Hans Christian Andersen was born in Odense on the 2 of April 1805, the only child to a young cobbler and his slightly older wife. His father, a man of a somewhat fanatical disposition, acted out puppet shows for his young son; dreamed of success and greatness; went off to join Napoleon’s army and returned a broken man. He died in 1915. A few years later, his mother remarried – another cobbler – but was widowed a second time in 1822. Andersen was 28 when she died, in 1833.

Although Andersen’s childhood was a poor one economically, it was nonetheless rich – in stories. The provincial town of Odense still maintained old popular beliefs and traditions long forgotten in the capital, and old women at poorhouses would tell Andersen stories - stories that would later inspire his writing. At the local theatre, meanwhile, he encountered a world that transcended poverty: the world of art.

And so, in 1819, Andersen moved to Copenhagen, hoping to become an actor, ballet-dancer or singer with the theatre. He succeeded in neither. When he finally turned to writing, his superiors at the theatre sent him off to a Latin-academy in Slagelse. Afterwards, he studied in Helsingør, where he graduated in 1828 – an educated man.

Throughout his youth, Andersen received financial support from a number of benefactors in both Odense and Copenhagen. The Collin family in particular were generous to the young artist, and the head of the family, Jonas Collin, came to act as a sort of guardian to Andersen. Collin was a wealthy and well respected civil servant, which granted Andersen access to the high society of his day.

In 1829 he published ’En Fodreise Til Amager’, a work with a light and witty tone, which confirmed the received opinion in contemporary Copenhagen of Andersen as promising. He also produced poetry and music, and in 1835 a novel, ‘Improvisatoren’, was published along with a collection of fairytales called ‘ Eventyr, fortalte for Børn’. Novels were the main focus for Andersen at this time – he wanted to become a great Danish novelist. The fairytales were merely good earners.

By the mid 1830s, Andersen had achieved considerable literary fame, and his novels and fairytales were also becoming popular in Germany. In the mid 1840s came his breakthrough in the UK and US. By now, the success of his fairytales was giving Andersen the financial opportunity to travel. Over a period starting1831, he took 29 trips around Europe, spending a total of nine years abroad. He also produced works for the stage, making a successful inroads into the art form that had once rejected him.

’The little Mermaid’ was written in1837, and can be seen as reflecting Andersen’s own experiences and wishes: a desire to rise above the situation into which one is born; to escape to something better; and finally, to gain immortality. But the fairytale also describes the pain and hardship implicit in such a personal journey.

H. C. Andersen died on the 4 of august 1875. He achieved his immortal soul: this year – the 200-year-jubilee of his birth – is a year of celebration.