Elisabeth of Bavaria was only fifteen years old when, accompanied by her stern mother, she was dispatched to Vienna to marry the Emperor of Austria, Franz Joseph.
She entered the city in the Imperial Carriage, the awesome structure with wheels taller than an average human. The carriage in question is now part of the collection in the Schönbrunn Palace. The accompanying display tells the story of how the young princess got into some difficulty trying to exit the carriage: she knocked her crown on the top of the door.
She saw this as a bad omen and burst into tears, and thus arrived into her new home sobbing her heart out.
I suspect she was also crying because she knew: as soon as she was installed into her appartments, her mother would seek her out, carrying the ebony hairbrush, with which the princesses of Bavaria were so familiar.
In a few days Elisabeth would become the Empress Consort, but for now she was still in her mother’s power, and her display in front of the gawking commoners had been disgraceful. Bent over her mother’s lap, the princess would be spanked soundly and mercilessly, for what she hoped would be the last time in her life.
Interestingly, later in life Elisabeth was responsible for abolishing corporal punishment in the Austrian army. Compassion can be a great tool for rulers. Perhaps, her mother had thought about this too.
The girl has my sympathy – thank goodness I don’t live in an age where being clumsy gets you spanked. I’d never sit down – Just to prove a point, I have just fallen UP my stairs. Only really stupid people do that.
Oh, Eliane, it’s much wiser to fall up the stairs than to fall down them. Sounds like a good idea to me.