What Happened to the Real Von Trapp Family from “The Sound of Music”? Here’s Where They Ended Up After Fleeing Austria (No, They Didn’t Climb Over the Hills!)

When The Sound of Music premiered in 1965, fans across the globe were enchanted by the von Trapp family’s catchy tunes and impeccably coordinated outfits.

The film — available to stream on Disney+ — starred Julia Andrews as Maria, a free-spirited nun who falls in love with a widowed naval officer, played by the late Christopher Plummer, and his seven children whom she teaches to sing. Together, the family flees from Austria to escape the Nazi regime and seeks refuge in Switzerland.

Nealy 60 years later, the Oscar-winning movie continues to be a beloved classic — and it all began with the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, the real-life matriarch of the von Trapp family. Long before they were portrayed as a charming, musical household on-screen, the von Trapps were a real family singing troupe who captured the hearts of audiences across Europe and North America for decades. But how accurate is The Sound of Music and what became of the singing von Trapps after they left Austria?

Here’s everything to know about the real von Trapp family and their lives after The Sound of Music.

Is The Sound of Music based on a true story?

Yes, The Sound of Music was inspired by the lives of the real-life von Trapp family, which included patriarch Georg von Trapp, matriarch Maria von Trapp and their 10 children (seven of whom were from Georg's first marriage).

However, the film took many liberties in its story, including altering the timeline of events (the movie is set in the late 1930s even though the real Georg and Maria wed a decade earlier) and how the family fled Austria (they did not, in fact, climb over the hills). The names and genders of the seven eldest von Trapp children were also changed for the movie.

When asked how closely the film is to his family's history, Johannes, the youngest von Trapp sibling, compared the similarities to playing the game of telephone.

"The Hollywood film is based on the Broadway play, which is based on the German film, which is based on the book that my mother wrote," he told Insightful Vacations in 2023. "So each time things change a bit, and each version is aimed at perhaps a slightly different audience. But the final Hollywood film? A documentary of my family’s life, it is not. However, as a film it’s superb: magnificently cast and located in stunning scenery."

Who was Maria von Trapp?

Andrews' character Maria in The Sound of Music was inspired by Maria Augusta Kutschera. According to her bio on the Trapp Family Lodge's website, she was born on Jan. 26, 1905, while on a train to Vienna. When Maria was 2 years old, her mother died, and her father left her in the care of a strict elderly cousin. Even though she grew up an atheist, a chance meeting with a priest in college inspired her to become a nun.

Like in The Sound of Music, Maria told The Washington Post in 1980 that she too lacked discipline while in the convent — only she rebelled a lot more than Andrews' character portrayed on-screen. She spoke during periods of silence, slid down banisters, climbed on the roof and ran through the courtyard. Maria said, “I was horrid, the worst you can imagine."

Maria was eventually sent to Baron Georg von Trapp’s house to tutor his sick daughter (not act as governess to all the children like The Sound of Music depicts). The future baroness claimed it was love at first sight for the former navy captain and that she “grew to love” her husband after they married in 1927.

Who was Georg von Trapp?

Baron Captain Georg von Trapp was the patriarch of the von Trapp family. He was born in 1880 and served for 24 years in the Austro-Hungarian Navy, where he achieved the country’s highest award for his service during World War I, per his bio on the Georg & Agathe Foundation’s website.

He married Agathe Gobertina Whitehead in 1911, and together, they had seven children: Rupert von Trapp, Agathe von Trapp, Maria Franziska von Trapp, Werner von Trapp, Hedwig von Trapp, Johanna von Trapp and Martina von Trapp.

Georg and Agathe were both musically inclined and cultivated their children's talents from a young age. The patriarch played multiple instruments and even formed a small family quartet with his wife and two of their children.

Agathe died of scarlet fever in 1922.

Who were the von Trapp children?

