SOURCE: Hewett-Thayer, Harvey W. “Ludwig Tieck and Hebbel's Tragedy of Beauty.” Germanic Review 2I (1927): 16-25.

In the following essay, Hewett-Thayer investigates the origins of Hebbel's play Agnes Bernauer, contending that it can be traced back to Ludwig Tieck's novel Vittoria Accorombona.

The genesis of Hebbel's Agnes Bernauer and his treatment of its underlying themes have been the subject of considerable discussion. Hebbel began his Agnes in late September 1851 and finished it in the last days of December. In her essay on “The Sources of Hebbel's Agnes Bernauer,”¹ Agnes Löwenstein suggests that Hebbel may have become acquainted with the Agnes Bernauer story during his residence in Munich (September 1836-March 1839), a conjecture based on the historical relationship of the subject to that locality. After his own play was finished, Hebbel stated that he was already acquainted with Törring's Agnes Bernauer (1780) and thought well of it.² It is not...