The Secret Memoirs of the Courts of Europe, Volume I.

The Secret Memoirs of the
Courts of Europe, Volume I.

The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Secret Memoirs of the Courts of
Europe:
William II, Germany; Francis Joseph, Austria-Hungary, Volume I. (of
2), by Mme. La Marquise de Fontenoy This eBook is for the use of
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Title: The Secret Memoirs of the Courts of Europe: William II,
Germany; Francis Joseph, Austria-Hungary, Volume I. (of 2)
Author: Mme. La Marquise de Fontenoy
Release Date: June 8, 2004 [EBook #12548]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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MEMOIRS ***

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SECRET MEMOIRS
William II and Francis Joseph
VOLUME I

[Illustration: WILLIAM II EMPEROR OF GERMANY _From Life_]

SECRET MEMOIRS OF THE COURTS OF EUROPE
William II Germany Francis Joseph Austria Hungary
BY
MME. LA MARQUISE DE FONTENOY

IN TWO VOLUMES
VOL. I
ILLUSTRATED
1900

PUBLISHERS' NOTE
The essential qualifications for an author of such a work as the present
are an actual acquaintance with the persons mentioned, an intimate
knowledge of their daily lives, and a personal familiarity with the
scenes described.
The author of William II. and Francis-Joseph, sheltered under the nom
de plume of Marquise de Fontenoy, is a lady of distinguished birth and
title. Her work consists largely of personal reminiscences, and
descriptions of events with which she is perfectly familiar; a sort of
panoramic view of the characteristic happenings and striking features
of court life, such as will best give a true picture of persons and their
conduct.
There has been no attempt to trammel the subject,--which embraces
religious, official, social and domestic life,--by following a strictly
sequential form in the narrative, but the writer's aim has been to present
her facts in a familiar way, impressing them with characteristic
naturalness and lifelike reality.
To this task the author has brought the habits of a watchful observer,
the candor of a conscientious narrator, and the refinement of a writer
who respects her subject. Hence she presents a true, vivid and
interesting picture of court life in Germany and Austria. If such merely
sensational, and too often fictitious, unsavory tales as crowd the
so-called court narratives expressly concocted for the "society"
columns of the periodical press are not the most prominent features of

the present work, it is because they receive only a truthful recognition
and place in its pages.

WILLIAM II
AND
FRANCIS-JOSEPH

CHAPTER I
"If only Emperor William would be true to himself--be natural, in
fact!" exclaimed Count S----, a Prussian nobleman, high in the
diplomatic service of his country, with whom I was discussing the
German Emperor a year or so ago. Then my friend, who had, a short
time previously, been brought into frequent personal contact with his
sovereign, in connection with his official duties, went on to say:
"There are really two distinct characters, one might almost say two
personalities, in the kaiser. When he is himself he is the most charming
companion that it is possible to conceive. His manners are as genial and
as winning as those of his father and grandfather, both of whom he
surpasses in brilliancy of intellect, and in quickness of repartee, as well
as in a keen sense of humor. He gives one the impression of possessing
a heart full of the most generous impulses,--aye, of a generosity carried
even to excess, and this, together with a species of indescribable
magnetism which appears to radiate from him in these moments,
contributes to render him a most sympathetic man."
"But," interposed an Englishman who was present, "that is not how he
is portrayed to the outer world. Nor is that the impression which he
made upon me and upon others when he was at Cowes."
"That is precisely why I deplore so much that the emperor should fail to
appear in his true colors," continued Count S----. "All the qualities
which I have just now ascribed to him are too often concealed beneath
a mantle of reserve, self-consciousness, nay, even pose. During my
recent interviews with his majesty, whenever we happened to be alone,
he would show himself in the light which I have just described to you.

But let a third person appear upon the scene--be it even a mere
servant--at once his entire manner would change. The magnetic current
so pleasantly established between us would be cut through, his eyes
would lose their kindly, friendly light, and become hard, his attitude
self-conscious and constrained, the very tone of his speech sharp,