Death Certificate of Etienne Cabos (1808)¶
"Le 14 Sep 1808 à 1 heure du matin est mort d'apoplexie à l'hopital Etienne Cabos agé de 71 ans natif de Kochshagen fils d'Etienne Cabos et de Marie Rey sa femme. Enterrer le 16 au cimetiere de la porte d'Orange"
On September 14, 1808 at 1 o'clock in the morning, Etienne Cabos died of a stroke in the hospital, 71 years old, native of "Kochshagen" [= Caussade], son of Etienne Cabos and his wife Marie Rey. Buried on the 16th in the cemetery at the Oranienburger Gate.
Place name 'Kochshagen'
The clerk noted the place of birth as "Kochshagen" - a phonetic corruption of Caussade. The French place name was apparently unfamiliar to the German-speaking church register keeper.
Document Information¶
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Document Type | Church register entry (death) |
| Date of Death | September 14, 1808, 1:00 AM |
| Place of Death | Charlottenburg Hospital |
| Cause of Death | Stroke |
| Age | 71 years |
| Burial Date | September 16, 1808 |
| Cemetery | Cimetière de la porte d'Orange (Cemetery at the Oranienburger Gate) |
Description¶
On September 14, 1808, at one o'clock in the morning, Etienne Cabos died at the age of 71 in the Charlottenburg Hospital from a stroke. Two days later, on September 16, he was buried at the Cemetery at the Oranienburger Gate - the traditional cemetery of the French colony in Berlin.
The Final Years¶
We know little about Etienne's final years. One year before his death, on August 16, 1807, his daughter Anne Elisabeth had married the city surgeon August Friedrich Ferdinand Pohle at the Luisenkirche in Charlottenburg. At this wedding, Etienne was still described as "merchant of Rotterdam" - a title that referred back to his Rotterdam years.
The Cemetery at the Oranienburger Gate¶
The Cimetière de la porte d'Orange (Cemetery at the Oranienburger Gate) was the burial ground of the French Reformed congregation in Berlin. Here the members of the Huguenot community found their final resting place.
Map of Berlin around 1810. The cemetery at the Oranienburger Gate (Cimetière de la porte d'Orange) was located north of the city wall.
The cemetery still exists today as the French Cemetery on Chausseestraße in Berlin.
The End of a Marriage¶
It is noteworthy that Etienne died in the hospital - not at home with his family. The death entry of his wife Maria Justine two years later provides a clue: she is described there as "separirte" - separated.
It appears that the marriage was no longer happy in its final years. The many blows of fate - the loss of children, the financial hardships, the multiple relocations - had evidently left their mark.
The Death of Maria Justine (1810)¶
Maria Justine survived her husband by two years. On September 10, 1810, she died at nine o'clock in the evening from dysentery. The church register entry notes:
"1 major: Tochter und 3 Söhne davon 2 major: sind, und 1 Sohn von dem man seit 20 Jahren nichts weiß"
Thus she left behind: - One adult daughter (Elisabeth) - Three sons, of whom two were of legal age - One son from whom nothing had been heard for 20 years
Who was this missing son? Possibly one of the older sons from the Stettin period who had sought his own fortune and lost contact with the family.
Significance for Family History¶
This entry documents:
- The date and cause of death of Etienne Cabos
- His burial in the Huguenot cemetery
- The possible separation from his wife in the final years
- The end of an eventful life that had led him from southern France through Prussia and the Netherlands to Berlin