The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-08-26
WOMEN OF MILITARY RANK
QUITE A NUMBER OF COLONELS
AMONG THE ROYAL LADIES
OF EUROPE
ONE OF KAISER W1LHELMs JOYS
1t Is to Bestow Commissions Upon
Ladies He Wishes to Honor
Ornamental Adiuncts
of Army.

! Whenever their country needs them the
women of the United States have always
| been ready with bandages and the var1-
! Gus bric-a-brac of camp life to follow the
! soldier to the front, or they have elected
to stay at home and furnish the money TO
! buy comforts for the brave boys hght1nS
! there. and a grateful country has repaid
them with testimonials and badges, but
! it has never entered into the thoughts
of American distributors of military hon
ors to confer upon these deserving women
| commissions in the army in recognition
| of their services. And yet, how well they
would have become the honor" and
| what pretty colonies and captains they
would have made. Imagine Helen GOu.d,
| for instance, as the colonel of a rough
| rider regiment, wearing a natty khaki
| uniform and Teddy Roosevelt hat, and
| there are many others who would make
! just as fine soldiers. Down in Kentucky
| there are few colonies among the ladies'
| but the number is not nearly so large as
| it ought to be If such things went by de-
sert in the United States. In European
| countries there are quite a number of
royal colonies, the honor of a military
commission being confined, however, al
most exclusively to women Of the Hohen-
zollern family.
Kaiser Wilhelm is very fond Of bestow-
ing the commission of colonel upon the Ia
dies whom he delights to honor, and they
enter into the royal pastime with all the
| zest and appreciation which he could de-
sire. His royal grandmother, Queen Vic
| torfa, has the honor Of being a colonel of
| Frussian regiment, the First dragoon
| guards, and right proud is she of having
been nominated to the position. Her maj
| esty mas never had uniform made, al
| though If she were younger she would no
| doubt wear one. She IS much Interested
| in the Prussian regiment, and would Ike
| 10 nave the pleasure of inspecting 1t at
| Berlin. The Duchess of Connaught is an
other OF the English royal family who
| holds military rank, she being colonel of
the infantry Brandenburg regiment, No.
! o4, which bears her fathers name The
duchess has uniform of her regiment,
and whenever she goes to Germany she
| wears it,
The beautiful Empress Alexander Eco
| doreVna, Of Russia, who is the mother of
| SO many pretty, but too numerous, girl
| babies, Is one of the royal ladies to
| Whom the kaiser has extended the cour-
| tesies of hts army, appointing her colonel
or the Second PrusSian dragon guards,
which bears her name. In her own coun-
| try the empress is also colonel of a Rus
sian rigemtn, the Grand lancers and 1t
Is to be hoped that she finds time to at
! tend to her military duties. Her moth
er-tr law, the dowager empress, is quite
an old soldier, having had many military
| honors thrust upon her She Is at the
| head Of the Imperial Russian Chevalier
| guards. the Second guard cuirassiers the
Thirty second dragons and the Forty
sixth dragon regiment, and she is, be-
sides, an honorary admiral of the Rus
| sian feet.
| The Empress Frederick commands the
I Second guard hussars. regiment given
to her soon after her marriage by Kaiser
| Wilhelm: l.. and the beautiful English
| girl presented pretty picture as she
| proudly at the head of her regiment led
1t past the saluting point on inspection
days. But she is more interested in the
later days of her life in a regiment given
to her by her son. the Eightieth fusiliers,
| Homberg, because from her home in
Cronberg she can often go over to the
reviews or invite the officers and their
wives to some festivity, which is always
| as Informal as a family meeting
l. But the dowagers and older ladies' are
! not the only colonies in the kaser's ar
my for he has bestowed the rank upon a
! princess or two and Of the youngest
and prettiest Of his soldiers is the little
| queen OF Holland, Queen Wilhelmine,
| who is chief Of the Fifteenth hussars her
mother being colonel of the Prussian in
| fantry regiment of Prince Friedrich. of
| the Netherlands
I The women who have succeeded in max
| Ing themselves look best in their mill
| tary uniforms are perhaps the Empress
Frederick, who has modified the hat I'M
| til it is very becoming, and Queen Mar
garet of Italy, wife Of the late King
! Humbert. She Is said to present quite
d soldiery appearance as she rides forth
at the head of jaeger Battalion No. II.
| The hat Is especially becoming but that
! is because the queen has arranged it to
her own taste. as no military chapeau,
| as a man conceived IT, could ever posi-
bly, be worn to advantage by woman.
The mothers of the Duchess of Con-
i naught and the Duchess of Baden are
| other dowageF princesses who have regi-
ments in Germany.
One of the most efficient Of the femala
! officers of the German army is the Grand
| Duchess of Hesse vino is a splendid
| horsewoman and very soldierly in her
! bearing. She loves to inspect her regi-
ment and usually attends the review and
! takes great interest in the maneuyers.
At the imperial maneuvers at Homburg
| two years ago the colonel was fire.
quepty to be seen riding about the field
| in her uniform, which Is her prettiest
dress
The Grand Duchess Of Mecklenburg-
Schwerin is a Russian grand duchess by
birth, and consequently eligible to rank
in the Russian army. The Duchess of
Saxe-C oburg- Gotha is also a colonel In a
Russian regiment.
In Russia women's right are recog-
nized at least as far as the royal family
is concerned, for all the imperial princes
ses receive regiments after marriage as
we'll as the wives OF the cars sons The
colonies among the ladies in the royal
family Include the empress, the dowager
empress, the Grand Duchess Vladimir.
the Duchess of Coburg, the Grand
Duchess of Nenis. the Grand Duchess
Serge. the Duchess Vera of Wurternburg.
the Grand Duchess Alexandra Joseph
owna, and the Grand Duchess of Meek
Ienburg-Schwerin
UPon the whole, the lady colonels must
be regarded as largely ornamental adj
juncts of the regiment. but they are ex.
pected to become acquainted with the Of
hcers, and 1t is safe to say that although
they MAY not be up in the manual of
arms they are to he depended upon 10
tell with the truest instinct whether their
brother officers are nice fellows Or not
| and if they are rot the lady colonel viii
sec to 1t that some more desirable office,
is appointed.
TIE sisters of the emperor Of GERMANY
are, three of them, colonies, and the
fourth it is rumored will soon be an
pointed to a regiment in which she win
| H1iSh