Sissi or Elisabeth of Austria

Name: Elisabeth 

Birthdate: December 24th, 1837 in Bavaria
Death: September 10th, 1898 in Geneva, Switzerland

            I'm reading a biography about the empress of Austria-Hungary: the beautiful Elisabeth, aka Sissi (or Lizi or Sisi, depends on how you see it). The book was written by Egon Cesar Corti in the early 20^th century so just a few decades after Elisabeth's death.

                   Mind you, I've read many works on this famous woman (this one and this one among others), but that's probably the first time I'm reading a book emphasing so much on her beauty.

Since the book was published around 1936, it is not surprising that Corti remained quite discreet about a few aspects of Sissi's life: her horrendous honey moon, her cousin Ludwig II's allegded homosexuality, and some darker sides of the empress herself.

                       Indeed, she had numerous qualities (talk about it later) but she was also a human being with flows.

She was capricious, whimsical, selfish, self-centered, depressed, misanthrope, sometimes lazy, too much of a dreamer. 

Moreover, her beauty was maintained at a high price: she probably suffered from anorexia. At least in the book, Corti mentioned Sissi's obsession with not getting weight. “Valérie a même décidé Elisabeth à prendre des repas normaux. Ce ne fut pas sans difficulté- à chaque bouchée l'impératrice craignait de devenir 'comme un tonneau'. Crainte bien injustifiée! Elisabeth n'est plus svelte, elle est maigre; mais la crainte d'engraisser est chez elle une idée fixe. Au dire de Valérie, il n'y a pas moyen de lal luire faire sortir de la tête.” Translation: Valerie (her daughter) pushed Elisabeth to have normal lunches. It was not without difficulty; with each morsel, the empress was scared to become a “barrel”. That was quite unjustified! Elisabeth was no longer slim and slender; she was rather thin; but the fear of becoming fat was to her an obsession. According to Valerie's words, there was no way to make it disappear from her mind.

She found an outlet in practicing intense sports on repeated opportunities: it first started with horse-riding and then very long walks. The empress was one of the best riders ever. She rarely fell, and was able to gallop through very dangerous sites. Corti spoke about the fact her big sister Helene was the first to start horse-riding before completely ceasing this activity. She wasn't really talented in this sport and her little sister Elisabeth was becoming a better horse-rider than her! I wonder how Helene had felt when once again Sissi became even more successful than her, beauty-wise. She “snatched” the Austrian emperor's heart, their cousin Franz-Josef.

Sissi was a free-spirit and cherished her freedom more than everything. She hadn't wished for an empress' life. When I read about her numerous travels through Europe and else, I was getting the impression that she couldn't settle somewhere. Why? Because she was somewhat perturbed and she had to flee, to escape. As soon as she got the unpleasant sensation of getting too attached to a place, she had to go. She detested the Etiquette, rules, crowds, immobility.

What somewhat irked me while reading her bio was how she asked her ladies not to marry. Just because she had a mixed opinion about her marriage and marriages in general, it doesn't mean that she should have thought that her ladies getting married was bad for them too! At the same time, they completely accepted this condition in order to stay with her. So...I can say both parts had a role in this celibacy. 

Her qualities.

She was quite modern, just like Marie-Antoinette: she claimed her right for privacy and more independence. Since she couldn't refuse her condition as an imperial woman, she took advantage of her money. Many somptuous dresses, a plethora of horses, a personal train, lots of trips around Europe, etc.. Sissi was having a hard time adapting to her status as an empress. Who could blame her? She was so young (around 15-16) when Franz married her. Her new entourage thought they would manipulate her, since she was young and inexperienced. They really, really didn't know her then!

She resisted and tried to impose her way of life. While people in Vienna and Austria didn't like her (or at least, she thought so), she enjoyed a great popularity in Hungary.

Indeed, when she loved something, Sissi was quite able to give all the efforts possible to learn more. She became fluent in Hungarian and Greek. She was one of the most physical persons at the court. She was more liberal and better politically educated than what people thought of her. She made it possible for Hungary to be a more equal country with Austria. She seemed to see better in political changes (whether it was in Italy or in Europe in general) than, for example, her own husband!

(she loved big dogs)

Once people got to know her, they realized how delightful Sissi could be, how intelligent and graceful she was.

She spoke softly, most of the time, and gained a very delicate demeanour when she didn't ride horses or go for long walks.

