Lili Elbe (1882-1931)

(this text can also be heard in the audio clip)

Lili Elbe was born Einar Wegener on December 28, 1882, in Denmark. She studied art in Copenhagen, where she met her future wife, Gerda Gottlieb. As Einar Wegener, Lili Elbe was a successful painter who created landscapes, still lifes, and portraits.

Elbe’s journey toward discovering her gender identity began during her time in Copenhagen, where she took the opportunity to wear women’s clothing among friends. During this time, Elbe realized that she identified as a woman. In 1912, Gerda and Lili moved to Paris, and Lili lived there at times as a woman, openly using the name Lili. Desperate about her situation, she decided in May 1929 to take her own life if she did not find help within twelve months. But then she was able to begin her transition in Berlin and, on her way there, wrote her own obituary: “The painter Einar Wegener is dead. He died on the train between Paris and Berlin.”

On March 1, 1930, Lili arrived in Berlin and met with Felix Abraham at the Institute for Sexual Science for her initial examinations. She described the subsequent psychological evaluation by Magnus Hirschfeld, which lasted several hours, as “a gauntlet for the soul.”

On March 4, 1930, the removal of her testicles was performed in Berlin, likely by the surgeon Erwin Gohrbandt. This was followed by two surgeries at the Dresden Women’s Clinic under the direction of Kurt Warnekros. Afterward, Lili changed her name, and her marriage to Gerda was annulled, though the two remained close friends. The fourth surgery presumably took place in June 1931; Lili Elbe tragically died in Dresden on September 13, 1931, as a result of complications from that surgery.

Lili Elbe kept a diary and hoped it would be published. “I wanted that, when I am no longer here, my sad love story would be my legacy, … that this book would be read … oh, you have no idea what a final satisfaction this would be for me.”

Thus, Lili Elbe’s story was published posthumously in 1932 based on her diaries. However, the book’s accuracy is questionable in parts due to its complex history of creation. Significant differences are evident across various editions in different languages, revealing the influence of different authors. This work, along with the later book and film *The Danish Girl*, gave rise to narratives that are likely not entirely accurate.

From today’s perspective, Lili’s wording in the diary seems almost homophobic. It is believed that the authors adapted the work posthumously to suit the readership of the 1930s and a cis-heteronormative environment. At the time, challenging binary gender concepts or even addressing same-sex love was likely considered too daring in light of the audience’s prevailing social and religious views; perhaps there was also a fear that this would hinder book sales.

The memoirs also contain the narrative that Lili Elbe died during a uterus transplant. However, this is likely inaccurate, as pieces of evidence suggest. Lili was 48 years old at the time of the operation; pregnancy was therefore ruled out due to her age, and it is more likely that the procedure involved the creation of an artificial vagina. Such a procedure was also successfully performed on Dora Richter. It is possible that this narrative persisted because procedures with a reproductive purpose were more socially accepted than surgeries related to sexuality or gender identity.

The frequently cited anecdote from the book and film—that Lili posed as a female model for her wife Gerda and thereby realized that she identified as a woman—cannot be substantiated and is rather implausible.

Lili Elbe may have been intersex. There are differing views on this among researchers. Some reports suggest that underdeveloped ovaries were found during her surgeries, which is interpreted as an indication of intersex status. However, the records that could corroborate this were destroyed during World War II. Other researchers speculate that the intersex interpretation may have been more of a narrative strategically employed to facilitate legal recognition as a woman, since this was more likely to be possible for intersex people at that time.

Lili is also frequently cited as the first woman to undergo gender-affirming surgery. This is how it is phrased in her diary; however, most researchers identify Dora Richter as the first person to undergo complete and successful gender-affirming surgery involving the creation of an artificial vagina. She began undergoing surgeries as early as 1923 and received her final surgery in June 1931, which was scientifically documented by Felix Abraham. There is no reliable documentation regarding Lili; she began the process later and presumably underwent her final surgery around the same time as Dora, though without success, as she died from complications.

Despite the suspected rewrites of her records, Lili was granted the satisfaction of having her story made known. Lili Elbe is considered a pioneer of the trans* and inter* movement, and her story has helped raise awareness of the challenges faced by trans* and inter* people. “I am fighting against the prejudice of the narrow-minded person who seeks in me a phenomenon, an abnormality. I am who I am now—a perfectly ordinary woman.”

Lili Elbe was buried at the Trinitatis Cemetery in Dresden. Her grave was leveled in the 1960s and restored in 2016. The House of World Cultures, the former site of the Institute for Sexual Science, renamed its outdoor area the “Lili Elbe Garden” in 2023 in honor of Lili Elbe.