The Journal of Countess Françoise Krasinska, Great Grandmother of Victor Emmanuel — John Shaqi
The Journal of Countess Françoise Krasinska, Great Grandmother of Victor EmmanuelTańska-Hoffmanowa, Klementyna
History
The Journal of Countess Françoise Krasinska, Great Grandmother of Victor Emmanuel
Tańska-Hoffmanowa, Klementyna
Diary fiction; Franciszka Krasińska, Countess, consort of Charles, Duke of Courland, 1743-1796 -- Fiction
"Inventory of the wedding outfit which I, Stanislaus Korwin
Krasinski, Staroste of Nova Wies, etc., etc., and Angela, born
Humiecka, my honored wife, are giving to our eldest and beloved
daughter Barbara, promised in marriage to the honorable Michael
Swidinski, Staroste of Radom; and imploring for this daughter of
ours the favor of Heaven, we bestow upon her our parental
blessing, _in nomine Patri et Filii et Spiritu Sancto_. Amen." I
should like to copy here the whole inventory, but first, I have
no time, and secondly, I expect to receive a trousseau like this
sometime myself, and what is still better, such a blessing of my
own.
February 20.
Three days more and then the wedding. The Staroste arrived
yesterday; Basia shook like a leaf when the chamberlain brought him
into the parlor. To-day we are expecting the Woivode, Father
Albert, the colonel and the Woivodine Granowska, sister of the
Staroste, with her husband. Basia is entering into a fine
family,--all religious and worthy people. The trousseau is quite
finished, and what has not already been sent to Sulgostow is packed
in trunks, of which Mademoiselle Zavistoska has the keys. Besides
this mademoiselle, Basia will take with her two young girls, her
goddaughters, well trained in all kinds of needle-work, and as
companion, one of the six damsels who have been brought up with us.
When I am married I shall take still more; I have already solemnly
promised three girls that they shall go with me; one of them is the
daughter of our Peter. In his grateful joy, the old man bowed to my
feet, and for the first time his forehead was free from wrinkles.
_Sunday_, February 22.
The wedding will be to-morrow. Our guests are numberless, and all
the envoys are here. The king's envoy is the Secretary Borch; that
of the Duke of Courland, his confidant the Castellanic[9]
Kochanowski, a very handsome and polite cavalier; the proverb is
right: "As the master, so the valet." I cannot possibly describe
all the others; they arrived, as if by appointment, at the same
hour yesterday, and their entrance was quite imposing. Before every
one of them our dragoons presented arms, while the cannons were
firing and the music playing. The greatest honors were shown to the
king's envoy; the Count, having been informed of the hour of his
arrival, was waiting with head uncovered on the drawbridge, and all
our guests, courtiers, and servants stood in a double row up to the
entrance door. As soon as the secretary stepped on the bridge they
all shouted "Vivat!" and bowed low in salutation.
[9] Son of a castellan.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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