Klik på en miniature for at gå til Google Books
Indlæser... Hermine : an Empress in exile, the untold story of the Kaiser's second wife (udgave 2021)af Moniek Bloks (Forfatter)
Work InformationHermine: An Empress in Exile: The Untold Story of the Kaiser's Second Wife af Moniek Bloks
Ingen Indlæser...
Bliv medlem af LibraryThing for at finde ud af, om du vil kunne lide denne bog. Der er ingen diskussionstråde på Snak om denne bog. ingen anmeldelser | tilføj en anmeldelse
Hermine Reuss of Greiz is perhaps better known as the second wife of the Kaiser (Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany) whom she married shortly after the death of his first wife Auguste Viktoria and while he was in exile in the Netherlands. She was by then a widow herself with young children. She was known to be ambitious about wanting to return to power, and her husband insisted on her being called 'Empress'. To achieve her goal, she turned to the most powerful man in Germany at the time, Adolf Hitler. Unfortunately, her dream was not realised as Hitler refused to restore the monarchy and with the death of Wilhelm in 1941, Hermine was forced to return to her first husband's lands. She was arrested shortly after the end of the Second World War and would die under mysterious circumstances while under house arrest by the Red Army. No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsIngen
Google Books — Indlæser... GenrerMelvil Decimal System (DDC)943.084092History and Geography Europe Germany and central Europe Historical periods of Germany Germany 1866- Frederick 1888; William II 1888-1918; Great war 1914-19 and downfall of empireLC-klassificeringVurderingGennemsnit:
Er det dig?Bliv LibraryThing-forfatter. |
My knowledge of European monarchs in history is not the strongest, so I had never realized the last German emperor had a second wife. It was even more of an astonishment when I learned of the age gap between them. I found it fascinating to read how Hermine had a childhood crush on the emperor before she married her first husband.
When the books outlined how they met and the emperor proposed, I didn’t think she was ambitious when she hesitated. I was offended on her behalf that her engagement present from the kaiser was a picture of his dead, first wife. Clearly, he was not ready for another marriage. But, as history shows through letters and her own actions, Hermine was eager for the emperor to be restored to the German throne, even currying favor with the rising Nazi power.
I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her when her world came crashing down. The kaiser dies, and she returns to her first husband’s lands. Then, she flees from the approaching army during World War II. Then, at the end of the war, she is held under house arrest and then dies under mysterious circumstances.
The history of Hermine is laid out in an easy-to-read way. The German names were a bit of a muddle to get through sometimes, and I couldn’t easily remember who was who. Still, it was a fascinating read.
I would recommend this to readers who enjoy reading about people from history. ( )