Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria and Stéphanie of Belgium - 10 May 1881

[Blog Real]

In Vienna, on 10 May 1881, Rudolf married Princess Stéphanie of Belgium, a daughter of King Leopold II of the Belgians, at the Augustinian's Church in Vienna.
Her parents walked her down the aisle. Among the illustrious attendees were the future King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and his nephew, the future German Emperor Wilhelm II. In honour of the nuptials, which were celebrated lavishly throughout Austria, the Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa named asteroid 220 Stephania in her honour in 1881, commemorating the union. After the ceremony, the couple honeymooned at Laxenburg outside the capital.

Official engagement photo of Crown Prince Rudolf and Princess Stéphanie of Belgium (1881)
Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Official engagement photograph of the Imperial couple, 1881
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...and_Rudolf.jpg/220px-Stéphanie_and_Rudolf.jpg

 

[Fürstin Taxis]

The marriage started very happy, a pity how it ended :/

 

[CyrilVladisla]

It was interesting to learn that King Leopold II and Queen Marie Henriette together walked Stephanie down the aisle.
Magnifique engagement photographs!!
​

At the palace banquet at the Hofburg Palace, dinner guests of Rudolf and Stephanie's enjoyed the sounds of Eduard Strauss's especially composed waltz Schleier und Krone (Veil and Crown).

At the imperial wedding banquet of May 9, 1881, stuffed woodcocks garnished with truffles and cocks' combs and an elaborate pudding of sliced pig's kidney with prunes steeped in red wine were served.

The wedding dress of Princess Stephanie in color
1881 Wedding of Crown Princess/Archduchess Stephanie | Grand Ladies | gogm

 

[Curryong]

I've read that Sisi commented, when Stephanie was first mooted as a bride for Rudolf, something on the lines of ' So, we need another of that family!' an allusion of course to the tragic Empress Charlotte/Carlotta, wife of Maximilian.

I think Rudolf and Stephanie were quite happy at first, but she was very unsophisticated and the couple had little in common. It was tragic that Stephanie became barren due to Rudolf's sexual misbehaviour. If they had managed a couple of sons as well as their daughter things might not have been so dire after Rudolf's death. Franz Ferdinand may not have been assassinated at Sarajevo.

 

[maria-olivia]

The most glory and the most sad Wedding of our Royal Family. And when she find a kind Man to be her second husband, all her Austrian tittles were deleted .

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Court ball on the occasion of the wedding of Crown Prince Rudolph and Stephanie of Belgium.
http://www.gettyimages.com/license/143112631

 

[Tarlita]

At the imperial wedding banquet of May 9, 1881, stuffed woodcocks garnished with truffles and cocks' combs and an elaborate pudding of sliced pig's kidney with prunes steeped in red wine were served.

My goodness I am glad i wasn't there. Nothing on this menu sounds good to me. And not a Maccas in sight if you were still hungry on the way home in 1881.

You have been busy Cyril digging up wonderful old photos. Thanks for the links.

 

[Kataryn]

At the imperial wedding banquet of May 9, 1881, stuffed woodcocks garnished with truffles and cocks' combs and an elaborate pudding of sliced pig's kidney with prunes steeped in red wine were served.

The first dish seems to be a reverence to Belgian cooking (very much influenced by French recipes - truffles and cock's combs are typical for that, while the second dish is more Austrian - the Viennese cooking is really fond of offal!

 

[CyrilVladisla]

My goodness I am glad i wasn't there. Nothing on this menu sounds good to me. And not a Maccas in sight if you were still hungry on the way home in 1881.

You have been busy Cyril digging up wonderful old photos. Thanks for the links.

Thank you, Tarlita! Illustrations are helpful when the camera as we know it was not available.

 

[CyrilVladisla]

What became of the beautiful lace wedding veil that was handmade for Princess Stephanie? Did her daughter Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria inherit it?

 

[CyrilVladisla]

The wedding veil of Princess Stephanie of Belgium
http://www.womenshistory.si.edu/object/nmah_625575

 

[SirGyamfi1]

The wedding veil of Princess Stephanie of Belgium
http://www.womenshistory.si.edu/object/nmah_625575

So the jewelry collector, Marjorie Merriwether Post bought it?

 

[SirGyamfi1]

The most glory and the most sad Wedding of our Royal Family. And when she find a kind Man to be her second husband, all her Austrian tittles were deleted .

Well I’m sure she understood the rules that if she married a lowly ranked nobleman, then she would lose her titles. But she has many descendants living today.