 He was born to a family of German Protestant (Alsatian) heritage, with his family name romanticized from Barthold.His parents were Jean Charles Bartholdi (1791–1836) and Augusta Charlotte Bartholdi (; 1801–1891).Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was the youngest of their four children, and one of only two to survive infancy, along with the oldest brother, Jean-Charles, who became a lawyer and editor.