Die Leiden des jungen Werther

The Sorrows of Young Werther turned Goethe, previously an unknown author, into a celebrated one almost overnight.

Napoleon Bonaparte considered it one of the great works of European literature, having written a Goethe-inspired soliloquy in his youth and carried Werther with him on his campaigning to Egypt.

It also started the phenomenon known as the 'Werther Fever', which caused young men throughout Europe to dress in the clothing style described for Werther in the novel.