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Where did Ludwig van Beethoven spend most of his career?
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Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven, lithograph after an 1819 portrait by Ferdinand Schimon, c. 1870.
Ludwig van Beethoven spent the majority of his career in Vienna, Austria.1
Although he was born in Bonn, Germany, he moved to Vienna in the 1790s and quickly established himself within the city's aristocratic circles. Following the French occupation of Bonn in 1794, which ended his subsidies from the elector, Beethoven remained in Vienna to pursue his career.12
His commitment to the city was solidified in 1809 when a group of noble patronsāArchduke Rudolf, Prince Lobkowitz, and Prince Kinskyāprovided him with an annuity specifically on the condition that he remain in Vienna to compose. He continued to live and work there until his death in 1827.31