The Sound of Music premiered in 1965 and ‘Do Re Mi’ became a familiar tune and the hills were alive with the sound of music – or so Julie Andrews thought.
The songs of the von Trapp family very quickly caught on, and the film went on to win 18 awards including five Oscars.
Now, 60 years later, the movie is still a classic.
But what many don’t know is that the film is based on the real-life matriarch Maria von Trapp and her family.
How accurate is The Sound of Music in comparison to the real von Trapp family, and what happened after they left Austria?
Scroll on to find out everything we know about the von Trapp family.
IS THE SOUND OF MUSIC A TRUE STORY?
In 1949, Maria Kutschera published her memoir, ‘The Story of the Trapp Family Singers‘. The first section of her book was the inspiration of the film which plays out the real-life von Trapp family; Maria von Trapp, Georg von Trapp and their 10 children – seven of which were from Georg’s first marriage.
Before we got our classic sing-along film, the story made it to Broadway in 1959. Both the film and the stage show follow the life of Maria von Trapp who aspired to be a nun and instead became a governess to the von Trapp children; singing and dancing through the hills (in the film, not in real life).
Of course, from this translation from book, to Broadway, to our screens, the original story was altered.
Johannnes, the youngest von Trapp sibling responded in 2023 to Insightful Vacations when asked on how closely the film is to his family’s history saying, “The Hollywood film is based on the Broadway play, which is based on the German film, which is based on the book that my mother wrote.”
“So each time things change a bit, and each version is aimed at perhaps a slightly different audience. But the final Hollywood film? A documentary of my family’s life, it is not. However, as a film it’s superb: magnificently cast and located in stunning scenery.”
WHO WERE THE REAL VON TRAPP FAMILY?
MARIA VON TRAPP
Maria Augusta Kitschera was born in 1905 and aspired to be a nun. Played by Julie Andrews, Maria shared many similarities to her on-screen character.
In 1980, Maria told The Washington Post, that she lacked discipline while in the convent and was a lot more rebellious than her character in the movie.
“I was horrid, the worst you can imagine,” Maria shared, with stories of climbing on the roof, sliding down banisters and misbehaving.
Eventually Maria crossed paths with her future beau Georg von Trapp, as she was sent to tutor his sick daughter in 1926 (not to be a governess to all the children like in the film).
On meeting Georg, it was the children that truly drew him to her. In her book, Maria shared that, “I really and truly was not in love. I liked him but didn’t love him. However, I loved the children, so in a way I really married the children… and by I learned to love him more than I have ever loved before or after.”
GEORG VON TRAPP
Baron Captain Georg von Trapp was born in 1880 and served for 24 years in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. During his service in World War I he received the country’s highest award, the Military Order of Maria Theresa.
In 1911, Georg married his first wife Agathe Gobertina Whitehead and they had seven children; Rupert, Agathe, Maria Franziska, Werner, Hedwig, Johanna and Martina. He retired with his children after his first wife’s death.
Although portrayed in the film as a cold-blooded patriarch, Georg supported the musical activities of his family and was a gentle father to his children.
THE VON TRAPP CHILDREN
Georg had seven children with his first wife: sons Rupert, Werner, Hedwig, and daughters Agathe, Maria, Johanna, and Martina.
Later, with his second wife Maria, he had three more children: Rosmarie, Eleonore “Lorli,” and Johannes.
Sadly his second born Agathe, passed away of scarlet fever in 1922.
In “The Sound of Music” film, there are only seven children, not ten. The names, ages and gender of the children were also changed in the film for a sense of privacy.
HOW DID THE VON TRAPP FAMILY ESCAPE FROM AUSTRIA?
In the film, the family is shown fleeing the Nazi regime in Austria by escaping over the Swiss Alps, and singing whilst they do so.
But, surprise! The film dramatised their exit, with no mountain climbing taking place.
One of the von Trapp children, Maria, told Opera News in 2023, that whilst it was known that the family were moving on to America to sing, they did not climb over the mountains with all their belongings. She said that they, “left by train, pretending nothing.”
Georg was an Italian citizen so the family left Austria and went to Italy. Prior to this they had already begun singing and performing in America and had a contract with a booking agency.
After the Immigration and Naturalisation Service rejected their visa extension, the von Trapps temporarily returned to Europe before finally settling in Vermont.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE VON TRAPP FAMILY?
In 1955 the von Trapp family stopped touring as there were additional people in the group as the children had grown up and moved on to other careers. Some of the children went down the creative route in their career but some chose different paths.
Rupert, Georg’s first-born went on to be a medical doctor, Maria and Rosemarie were missionaries, Agathe, a music teacher and Werner was a farmer producing cheese.
The last surviving member of the original von Trapp family is Johannes, 85, the youngest son of Georg and Maria.
WHO ARE THE NEXT GENERATION OF THE VON TRAPPS?
Georg and Maria’s youngest son Johannes’ two children, Sam and Kristina are directors of the Trapp family lodges.
In 2001, Werner’s grandchildren formed a band called the von Trapps. The band consisted of four of Werner’s grandchildren, Sofia, Melani, Amanda and August.
In 2016 the band released a statement announcing their final show, “Our family story has been shared in nearly every corner of the world. It has been a surreal honor to continue this musical tradition and be a part of such a hopeful message to the world for these last 15 years.”
