The Real Maria von Trapp

On the 24th anniversary of her death, here are 24 facts – some familiar, some a bit surprising – about Maria von Trapp.

We all know all about Maria von Trapp – the plucky nun who spun around on a hilltop while singing, taught the von Trapp children how to sing, and fell in love with their father, marrying him as the Third Reich clamped down on their home. Oh, and she bore a striking resemblance to Mary Poppins…

The smash musical The Sound of Music was based on the life of the von Trapps as told by Maria in her book, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers, and it does get some of the facts right. Others, meanwhile, are embellished or just plain made-up. The Sound of Music is a great story, but what’s the real story? On the 24th anniversary of her death, here are 24 facts – some familiar, some a bit surprising – about Maria von Trapp.

1. Maria (Kutschera) von Trapp was born on January 26, 1905, on a train. Her parents were en route to a hospital in Vienna, but they didn’t quite make it.

2. She was orphaned at age 6.

3. The uncle who raised her after her parents died was an atheist, and he taught her to mistrust religion and the Bible.

4. As a college student, Maria stumbled upon a church service when she thought she was attending a Bach concert. Although she was in the wrong place, she stayed to listen to the priest’s words, and she was stunned by how strongly they moved her.

5. Soon after graduating from college, she pursued her new religious feelings by entering the Benedictine Abbey of Nonnberg as a novice.

6. Though she felt devoted to her religious calling, Maria struggled under the tight discipline of the convent and the lack of exercise and fresh air. Her 1926 appointment to the von Trapp house was, in part, an attempt to let her spread her wings a bit before taking her vows. It was to be a temporary, 10-month assignment.