HCA by and by allowed himself, on several occasions, to express anger against or dissatisfaction with the elderly Collin.
From Lausanne via Fribourg and Bern to Interlaken (arriving 2nd July). From here an outing to Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald. In the evening of 3rd July and on the following evenings the new comet is seen in the sky. They continue across Lake Brientzer by steamship to Brientz and from there to Luzern.

5th - 14th July

In Brunnen. Here he spends time with the painter G.A. Amberger. One evening whilst here, HCA is serenaded at the hotel by the Music Association of the town. The trip continues from here via Einsideln, Richterswyl, Zürich, Romanshorn, Lindau and Kempten to Munich.

18th - 22nd July

In Munich. Here he visits the Englishman Charles Boner (private tutor to the Prince of Thurn und Taxis), who wishes to translate Mit Livs Eventyr (The Fairy Tale of My Life). On via Augsburg, Nuremberg, Hoff and Chemnitz to Dresden, where the travelling companions are collected by Major Serre.

26th July - 14th August

At Maxen, where HCA works intensively on "Isjomfruen" (The Ice Maiden). Whilst here he spends some time with the composer Adolf Henselt, who enthusiastically embraces HCA in greeting, up to 18 times a day. Stays with the Serres in Dresden from 14th - 18th August.

18 August

Departure from Dresden via Leipzig and Braunschweig to Hamburg, where the two travelling companions - upon HCA's suggestion - agree to address each other informally (i.e. by using the informal 2nd person pronoun "du", rather than the formal pronoun "De"). (In the diary on 20th, HCA comments; "he was moved by this and I pleased"). The trip continues from Flensburg to Korsør and from here to Basnæs Estate. The journey with Jonas Collin Jr. has cost HCA a total of 1,525 rdl. (in 1993 terms this amounts to at least 150,000 Danish kroner).

22nd - 26th August

At Basnæs Estate. Spends time whilst here with the actor Michael Wiehe and his wife.

26th August - 1st September

With the Ingemanns in Sorø. After having read "Isjomfruen" (The Ice Maiden) aloud for Ingemann HCA rewrites the ending.

1861: Jonas Collin, Senior, Dies

August - September

In the USA a sizeable discussion of HCA is released, namely an article by the young writer and editor Horace E. Scudder titled "The Fairy Legends of Hans Christian Andersen", printed in the National Quarterly Review 3. HCA learns about the article on 1st April 1862 and it may he upon his own initiative that the newspaper Dagbladet includes a lengthy summary of the article on 24th April in the same year.

28 August

Jonas Collin, senior, dies.

1 September

Back in Copenhagen. Moves back in to the residence of Madame Anholm in Nyhavn 67.

2 September

Attends the funeral of Collin. On the same day, HCA's commemorative poem for Collin is printed in the newspaper Dagbladet. HCA is very depressed at this time and feels lonely after Collin's passing.

4 September

Is invited by King Frederik VII to a dinner in honour of the Italian envoy. The king welcomes HCA home again. When HCA expresses gratitude for the king's speedy invitation, Frederik VII answers:

"Of course you can be sure I want you present, old boy"
(the diary).

21 October

Takes part in the unveiling ceremony for the statue of Oehlenschläger on Garnison Square (Skt. Annæ Square).

16 November

Reads aloud for the Workers' Association.

23 November

Reads aloud for the Students' Association.

24 November

Reads aloud for the Workers' Association.

25 November

Release of Nye Eventyr og Historier. Anden Række. Anden Samling (New Tales and Stories. Second Series. Second Installment). (Includes: "Isjomfruen" (The Ice Maiden), "Sommerfuglen" (The Butterfly), "Psychen" (The Psyche), "Sneglen og Rosenhækken" (The Snail and the Rosebush)).

1 December

Receives a visit from Fr. Paludan-Müller, who thinks highly of "The Ice Maiden".

5 December

Reads aloud for the Workers' Association.

19 December

Receives a visit from a group of young people who have read in the newspaper 'Århus Avis' that he and Mrs Heiberg have become engaged. She was the famous actress and widow of Johan Ludvig Heiberg, writer and director at the Royal Theatre. The group wish to make a toast to celebrate this misreported news.

20 December

Travels to Sorø. Ingemann reads (on 21st) two poems for HCA "about the hereafter". One of them is based on a dream which Ingemann really had dreamt ("The Secretive Gate"). On the following evening (22nd) a party is held by the Ingemanns, and

"Ingemann and I discussed apparitions and revelations. I did not deny their existence, but said I did not believe in them [...] During the night I thought about my so-called want of faith, whether perhaps a ghost might appear and punish me by frightening me, but then I thought; these are creatures from a higher sphere than us, they would not carry with them the chill and horror of the grave but rather joy and light, and then I felt calm once again"
(the diary, same day).

23 December

Travels to Holsteinborg. Here he receives a letter on 24th from Edvard Collin, stating that his assets amount to 8,200 rdl. HCA now feels he is able to consider going to Spain with Jonas Collin Jnr. (the urge to visit Spain developed after having read, whilst staying with the Ingemanns, a travel book from Spain by Chr. K.F. Molbech).
During this visit to Holsteinborg, HCA makes paper-cuttings to decorate a lampshade.

24 December

A description of Christmas Eve at Holsteinborg compared to the way Christmas was spent in his childhood home is to be found in a letter written to Ingemann on Christmas Day:

"My room is right by the church; I can step through the door into the choir loft. The organ is playing and I can hear the psalms being sung as I write this letter. Everything here is so festive for Christmas and last night the children were overjoyed. All the little ones were so pleased with the Christmas tree and its delights. I was also treated to a Christmas table with many items suggestive of my fairy-tales. The cat sat on the Inkwell, the gnome danced with the pen-holder, the butterfly flew in Florentine mosaic on the paper-weight, and my little girl with the match-sticks was also present.
Yesterday, by the way, I thought a great deal about Christmas-times spent in my childhood home; it was, after all, the richest I have experienced, despite the smallness of the room and the lack of a Christmas tree; but we never wanted for the pudding, the goose and the round fried cakes, and on that evening there were two candles on the table. I have Christmas memories of half a century. What a strange path life has led me down!"