Wait... having read ahead to Caroline's death which was apparently of abuse... her mother-in-law was the instigator of the abuse that killed her?? Geesh.
Well, said mother-in-law, according to Catherine, thought it was a great idea that her (i.e. Johanna von Zerbst-Anhalt's) brother "romanced" young Sophie in secret: "He got me to agree to marry him, if my parents did not object. I later came to the conclusion that my mother knew all about this. It was impossible for her not to notice the passes he made at me, and if she hadn't agreed with this, she would surely not have permitted the many visits he paid me. These conclusions, however, were drawn by me many years later; back then I did not suspect this. After my agreement, my uncle threw himself into the force of his passion, which was enormous; he was forever lurking and waiting for the moments to kiss me, he knew how to made them happen, though these, and a few tender embraces were all that happened, otherwise it was quite innocent.
Now keep in mind Sophie was 14 when she left Zerbst and Prussia, went to Russia and became Catherine, and for the last year, whwen the future Czar became an option, her mother did nix any other suitor. So, even keeping in mind that royal uncle/niece marriages were a thing, I had a pretty jaundiced opinion of Catherine's mother and Caroline's mother-in-law anyway. (She also was Ulrike's sister-in-law, since her brother was Ulrike's husband, the Swedish king.)
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Re: No Pity for the Wives readthrough - Mina
Date: 2020-09-14 08:05 am (UTC)Well, said mother-in-law, according to Catherine, thought it was a great idea that her (i.e. Johanna von Zerbst-Anhalt's) brother "romanced" young Sophie in secret: "He got me to agree to marry him, if my parents did not object. I later came to the conclusion that my mother knew all about this. It was impossible for her not to notice the passes he made at me, and if she hadn't agreed with this, she would surely not have permitted the many visits he paid me. These conclusions, however, were drawn by me many years later; back then I did not suspect this. After my agreement, my uncle threw himself into the force of his passion, which was enormous; he was forever lurking and waiting for the moments to kiss me, he knew how to made them happen, though these, and a few tender embraces were all that happened, otherwise it was quite innocent.
Now keep in mind Sophie was 14 when she left Zerbst and Prussia, went to Russia and became Catherine, and for the last year, whwen the future Czar became an option, her mother did nix any other suitor. So, even keeping in mind that royal uncle/niece marriages were a thing, I had a pretty jaundiced opinion of Catherine's mother and Caroline's mother-in-law anyway. (She also was Ulrike's sister-in-law, since her brother was Ulrike's husband, the Swedish king.)