Re: Wilhelmine - bear in mind that what I have is an AUDIO version of their correspondance. In written form, I‘ve only read the travel letters from her journey through France and Italy, as well as some letters quoted in parts in various biographies and essays. So it‘s entirely possible Fritz did write to Wilhelmine about Fredersdorf and the people making the selection for „Solange wir zu zweit sind“ - i.e. the audio edition of their letters - simply didn‘t include it, figuring that would demand an explanation as to who Fredersdorf was that wouldn‘t fit with the audio format. The 1926 editor of the Fredersdorf letters says Fritz never mentions him towards her, as opposed to mentioning her towards him, but then 1926 editor also thinks Fritz has fatherly feelings for Fredersdorf and that Wilhelmine is hopelessly fallen for Voltaire (and you know, if you‘ve read her letters to and about Voltaire vs Fritz‘ letters, there‘s absolutely no question as to which sibling is must fond of him as a writer and amused by him as a person, and which is hopelessly smitten), so I‘m not exactly bursting with confidence in his statements.
This being said: I‘m reminded that in the entire Goethe/Schiller correspondance, Goethe regularly gives his regards to Mrs. Schiller or asks how she is etc. while Schiller not once as much as mentions Goethe‘s life partner Christiane, whom Goethe would eventually marry when Schiller was already dead, despite on more than one occasion staying at Goethe‘s house, where she was running the household and basically serving him dinner. The difference being that Mrs. Schiller was a born Charlotte von Lengenfeld and a legitimate wife, while Christiane was living in openly unmarried love with Goethe and a born Demoiselle Vulpius, former flower manufacturer worker.
(Then again, Wilhelmine has no problem bringing up Quantz or singer X or musician Y or Algarotti or the dogs in her letters, both to ask after or to report news on.)
It occurs to me that if Fredersdorf dies just two months before Catt shows up, that might be another explanation as to why Fritz is suddenly so chatty about Küstrin to someone he barely knows. His usual confidant is gone, whether or not they had a fallout before his death, and Küstrin is something he can legitimately talk about since despite nobody bringing it up to him on their own initiative, everyone knows it happened. What I mean is: he can voice trauma and grief there - and later cry for dead siblings and for poetry - while also being upset about and crying for Fredersdorf at the same time, just not mentioning him to Catt.
Tangent here: I‘ve had a chance to browse through some of Catt‘s memoirs since you‘ve made it possible for me to, and it strikes me that before AW‘s death, Fritz seems to engage in almost Stalinist revision of history concerning him. He tells Catt that his incognito trip to Straßburg was just with Algarotti as a companion (and Catt even adds a footnote that he later found out AW was along as well but can‘t explain why Fritz didn‘t mention that). At another occasion, when talking about FW as a father, he says while FW was harshest to him, he was harsh to the other siblings as well „except for Prince Henry who was always his favourite“. Which isn‘t just an omission, as with the Straßburg trip, but a direct lie. (Both because every single primary and secondary source agrees AW was always the favourite, and because FW barely seems to have noticed Heinrich existed - as I said in another comment, he‘s listed in the plural of „the princes“ in FW‘s instructions as how his sons were to be raised, not singled out for an individual comment either good or bad.)
Now, as soon as he hears the news about AWs death, Fritz does talk about him a lot (though again with some revised history about how it‘s solely the evil advisors who came between them and he was planning on abdicating in AW‘s favour after the war), but what I‘m getting at is that Fritz is quite capable of editing himself even while Catt has the impression of the King being frank with him and confiding in him.
Re: One admiring reader comments
This being said: I‘m reminded that in the entire Goethe/Schiller correspondance, Goethe regularly gives his regards to Mrs. Schiller or asks how she is etc. while Schiller not once as much as mentions Goethe‘s life partner Christiane, whom Goethe would eventually marry when Schiller was already dead, despite on more than one occasion staying at Goethe‘s house, where she was running the household and basically serving him dinner. The difference being that Mrs. Schiller was a born Charlotte von Lengenfeld and a legitimate wife, while Christiane was living in openly unmarried love with Goethe and a born Demoiselle Vulpius, former flower manufacturer worker.
(Then again, Wilhelmine has no problem bringing up Quantz or singer X or musician Y or Algarotti or the dogs in her letters, both to ask after or to report news on.)
It occurs to me that if Fredersdorf dies just two months before Catt shows up, that might be another explanation as to why Fritz is suddenly so chatty about Küstrin to someone he barely knows. His usual confidant is gone, whether or not they had a fallout before his death, and Küstrin is something he can legitimately talk about since despite nobody bringing it up to him on their own initiative, everyone knows it happened. What I mean is: he can voice trauma and grief there - and later cry for dead siblings and for poetry - while also being upset about and crying for Fredersdorf at the same time, just not mentioning him to Catt.
Tangent here: I‘ve had a chance to browse through some of Catt‘s memoirs since you‘ve made it possible for me to, and it strikes me that before AW‘s death, Fritz seems to engage in almost Stalinist revision of history concerning him. He tells Catt that his incognito trip to Straßburg was just with Algarotti as a companion (and Catt even adds a footnote that he later found out AW was along as well but can‘t explain why Fritz didn‘t mention that). At another occasion, when talking about FW as a father, he says while FW was harshest to him, he was harsh to the other siblings as well „except for Prince Henry who was always his favourite“. Which isn‘t just an omission, as with the Straßburg trip, but a direct lie. (Both because every single primary and secondary source agrees AW was always the favourite, and because FW barely seems to have noticed Heinrich existed - as I said in another comment, he‘s listed in the plural of „the princes“ in FW‘s instructions as how his sons were to be raised, not singled out for an individual comment either good or bad.)
Now, as soon as he hears the news about AWs death, Fritz does talk about him a lot (though again with some revised history about how it‘s solely the evil advisors who came between them and he was planning on abdicating in AW‘s favour after the war), but what I‘m getting at is that Fritz is quite capable of editing himself even while Catt has the impression of the King being frank with him and confiding in him.