Bertha von Suttner (1843–1914)

Baroness Bertha von Suttner, née Kinsky von Chinic und Tettau, was born in Prague to an aristocratic family of Austrian military officers. She studied languages and music, at one time aspiring to an operatic career. At age 30, in straitened financial circumstances, she obtained a position as a governess to the four daughters of the von Suttner household in Vienna. There she met her future husband, Baron Arthur von Suttner, the youngest son of the family. Because his parents disapproved of the match, the couple eloped and went to live in the Caucasus, earning their living by giving language and music lessons; the Baroness also wrote books to help support them. Eventually, her husband's family relented and allowed the couple to return to Vienna, where they became involved in the European peace movement. She was a close friend of Alfred Nobel, and many credit her with influencing his establishment of a peace prize. In 1905, Bertha von Suttner was the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, after writing one of the 19th century's most influential books, the bestselling anti-war novel Lay Down Your Arms (1889). She co-founded a peace journal by the same name (Die Waffen Nieder) and served as its editor. She also was a regular contributor of articles to other periodicals and went on lecture tours in Europe and the USA.