Augusta Louise Gräfin von Bernstorff Reichsgräfin zu Stolberg-Stolberg.

Augusta Louise, Countess of Bernstorff, Imperial Countess of Stolberg-Stolberg, came from one of Schleswig-Holstein’s oldest noble families and, as a woman of her standing, was obliged to fulfil social and family expectations. Over the course of her life, however, she found ways to reconcile these obligations with her desire for freedom. As a long-standing pen-friend of Goethe, who affectionately called her ‘Gustgen’, she developed her own critical voice and maintained a correspondence with him over many years. She wrote letters assiduously, seeking to make her views heard and to be recognised, beyond her role as a noble lady, as a woman of principle. The Countess, who had worked as a nun in Uetersen in her youth, never stayed in one place for long. She moved in high society and was a welcome guest amongst the rich and famous of Copenhagen society. At the age of thirty, she became the second wife of the influential Danish Minister of State, Andreas Peter Bernstorff. Alongside intellectual exchanges, she took an interest in the welfare of those around her and took on various roles in this regard. As a carer, she looked after her relatives and acquaintances. As a nursery teacher and teacher of foster children, a mother and the head of her own household, she took responsibility for herself and those around her. This book recounts the extraordinary life story of a woman who never wavered from her path and found her voice. She made a lasting impression through her intellect, her courage and her humanity.