Hans Christian Andersen was born on April 2, 1805, in Odense, Denmark to Hans Andersen Sr. and his wife, Anne Marie. Hans was a Danish author who went on to achieve worldwide fame for creating innovative and influential fairy tales. In fact, he was responsible for some of the world’s most acclaimed stories which include: “The Princess and the Pea” and “The Ugly Duckling”. By age 11 in 1816, his father passed away leaving only his mother and himself to pick up the pieces. While Anne stayed behind to work at a law firm as a lawyer, Hans decided to take a leap of faith, and enter boarding school. This was made possible in part because King Frederick VI took a personal interest in Andersen as a child and decided to assist in paying for part of his education. Hans received an advanced education at a state of the art boarding school, which ultimately allowed him the ability to support himself. At the age of 14, he followed his gut and moved to Copenhagen to seek employment as an actor. With a flawless Soprano voice, he was immediately accepted into the Royal Danish Theatre, however his voice soon changed and they had to let him go. Hans subsequently returned to school after a chance encounter with a man named Jonas Collin. Seeing Hans’ capabilities, Jonas generously offered and paid for Andersen to attend a grammar school in Slagelse in addition to one in Elsinore until 1827.
Although Hans had already published his first story, “The Ghost at Palnatoke's Grave”, in 1822, it was in 1829 when “A Journey on Foot from Holmen's Canal to the East Point of Amager” was released that it gained him considerable admiration and success. Creative sparks began to take flight as he continued this great success by following with a theatrical piece, Love on St. Nicholas Church Tower, as well as a short volume of poems. Although he made little progress writing and publishing, in 1833 Hans received a traveling grant from the King. This enabled him to set out on the first of many voyages through Europe to develop his work and skill. It was that during that same year, Andersen began producing fairy tales. Despite his accomplishments as a writer to that point, Andersen did not initially attract enough success to write for children alone. Over the following decades, he continued to write for both children and adults, creating several autobiographies, travel narratives, and poetry praising the virtues of the Scandinavian people.
Upon the release of his first installment of immortal Fairy Tales, which came out in 1835, critics and consumers unfortunately overlooked many brilliant pieces. Surprisingly, this included the now-classic stories; "The Little Mermaid", “Princess and the Pea”, and even "The Emperor's New Clothes”. By 1845, English translations of Andersen's folktales and stories began to make headway for foreign audiences. In the meantime, Hans began to forge a friendship with highly acclaimed British novelist Charles Dickens. He would visit Dickens in England in 1847, then again a decade later. Andersen’s stories not only would become English-language classics, but they would also have a strong influence on subsequent British children's authors such as; A.A. Milne and Beatrix Potter. Over time, Scandinavian audiences began to discover Andersen's stories, as well as audiences throughout the United States, Asia, and across the globe.
Andersen would continue to write Fairy Tales, which he would publish in installments until 1872. Sadly, Hans sustained a serious injury in 1872 after falling from bed at his Copenhagen home. His final publication, a collection of stories, appeared the same year. Around that time, he started to show symptoms of liver cancer, which was determined to be the cause that would take his life. Hans Andersen passed away on August 4, 1875 near Copenhagen, at the home of his close friends, Moritz Melchior and his wife.
Although Hans had already published his first story, “The Ghost at Palnatoke's Grave”, in 1822, it was in 1829 when “A Journey on Foot from Holmen's Canal to the East Point of Amager” was released that it gained him considerable admiration and success. Creative sparks began to take flight as he continued this great success by following with a theatrical piece, Love on St. Nicholas Church Tower, as well as a short volume of poems. Although he made little progress writing and publishing, in 1833 Hans received a traveling grant from the King. This enabled him to set out on the first of many voyages through Europe to develop his work and skill. It was that during that same year, Andersen began producing fairy tales. Despite his accomplishments as a writer to that point, Andersen did not initially attract enough success to write for children alone. Over the following decades, he continued to write for both children and adults, creating several autobiographies, travel narratives, and poetry praising the virtues of the Scandinavian people.
Upon the release of his first installment of immortal Fairy Tales, which came out in 1835, critics and consumers unfortunately overlooked many brilliant pieces. Surprisingly, this included the now-classic stories; "The Little Mermaid", “Princess and the Pea”, and even "The Emperor's New Clothes”. By 1845, English translations of Andersen's folktales and stories began to make headway for foreign audiences. In the meantime, Hans began to forge a friendship with highly acclaimed British novelist Charles Dickens. He would visit Dickens in England in 1847, then again a decade later. Andersen’s stories not only would become English-language classics, but they would also have a strong influence on subsequent British children's authors such as; A.A. Milne and Beatrix Potter. Over time, Scandinavian audiences began to discover Andersen's stories, as well as audiences throughout the United States, Asia, and across the globe.
Andersen would continue to write Fairy Tales, which he would publish in installments until 1872. Sadly, Hans sustained a serious injury in 1872 after falling from bed at his Copenhagen home. His final publication, a collection of stories, appeared the same year. Around that time, he started to show symptoms of liver cancer, which was determined to be the cause that would take his life. Hans Andersen passed away on August 4, 1875 near Copenhagen, at the home of his close friends, Moritz Melchior and his wife.
RSS Feed