Heinrich Heine Heinrich Heine (1797-1856) was born in Düsseldorf, the son of a Jewish tradesman. When business failed, Heinrich was sent to Hamburg, where his rich banker uncle Salomon prepared him for a career in commerce. Heine studied law at the universities of Bonn, Berlin and Göttingen, gaining his degree in 1825, but was always more interested in literature. To avoid the restrictions placed upon Jews, Heinrich converted to Protestantism and changed his first name to Heinrich, but didn't in fact enter government service. He had made his poetic debut by 1821, brought out a collection of verse (inspired by unreturned love for cousins Amalie and Therese) by 1827, and thereafter supported himself by poetry, journalism, travel books, and works on philosophy and German literature. In 1834 he fell in love with Crecence Eugénie Mirat, an illiterate sales girl, marrying her seven years later. As a journalist in Paris, Heine gradually aligned himself with French progressive thought, becoming unpopular with conservative opinion in German, even having his books banned in 1835. He admired Napoleon, supported strikes by Silesian weavers, and corresponded with Karl Marx. In 1844 his uncle left him a small pension, and another was provided by the French Government — both much needed when Heine's health deteriorated, leaving him paralyzed and partly blind. Nonetheless, Heine still managed to produce one of his finest collections (Romazero) and to fall in love with Camilla Selden, an Austrian woman, for whom he wrote particularly fine poetry. He died in Paris in February 1856, a controversial figure, continuing so even under the Nazis where his songs were printed unattributed