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
Occasionally, stories reached the public through the press of feats
of gallantry performed by the royal sailor, such as the plunging
overboard once in a squall, and at another time in shark-infested
waters, to save drowning sailors; while every incident which thus
became known concerning the young prince served to confirm his
countrymen in the belief that he was endowed in an altogether
exceptional degree with those qualities which we are so fond of
ascribing to "those who go down to the sea in ships." These long sea
voyages had, moreover, the effect of keeping him clear of all
those court and political intrigues with which Emperor William was
surrounded, as if with a very network, prior to his accession to the
throne; intrigues, I may add, which since William became emperor, have
been devoted to many a futile endeavor designed to create mischief
between the two brothers. It is probable that they will have less
effect than ever from henceforth, since William, now that his eldest
boy has attained his majority, will have no longer any reason to
apprehend the possibility of Henry's undoing, in the capacity of
regent, all the work that he, the kaiser, has accomplished during the
eleven years of his reign; indeed, now that this danger is eliminated,
the two brothers are likely to become more intimate than ever, and the
Court of Berlin will probably see much more of the sailor prince than
heretofore. Henry is the very life of his brother's court, as he is
not only extremely fond of making fun, even at the expense sometimes
of his majesty, especially about the excessively earnest attitude
which the emperor assumes, with regard to the most trivial questions.
Absolutely unconventional, save on his own quarter-deck, he carries
about with him an atmosphere of brightness and breeziness which is
almost as infectious and as bracing as a whiff of sea air.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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