Happy birthday Ludwig! 1770-1827

Beethoven was probably born on December 16th, 1770. He was baptized on December 17th, 1770. Children at the time were usually baptized the day after their birth. We also know that Beethoven himself celebrated his birthday on December 16th. 

The last ten years of his life he was totally deaf. 

Beethoven came to terms with his deafness in a dynamic, constructive way. In a letter to a physician friend, written five months after a despairing letter, it becomes clear that Beethoven, as always, stubborn, unyielding and struggling against destiny, saw his deafness as a challenge to be fought and overcome: