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Rosa Dorothea Ritter

Biel/Bienne, 29 Jul 1759 – Hanau, 13 Jan 1833

8 facts2 sources

Facts and their sources

A life in time

  1. 29 Jul 1759

    Born in Biel/Bienne

  2. 1779–1788

    8 children are born

  3. 13 Jan 1833

    Dies in Hanau, aged 73

Family

See the tree

Parents

Children · 8

During her lifetime

She lived through 9 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Biel/Bienne.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1750s · Rosa is born in Biel/Bienne

In the news1756–1763

Seven Years' War casualties and destruction

During the Seven Years' War, some 160,000 Prussian soldiers died in battle or from disease, devastating the population.

Getting around

Stagecoach Travel at Walking Speed

In the mid-18th century, the stagecoach was the primary mode of travel for those who could afford it, moving at a walking pace of about 4 to 5 kilometers per hour. A trip from Nuremberg to Leipzig typically took around 70 hours, while the journey from Nuremberg to Regensburg required 20 hours.

In Europe1755

Lisbon is destroyed by an earthquake

On All Saints’ Day an earthquake, a tsunami and fires levelled Lisbon and killed tens of thousands; Europe’s thinkers argued over it for decades.

Daily life

Open Hearth Cooking and Pump Well Water

Cooking took place in the living room over an open fireplace or a masonry hearth with a recessed grate, using wood or brown coal for fuel. Drinking water was typically sourced from communal pump wells located in the village center.

What people wore

Practical Work Clothes for Women

Working women wore practical, loose-fitting clothing like an apron, headscarf, and cap, with shorter skirts and wide sleeves to allow free arm movement while handling water, fire, or animals.

Music

Everyday singing in homes and workrooms

Singing was a common activity in daily life, often performed without sheet music while working, such as during textile work in spinning rooms, or at church services and social gatherings.

At the table

Beer and coffee substitutes as staples

Ordinary people drank low-alcohol thin beer daily, which was considered nutritious and sometimes served as a soup to children. Coffee was expensive, leading many to drink substitutes like chicory or roasted cereals, a mixture often referred to as Bauernkaffee or Muckefuck.