Furthermore, she loved poetry and writing. Her daughter encouraged her to write and express herself. I read some of her poems and one really struck me. I don't remember it quite well, nor the title (oops!), but she talked about someone dear (her husband?) dying in her dream. She wakes up, crying, relieved to see him alive. The French translation I read actually touched me.

Just like for Marie-Antoinette, I wish a new film was made about Sissi. In a previous article, I already mentioned which actress I'd like to see playing her.

(Eva Green!!)

PS: Fashion Minute. I see Dita von Teese's wedding dress and I don't know why she reminds me of Sissi in it. 

So pretty!

New book

I bought this, today, for only 3 euros instead of 9,90. Guess I am lucky.
It's going to be more readings for me :)

Louis XVI et Marie-Antoinette, la fin d'un monde

by Max Gallo 

Max Gallo is known for writing about biographies. That is thanks to that man that I know more about Louis XIV since, for the moment, I'm much more interested in the 18th and 19th centuries than the 17th. 

Lady Ocar or Versailles no Bara

I was such a big fan of this manga when I was a kid. I used to watch it as soon  as I got home, after school. It was broadcast again when I was around 7-8. That's how I came to know about this. It's funny that Japanese people are the ones to make me know more about my natal country. Versailles no Bara's author, Riyoko Ikeda, created her manga in the 70's, a decade in which many female drawers started to make their voices heard and publish a lot mangas. In the same "vein", you can also find Lady Mitsuko, inpired by a true story, too, like Versailles no Bara.

Versailles no Bara focuses on Marie-Antoinette's life, in parallel with a fictional character, the mythical Oscar François de Jarjayes. I started reading again the volumes; and I remember why I was such a fan of Oscar. Brave, strong, just, honorable, courageous and respectful of her own principles which allow her to give herself only to the man she loves, despite their social ranks' difference, she's a brilliant character. That's a very powerful story, emphasizing on women's conditions, too, be it about Marie-Antoinette or Oscar. (In some excerpts, in my edition, Oscar sometimes says: "If i were a man, things would be so much easier!")

I'm not a big fan of Marie-Antoinette in this manga. While it depicts her personality, her struggles, her motives well enough, the manga has quite flaws which annoy me more and more. For instance, Louis XVI's representation. He's always seen as a fat and clumsy man, which I dislike since he was so much more than this stupid depiction. Secondly, the love story between MA and Fersen really irks me on many levels. For a few reasons, I don't really believe that they were lovers (I'll explain in a post, but it seems it'll be long....) etc.. So the contrast between Louis XVI and Fersen feels bothersome and unfair. Moreover, Marie-Antoinette's last thoughts might have been far away from about Fersen, seriously. Her children were everything for her; she was completely devastated by her husband's death that occured only 9 months before hers. So I hardly think she was thinking about Fersen and her moments with him when her last minute approached. While we don't know exactly what happened between them, I feel the story has been way too romanticized in the manga.

(Author Riyoko Ikeda awarded with the Légion d'Honneur in France for her contribution to the French culture.)

Nonetheless, the books are still enjoyable to read, the story/plot quite interesting and the drawings breathtaking. But I think Oscar, in some parts, really steals the spotlight from the queen. She was probably inspired by the real Chevalier D'Eon, a man who often disguised himself as a woman to run missions for the kingdom. He had known Marie-Antoinette, too. Oscar's father did exist; or at least, the man who inspired her father did: François de Jarjayes who really planned to save Marie-Antoinette when she was in jail, at the Conciergerie.
Of course, there are some anachronisms, and for a question of esthetism, Riyoko Ikeda drew her characters' outfits out of inspiration by reality instead of copying it loyally. Same for the hairstyles etc. Nonetheless, instead of being a nuisance to the whole plot, this re-creation, this interpretation help to build a very unique universe in the manga genre.

Some books!

Here are a few books that help me to write my blog. They are really great reads.
I'll shall make a post about Marie-Thérèse's memoirs. I finished it in a few hours; her writing isn't bad at all, very lively.

 1. Marie-Antoinette, Un Destin Brisé, by Evelyne Lever
 2. Derniers Jours à la Prison du Temple, Journal de la fille de Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, by Marie-Thérèse Charlotte de France.
 3. Marie-Antoinette, La Dernière Reine de France, by Evelyne Lever
 4. Louis XVI, l'Otage, by Jean-François Chiappe.
 5. Marie-Antoinette, épouse de Louis XVI, mère de Louis XVII, by Philippe Delorme.