As the interview with Princess Elisabeth was to take place at Cologne instead of Darmstadt, Prince Charles set out for the former city on October 12. The meeting took place at the _Flora_, where the Dowager Princess of Wied was dining with her daughter before proceeding to Madame Schumann's concert. Prince Charles and Princess Elisabeth, who had already met once or twice before in Berlin society, walked a little ahead of the remainder of the party, talking over old times in Berlin. Before the promenade came to an end, Prince Charles had fallen sincerely in love with Princess Elisabeth, and was resolved to risk all, and to ask for her hand. A private interview with her mother the Princess of Wied was arranged, and resulted in the Princess consenting to ascertain her daughter's wishes. After a long quarter of an hour the answer "Yes" was brought to the Prince, who at once hastened to receive the reply from the lips of the young Princess herself. Affairs of State of an urgent nature, however, prevented the Prince from obeying the dictates of his heart and remaining in the company of his betrothed. After an absence of forty-eight hours Prince Charles returned from Paris to Neuwied, where the betrothal was celebrated on October 15, 1869. An enormous number of congratulatory telegrams were received by the young couple, including messages from the King and Crown Prince of Prussia and the Emperor Napoleon. The general impression created by Prince Charles's choice was extremely favourable, as an alliance with a reigning House would have evoked much jealousy and intrigue. As the marriage was purely one of inclination this danger was avoided; and the political neutrality of Roumania was by no means affected. Affairs of State demanded the speedy return of the Prince to the land of his adoption, and the wedding-day was fixed for November 15. A numerous and distinguished company, including the Queen of Prussia, accompanied by the Grand Duchess of Baden, attended the ceremony at Neuwied, which was first celebrated in the Roman Catholic Chapel and afterwards according to the rites of the Protestant Church. The text of the sermon was aptly chosen, as alluding to the difficulties and troubles which were to be encountered in the far-off Eastern country: "Whither thou goest, I will go: and where thou lodgest, I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God."