author
Friderike Maria Burger Winternitz Zweig
1882–1971
An Austrian writer, journalist, translator, and teacher, she built a literary life of her own while moving through the turbulent world around Stefan Zweig. Her memoirs and later work help preserve a vivid, personal view of Central European culture in exile.
1 Audiobook
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by Friderike Maria Burger Winternitz Zweig
About the author
Born in Vienna on December 4, 1882, Friderike Maria Burger was among the early generations of women able to study at the University of Vienna, where she focused on literature and French. Before she became widely associated with Stefan Zweig, she worked as a journalist and later taught French and history.
She was first married to Felix von Winternitz and had two daughters. After meeting Stefan Zweig in 1908, she eventually married him in 1920, once divorce had become possible under the new Austrian Republic. During their years together, she was more than a spouse: she assisted with research, translation, correspondence, and the steady practical work behind a major literary career.
After their divorce in 1938, she continued writing in her own name and later became an important guardian of Stefan Zweig's legacy. She spent her final years in the United States and died in Stamford, Connecticut, on January 18, 1971.