Georg welcomed sons Rupert, Werner and Hedwig and daughters Agathe, Maria, Johanna and Martina with his first wife. Though he later welcomed three additional children —  Rosmarie, Eleonore "Lorli" and Johannes — with his second wife Maria, the seven eldest von Trapp children were the inspiration behind the family in The Sound of Music. In the film, however, their names were changed to Leisl, Friedrich, Louisa, Kurt, Brigitta, Marta and Gretl.

While Georg, Maria and the von Trapp kids had been making music all their lives, they didn’t officially start performing until 1934, when they entertained an opera singer named Lotte Lehmann with their songs. She told the family they had “gold in their throats” and encouraged them to enter a local folk singing competition, per vonTrapp.org.

Winning that competition launched a decades-long career for the family singing group, which held over 2,000 performances across 30 countries. Two years after Georg died in 1947, Maria wrote her memoir, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers, which inspired The Sound of Music.

How did the von Trapps really escape Austria?

The 1965 film shows the von Trapps fleeing the Nazi regime in Austria by escaping over the Swiss Alps. But in reality, their exit was far less dramatic.

Georg’s daughter, Maria, reportedly told Opera News in 2003 that though her family did tell people that they were going to America to sing, they didn’t climb over the mountains with “heavy suitcases and instruments.” Instead, she said they “left by train, pretending nothing.”

The von Trapps left Austria for Italy, not Switzerland, as Georg was an Italian citizen by birth, per Forbes. By then, they had already visited and performed in America and had a contract with a booking agent there who paid for their boat tickets to New York. After the Immigration and Naturalization Service denied their visa extension, the von Trapps briefly returned to Europe before they eventually settled in Vermont.

Why did the von Trapps settle in Vermont?

In 1942, the family purchased a farm in Stowe, Vt., and named it Cor Unum, a Latin phrase that translates to "one heart." It later became known as the Trapp Family Lodge where they held music camps.

Maria lived in the Trapp Family Lodge and ran the gift shop until her death in 1987. She is buried in the family's cemetery on the property. Fans can still visit — and stay — in the lodge, which has an on-site brewery, apple orchards, a working farm and other amenities, per the lodge's website.

During an interview with Insightful Vacations, the youngest von Trapp child, Johannes, said that the family held daily rehearsals at the lodge and that everyone in the family "was with the program" because of his mother's strong leadership.

"My mother was a very strong leader," he said. "Yes, everyone was with the program. Everyone had to be. That’s right. And it was a survival matter for us. You know, as one of my sisters once said, ‘If it weren’t for mother’s leadership, we would have all ended up as cooks and maids.’ ”

What happened to the von Trapp children and are any alive today?

According to the Music Museum of New England, the von Trapp Family Singers stopped touring in 1955 as the band had consisted mostly of outsiders since the children had grown up and moved on to other careers.

While some of the 10 von Trapp kids chose creative careers, many opted for other pursuits. Rupert was a medical doctor who served in the Army, Maria and Rosmarie were missionaries and Werner started a farm that still produces von Trapp Farmstead Cheese. Agathe, a music teacher, wrote the book Memories: Before and After the Sound of Music, which was later adapted into a German film.

Georg and Maria's youngest son, Johannes is the last living member of the von Trapp Family Singers. Most recently, his older sister Rosmarie died in May 2022 at age 93.

Who are the next generation of von Trapps?

Many of Georg and Maria's descendants have carried on the family legacy. Johannes' two children, Sam and Kristina, serve as directors and executive vice presidents of the Trapp Family Lodges.

In 2001, Werner's grandchildren — Sofia, Melani, Amanda and August — formed a band called The von Trapps. The musical group released five studio albums, some of which included songs from The Sound of Music, according to Entertainment Weekly.

“Our family story has been shared in nearly every corner of the world," the band said in a 2016 statement announcing their final show. "It has been a surreal honor to continue this musical tradition and be a part of such a hopeful message to the world for these last 15 years."

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