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 The grave of Friedrich Nesselrode and Maria Kalergis at Cmentarz Powazkowski in Warsaw. Picture by Androom (12 Sep 2026) |
 The grave of Maria Kalergis at Cmentarz Powazkowski in Warsaw. Picture by Androom (12 Sep 2026) |
Kalergis, Maria |
| PIANIST, PATRON OF THE ARTS, NOBLEMAN (POLAND) |
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BORN 7 Aug 1822, Warsaw - DIED 22 May 1874, Warsaw BIRTH NAME Nesselrode, Maria GRAVE LOCATION Warszawa: Cmentarz Powazkowski, Ulica Powazkowska 14 (Aleja Katakumbowa, Rzad 1, Miesjsce 20/21) |
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Maria Kalergis was the daughter of the nobleman Fryderyk Karol Nesselrode (1786-1868). Her mother was Tekla Nalecz-Górska. Her parents separated when she was a child. She was raised in Saint Petersburg at the home of her uncle Karl Robert von Nesselrode-Ehreshoven (1780-1862). She learned several languages and was a promising pianist. When she was thirteen years old she playede works by Kalkbrenner and Thalberg. In 1839, when she was seventeen years old, she married the rich landowner Jan Kalergis, He was of Greek descent, much older and he proved to be very jealous. Their daughter Marie was born in 1840 but in the same year they separated without divorcing. In 1843 she made her first public appearance as a pianist when she performed at a charity in Warsaw. During her travels in Europe in the following years, she met the shy poet Cyprian Norwid (1821-1883). He proposed marriage to her, but she rejected him. In 1847 she moved to Paris, where she received Richard Wagner (1813-1883), Franz Liszt (1811-1886), Heinrich Heine (1797-1856), Alfred de Musset (1810-1857), Théophile Gautier (1811-1872) and others at her salon at 8 rue d'Anjou From 1848 to 1849 she took pianio lessons from Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849). She was known as the 'White Fairy' because of her beauty and her wealth.. Wagner adressed his essay "Das Judentum in der Musik" to her. From 1857 she lived in Warsaw. She was important for the musical culture in Warsaw and supported Stanislaw Moniuszko (1819-1872) in staging his opera "Halka" on 1 January 1858. In 1858 she played four hands with Franz Liszt in Weimar. She supported Wagner financially and enabled his concert tour in Russia in 1863. In 1863 her husband died and she married the Russian officer and director of theatres Siergiej Muchanow (1833-1897) soon afterwards. They lived in Baden-Baden, where he worked for Grand Duke Constantine. From 1864 her health detoriated and her husband nursed her during her illnesses. In 1872 she was present when the first stone was laid for Wagner's Festspielhaus in Bayreuth. She destroyed her correspondence before she died in 1874. She was buried in the grave of her father at Powazki Cemetery in Warsaw. After her death, Liszt wrote "Elegy on Marie Kalergi". Family • Father: Nesselrode, Friedrich Karl Related persons • was pupil of Chopin, Frédéric • was visited by Gautier, Théophile • was visited by Heine, Heinrich • was a friend of Liszt, Franz • was visited by Musset, Alfred de • was visited by Wagner, Richard • was patron of Wagner, Richard Events |
| 12/8/1845 | The Beethoven statue in Bonn is unveiled. It was created by Ernst Hähnel and unveiled in honour of the 75th anniversary of Beethoven's birth. Franz Liszt was actively involved in the project and donated over 10,000 francs. Schlegel had been the head of the organising committee but he died in May, 1845. Professor Heinrich Breidenstein, who had first expressed the idea, took over his position. The ceremony was attended by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia, Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, Hector Berlioz, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Ignaz Moscheles, Charles Hallé, Jenny Lind, Pauline Viardot, Lola Montez, Robert Schumann, Felix Mendelssohn and Maria Kalergis. [Berlioz, Hector][Hallé, Charles][Lind, Jenny][Liszt, Franz][Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Felix][Meyerbeer, Giacomo][Montez, Lola][Schumann, Robert][Viardot-Garcia, Pauline] |
| 0/7/1860 | Act Two of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde is performed at the house of Pauline Viardot. It was performed by Pauline Viardot, Richard Wagner himself and Karl Klindworth. Hector Berlioz and Marie Kalergis, in whose honour the event was organised, were present. [Berlioz, Hector][Klindworth, Karl][Viardot-Garcia, Pauline][Wagner, Richard] |
| 22/5/1872 | The first stone is laid for Richard Wagner's Festspielhaus in Bayreuth. It took place on Wagner's 59th birthday. It had cost him much effort to find the funding for the theatre in which he wanted to perform his "Ring". Fransz Liszt and Maria Kalergis took part in the ceremony. On this occasion the first meeting between Malwida von Meysenbug and Friedrich Nietzsche took place. [Liszt, Franz][Meysenbug, Malvida, Freiin von][Wagner, Richard] |
| Images | |
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The grave of Friedrich Nesselrode and Maria Kalergis at Cmentarz Powazkowski in Warsaw. Picture by Androom (12 Sep 2026) |
The grave of Maria Kalergis at Cmentarz Powazkowski in Warsaw. Picture by Androom (12 Sep 2026) |
Sources • Blunt, Wilfrid, The Dream King, Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, 1973 • Beethoven Monument - Wikipedia (EN) • Maria Kalergis - Wikipedia (EN) • Cmentarz powÄ…zki - Wyszukiwarka |
