Elisabeth often complained of his lack of sensitivity. As they grew older, their lives became completely different, and the love from their youth was definitely over. He continued to adore her and was afraid to make demands on her.
ELISABETH AND FRANZ JOSEPH HOW TO
The inevitable quarrels often sent Elisabeth packing, and she knew how to dominate Franz Joseph. The birth of their fourth child Marie Valerie in 1868 only brought the couple closer together for a short period of time. Elisabeth spent as much time away from Vienna as possible. Nevertheless, Franz Joseph, now fearful that Elisabeth might run off again, was being very patient with his wife.īut his patience did not get him what he wanted. Elisabeth and Sophie would always be at odds with one another, especially as Franz Joseph often discussed politics with his mother but did not include Elisabeth, who began to have dissenting opinions. Her miraculous recovery as soon as she was away from her husband and the Viennese court was perhaps not surprising.
Her mother-in-law merely wrote that she regretted that Elisabeth would be abandoning her children for so long. Elisabeth travelled to Madeira for several months. In 1859, Dr Seeburger wrote that Elisabeth “did not meet her obligations either as an empress or as a woman though she was essentially idle, her contacts with her children were casual, and though she sorrows and weeps for the absent noble Emperor, she rides horseback for hours, to the detriment of her health.” 2īy 1860 she was so physically ill that she was diagnosed with pulmonary disease though this was received with much scepticism in court. She paid no attention to Gisela, and her mother and sisters were summoned to Vienna to help cheer her up. She wept for weeks, refused all food and became utterly despondent. The death of her eldest daughter made Elisabeth withdraw from the world. She rode and walked for hours, jumped obstacles to the point of exhaustion and did gymnastics. She often fell into crying fits that would not stop, and to calm her nerves, she took physical exercise to the extreme. 1 Her coughing fits became more frequent, and she also became severely anaemic after refusing to eat. She also showed signs of postpartum depression and nervous exhaustion. The pregnancies had exhausted her body, and she recovered very slowly from Rudolf’s difficult birth. However, it soon became clear that Elisabeth was not suited to the role of Empress. Three children followed in quick succession: Sophie (born 1855 – died young), Gisela (born 1856) and Crown Prince Rudolf (born 1858).
In the early years of their marriage, Franz Joseph was deeply in love with his wife and Elisabeth no doubt returned those feelings.
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