The symphony was first performed together with Symphony No. 5 (in C minor) at a concert given from Beethoven's works in the Theater an der Wien on the 22nd December 1808. Both symphonies were namely completed at the same time. This accounts for the fact that their number got mixed up on the printed programme of the concert.

The parts which appeared in 1809 as well as the opus numbers (67-68) contain already the final sequence. The full title of the symphony reads as indicated in a letter of...