The Brown Book

Richard Wagner’s diary between 1865 and 1882

The Brown Book is the notebook, bound in brown leather, that Wagner began on the Hochkopf above the Walchensee in August 1865 and wrote in, on and off, until 1882. Its first pages are a diary addressed to Cosima, who was then still married to Hans von Bülow and travelling in Hungary with her father; Wagner wrote in it what he could not say in letters. Later the book became a store for whatever he wanted to keep: poems, sketches for dramas, the Annals of his life, forewords and stray thoughts.

The Hochkopf and Munich, 1865. From 9 to 21 August 1865 Wagner lived alone with his servant Franz and his dog Pohl in King Ludwig II’s hunting lodge, ill, longing for Cosima and still shaken by the death of Ludwig Schnorr von Carolsfeld, his first Tristan. The daily entries run on through the autumn in Munich. Among them, written at the King’s request between 27 and 30 August, is the first prose sketch of Parzival, in which the whole drama is already laid out. The diary breaks off with the days at Hohenschwangau in November and Wagner’s expulsion from Munich in December.

Exile and Tribschen, 1866–1868. A few entries follow from Lyons, Marseilles and Geneva, and after a long silence a handful from Tribschen in 1867, written while Cosima was away in Munich. In February 1868 Wagner copied into the book his Annals, a terse record of every year from 1846, made from the notes he used when dictating his autobiography to Cosima. Through 1868 come the forewords to German Art and German Politics and the second edition of Opera and Drama, the recollections of Schnorr, thoughts on Buddhism for The Victors, ideas for a drama about Luther, satirical sonnets, and the Annals for 1868, the year Cosima came to Tribschen for good.

The later entries, 1869–1882. Once Cosima was keeping her own diaries, the Brown Book was used less and less. The later pages hold dedicatory poems to King Ludwig, notes for the Beethoven essay, the sketch for the farce A Capitulation, poems on the Franco-Prussian War, an epitaph for Karl Tausig and verses to Georg Herwegh. The last entries, written in Naples, Bayreuth and Palermo between 1880 and 1882, are notes on war, property, religion and race, and the book ends with the fragment “On Male and Female in Culture and Art”.

After Wagner’s death the book passed to Cosima and then to their daughter Eva, who pasted over or cut out the pages she judged too private. Most of these were recovered when the book was published in full in 1975, edited by Joachim Bergfeld; the text here follows George Bird’s English translation of 1980. Where the book gives a German poem with a translation, only the translation is shown.

Showing all entries (148 total)

