The Secret Memoirs of the Courts of Europe: William II, Germany; Francis Joseph, Austria-Hungary, Volume I. (of 2)Fontenoy, marquise de
History
The Secret Memoirs of the Courts of Europe: William II, Germany; Francis Joseph, Austria-Hungary, Volume I. (of 2)
Fontenoy, marquise de
Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Austria, 1830-1916; William II, German Emperor, 1859-1941
Like most other consorts of reigning sovereigns and princesses of the
blood, Empress Augusta-Victoria holds the colonelcy of a number of
Prussian and Russian regiments, whose uniform she occasionally wears
in a somewhat feminized form at those grand military reviews of which
the kaiser is so fond. Her favorite garb of this kind is the uniform
of the second regiment of Pomeranian Cuirassiers, one of the oldest
and most celebrated corps of cavalry of the Prussian army. The
regimental tunic is of snow-white cloth, and held in its place by the
silver shoulder-straps of a colonel is the orange ribbon of the Order
of the Black Eagle, which crosses her breast to the left hip, where
the jewel of the order is attached by a large rosette. The star of the
order is worn on the left breast, while just above it are a number of
smaller decorations. With this white tunic, with its silver buttons,
its silver embroidery and scarlet facings, a white cloth skirt is
worn, while in lieu of the helmet now in use by the regiment, the
empress has adopted the old-fashioned, broad-brimmed cavalier hat,
with the flowing white ostrich plumes which the officers of the corps
were wont to don in the early part of the last century. Thus attired,
the empress takes her place by the side of her husband at the saluting
point at any of the grand reviews at which she may happen to be
present, and as soon as a regiment of which she happens to be colonel
approaches, she at once canters, takes her place at its head as
commanding officer, and leads it past her husband in true military
fashion, saluting with her riding whip before returning to his side.
Sometimes she is accompanied by one or another of the emperor's
sisters, or else by the handsome young Grand Duchess of Hesse, all of
whom hold honorary colonelcies, and who appear on such occasions on
horseback and in uniform. The Grand Duchess of Hesse, who holds the
command of an infantry regiment, wears not merely the tunic, but
likewise the helmet of the corps in question, and looks particularly
fascinating on these occasions.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account