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22.11.

1710: Johann Sebastian Bach had as many as 20 Sons and Daughters

1710: Johann Sebastian Bach had as many as 20 Sons and Daughters
Photo Credit To http://www.musicwithease.com/bach-03.jpg

On this day the first son of the famous composer Johann Sebastian Bach – Wilhelm Friedemann Bach – was born. It is a very interesting fact that Johann Sebastian had as many as twenty children during his life.



Bach married Maria Barbara Bach in 1707, when he was 22 years old. Interestingly, she was his cousin and her maiden name was also Bach. In 12 years of marriage they had seven children – five sons and two daughters. She, however, suddenly died when she was only 35. Johan Sebastian was on a trip at that time, and when he returned he found that his wife had died and been buried. It is assumed that she died due to an infectious disease or complications from pregnancy.

Bach remarried 17 months after the death of his first wife. His second wife, Anna Magdalena Wilcke, was 16 years younger than him. She bore him another thirteen children, in addition to taking care of the children from his first marriage. His last daughter – Regina Susanna – was born when Bach was already 57 years old. The second wife outlived Bach, who died at the age of 65.

Five out of Bach’s twenty children became well-known musicians in their own right. Besides the aforementioned eldest son – musician Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (who was born on this day) – these included: Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Gottfried Heinrich Bach, Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, and Johann Christian Bach.

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