Beethoven's friends

1. Antonie Brentano (1780 - 1869)

Antonie Brentano was almost certainly the Eternally Beloved, the only woman as far as we know ever to return Beethoven's love...

2. Gerhard von Breuning (1813 - 1892)

Son of Beethoven's lifelong friend, Stephan von Breuning, Gerhard first met Beethoven as a child with his father. He was Stephan's son by his father's second marriage...

3. Josephine Brunsvik (1779-1821)

Beethoven first met Josephine and her sister Therese when the two visited Vienna with their mother in 1799. Later that year Josephine married Count Joseph Deym, but was widowed five years later...

4. Stephan von Breuning (1774-1827)

Son of Beethoven's lifelong friend, Stephan von Breuning, Gerhard first met Beethoven as a child with his father. He was Stephan's son by his father's second marriage...

5. Carl Czerny (1791-1857)

Czerny was brought as a boy by his father to meet Beethoven, and Beethoven was impressed by his prodigious talent...

6. Eleonore von Breuning (1771 - 1841)

Eleonore was the sister of Stephan von Breuning, and a member of the family in Bonn that did so much to help the young musician...

7. Ignaz Gleichenstein (1778-1828)

A native of Staufen near Freiburg in Germany, Baron Gleichenstein took over the running of Beethoven's affairs some time after Ferdinand Ries left Vienna in 1805...

8. Franz Grillparzer (1791-1872)

Grillparzer was 17 years of age when he first met Beethoven in Heiligenstadt, where he was staying with his mother in the same house as Beethoven... Picture: Getty

9. Giulietta Guicciardi (1784-1856)

Beethoven took Countess Giulietta Guicciardi on as a pupil in around 1801 and soon fell in love with her. His Sonata Op. 27 no. 2, 'Moonlight Sonata' is dedicated to her...Picture: John Suchet

10. Ignaz Moscheles (1794-1870)

After moving to Vienna, Ignaz Moscheles became good friends with Beethoven, even making piano arrangements of many of his compositions, including Fidelio. Picture: Getty

11. Gottlob Neefe (1748-1798)

Gottlob Neefe was Beethoven's first full-time teacher, but he would never know of his pupil's great fame and success. Picture: Getty

12. Ferdinand Ries (1784-1838)

Ferdinand Ries was a former pupil of Beethoven's who went on to become indispensable to the composer as his hearing worsened... Picture: Getty

13. Franz Ries (1755-1846)

Franz Ries, the father of Beethoven's friend and assistant, Ferdinand Ries, helped to foster young Ludwig's musical talent and ensured his protege wasn't left out of pocket by his careless father...

14. Anton Schindler (1795-1864)

All Beethoven scholars have reason to be grateful to Schindler - and angry with him - in equal measure...

15. Ignaz Schuppanzigh (1776-1830)

A renowned violinist and leader of Prince Lichnowsky's String Quartet, Ignaz Schuppanzigh was one of Beethoven's few lifelong friends... Picture: Getty

16. Amalie Sebald (1787-1846)

Beethoven met singer Amalie Sebald in the spa town of teplitz and they quickly formed a firm friendship. Was it Amalie who inspired Eternally Beloved?.. Picture: Getty

17. Johann Andreas (1761-1833) and Nanette Streicher (1769-1833): Beethoven's surrogate parents

Acclaimed piano builder Johann Andreas Streicher's wife Nanette, a great pianist herself, was like a surrogate mother to Beethoven in his early days in Vienna... Picture: Getty

18. Franz Wegeler (1765-1848)

Franz Wegeler, whom Beethoven met when they were both boys growing up in Bonn, was the first person he could call a friend... Picture: Getty

19. Nikolaus Zmeskall (1759-1833)

One of Beethoven's few close personal friends in Vienna, Nikolaus Zmeskall was an official in the Hungarian Chancellery... Picture: Thinkstock

20. Johann Nepomuk Maelzel (1772-1838)

The inventor of the metronome, Johann Nepomuk Maelzel persuaded Beethoven to write Wellington's Victory (Battle Symphony), but their friendship wasn't to last. Picture: Getty

21. Therese Malfatti (1792-1851)

Like Giulietta Guicciardi, Therese Malfatti was a pupil of Beethoven's, and - as with Giulietta - he fell in love with her and decided to propose marriage to her. His plans came to naught, probably because of an extremely embarrassing incident. Picture: Getty