Chapter 439: African Chief Marriage
On the day of the wedding, Prince Carl, who came from Sigmaringen, took over the work of Archduke Ferdinand, and Archduke Ferdinand had to return to his daughter Karina. .
November 3, 1873.
The wedding time is at 10 a.m. at the St. Augustine Abbey Church. St. Augustine Abbey Church is the place where members of the Habsburg family were baptized and married. Historically, Queen Theresa was married here. .
Because the Hechingen royal family moved to East Africa, the wedding cannot completely follow the European process. After all, the Hechingen royal family cannot really invite so many distinguished guests to East Africa. It is not that they have no reception capacity. But the word Africa is enough to scare a group of people away.
The wedding car made Ernst complain a little. This kind of wedding car looked like the pumpkin car in the illustrations of Grimm's fairy tales he saw in his previous life. Although Ernst knew that this was normal in the West, his aesthetics naturally maintained the same as his previous life according to inertia. style.
“Karina!” Gentleman Ernst invited Karina to get into the wedding car, and then the wedding car started slowly.
Although she is still a little young, Karina has some opinions and is generally satisfied with Ernst. This is in line with the actual situation. Political marriages do not care about emotions. If you are familiar with the marriage partner, then It was also a bonus, and besides, Ernst was not ugly, his appearance was a little unremarkable, and he had no flaws.
The honor guard is composed of East Africa and Austria. Due to the restriction of tradition, the East African soldiers are also very flashy. The bright red dress does not bring out the appearance of the East African soldiers at all.
However, they will still have the opportunity to perform alone in the afternoon. Then they will all change into East African military uniforms and give the citizens of Vienna a little "head of state" style shock. You can say that "the head of state" is not good for this or that. The head of state's aesthetic view of the army is definitely in line with the public's stereotype of serious soldiers.
As the wedding car passed through the city, people on both sides surged and cheered. This wedding really aroused the enthusiasm of the citizens.
Subsequently, the carriage arrived at St. Augustine's Convent Church. As the guests arrived, accompanied by classical and elegant music, the wedding officially began. The couple began to complete the complicated ceremony under the watchful eyes of everyone, although after many rehearsals , Ernst was still a little nervous, so much so that he seemed to be a little stupid and let the Catholic bishop control him.
Theoretically speaking, Ernst was also a Catholic, but this was only theoretical. In fact, Ernst was an atheist.
But he was getting married today, so to give face to "God the old man", Ernst followed the Austrian aristocratic wedding process and made a complete set of prayer gestures (making a cross on his chest).
Then Princess Charlotte handed her daughter’s hand to Ernst. The 23-year-old Ernst and the 16-year-old Karina looked quite matched standing together, at least in appearance. Many gaps.
Ernst was not the only one who was nervous, but Karina was also nervous. The two of them said their wedding vows with some stumbling: "I sincerely beg God to let me not leave you, or let me follow you, because where can I go?" Wherever I go, I stay because of your stay. The one you love will become the one I love, yours. The Lord will also be my Lord. Where you die, I will be buried with you. Maybe the Lord asks me to do more, but no matter what happens, you will be by my side..."
"His Royal Highness Ernst, please put the ring on Princess Karina's hand." the cardinal said.
As an African chief, Ernst was most indispensable for low-grade gemstones such as diamonds. When Ernst took out the "blue diamond ring", all the women in the room focused their attention on it. It is so vulgar. , the highlight of aristocratic weddings is nothing more than comparison, competition for financial resources and power.
As early as the fifteenth century, Archduke Maximilian of Austria made an unwavering declaration of love to Mary with a diamond wedding ring. This was the advice given to him by his cronies at the time, and Maximilian also listened to it. That's why this ceremony was created. It is said that it has been passed down for hundreds of years.
Ernst's diamond ring is entirely made of natural diamonds carved in one piece. The ring surface maintains its basic shape and is simply trimmed and rounded, so it looks natural. It weighs 21 carats and shines under the light. Dazzling blue light.
This blue diamond was discovered in a diamond mine in the southeastern Great Lakes region. The designer of the diamond ring called it the "Blue Heart."
Princess Charlotte said to her husband, Archduke Ferdinand: "My dear, when you return to East Africa, ask Ernst if he still has such a blue diamond. It looks so beautiful, especially that one." A dazzling blue halo, I want one too.”
Archduke Ferdinand: “…”
…
In the afternoon, after the banquet, The military parade that the steely straight man Ernst loved so much finally began. He excitedly said to Karina: "Karina, believe me, the East African army will definitely give people a different viewing experience."
Karina: "..." "Brother Ernst! It seems you like the army very much?" Karina suspected that her husband was a war maniac.
“No, Karina, I just think that’s cool.”
“…”
Of course Ernst liked the army, But this was doomed when Ernst was a child in his previous life. He had almost no resistance to the well-disciplined army. This was a hobby, just like a businessman's love for money, which he could not extricate himself from.
Soon after the float parade ended, the East African honor guard appeared.
The main color of East African military uniforms is black, supplemented by gold and red as decorations. If it is pure black, it will not look refreshing enough (refer to the Soviet army and German army).
Three thousand people were divided into ten phalanxes, the first three phalanxes were cavalry, and the horses were rented from the Austrian Army.
"Ta...ta...ta!" The cavalry horses walked briskly through the narrow streets of Vienna. The infantry phalanx followed closely behind, and their military boots fell to the ground rhythmically, making a rhythmic sound.
As soon as the East African Army appeared, it attracted everyone's attention, not only the citizens of Vienna, but also the nobles from various European countries. Among them, Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia was particularly interested in the East African Army.
"The uniforms look completely different from those of the armies of other European countries. I have seen the uniforms of the Hechingen Military Academy during the German (Prussian) French War. They are indeed somewhat different from those of Prussia. However, the East African Army is obviously different from the Hechingen Military Academy. "
Everyone in Prussia knew that in order to colonize Africa, the royal family of Hechingen had previously set up a military academy in Hechingen to train military talents, so Frederick thought the clothing of the East African army was the same. It will be somewhat similar to the Hechingen Military Academy!
Alexander III said: "But this design is really eye-catching. You can see that their military uniforms also have obvious waistband designs, which can make soldiers look more upright."
As for Rudolph, he didn't say anything, but seeing the East African Army being so popular made him feel proud.
Unlike the young people, Franz said to Carol I: "It is unconventional. This kind of clothing must be uncomfortable to wear, and the color is not bright enough."
"This design is very distinctive, but I am more interested in their military steps. They are as neat and uniform as if they were measured with a ruler. Is there any unruly head-raising movement? Is it an African characteristic?" Carroll I said with a smile on the side.
From the perspective of Vienna citizens, they feel that the army in front of them is a bit oppressive. First of all, the black instinct gives people this impression. Secondly, the East African Army makes a heavy sound with every step on the stone street. All give people an impact. The people who had been cheering fell into silence because of the appearance of the East African Army, and the scene was a bit depressed.
But the surprise was yet to come, as the phalanx passed in front of the stands where Ernst and Karina were.
The East African soldier with a Dreiser rifle on his shoulder made a shaking movement with the bright bayonet stuck to his chest.
“One, two, three, four!”
"Crown Prince, long live your Royal Highness the Princess!"
"Chopping style! This feels right!" Ernst said to Karina with a smile.
Karina: "...", now she just wants to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.
(End of this chapter)