15 Thursday Jun 2017
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Today is the the 129th (only 129, how the world changes) anniversary of the untimely death of Frederick III and the ascension of Wilhelm II. You could say, and plenty have, that this heralded the end of Prussia, although I think laying the blame for WW1 on Kaiser Bill is a little too convenient.
14 Wednesday Jun 2017
Time for another Marwitz instalment, this time a couple of small, superstitious observations from 1806.
In the lead up to the war with Napoleon (der Pferdedieb), Berlin and the surrounding area were apparently shook up by the bad omen of the head of the statue of Bellona (Minerva) being blown off the top of the Zeughaus in a storm and crashing to the ground. It wasn’t restored until 1817. It’s the group on the left in the photo below.
Later in 1806 when Marwitz returned to his estate at Friedersdorf, badly neglected in his absence, there was a big fire, allegedly set by Gypsies. Almost all the stables were destroyed, apart from one, apparently saved by magic (Füßnote, Seite 160/161):
Ein kleiner Stall blieb mitten in der Brandstelle stehen. An selbigem stand ein Stock. Wie ich mich wunderte, das dieses kleine Ding von Holz und Stroh mitten in den Flammen unversehrt geblieben, sagte man mir:
“Ja, das macht der Stock!”
“Wie so?”
“Es kam ein alter Mann, sah das Feuer an, murmelte einige Worte setzte den Stock gegen den Stall, sprach: laßt den Stock da stehen! — und ging fort.”
— So viel war Wahr, der Stock stand da und der Stall war wunderbarer Weise nicht mitverbrannt.
Seems unlikely.
02 Friday Jun 2017
Posted in Books
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Hauptmann von Blumenstein, billeted with Marwitz in Dresden in 1805 seems like quite the character. Although stereotypically French (lively, quick-witted and educated, angeblich), he maintained nonetheless that Blumenstein was his real name.
After leaving France (where he served in the Royal Musketeers) because of the revolution he becomes a dedicated Prussian officer, complete with, if Marwitz’s transcription is anything to go by, a rather curious accent.
When the French garrison he was besieging at Glogau in 1813 wanted to negotiate, he refused to speak in French and made them use an interpreter:
Ick bin ein Deutscher! Ick verstehe der verfluchten Kerlen ihre Sprake nick. Wollen sie mit einem Deutschen Offizieren reden, können Deutsch lernen! Müssen wir wohl Französisch lernen, wenn nach Frankreich kommen!
Later he retired to a small estate near Breslau where he apparently speculated unsuccessfully with a new type of brick(?), and ended up on his uppers.
Aus dem Nachlasse Friedrich August Ludwig’s von der Marwitz, Volume 1, Pages 138-139.
01 Thursday Jun 2017
Tags
Books, collecting, german, geschichte, history, ideas, prussia
Today I received a copy of Der Tag ist Angebrochen! in the post, via AbeBooks as usual.
2nd edition, 1852, a little tatty but solid. I’m confident that it will provide the opportunity for a few more blogposts yet…
*Edit: Now sandwiched in my bookcase between Bismarck’s Gedanken und Erinnerungen and a book of his speeches. You can feel the spinning in the Bismark Mausoleum.
