Mozart in The Hague
On June 3, 1763, from their hometown of Salzburg, the Mozart family embarked on a long journey that would take them through courts in Germany, France and England. Father Leopold wanted to show not only his very gifted children Nannerl and Wolfgang to the world, but also the world to them.
Highly pregnant Princess
In England, they ended up staying for more than a year. By the time it was decided to go home, they were invited to give some concerts in The Hague on the return trip. The invitation came not from William V, the prince of Orange, who was 17 at the time and still under guardianship, but from his pregnant sister Carolina, who was five years older. She was very musical and had that gift from her mother Anna of Hanover, who had taken lessons from Georg Friedrich Handel. Leopold wrote to a friend that of course he could not ignore the desire of a heavily pregnant woman. Besides, it promised to be a lucrative outing.
The Mozarts arrive by train barge from Delft at the Zieken, near the Groenewegje, around seven in the evening on September 11. It is dusk, the sun has just set. By the time the carriage is loaded with their suitcases, it is completely dark. Their carriage drives via the oil-lantern-lit Spui and the Turfmarkt to the Fluwelen Burgwal, in the middle of the Spui Quarter. About their hotel there, La Ville de Paris, father Leopold later notes, "A very bad inn."
SickNannerl...
A week after their arrival in The Hague, Wolfgang gave two concerts at the home of Princess Carolina. Nannerl was not there; she had fallen ill. Wolfgang also played the third concert alone and also in the absence of Carolina, who had just given birth to a daughter. This concert took place at the Court, at Paleis Noordeinde or Huis Ten Bosch. The Court had its own orchestra with a core of sixteen musicians, which performed weekly concerts. Perhaps it was occasionally called 'Residentie Orkest'.
and ill Wolfgang
Leopold had meanwhile announced that Wolfgang would give a concert in the Oude Doelen, on the Tournooiveld, on September 30, 1765. Entrance fee: 3 guilders. About two day's wages of a laborer. This concert probably did not take place because Nannerl turned out to be so seriously ill that her life was feared for.
Leopold, after the benevolent intervention of Princess Carolina, had her treated by a court physician. He got her back on her feet, but in the meantime Wolfgang was also felled by the same illness. Only in mid-December are both children cured. Leopold decided to stay in The Hague for a while longer, to allow the children to recover. This gave him the opportunity to have Wolfgang and Nannerl perform twice in the Oude Doelen, in January 1766. Meanwhile, the family had chosen cheaper lodgings in the 'Hof van Utrecht' at number 44 Spui, with watchmaker and hotelier Eskes.
Photo right: Mozart's plaque, on the spot where the Hof van Utrecht used to stand (Photo: Haags Gemeentearchief)
Inauguration of William V
In late January, the Mozarts travel to Amsterdam to give concerts there as well. In early March they are back in The Hague to witness the inauguration of William V as stadholder of the Republic. Mozart plays his own compositions, including the Variations on the Wilhelmus, during the celebration at Noordeinde Palace. Not until mid-April do they accept the long journey back to Salzburg.
Ronald Touw
Mozart will be featured regularly in Season 23/24, including at our New Year's Concert on January 12, 2024. You won't want to miss it!
