For Hans Christian Andersen (b. April 2, 1805), real life was hardly a fairy tale. The child of a young shoemaker and an alcoholic laundress, Hans lived with his family in a single room in Odense, Denmark, where he relied upon his imagination for entertainment. Encouraged by his parents and strongly influenced by the plays of Shakespeare and Ludvig Holberg, Andersen spent his time making clothes for his toy puppet theatre, reading as many books as he could and memorizing entire plays.

Although Andersen's father was rumored to be a descendant of Danish royalty, the claim has never been substantiated. He died in poverty in 1816, forcing the young Andersen to work as an apprentice and cigarette factory worker to support his family. An effeminate young teenager, Andersen was relentlessly teased by fellow factory workers, who pulled down his pants to satisfy their curiosities about his gender. When his stage career at the Royal Danish Theatre failed, Andersen took an interest in writing poetry. Not long afterwards, his luck finally took a turn for the better. He published his first short story in 1822, "The Ghost at Palmatoke's Grave," thereby launching his career as a writer. A chance meeting with King Fredrick VI of Denmark led to the monarch's decision to personally finance Andersen's education at Slagelse and Elsinore until 1827. He was reported to have been an unhappy student, teased again by fellow students and abused by his teacher in order "to build character."

While the pain of being different dogged at Andersen his entire life, this theme became the foundation of many fairy tales and children's stories. It is widely believed, for example, that tales such as "The Little Mermaid" (1836) were born out of Andersen's unreturned affections towards the men with whom he fell in love. His many published volumes of fairy tales (beginning with Fairy Tales in 1836), include classics such as "The Ugly Ducking," "The Princess and the Pea," "The Little Matchgirl," and "The Red Shoes" and "The Emperor's New Clothes." Though he hated his stereotype as a children's author and attempted to make his living writing books and plays, his other works were overshadowed by the widely popular fairy tales and never received acclaim.  Some of his books include The Improvisatore (1835), O.T. (1836) and Only a Fiddler (1837). 
  
Andersen died on August 4th, 1875 and was buried in Copenhagen, perhaps one of the most famous storytellers in world history.  

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Articles About Andersen, Hans Christian

The Romantic Life of Hans Christian Andersen	February 4, 2007
Millions of people recognize Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) as the author of over a hundred famous children's tales, but only a few people know the man behind the stories. The true Andersen was certainly not a writer of the happily-ever-after variety. Throughout his life, he was often very lonely--traveling around the earth and meeting hundreds of fascinating people, but never truly finding a person to share his life with.
Hans Christian Andersen	February 4, 2007
Hans Christian Andersen is probably the most famous Dane in literary history, but his rise from poor, ambitious shoemaker's son to lauded, internationally renowned author was a troubled one. Even today people are still trying to unearth the real Andersen. To truly understand this man, one must travel back to Odense, Denmark in the year 1805. On April 2 of this year, Hans Christian Andersen was born to parents who had been married for two months and who did not live together until nine months after his birth.