The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-10-01
CHARLOTTE OF BRUNSWICK.

CHARLOTTE OF BRUNSWICK.
One of the saddest tragedies, if it be
one, one of the strangest mysteries, if it
be one, dimly recorded in historic an
nails, is that of the Princess Charlotte
Sophia, of Brunswick. The story, though
an old one, is still but little known, even
| in the dOminiOns of the empire. The
new light which a recent Russian writer
has let in upon the facts has induced us
to recall them at the present time.
| On the 9th of January, 1889, the Gar
| Peter the Great was married, somewhat
against his will, to Ewdokija FeodOrowna
Lapuchin, the daughter of powerful
Russian noble. On the 18th of February
of the following year, his eldest child,
| Alexis PetrOwitsch, was born and bap-
| tiled.
Owing to the absence of maternal care
Peter, having quarreled with his spouse
over a serious affair, had banished her to
a convent very soon after marriage-the
prince Alexis was left to himself, and
until his thirteenth year, was almost
wholly neglected. During this interval,
his mind lost all sense of decency and
respect, and his unrestricted mode of liv
ing entailed upon him some of the worst
of habits. When, at length, he was en-
trusted to the care of a learned German,
Henry Huyssen, he made but small pro-
gress in the way of improvement. Euclid
and algebra were found to be i'll suited
to his wild and willful nature. But the
poor tutor cOmbatted with the difficult
ties of his position about ten years. and
then surrendered his princely pupil in
disgust.
Meanwhile, the ear, who seems not to
have been able to keep out of matrimOny,
had taken secretly unto himself another
spouse, the daughter of a poor woman,
and already famed as much for her mod
est department as for her attractive
beauty. Nothing was more common in
Russia and in all the Asiatic kingdoms
than marriages between sOvereignS and
their subjects; but that an impoverished
stranger, who had been discovered amid
the ruins of plundered town, should
become the absolute sovereign of that
very empire into which she was led cap
tive, is an incident which fortune and
merit have never before produced in the
annals of the world. The charming cap
tive, whose name was Martha, thus be-
came, after her elevation to rank, Cath
arine l. of Russia.
1t was quite natural that the future
empress should wish to secure to her own
children the right of succession to the
| throne To reach this end, she poisoned
the mind of the car against his eldest
son, in consequence of which, Herr
Huyssen was ordered to give an account
of the intellectual progress Of his pupil
OF course the report which he made was
untavOrable; whereupOn the tutor was
sent back to Germany, and the prince
was banished into the interior of Russia
Here the latter demeaned himself with so
much unreasOn that his imperial sire
resolved to marry him forthwith.
An ambassador was sent to Germany
intrusted with the delicate mission of
reporting on the charms of all the high
born maidens of the Rhine-land. The
list was forwarded to the court, and the
| creme de la creme being selected by the
car, were honored with invitations to
appear personally before him. OF course
he reserved the right of rejecting all
bidders.
In this matrimonial game money was
no object; but beauty, grace, and mental
culture, were everything. Those who
were so fortunate as not to be chosen
the gifts of diamond necklaces and rings,
as compensation for their trouble. His
maiestv's choice fell upon the Princess
Charlotte Sophia, of Brunswick Olfen-
butteI. daughter of Duke Louis, the
head of a branch line of the reigning
| house of Brunswick. Accordingly, the
nuptials were celebrated at Targow, iii
the palace of the queen of Poland, on the
Sth pf h-IH
was in his twenty-secOnd year, the bride
in her eighteenth.
The Princess Charlotte was one of
those soft and dreamy beauties, with fair
| blue eyes, and head full of romance, so
often met with in Germany. At the
time Of her marriage she was little more
than child in years, and none the. less
so in manners and modes of thought.
Alexis, on the contrary, was wholly given
up to low, sensual pleasures, and mean,
vicious company. At their earliest in
| terview he had conceived an antipathy
to his betrOthed, and had no desire at all
to marry.
As might have been expected under
such circumstances, there was no love
wasted between the young couple. From
a state of Indifference the prince lapsed
into one of savagery, and on every occa-
sion he did not hesitate to act toward his
wife in the most brutal manner When,
at length, he received into his palace a
former mistress, by the name of Eufro-
sine, and his wife made complaints to
the car, the prince was sorely enraged,
and beat the princess most cruelty. A
chastisement in return from the car only
made the affair worse Charlotte, daily
in tears, regretted her sorrowful plight,
and longed to be released from her brut-
ish lord She even wrote to her father,
Duke Louis, entreating him to take steps