tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post1775872416634765589..comments2023-07-08T20:30:18.584+01:00Comments on Grand Duchess Elizabeth And Other Stories: Happy Birthday, Kaiser WilhelmChristinahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00714569232976515363noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-84342517660355467062012-07-17T19:34:19.549+01:002012-07-17T19:34:19.549+01:00Thank you, Isabela. I'm sorry to be so late in...Thank you, Isabela. I'm sorry to be so late in uploading your comment. I only just saw it! Thank you for visiting!!Christinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00714569232976515363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-43052798618149866822012-06-22T00:52:22.140+01:002012-06-22T00:52:22.140+01:00Touching. You are really changing my mind about hi...Touching. You are really changing my mind about him- I read an old biography who speaks so badly about him. He is not bad... just complicated, I guess.Isabelahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03566685217568865233noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-58100852985378097842011-02-01T22:33:24.048+00:002011-02-01T22:33:24.048+00:00I agree, Tracey. The trauma to his arm was caused ...I agree, Tracey. The trauma to his arm was caused by doctors shaking and pulling at him during and just after his birth - probably because he wasn't breathing and was deprived of oxygen. There is such a lot more to this than first meets the eye, isn't there?<br />(As soon as there is more time, I hope to post more about his childhood...and huis relationship with his mother). Thank you for your comment - it is greatly appreciated :-)Christinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00714569232976515363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-81663456096615391662011-02-01T20:26:52.413+00:002011-02-01T20:26:52.413+00:00Some have speculated that the lengthy and complica...Some have speculated that the lengthy and complicated birthing process that Willie went through may have resulted in a loss of oxygen to the brain for a brief period, possibly exaplaining some of his future personality "quirks". Certainly the monstorous treatments he was made to suffer in his early years for his arm had a long lasting psychological effect on him.Traceyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00170846623350319539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-13936106116563689362011-01-31T16:19:15.147+00:002011-01-31T16:19:15.147+00:00Thank you for your comment. My fascination with hi...Thank you for your comment. My fascination with him is partly due to research I am carrying out for a new book, and partly because I think, like many other historical people, he has been painted rather one-dimensionally whereas I think there was a lot more too him. Extreme characters (saints and 'sinners') do fascinate me...and they seldom turn out to be quite as black or white as first presented.<br />The second part of your comment (about his upbringing) inspired a whole series of thoughts, about which I intend to post later. Thank you!!Christinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00714569232976515363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-22161557801679890972011-01-31T16:19:09.563+00:002011-01-31T16:19:09.563+00:00Thank you for your comment. My fascination with hi...Thank you for your comment. My fascination with him is partly due to research I am carrying out for a new book, and partly because I think, like many other historical people, he has been painted rather one-dimensionally whereas I think there was a lot more too him. Extreme characters (saints and 'sinners') do fascinate me...and they seldom turn out to be quite as black or white as first presented.<br />The second part of your comment (about his upbringing) inspired a whole series of thoughts, about which I intend to post later. Thank you!!Christinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00714569232976515363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-2372942467515571102011-01-29T21:53:03.769+00:002011-01-29T21:53:03.769+00:00Your fascination with the Kaiser fascinates me, Ch...Your fascination with the Kaiser fascinates me, Christina. His parents were a happy marriage, so I don't know why he became such a complicated character. On the other hand, Emperor Karl grew up in a broken home, his father being an unfaithful husband and his mother a very strict and monotonous woman. That clearly shows that it's up to every person to decide what kind of human being she or he wants to become in life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-17612514490974053952011-01-28T23:56:19.527+00:002011-01-28T23:56:19.527+00:00Thank you for your comment and this interesting in...Thank you for your comment and this interesting information about Marie Jose’s anniversary. I know so little about her (I tend to stop paying attention after 1918,and ought to correct that!). It’s no wonder she felt as she did about the Kaiser and his army - who wouldn’t in such circumstances, seeing foreign troops marching through your peaceful land? – and I think, on reflection, the Kaiser himself would have understood that. I must find out more about this lady....and I am sure that the ‘Cross of Laeken’ blog is the best place to go for that :-)Christinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00714569232976515363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190794791790101691.post-73725636230027217582011-01-28T00:50:05.172+00:002011-01-28T00:50:05.172+00:00I was touched by this post. Thank you. That last p...I was touched by this post. Thank you. That last photograph is very sad, indeed, but he also looks wiser and more thoughtful there.<br /><br />It's interesting that today is Kaiser Wilhelm's birthday, because today is also the anniversary of the death of Queen Marie-José of Italy, who was the daughter of King Albert of Belgium. It's rather odd to think that Wilhelm and Marie-José are in some way connected by these important dates in their lives, since, as a little girl, during World War I, M-J was vehemently hostile to the Kaiser and to anything German (although her own family, of course, was of German, and partly Hohenzollern descent). It's natural that she should have taken this attitude, since her country had been attacked by the Kaiser's armies and at her age, she saw things in a very black-and-white way, as children tend to do. But in the end, I suppose, she had some experiences in common with Wilhelm--loss, sorrow, dethronement and exile...Mayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18230268418171628594noreply@blogger.com