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Died 5 August 1829, Löwenstein, Germany | ||
Friederike Hauffe (1801-1829) also known as Frederica Hauffe, or the Seeress of Prevorst was a German clairvoyant medium and somnambulist.
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Hauffe had suffered from convulsions, and fell into spontaneous trances. She claimed to have communicated with spirits and experienced visions. Hauffe was made famous by the physician Justinus Kerner who examined her at Weinsberg in 1826. He described her trances in his book Die Seherin von Prevorst (1829). She spent much of her time in a state of somnambulism. Kerner recorded alleged instances of clairvoyance and prophetic dreams. However, psychical researcher Frank Podmore noted that the "evidence is in all cases inconclusive, and sometimes indicative of collusion with members of the Seeress's family."
Native place and early youth
Hauffe was born in Prevorst, a small village "In Wirtemberg, near the town of Löwenstein, on those mountains whose highest point, the Stocksberg, is raised 1879 feet above the level of the sea, surrounded on all sides by hill and valley, and in a romantic seclusion...`with] something more than 400 inhabitants, the greatest number of whom maintain themselves by woodcutting, coalburning, and collecting the productions of the forest". Her father was a gamekeeper or district forester. She grew up physically healthy, as opposed to her sisters were afflicted in their childhood with "gout", according to the physician Justinus Kerner in his book about her. At a very early age, she had "premonitory dreams" and could point out "metals and water with the hazel wand". She was later, unclear ar what age given into the care of her grandmother and grandfather Johann Schmidgall in Löwenstein. He recognized what was described as "sensibility to spiritual influences". Later, her parents took her back to the secluded village of Prevorst, until the family moved to Oberstenfeld. She lived there from age 17 until 19 happily (was distinguished only by a more than commonly spiritual character,... without swerving from the usual manners and demeanour of the young women of her circle) andwithout a boyfriend or disappointed loveaffair (never formed any attachment, nor ever suffered from disappointed affection). At age 19 her parents arranged that she became engaged with a Mr. H, who belonged to her uncle's family. On the day of her wedding, the funeral of the minister of Oberstenfeld took place, a more than 60-year-old man who had had great spiritual influence on her. at the grave she became light and cheerful and did not want to leave it. She was said to have become indifferent since then.
Adulthood
After her marriage, she lived at Kürnbach.