18th-Century Characters, Including Frederick the Great, Discussion Post 34

[cahn]

And including Emperor Joseph II!

from Derek Beales: Joseph II, Volume 2: Against the World, 1780 - 1790:

Joseph's alleged comment to Mozart about the Entführung, "Too many notes", has been taken as evidence of his ignorance. But he probably said something like, "Too beautiful for our ears, and monstrous many notes." It is always necessary to bear in mind, when appraising the emperor's remarks, his peculiar brand of humor or sarcasm. He was usually getting at someone. And he did not use the royal "we". The ears in question were those of the Viennese audience, whom he was mocking for their limited appreciation of Mozart's elaborate music.

(though not gonna lie, I think it is a LOT of notes)

Comments

Re: Books about the Great Elector: The Second Marriage

[mildred_of_midgard]

The Elector, who all his life had bouts of depression which only got worse with the years, freely confessed he could not bear to be alone, and apparantly wasn't the type for mistresses, so he remarried within six months.

Him and Philip V of Spain!

In the years of that first marriage, which had lasted 12 years (!), she had never become pregnant.

Huh! Do we know if her husband had fathered any other children, legitimate or illegitimate?

(reminder, it was the same Caroline would later have in England: declare it couldn't be his son's because said son was clearly impotent)

More repeating themes!

However, when the Elector told this tale (years after Schwarzenberg's death), no one called him paranoid or ridiculed him the way it happened with F1.

Wow.

=> This was one paranoid family.

And THEN there was the Klement affair!