You’ve probably heard some version of the story. A German doctor and his lover run away to a deserted island to live like Adam and Eve. Then, a few years later, everyone is either dead, missing, or poisoned. It sounds like the plot of a cheap thriller, but the Galapagos Affair Satan Came to Eden is entirely real. It happened on Floreana, a tiny speck of volcanic rock in the Galapagos archipelago, during the 1930s. Honestly, if you try to map out the logic of the people involved, you’ll just get a headache. It wasn't just a "desert island" mishap; it was a slow-motion train wreck fueled by philosophy, ego, and a very strange woman who called herself a Baroness.
The Doctor Who Wanted to Be Nietzsche
Friedrich Ritter was a dentist with a very specific, and frankly exhausting, worldview. He was obsessed with Friedrich Nietzsche and the idea of the "Übermensch." In 1929, he decided that modern Germany was too soft and too loud. So, he packed up, left his wife, and took one of his patients, Dore Strauch, to Floreana. They wanted to build a garden of Eden. But here’s the thing: Ritter wasn’t exactly a "people person." He was arrogant. He was strict. He even had all his teeth pulled out before leaving Germany, replacing them with a single set of steel dentures that he and Dore shared. Yes, you read that right. They shared a single set of metal teeth.
Life on Floreana wasn't a beach vacation. It was grueling. The ground was lava rock. The sun was brutal. They spent their days hauling water and trying to keep feral pigs from eating their vegetables. For a while, they were alone, and that’s how Ritter liked it. He wrote letters home describing his intellectual paradise, which—thanks to the press—made him a bit of a global celebrity. People started seeing them as "The Adam and Eve of the Galapagos."
Then the neighbors moved in.
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How the Galapagos Affair Satan Came to Eden Turned Deadly
In 1932, the Wittmer family arrived. Heinz, his pregnant wife Margaret, and their young son Harry. Unlike Ritter, the Wittmers were practical. They weren't there to find enlightenment; they were there because Heinz thought the island air would help Harry’s health. They built a sturdy house. They planted crops that actually grew. This annoyed Ritter. He wanted to be the lone philosopher-king of the island, and now he had to deal with a middle-class German family living down the trail.
But the real chaos started when "The Baroness" showed up. Eloise Wehrborn de Wagner-Bosquet arrived with two lovers—Robert Philippson and Rudolf Lorenz—and a plan to build a luxury hotel for yachting millionaires. She called it "Hacienda Paradiso." She wore silk underwear, carried a pearl-handled revolver, and claimed she was the Queen of Floreana. She was a master manipulator. She would intercept mail, steal supplies, and pit the settlers against each other just for the fun of it.
The tension on that tiny island was thick. You have to imagine it: three groups of people who absolutely despised each other, trapped on a rock with limited water and no way out. The Baroness was the catalyst. She would brag about her "royal" connections while Rudolf Lorenz, her discarded lover, was being treated like a slave by her and her new favorite, Philippson. It was a pressure cooker.
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The Disappearances That No One Can Explain
March 1934 is when things went south. According to Margaret Wittmer, the Baroness and Philippson told her they were going to Tahiti on a passing yacht. They walked off into the brush and were never seen again. No one saw a yacht. No luggage was taken. They just vanished. Rudolf Lorenz, who had been terrified of the Baroness, was suddenly in a massive hurry to leave the island. He eventually convinced a Norwegian fisherman to take him to San Cristobal.
They never made it. Months later, their mummified bodies were found on Marchena Island, a desolate place far to the north. They had died of thirst.
Back on Floreana, the drama didn't stop. Friedrich Ritter, the man who prided himself on his "superior" intellect and vegetarian diet, suddenly died. The cause? Meat poisoning. Specifically, some bad chicken. There’s a lot of debate about this. Dore Strauch claimed it was an accident, but Margaret Wittmer’s accounts suggest Ritter’s last words were a curse directed at Dore. Shortly after, Dore left the island, eventually returning to Germany where she wrote the book Satan Came to Eden.
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Why the Mystery Still Bites
If you go to Floreana today, the Wittmer family still runs a hotel there. They are the ones who survived. Margaret Wittmer lived into her 90s, taking many of the island’s secrets to her grave. She always stuck to the "they went to Tahiti" story, but almost no historian believes it. The prevailing theory? Lorenz killed the Baroness and Philippson, possibly with the help of the Wittmers or even Ritter, and then fled the scene of the crime only to be claimed by the sea.
The Galapagos Affair Satan Came to Eden isn't just a true crime story. It's a study in human psychology. It shows what happens when you try to escape society but forget that you're bringing your own baggage with you. Ritter wanted a world without rules, but he couldn't handle the reality of other people's freedom. The Baroness wanted a kingdom, but she forgot that a queen without a subjects is just a woman in the woods with a gun.
Practical Insights for Modern Travelers
If this weird history fascinates you, you can actually visit the sites of these events. But don't expect a theme park.
- Visit Post Office Bay: This is near where much of the drama unfolded. You can still participate in the 18th-century tradition of leaving a postcard in the wooden barrel for another traveler to hand-deliver.
- The Highlands of Floreana: You can see the "caves" where the Wittmers first lived. It's damp, dark, and makes you realize just how tough (or crazy) these people were.
- The Wittmer Lodge: Staying here is the best way to get close to the history. The descendants of Heinz and Margaret are still there, and while they might not tell you who killed the Baroness, you’re literally sleeping in the legacy of the survivors.
- Watch the Documentary: Before you go, watch the 2013 film The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came to Eden. It uses actual 16mm footage filmed by the settlers themselves. Seeing Ritter’s steel-tooth grin on camera is something you won't forget.
When you’re there, look at the landscape. It’s beautiful, sure, but it’s also indifferent. It doesn't care about your philosophy or your silk underwear. The lesson of Floreana is simple: the island always wins. If you're planning a trip, stick to the guided paths and maybe don't share your dentures with anyone.
To dig deeper into the actual documents, look for Margaret Wittmer's book Floreana: A Woman’s Pilgrimage to the Galapagos. It offers a much more grounded (though perhaps biased) perspective compared to the feverish writings of Ritter or Strauch. Comparing the two accounts is where the real truth usually hides. You'll quickly see how two people can look at the same event and see completely different realities. One person's paradise is almost always someone else's hell.