We had to move on to Prague again.
Metternich’s body was to be taken to Plasy in Bohemia, where his estate lay, and buried there.
Since it was on our way, we decided to escort the funeral procession and make a show of paying due respect to the last loyal servant.
“Won’t you be tired? Leaving as soon as the funeral Mass is over…”
Inside the carriage, Joseph studied my complexion as he asked.
It was something we had to do anyway.
At the front of the long procession was the black carriage in which Metternich slept; behind it followed the gold-painted carriage carrying the two of us.
A giant of the past returns to the earth, and the young emperor goes to don a crown.
“If we stop by Plasy and then go to Prague, the schedule will be tight. I wonder if the preparations for the coronation are complete.”
“Don’t worry. Count Thun will have prepared it with his life on the line.”
Leo von Thun. Former governor of Bohemia, and now Minister of Education.
He was a man with a knack for soothing Bohemian nationalists.
This coronation had been strongly influenced by my wishes, but he was the one handling the practical work.
We took the train as far as the Bohemian border, then changed back into carriages.
Except for Gyulai and Count Buol, Archduchess Sophie’s people kept their places for the time being.
Contrary to the fierce power struggles going on beneath the surface, from the outside Austria still looked strong.
If we had lost Milan, I might have been able to drive them all out… But it was dangerous to provoke nobles drunk on victory.
Still, I cut off the tail. Gyulai was far too incompetent, and Count Buol fell from power after clashing with Joseph over the Crimean War and the Second Italian War of Independence.
Buol had gone as ambassador to Britain, hadn’t he?
“When I go to Britain, I’ll be seeing Count Buol again.”
“If it makes you uncomfortable, shall I have him sent to Rome instead?”
“No. I may dislike him, but we should make use of his abilities.”
The fact that he was thoroughly anti-Russian meant, paradoxically, that he suited British tastes perfectly.
“He has strong pro-British leanings, so he should be quite useful in London.”
Unless someone was incompetent, there was no reason to strip him of every authority. They said politics was the place where today’s enemy became tomorrow’s comrade.
Besides, there was no need to force my own people into positions right now. If we were defeated in the coming war between brothers… the decisive battle with Prussia, then the responsibility would have to fall squarely on the commanders and the cabinet.
“When will you go to London?”
I had originally planned to go two years from now.
“Once the coronation is over, I intend to go in advance and speak with Prince Albert.”
Because, aside from the Grand Duchy of Baden, we needed to arrange the southern German states around us.
The Grand Duke of Baden’s father-in-law was Wilhelm I, who would later become Kaiser of the German Empire.
“Prince Albert is pro-Prussian, isn’t he? He probably dislikes us Habsburgs as old-fashioned.”
He certainly had pro-Prussian tendencies, but that was only because he did not know Prussia well, so it did not matter.
If Bismarck appeared, he would have no choice but to realize it too.
“That is why I’m going. Do you know what my nickname is?”
“My angel?”
… This man, really.
He gets worse by the day.
Does Joseph find my reactions entertaining?
“Try giving even half the attention you give me to your subjects.”
“That is impossible. The attention I give you is not enough as it is.”
I had no choice but to shake my head, but I could not hide the laughter that seeped out of me either.
I should ask Esterházy whom Joseph has been exchanging letters with lately….
Joseph looked outside and composed his expression.
“We will arrive soon.”
Before we took the Royal Route, I checked my makeup with a hand mirror and changed carriages.
My appearance is neat, and the dress is perfect too.
Along the hem of the red velvet dress, linden leaves—the symbol of Bohemia—were woven in silver thread.
In the Austrian Empire, with its keen sensitivity to national sentiment, even such clothing mattered.
A large crowd had already gathered on Charles Bridge.
“Sláva! Long live Their Majesties, the King and Queen of Bohemia!”
Cheers mingled in Czech and German reached us from far away.
Toward Joseph poured deep cries filled with respect and loyalty, but what poured toward me was fervor.
Pure admiration and praise.
I slowly turned my head toward the citizens and waved at the angle I had practiced. Not too lightly, but not so much that it looked arrogant.
The feeling of thousands, tens of thousands of gazes focusing on me.
I had felt it in Venice too… but this thrilling sensation was pleasant no matter how many times I experienced it.
“Sisi, people are looking only at you.”
“Are you jealous?”
“Of course not.”
We were each popular in different realms.
If Joseph was the idol of the soldiers, I was the one loved by the subjects.
This was why Joseph looked for me every time he went on an imperial tour.
When the carriage passed the statue set in the center of the bridge, we slowed as agreed.
Joseph and I made the sign of the cross before the statue of Saint John of Nepomuk, then set off again.
“Long live His Majesty, our Emperor!”
A cheer slightly different from the one before rang out.
“… Where on earth did you learn such things?”
