Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-25
Uncrowned Consorts
Continued from page 8

to the altar. The woman in the case was Caro-
line Won Linsngen, daughter of the Hanoverian
General OF that name. Their marriage, of
which documentary proofs exist, was cele-
brated secretly and morganatlcally on August
II, 1901, at Hanover. A year later William
was summoned to England, and during his
absence Caroline was seized with a sudden
and somewhat mysterious illness, which Gull
minated in cataleptic trance. The royal doc
tors pronounced her dead, and she was pre-
laid in an open coffin, surrounded by huge
lighted candelabra and flowers in accordance
with the German fashion,.
Three days later, when the coffin was about
to be closed a young doctor who had been
called into the case merely as an assistant of
his chief, one of the royal physicians, observed
that there were none of the customary signs
of approaching decomposition. and insisted
that further delay should take place before
the burial. by way of precautionary measure.
He succeeded in carrying his point only by
threatening to appeal to the public and after
several violent wrangles with the other medical
men The trance lasted for ten days and then
Caroline returned to life and was able to de-
scribe how she had been fully conscious, not
only of the preparations for her entombnent
but also Of the fight young DR.. Meinecke had
so successfully waged in her behalf.
Whether not she believed the story cur
rent in Hanover at the time, to the effect that
the doctors called in by her husband had been
interested in putting her out of the way. the
fact remains that she declined ever to see him
again, quietly obtained divorce. to which
he was a consenting party, not long afterward,
and thereupon Gin 1889 married her savior
DR.. Meinecke. with whom she lived happily
and left large family of children.
King Victor's Strenuous Spouse
D OSINA VERCELLANA, whom Victor
~ Emmanuel created Countess of Mirafori
in 1850, that is to say. some eight or nine years
after the birth of the two children with which
she presented him, cannot be said to have ex-
ercised any political influence upon that mon
ARCH either prior or subsequent to their mar
rage. In 1860. when their children were about
twenty, the King, having been seized with
very serious illness and believing that he was
about to die, allowed himself to be persuaded
by his spiritual adviser to legalize his rela-
tions with Rosina by means of a morganatic
marriage. Though he subsequently recovered,
there is no reason to believe that he ever re-
GREETED having made her his left-hand wife
She was woman of the peasant class, her
father being a trooper of the royal bodyguard,
and in her younger days possessed superb
beauty of a rather coarse order. She was alb
solutely without any education intellect,
entirely free from social ambitions. and,
far from having furthered the cause Of United
Italv may be said to have been opposed thereto.
In 1850 and the two following years. when,
after wars and instructions. Lombardy, Tus-
cany, Parma. Modena, and the Kingdom of
the two Sicilies were added to the dominions of
King Victor Emmanuel. she frequently ex-
pressed the opinion that Victor instead of
do better to look after what he has got. add