Der Brand des Bonner Residenzschlosses, 1777 - Fotografie einer Radierung von Franz Rousseau, wohl nach einer eigenen Zeichnung

During Beethoven's lifetime, the German Reich was divided in numerous small states. Some of those states had been an ecclesiastic dominion under the authority of a bishop, who was the clerical and, at the same time, secular ruler. The electorate of Cologne was such a clerical territory. In 1597 Bonn became the capital of this small state. The elector resided there in a castle located in the city centre. In 1777, the electoral castle had been destroyed by a fire, an event which became famous for its sadness, and which Ludwig van Beethoven, who was then six years old, had witnessed. Among others, the court counsellor Emanuel von Breuning - the husband of Beethoven's motherly friend Helene von Breuning - had lost his life due to that misfortunate event. Although the castle of the royal seat had been reconstructed, the event still remained a formative experience for the residents of Bonn.(S.B.)