Europe's Last Rendezvous.

On Saturday morning I met a couple of friends from the DEG (Deutsch/English Gesellschaft) the partner group of the Bath/Braunschweig Twinning Group,  for a visit to a most interesting special exhibition in the "Schloss Museum."  Entitled "Europe's Last Rendezvous," the marriage of Victoria Luise of Prussia and Duke Ernest August of Braunschweig and Lüneburg on May 22nd 1913, it detailed the marriage arrangements, financial settlements, guest lists, dress code and all the paraphrenalia associated with a royal wedding.  The photo to the left shows the leaflet advertising the exhibition, as I could not take photos in the exhibition itself.

The marriage united two great German dynasties, the Welfen and Hohezollern families, and took place in the White Room in Schloss Berlin, with all the royals of Europe in attendance.  Just a few months later, when WW1 broke out, these cousins and family members were to become bitter enemies, hence the "last rendezvous" of the title.

After their marriage the couple lived in Schloss Braunschweig, where they produced four sons and one daughter, all destined to grow up and marry into the royal families of Europe.  There is further information about the families and the Duke and Duchess on Wikipedia, with so much more detail than I can write here.

The wedding feast in the White Room, Schloss Berlin, with small pictures of wedding gifts

A recreation of this table has been set up in the exhibition, showing some of the original silver dishes,  elegant china and cutlery and splendid glasses for champagne and wine.   What an occasion it must have been, with Czar Nicholas of Russia, George V of Great Britain and his wife Mary of Teck and many other cousins, aunts, uncles, parents and siblings in attendance.  

A copy of the guest list was available, although mostly impossible to read, as it was written in old German script.  Kaiser Wilhelm ll, the father of the bride, left detailed instructions of the financial settlements on his daughter (a huge amount even for today,) and for her new husband, and amounts for presents to all the guests.   How the other half lived!

 The bride and groom, the Duke and Duchess of Braunschweig.

The above photograph shows the couple, with clothing from another overlaid, and with a veil added.   No photography was allowed at the wedding, so many paintings and drawings of the occasion were later produced for postcard sales and momentos.   There is a film on YouTube of Viktoria Luise, and also the one that we saw today, of the couple arriving in Braunschweig after their honeymoon, to live in the Schloss, which can be seen below.

The Museum in Schloss Braunschweig. (note the discoloured original stonework.)

The building was severely damaged in the WW2, and completely demolished in the 1950´s.  Many of the stones and columns were buried and stored by people who had the presence of mind to realise that the building could be rebuilt in its old splendour.   Against much opposition, the facade was rebuilt around a modern interior, which was opened in 2008 as a shopping centre.

The city library is housed in one wing, with the museum to the left above.  Top right is the quadriga, a chariot with Brunonia, the state goddess of the Duchy of Braunschweig, driving a chariot and four magnificent horses.   The city can be viewed from a platform here.