Agnes von Kurowsky

Agnes von Kurowsky
Agnes von Kurowsky in Milan, 1918
Born(1892-01-05)January 5, 1892
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedNovember 25, 1984(1984-11-25) (aged 92)
Gulfport, Florida, U.S.
EducationBellevue Nurses Training Program
Occupation(s)nurse, librarian
Spouses
  • Howard Preston Garner
  • William Stanfield
Medical career
ProfessionNurse
InstitutionsRed Cross

Agnes Hannah von Kurowsky Stanfield (January 5, 1892 – November 25, 1984) was an American nurse who inspired the character "Catherine Barkley" in Ernest Hemingway's 1929 novel A Farewell to Arms.

Kurowsky served as a nurse in an American Red Cross hospital in Milan during World War I. One of her patients was the 19-year-old Hemingway, who fell in love with her.[1] By the time of his release and return to the United States in January 1919, Kurowsky and Hemingway planned to marry within a few months in America. However, in a letter dated March 7, 1919, she wrote to Hemingway, who was living at his parents home in Oak Park, Illinois, that she had become engaged to an Italian officer. Although Kurowsky did eventually return to the United States, they never met again.[1] Hemingway's son Jack called the loss of von Kurowsky "the great tragedy" of his father's early life.[2] Their story is shown in the 1996 film In Love and War where she is portrayed by Sandra Bullock.

Hemingway used his experiences in Italy as the basis for ten short stories. Fictionalized characters based on Kurowsky appear in his short stories "A Very Short Story" (1924) and "The Snows of Kilimanjaro"[citation needed] (1936), as well as his novel A Farewell to Arms.

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Villard was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Ringle, Ken (September 17, 1989). "The Woman Behind Hemingway's 'Farewell'". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved April 4, 2021.