In this draft of a document entitled "Pro memoria" the circumstances are described in which Beethoven was given an agreement by Princes Lobkowitz and Kinsky and Archduke Rudolph in 1809, promising him a fixed annuity. After the Austrian state had gone bankrupt, a civil code was enacted in 1811 which devalued paper money to a fifth of its nominal worth: the value of Beethoven's annuity also drastically sank.
Beethoven's situation was made even more serious by the bankruptcy threatening Prince Lobkowitz. He had incurred such great debts through waste and spectacular mismanagement that a so-called friendly administration had taken over control of his fortune from June 1813 onwards. Prince Lobkowitz' arrears meant that Beethoven was forced to take out a loan which was to be paid back out of Lobkowitz' funds. This did not, however, happen.
When the lender asked for his money back and sued Beethoven, the latter for his part turned to Lobkowitz or rather his trustees and asked for the money, requesting them to pay him the sum due. Beethoven had already instituted proceedings against the Prince at the Lower Austrian court in June 1813.
