Werner von Trapp

Werner Ritter von Trapp (21 December 1915 – 11 October 2007) was the second-oldest son of Georg von Trapp and his first wife, Agatha Whitehead von Trapp. He was a member of the Trapp Family Singers, whose lives were the inspiration for the play and movie The Sound of Music. He was portrayed as the character "Kurt".

Biography

Werner was named for a paternal uncle who was killed during World War I. Along with his six siblings Rupert von Trapp (1911–1992), Agathe von Trapp (1913–2010), Maria Franziska von Trapp (1914–2014), Hedwig von Trapp (1917–1972), Johanna von Trapp (1919–1994) and Martina von Trapp (1921–1951), father, and stepmother, Maria Augusta von Trapp, Werner comprised the Trapp Family Singers, who inspired the 1959 Broadway musical and the 1965 Academy Award winning Best Picture The Sound of Music. In the family chorus he sang tenor. Georg and Maria Augusta had three children together: Rosmarie von Trapp (born 1928 or 1929), Eleonore von Trapp (born 1931), and Johannes von Trapp (born 1939).

The Trapps fled Austria after the German annexation of Austria, fearing reprisals resulting from declining to sing at Hitler's birthday party and Georg von Trapp's refusal to accept a commission in the German Navy. They went to the United States in 1938, settled in Vermont in 1942, and performed throughout the country. Georg Ritter von Trapp died in 1947 and the family eventually ceased performing.

Werner von Trapp became a naturalized United States citizen while serving in the United States Army, initially serving with the 101st Infantry Battalion and later the 10th Mountain division in Italy during World War II. He then became a dairy farmer before eventually retiring in Waitsfield, Vermont.

Personal life

He married Erika Klambauer in 1948 and had six children, Barbara, Martin, Bernhard, Elisabeth, Tobias, and Stefan. He was the grandfather of Sofia, Melanie, Amanda, and August, the current incarnation of the Trapp Family Singers.

Werner von Trapp died on 11 October 2007.