Also written by Wagner during this period of the affair were the famous Wesendonck Lieder, five romantic songs composed to texts written by Mathilde. They were completed, but Tristan und Isolde had not been finished by the time Wagner’s wife Minna had had enough. She was so upset by the affair, confirmed by a letter written by Wagner that she intercepted, that Wagner had little choice but to remove from Switzerland with Minna. Mathilde decided to remain with her husband, and the affair ended thus. In his autobiography, Wagner is so disingenuous about these events that one could almost believe the entire episode never occurred, and that Minna was being unreasonable about a perfectly natural admiration that was of the highest and purest possible order. In fact, Wagner’s traducing of Minna’s outrage is one of his least likeable traits.

The second Paris attempt

The Wagners arrived in Venice in 1858, and by August 1859, Tristan und Isolde was completed. Wagner decided to return to Paris, still being unable to enter Germany for fear of arrest.

This time, however, Wagner had a few more contacts – Liszt, a true friend to him for many years, was an important figure, and various other contacts helped Wagner gain a foothold in the opera world of Paris. The Paris Opéra wanted to perform a ballet version of Tannhäuser, and Wagner reluctantly obliged with revisions to make it suitable for the purpose. However, the premiere was not a success – young aristocrats with a grudge against Wagner and his patrons made such a hullabaloo during the opening, second and third night performances that the opera was completely drowned out.

Paris had once again proven unreceptive to Wagner – the Wagners left Paris for Vienna, where Wagner heard his opera Lohengrin for the first time. Then in 1860, the ban on Wagner’s return to Germany was partially lifted. Wagner left for Karlsruhe, and while there, he resumed work on Der Meistersinger. In 1862, the ban was lifted completely, and Wagner could enter any part of Germany he liked.

His fierce devotion to Germany and disdain for other countries was evident in his writings: “Nun wollen wir in Schiffen über das Meer fahren, da und dort ein junges Deutschland gründen, es mit den Ergebnissen unsres Ringens und Strebens befruchten, die edelsten, gottähnlichsten Kinder Zeugen und erziehen: wir wollen es besser machen als die Spanier, denen die neue Welt ein pfäffisches Schlächterhaus, anders als die Engländer, denen sie ein Krämerkasten wurde. Wir wollen es deutsch und herrlich machen: vom Aufgang bis zum Niedergang soll die Sonne eine schönes, freies Deutschland sehen und an den Grenzen der Tochterlande soll, wie an denen des Mutterlandes, kein zertretenes unfreies Volk wohnen, die Strahlen deutscher Freiheit und deutscher Milde sollen den Kosaken und Franzosen, den Buschmann und Chinesen erwärmen und verklären.”⁶