Born in Munich, Ziegler, the daughter of a whitewashing owner, was to marry a highly respected, wealthy man at her mother's request after the death of her father (1860).
But she did not want to and took acting lessons from the court actor Adolf Christen, a long-time friend of the family.
Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz) in Munich, which was directed by her teacher Adolf Christen, and inaugurated the theatre as Isarnixe on November 4, 1865.
Her leading roles were: Medea, Iphigenie, Maria Stuart, Isabella and Donna Diana.
One year after her death the Clara Ziegler Foundation was founded and a theatre museum was opened in her castle-like villa in Munich near the English Garden.