Heinrich von Kleist (1777-1811) was a poet, dramatist, novelist, and a short story writer. He was the first of the great 19th-century German dramatists and lived in the Kingdom of Prussia of the Holy Roman Empire. His work was during the Romanticism literary movement.
After serving in the Prussian army for seven year his life took a dramatic turn when he was send to prison accused as a spy. Simultaneously his work attracted attention. Since then his disturbing fiction has been widely admired by writers.
The grim and intense drama Penthesilea (1808) contains some of his most powerful poetry. The Broken Pitcher (1808) is a masterpiece of dramatic comedy. They were followed by Katherine of Heilbronn (1810), Die Hermannsschlacht (1821). The Prince of Homburg (1821). In 1811 he published a collection of eight masterly novellas, including Michael Kohlhaas, The Earthquake in Chile, and The Marquise of O.
Despite this he never gained the recognition he thought he deserved. Eventually, depressed and embittered Kleist ended his life in a joint suicide with a 34 year old woman.
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