Katharina von Schlegel
1697-après 1768 18th century
A legacy reduced to almost nothing but a single hymn, stillness urged onto a soul from someone who left almost no trace of her own, anonymity that let one work speak for a whole life.
Who was Katharina von Schlegel?
Almost nothing certain is known of her beyond a name attached to a single hymn from 18th-century Germany, possibly the head of a community of Lutheran women, possibly someone whose entire recorded legacy is six verses urging the soul to be still, a life almost entirely hidden except for the one thing she left behind, which has outlasted every detail history forgot to keep.
In their own words
Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.