Carl's father Samuel, a practicing German physician, was the first to enjoy magic as a hobby.
Samuel's first son Carl (Compars), was born in 1816 and left medical school at an early age to pursue a career as a magician.
Alexander Herrmann, who was 27 years younger than his brother Carl, also became a world-famous magician.
According to Herrmann legend, Alexander's father was a part-time magician and full-time physician.
The story goes that he was receiving so much attention from the elite of Paris with his magic shows, that word spread to Napoleon himself.
With the birth of his oldest son Compars in 1816 in Hanover Germany,[3] he decided to settle down to continue his practice.
Samuel entertained the pupils of the Grandes écoles (founded by Lazare Carnot) near Versailles.
[4] Samuel retired about 1860 and lived quietly with his wife Anna on a pension set up by Carl.
The critics of his day said his performing ability was on par with the most talented actors, singers, and dancers of the 19th century.
While attending classes at Grandes écoles, he tried to fit in with his upper crust classmates at the prestigious school.
Fontainebleau was renowned for its large scenic forests which surrounded the city and dozens of villages.
Two young princes of King Louis-Philippe of France, Antoine and Henri, heard the trills.
In 1848, Carl performed at the Haymarket Theatre in London where he billed himself as the Premier Prestidigitateur of France and the First Professor of Magic .
"He was not only adept at tricks of his predecessors Phillipe and Doebler had shown, he also introduced several striking new mysteries of his own."
They praised tricks like the Inexhaustible Bottle , which produces endless quantities of different liquors in what seems to be an endless quantity; The Portfolio, items such as flowers, turtle doves, and a live boy would be produced from the empty portfolio; and the Second Sight, items are named from a blindfolded assistant.
When he premiered in London later in the year at the St. James Theatre, Robert-Houdin was not happy with his friend presenting duplicates of his tricks.
After producing four goldfish bowls, he would walk into the audience and invited the spectators to inspect his arms and his long coattails.
Carl was thrilled to find out that the eight-year-old Alexander was already showing an interest in magic.
[7] So, without the family consent, Carl kidnapped the young man and took him to Saint Petersburg, Russia to teach him the art of magic.
Czar Nicholas gave Carl an engraved gold watch decorated with diamonds, pearls, and amethysts.
Carl didn't just teach Alexander how to pop out of boxes, he served as a role model and inspiration for his younger brother.
Carl discarded those illusions from the last tour when Robert-Houdin discovered that LeGrand was responsible for selling replicas of the fruits of his creations.
Carl and Alexander packed their bags quickly and caught the last train north.
The impresario told reporters that Prof. Herrmann's magic, "…was as much acknowledged in Europe as Jenny Lind's was in music.
The posters of the time mentioned that Herrmann's, "… distinguishing feature is the entire absence of any apparatus, all effects being solely produced by extraordinary manual skill."
[6] With the Civil War in full swing, the Herrmann's headed for Central and South America.
According to Walter B. Gibson's book The Magic Masters, "...and implanted the name Herrmann quite firmly there.
[8] Alexander brought his own show to London in 1871 and began his three-year stretch at Egyptian Hall that he called his one thousand and one nights.
The Herrmann name continued as Alexander's wife Adelaide became the first woman to win notable fame as a magician.
Alexander's nephew Leon had accompanied Adelaide, adding another "Herrmann" name to the magical family tree.