Entry	Word Count	Subject
September 11, 1865	486	An illustrated report of the Jena student association jubilee moves Wagner to renewed hope for German cultural life. He identifies his own work with an ideal German spirit and imagines belonging in a university town such as Jena.
September 11, 1865	191	Wagner responds bitterly to another letter from Cosima and fears a repetition of earlier distress after her visits to Liszt. He accuses her of neglecting Isolde and threatens to take charge of the child himself.
October 24, 1865	675	Writing from Vienna, Wagner dismisses travel and former hopes of settling elsewhere as meaningless without Cosima. He describes their love through images of converging stars, reports his practical errands, and longs to return to a peaceful life of composition.
Tuesday, October 24 – Wednesday, October 25, 1865	474	Wagner tries to explain why he showed Cosima Mathilde Wesendonck's letter and why the exchange still existed. He attributes his conduct to preoccupation and thoughtlessness, insists that no hidden attachment remains, and acknowledges Cosima's hurt.
October 26, 1865	500	Rereading Parzival awakens Wagner's longing for peace and uninterrupted work amid personal and political pressures. Dental treatment, financial business, and superstitious calculations about his return journey occupy the rest of his Vienna stay.
October 28, 1865	797	Wagner prepares to return home and insists that peace is essential to his survival and work. He continues defending his handling of the Wesendonck letter and affirms his faith in Cosima and the King despite misunderstanding and anxiety.
Undated	26	Wagner argues that despotism endures while the subjugated remain impressed by their rulers' apparent heroism. Its power ends when that admiration ceases.
November 12, 1865	151	At Hohenschwangau, music from the towers and the sunlit landscape seem to Wagner an expression of the King's inventive love. Gratitude to Ludwig and anticipation of Cosima's welcome briefly make him feel beyond misfortune's reach.
November 13, 1865	417	Reading his autobiography to Ludwig renews Wagner's delight in the King's affection and trust. He imagines himself, Cosima, and Ludwig united beyond ordinary life, with only loving companionship and the completion of his works remaining.
November 15, 1865	129	The poem contrasts the changing light of the physical sun with the enduring light of the inner life. Their apparent union makes the sunshine over Hohenschwangau an image of shared happiness.
November 18, 1865	114	A farewell poem links the weather with the joy of reunion and the sorrow of separation. Wagner presents Hohenschwangau's happiness as something that has grown from both longing and parting.
November 18, 1865	79	Wagner joyfully anticipates returning to Cosima and celebrates the strength he draws from her and Ludwig. He also asks her to pray for Hans before declaring himself happy and redeemed.
January 22, 1866	161	Ill and discouraged in Lyons, Wagner interprets the crescent moon and Orion's sword as encouraging signs. He resolves to continue toward the sea while reflecting bitterly on cities and the search for refuge.
January 28, 1866	258	Wagner retells Roland's death as an allegory of a neglected hero, an inattentive king, and a trusted traitor. Revenge comes too late, and only the beloved's devotion offers redemption.
February 7, 1866	212	Spring sunshine in Geneva prompts Wagner to contrast renewed life with bereavement and separation. He then reflects on the sacred night of Greek tragedy, imagining the Oresteia's progression toward reconciliation, rest, and release.
April 16, 1867	123	Cosima's departure leaves Wagner exhausted and, in his account, more sorrowful than ever before. The prospect of seeing her again cannot console him for the recurring fact of separation.
August 22, 1867	87	In a short poem, Wagner laments that Cosima no longer hears his voice or recognizes his appeals. He fears that supplying the rational proof she demands would destroy what matters between them.
August 25, 1867	81	Birthday verses for Ludwig imagine solemn bells sounding from Monsalvat. Wagner connects the people's celebration with renewed courage and the strengthening of a king's will.
September 16, 1867	132	After Cosima's brief visit, Wagner describes life withdrawing inward toward the heart and the grave. Christ's appearances after death become an image for the moving but transitory return of the beloved.
September 20, 1867	64	Watching Eva sleep recalls an earlier lullaby and stirs Wagner deeply. He records a dream of a bird clinging to his desk and reflects on sadness and the manner of his death.
September 27, 1867	113	Wagner celebrates Cosima and the certainty of her love with unusual happiness. Eva's presence assures him that both their child and his work have prospered.
February 17, 1868	77	A birthday telegram links Eva's birth with music from The Mastersingers and with a passage from art into paradise. Wagner records her attentive pleasure as she listens at the piano to the birth music and the Apprentice Boys' Dance.
Annals for 1846	206	In retrospective annals written in February 1868, Wagner recalls financial arrangements that burdened his Dresden salary. Summer work on Lohengrin gives way later in the year to his revision of Gluck's Iphigenia in Aulis.
Annals for 1847	378	Wagner's retrospective notes describe completing the composition of Lohengrin amid classical reading and a lively Dresden household. A disappointing Berlin visit for Rienzi and renewed conflict over his salary occupy the latter part of the year.
Annals for 1848	442	The annals connect the completion of Lohengrin with family bereavement, revolutionary politics, and proposals for theatrical reform. Wagner's Germanic studies develop toward Siegfried's Death while relations with the Dresden administration deteriorate.
Annals for 1849	1,315	Wagner recalls revolutionary activity in Dresden, the fighting of May, and his flight into exile with Liszt's assistance. After unsettled travel and marital difficulties, he establishes himself in Zurich and writes major essays on art and society.
Annals for 1850	735	The annals recount illness, frustrated Paris plans, the crisis involving Jessie Laussot, and Wagner's eventual reunion with Minna in Zurich. Literary work, the Weimar premiere of Lohengrin, and his relationships with younger musicians give the year its artistic direction.
Annals for 1851	463	Wagner completes Opera and Drama, writes Young Siegfried, and develops the larger plan for the Ring. Journeys, friendships, and an unsuccessful water cure accompany persistent nervous illness and changes in his Zurich home.
Annals for 1852	333	The annals record performances, expanding interest in Tannhäuser, and extensive Alpine travel with periods of illness and strain. Wagner writes The Valkyrie and Rhinegold poems and completes the poetic plan of the Ring.
Annals for 1853	560	Public readings, Zurich concerts, and visits with Liszt accompany Wagner's growing confidence in the Ring. During an Italian journey he recalls conceiving the Rhinegold prelude, then returns to sustained composition.
No entries found.

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