Princess Elisa Radziwiłł – The considerations of rank and birth (Part three)

Read part two here.

Behind the scenes, Wilhelm’s father kept seeking advice about a possible match between his son and Elisa. Nevertheless, members of the court hoped that Wilhelm would simply find another woman, and the problem would go away on its own. Privy Councillor von Raumer said, “May this marriage never take place!”¹

Wilhelm wrote about his father, “He was so kind and warm, and so moved, that I find true comfort in having spoken with him. Several times he told me how sorry he was for my situation, but that there are certain conditions in life and in the world, especially among princes, that have become, so to speak, laws, and I must submit to them.”² When Wilhelm was eventually confronted with von Raumer’s report on the Radziwiłłs’ status, he was shocked. He wrote, “That the union would be unsuitable. I had not at all expected, but had only thought of the inconveniences of the family ties into which I would be entering.”³

Wilhelm needed a break, and so his father sent him on an inspection tour of the Rhine provinces. On 11 March 1822, he wrote, “To Radziwiłł’s alone, to say goodbye! Elisa! She knows everything!!! Her gaze and handshake! A wistful expression; tears!”⁴ While he was away, a rumour circulated that Prince Oscar of Sweden had begun to court Elisa. Wilhelm was miserable when he heard the rumours.⁵ Elisa herself was busy preparing for the wedding of Wilhelm’s sister, Alexandrine. Wilhelm returned for the wedding but avoided Elisa. She later sent him a sprig of myrtle from Alexandrina’s wedding bouquet.⁶ On 26 June 1822, Elisa gave Wilhelm a golden ring with the inscription ‘steadfast in loyalty.’ He wore it on his watch chain for many years, until he placed it in a box.⁷

Elisa left with her family for Silesia for the summer. They were meant to return in five months, but it turned into eight long years. Her father had rented Ruhberg Castle this time.⁸ In the autumn of 1822, Elisa became unwell. She had read in Wilhelm’s letters to her mother that they were conducting further investigations into the suitability of their match. Her nerves overcame her, and she was carried to bed half unconscious. She later wrote to her friend Lulu, “What can I tell you about it, my Lulu? If a painful ache deep in my heart did not prevent me from breathing freely and joyfully, I would be quite ungrateful not to feel the infinite kindness and love of my parents and the sympathy of so many people as comforting! But I was no longer the happy, joyful being I usually was…”⁹

Von Raumer had submitted three new memoranda on the issue, commenting on other expert opinions. He concluded that Elisa could never become a Princess of Prussia, and any union would be a “mismarriage” under German domestic and state law. The term “mismarriage” was used to emphasise the impending catastrophe it would cause in the Hohenzollern dynasty.¹⁰ Wilhelm’s elder brother, who had supported the match, accused von Raumer of scheming, and wrote,  “I confess freely and openly that I wholeheartedly desire William and Elisa’s union, as long as I am not proven wrong by history.”¹¹ The Crown Prince devoted considerable time to his brother’s predicament and became a student of Prussian history as he sought an answer.¹²

In September 1822, Wilhelm travelled to Italy with his younger brother, Charles. It did not take his mind off Elisa, and he wrote to his sister Charlotte, “With all that is glorious and beautiful, Eternity is constantly before my eyes; oh! if only I could share these delights with her!” ¹³ On Elisa’s 19th birthday, he wrote to her parents, “Elisa has become indispensable to my happiness.”¹⁴

Meanwhile, the Radziwiłłs decided not to return to Berlin in 1823. Elisa’s parents were done with the gossip and indecisiveness.¹⁵ Wilhelm himself noted his father’s sudden aversion to his relationship with Elisa.¹⁶ Rather than returning to Berlin, the family moved to the governor’s palace in Poznań in May. Elisa loved Poland and the Polish people, and she wrote, “For my part, I am infinitely moved by the general sympathy and warmth I have found here. It has bound me to Poznań in a way I never would have imagined in my childhood. Back then, the people I now recognise and love as fellow countrymen, and will never cease to love, were still strangers to my heart.” She began taking Polish lessons and added Polish words to her letters. She sang Polish songs with her newfound friends, Isabelle Brzostowska and Constance von Zablocka.¹⁷

In Berlin, Wilhelm waited for Elisa’s return. He was reintroduced to Princess Marie of Hesse-Kassel, but she was not Elisa. He wrote to his sister, “The more I see Marie, the more one must appreciate and love her, but how different she is from Ewig [Elisa]! The intimate and profound feeling that always shows in her and gives her such great loveliness is not present in Marie. More and more I feel that only Elisa possesses and can possess my heart. May God finally bring it to me!!!”¹⁸

Part four coming soon.

1. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.69
2. Prinz Wilhelm von Preussen an Charlotte: Briefe 1817-1860 p.76-80
3. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.70
4. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.78
5. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.78
6. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.81
7. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.84
8. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.90
9. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.93
10. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.93
11. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.94
12. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.110
13. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.96
14. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.98
15. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.99
16. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.99
17. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.102
18. Auf der ganzen Welt nur sie die verbotene Liebe zwischen Prinzessin Elisa Radziwiłł und Wilhelm von Preußen by Dagmar von Gersdorff p.106