Royal wedding hullabaloo — 100 years ago

True love: Princess Victoria Louise married Prince Ernst August in May 1913. Photo thanks to velkokneznamaria.deviantart.com.

HAVEN'T GOTTEN YOUR FIX OF THE ROYAL WEDDING HOOPLA? Then check out these five early 1900s aristocratic nuptial festivities.

• Feb. 1901: Prior to the Spanish royal marriage of Prince Charles of Bourbon to the Princess of the Asturias, 5,000 people attended a royal ball. Reported The New York Times: “The magnificent structure, which was ablaze with electric lights, could scarcely accommodate the invited guests, whose carriages were wending their way thither as early as 9 o’clock.” Thither. Don’t you love it?

• Also Feb. 1901: Hollanders enthusiastically celebrated the marriage of their 18-year-old Queen Wilhelmina to Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. The New York Times scoffed that the marriage was simply “an alliance” and that the German “princeling” had “nothing to lay at the feet of his mistress but his pedigree and his debts.” No matter: Queen Wilhelmina proved to be a capable, forceful and savvy ruler, with and without Henry — he passed away in 1934.

• June 1905: Following their age-old custom of escorting royalty, Berlin butchers accompanied the Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin to the Berlin castle for her wedding to Crown Prince William. Upon arrival at the Pariser Platz — outfitted with pillars decorated by images of flower-throwing bears (!) — she was met by both children and maids of honor, all wearing rose wreaths on their heads.

• May 1906: When King Alfonso XIII of Spain married Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of Great Britain, the streets were carpeted with 1,200 tons of flowers and the bride rode to church in a tortoiseshell coach drawn by eight white horses. Let's see 2011's celebration top that.

• May 1913: Festivities began more than a week before Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia, the Kaiser’s favorite child and only daughter, married Prince Ernst August of Hanover in a “love match.” The Berlin nuptials featured a gala opera event, a 1,000-guest wedding banquet, an ancient Torch dance and a 36-gun salute.


Two AttaGirl notes:
A couple of these royal marriages are addressed at length at edwardianpromenade.com. Visit to read more.

Congratulations to Heather, who will receive a copy of the real-life 1927 diary, Through No Fault of My Own. The winner? Chosen by my 13-year-old daughter.  Heather, just drop me a note at karin@workwords.net.