FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158  
159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   >>   >|  
next was a shining phenomenon in the Royal House and upper ranks of Berlin Society, and a touching and interesting one to the busy Friedrich himself, as may be supposed. She had her own Apartments and Household at Berlin, in the Palace there, I think; but went much visiting about, and receiving many visits,--fond especially of literary people. Friedrich's notices of her are frequent in his Letters of the time, all affectionate, natural and reasonable. Here are the first two I meet with: TO THE ELECTRESS OF SAXONY (three weeks after Ulrique's arrival); "A thousand excuses, Madam, for not answering sooner! What will plead for me with a Princess who so well knows the duties of friendship, is, that I have been occupied with the reception of a Sister, who has come to seek consolation in the bosom of her kindred for the loss of a loved Husband, the remembrance of whom saddens and afflicts her." And again, two months later: "... Your Royal Highness deigns to take so obliging an interest in the visit I have had [and still have] from the Queen of Sweden. I beheld her as if raised from the dead to me; for an absence of eight-and-twenty years, in the short space of our duration, is almost equivalent to death. She arrived among us, still in great affliction for the loss she had had of the King; and I tried to distract her sad thoughts by all the dissipations possible. It is only by dint of such that one compels the mind to shift away from the fatal idea where grief has fixed it: this is not the work of a day, but of time, which in the end succeeds in everything. I congratulate your Royal Highness on your Journey to Bavaria [on a somewhat similar errand, we may politely say]; where you will find yourself in the bosom of a Family that adores you:" after which, and the sight of old scenes, how pleasant to go on to Italy, as you propose! [_OEuvres de Frederic,_ xxiv. 230, 235. "24th December 1771," "February, 1772." See also, _"Eptire a la Reine Douairiere de Suede"_ (Poem on the Troubles she has had: _OEuvres de Frederic,_ xiii. 74, "written in December, 1770"), and _"Vers a la Reine de Suede,"_ "January, 1771" (ib. 79).] Queen Ulrique--a solid and ingenuous character (in childhood a favorite of her Father's, so rational, truthful and of silent staid ways)--appears to have been popular in the Berlin circles; pleasant and pleased, during these eight months. Formey, especially Thiebault, are copious on this Visit of hers; and give a
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158  
159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Berlin
 

Ulrique

 

Frederic

 

OEuvres

 

pleasant

 
December
 
Highness
 

months

 
Friedrich
 

politely


interesting

 

Bavaria

 
errand
 

similar

 
Family
 

touching

 
propose
 
Society
 

scenes

 

Journey


adores

 

congratulate

 

compels

 

succeeds

 

truthful

 

rational

 

silent

 

Father

 

favorite

 

ingenuous


character

 
childhood
 

appears

 

popular

 

copious

 
Thiebault
 

Formey

 
circles
 

pleased

 
February

Eptire
 

phenomenon

 
dissipations
 
shining
 

written

 

January

 
Douairiere
 

Troubles

 
thoughts
 

receiving