My Take
I'll be honest — I used to lump Heine in with a blur of 19th-century European poets you read in school and forget. Then I actually sat with the Book of Songs and something clicked. This guy was born Harry Heine in Düsseldorf in 1797, studied law at Bonn while clearly having zero interest in becoming a lawyer, and spent the rest of his life doing what he actually wanted: writing poetry sharp enough to cut glass. Schubert, Schumann, and Mendelssohn set his lyrics to music — that's a flex that basically no other poet can claim. And then there's the satirical side: Germany. A Winter's Tale is biting political commentary wrapped in gorgeous verse. He spent his final years bedridden in Paris and kept writing anyway. That kind of stubborn creative output earns my respect every time.
Overview
Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was a German poet, writer and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of Lieder (art songs) by composers such as Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann and Franz Schubert. Heine's later verse and prose are distinguished by their satirical wit and irony.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Heinrich Heine
- Name (Japanese)
- ハインリヒ・ハイネ
- Reading
- はいんりひ・はいね
- Born
- December 13, 1797 – February 17, 1856
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Sagittarius / Snake
- Origin
- Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- poet / writer / journalist / literary critic / poet lawyer
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of Bonn
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Germany. A Winter's Tale | — | |
| Notable work | Atta Troll | — | |
| Notable work | Die Harzreise | — | |
| Notable work | Book of Songs | — | |
| Notable work | The rabbi of Bacherach | — |
6. Links
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.