In his Goethe novel, Thomas Mann succeeded in bringing the great elder to the stage. The starting point is the historically documented visit of Charlotte Kestner, Goethe's unhappy youthful love and the model for the character of Lotte in 'Werther', in 1816 in Weimar. Thomas Mann skillfully arranges the encounter between Lotte and Goethe, leading to conversations from which Lotte hopes to gain insight into the former passion. Interrupting his work on the 'Joseph' novel, Thomas Mann dedicated himself to his Goethe novel starting in 1936. 'Lotte in Weimar' was published in 1939 by Bermann-Fischer in Stockholm.