Richard AmmonThe house at the Bonngasse No. 20, in which Beethoven was born in 1770, is the family’s only residence in Bonn which is still maintained and still in its original condition. Since 1893, it has been accommodating a museum, which, in the meantime, presents the biggest Beethoven collection of the world. The house, in which Ludwig van Beethoven was born in December 1770, is a center of attraction for visitors from all over the world. Beethoven’s grandfather came from Mechelen in Brabant. In 1733 he took up a position as a bass player for the elector and was appointed director of a court orchestra in 1761. His father Johann was a court tenor. When he was 13 years-old, young Beethoven already became second court organist. In 1792, he left Bonn and went to Vienna. He did not assume at that time that he would never return to Bonn.