Who knows?
“I was born with it.”
After all, I had chosen a profession whose work was to be loved by the public.
Perhaps it was because I had been an actress. More than fan meetings in Venice, I liked acting according to a procedure laid out like this.
The carriage picked up speed again and began climbing the hill.
The final stretch toward St. Vitus Cathedral.
Now the outward show was over.
“You said it was only natural to keep a promise.”
Joseph was still uncertain whether holding the coronation was right or not.
I should give him a little more certainty.
“In exchange for raising the pride of the Bohemians, we gain the most loyal taxpayers and soldiers.”
Joseph could not reply to my words.
In reality, it was the industrial regions of Bohemia that accounted for more than half of the empire’s finances. The truth was that the nobles of Vienna were dancing with the taxes they paid.
We got down from the carriage at the cathedral entrance, took each other’s hands, and walked down the long corridor.
That is the Crown of Saint Wenceslas, the symbol of Bohemia.
According to legend, if one unworthy wears that crown, he dies within a year.
As we knelt before the altar and waited, Cardinal Schwarzenberg began the anointing rite for Joseph.
“Almighty God, anoint Your servant Franz Joseph—”
The right hand, the head, and both shoulders.
When Joseph’s anointing was complete, he placed the Crown of Saint Wenceslas upon his head.
“Te Deum laudamus!”
… Do I have to study Latin too?
Next, the cardinal bestowed a blessing upon me.
“Lord, grant Your grace to Your handmaiden Elisabeth.”
I was simply anointed lightly on the right shoulder and arm, and that was the end of it.
A crown smaller than the one Joseph wore, but set with diamonds and rubies.
“As Queen of Bohemia, receive the crown of glory.”
The cardinal stepped back, and I rose from my seat and turned around.
All the nobles and clergy inside the cathedral bowed their heads at once.
I slowly moved my feet and sat upon the queen’s throne placed beside Joseph’s.
Joseph looked at me with a gaze mixed with relief and admiration. Though his forehead, shiny from the oil, looked a little comical.
“I am asking just in case.”
“Asking what?”
Joseph and I whispered softly to each other.
“The coronation. I asked whether you intend to wear other crowns as well.”
Of course I must.
I merely lifted the corners of my mouth ever so slightly, not enough for him to notice.
How many are left?
Only about two more places now, aren’t there?
Hungary and Lombardy-Venetia, and that will be the end.
“Shall I wear the Reichskrone too?”
At my joke, Joseph laughed it off lightly.
My hypnosis was a magic that worked only on the subjects of the empire.
It would have been nice if it worked on Napoleon or Bismarck too.
“Do not run away from this banquet. You must attend.”
… I really hate this.
***
“Bertie.”
Prince Albert called his son without taking his eyes off the enormous bird’s-eye plan spread across the desk.
“Yes, Father.”
“The Empress of Austria will be arriving in London before long.”
“The Empress of Austria, sir?”
Bertie’s voice rose for a moment, then crawled back down under Prince Albert’s glare.
“Yes. This Expo must surpass the Crystal Palace of ’51. Merely exhibiting machines and goods will not be enough.”
He wanted symbols that would captivate people.
Eugénie and Elisabeth, the hottest icons in Europe at the moment.
“When the Empress comes, reporters from all over Europe will flock to London. Her dress, her manner of speaking, every exhibit she looks at will become publicity.”
“I have heard that the sensation she caused in Vienna was remarkable as well.”
Bertie played along as seriously as he could, but his mind was filled with other thoughts.
‘Who should I meet and have fun with today?’
“I will be busy preparing for the exhibition and assisting Her Majesty the Queen, so you will take charge of escorting her.”
“I will, sir?”
“You will be able to converse more easily with her than stiff old me. Escort the Empress and guide her around the exhibition grounds and the sights of London.”
“I will keep it in mind. I will do nothing to disgrace Britain.”
“Good. But do not become too close. For your sister Vicky’s sake as well.”
“Understood.”
As soon as Bertie left the study, he let out an inward cheer.
He could not have cared less about his boring father’s toys.
The Empress of Austria was a legitimate opportunity to escape this suffocating Windsor Castle and his parents’ nagging.
‘Familiarize myself with the exhibits? Ha. If I have time for that, I’d rather go out and have fun.’
Bertie hummed to himself as he waited for Sisi to arrive.
“Did they say she already has four children?”
He imagined a figure similar to his mother’s.
Queen Victoria had grown stout as she bore many children too. That was the dignity of an imperial woman and the symbol of fertility.
A typical German queen, wearing a solemn expression and doing nothing but lecturing.
‘I’ll escort her half-heartedly, then make some excuse about having a headache and go to the club.’
Since there were rumors that she disliked banquets, he thought Sisi would also want him to escort her only moderately.