Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Wilhelm II invited Princess of Hohenberg to Berlin

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 October 9, 1909

The Princess of Hohenberg, the morganatic wife of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, has been invited to join her husband on an official visit to Berlin, reports the Chicago Tribune.

Many hope that Wilhelm II's "championship of the Princess of Hohenberg" will "lead to the breaking of the granite-like etiquette of the Austrian court,"  where the Princess, an "accomplished, refined woman" is denied her "true place merely because her blood is not royal."

During his last visit to Vienna, the German Emperor remarked upon the Princess' absence "among the exalted personages assembled at the state banquet in his honor." 

Due to his "impulsive good nature," Wilhelm insisted "upon her presence," and would not go to his table until the Princess had arrived.

The matter of the Princess of Hohenberg's presence was brought to Emperor  Franz Joseph's attention.  He assented, and Archduke Franz Ferdinand "drove to his palace and brought his wife to the banquet."

Wilhelm II and his wife, Empress Auguste Viktoria,  "paid marked attention: to Franz Ferdinand's wife.   They will treat her with every respect  "with all the honors due a crown princess," during her time in Berlin.

1 comment:

Professional1 said...

This article causes me to like the Kaiser more. I have never seen much written about him that is positive. I imagined his views to be quite the opposite from what is described here. I will put this down to either my own ignorance, or revisionist propaganda.