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Bettina was born in Frankfurt to a family of Italian descent and was the sister of Clemens, who became a celebrated
poet of the era. She adapted her forename from an abbreviation of Elisabeth. After the death of her mother, 1793,
and father, 1797, she attended a convent school and later lived variously with her grandmother and sister, Kunigunde.
She attended voice and composition classes from 1808 to 1809 in Munich and composed several art songs.
Her well connected family drew her into contact with several literary figures of the day including Goethe from 1807 whom
she met in Weimar and with whom she maintained a friendship until his death. She moved with her sister's family to Berlin
in 1810 via Vienna where she met Beethoven. She married the poet Achim von Arnim in 1811 and bore him seven children
before his death in 1831. In Berlin, she concerned herself with social improvements and, as a widow, brought numerous
works of her late husband to the public.
She also published copious correspondence with literary figures such as Goethe, her brother, Clemens, and others such as
King Friedrich-Wilhelm of Prussia. The edited format drew speculation that the letters were her own creations but the
original Goethe letters were published in 1929.
She suffered a stroke in 1854 and died in the family estate at Wiepersdorf.
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