A native of Staufen near Freiburg in Germany, Baron Gleichenstein took over the running of Beethoven's affairs some time after Ferdinand Ries left Vienna in 1805.

He was a capable cellist and Beethoven dedicated the Cello Sonata Op 69 to him.

Gleichenstein married Anna Malfatti (known as Netty), sister of Therese Malfatti, in 1811. With his wife he left Vienna later in the same year to return to Freiburg and Oberrotweil to manage the family estate.

He returned frequently to Vienna, for the final time in 1828. He was already seriously ill, placing himself in the care of Doktor Malfatti. He died later in the same year in Heiligenstadt.

I have been unable to establish what caused Gleichenstein's death at the young age of fifty. His wife outlived him by more than forty years.

© John Suchet