Luise, Queen, consort of Frederick William III, King of Prussia, 1776-1810; Queens -- Germany -- Prussia -- Biography
The Crown-prince, who had borne himself gallantly in the French
campaign, was given command of a regiment during the siege of Mayence;
but the impression made upon him by Louise was not to be dimmed by the
turmoil of war. During several visits to Darmstadt he became more
intimately acquainted with the beloved, grew to appreciate her lovely
nature, and being sure of himself, he sought and obtained the consent of
his father to their union. A month after the first meeting, April 2,
1793, the double betrothal was celebrated in the palace at Darmstadt in
the presence of the King of Prussia and the sisters of the two
_fiancées_. Two days later both Princes returned to the field with their
father, and six days afterwards the Crown-prince, at the head of his
battalion, took the village of Kostheim by storm. His brother, betrothed
of Princess Frederika, came very near losing his life one evening from
an overheated stove, as he was resting in his tent after an arduous day.
Everything about the sleeping Prince was already in flames, when a
sentinel who had smelt the smoke rushed in and rescued the unconscious
Prince from certain death. The tent was consumed, and the Prince saved
nothing but the clothes on his back. The next day the serious and
somewhat practical Crown-prince conceived the humorous idea of going to
the King and among his suite, and soliciting contributions in aid of the
“poor burned-out man.”
The Princesses ventured into the camp several times to visit their
betrothed. During one of these visits at Bodenbach, near Mayence, May
29, 1793, young Goethe, who was staying there, had an opportunity of
seeing them from his tent near by and was so entranced with both sisters
that they seemed to him like “heavenly visions” which he could never
forget. There is but one voice concerning the gracious charm of Louise,
as Princess and as Queen. She appeared to those who knew her almost like
a supernatural being. Her intimates called her an angel. The poet
Fouqué, who saw both lovely sisters on their entry into Berlin, spoke of
the “angelically beautiful brides.” The King called his gracious
daughter-in-law “the Princess of Princesses.” Even a man of intellect
like the court physician, Hufeland, tells us in after years of that
“indescribably blissful feeling” which one always had when in her
presence, “as if in the presence of a heavenly being.” Old Blücher, on
hearing of her death, cried: “Our saint is now in Heaven!” May we not
also look up with deepest reverence to her who was glorified while still
upon earth?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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