Historical Characters, Including Frederick the Great, Discussion Post 47

[cahn]

We haven't had a new post since before December 25, so obligatory Yuletide link to this hilarious story of Frederick the Great babysitting his bratty little brother, with bonus Fritz/Fredersdorf!

Comments

Re: 1764-1772 Foreign policy: Austria: Relations with the Turks

[cahn]

Ah! Thank you for that link to Entführung aus dem Serail, I guess I must have thought when I listened to it that it was just, idk, exotic -- not having known that they were confirmed enemies!

Re: 1764-1772 Foreign policy: Austria: Relations with the Turks

[selenak]

For a quick and entertaining look at the most epic clash between Turks and Austrians, see the EH's vids on The Siege of Vienna. (I just linked you to the first one.) Era wise, this one features the Emperor who'll then hire young Eugene of Savoy, so contemporary with Louis XIV. The French, of course, famously did have the occasionally alliance with the Turks against the Habsburgs long before Fritz got the idea, most (in)famously Francis I. versus Charles V. Which reminds me, the Stuart stuff I've been reading includes this gem, on a young James VI, not yet I, he's in Scotland, hoping and expecting Elizabeth will make him her heir....buuuuuut there's Philip of Spain getting the Armada ready. So, should Philip actually win and conquer England, he and the mighty Spanish Empire will be very uncomfortable next door neighbours, way more than even the English were and are. Now, James is a bookworm not just in the sense of reading but also in the sense of writing them. So what does he do?

James: *publishes an epic poem praising the victory of Philipp's illegitimate half brother Juan d'Austria (son of Charles and the enterprising Barbara, remember?) at Lepanto*

James: *in the preface, expecting indignant accusations of praising a Spaniard*: Look, I'm not praising the Catholic Spaniard in Juan, and I'm certainly not praising the half brother of Philip of Spain, I'm praising Juan the Christian! A big Christian victory against the evil Muslims is a good thing, surely we can all agree to that?*

English publisher of James' poem, for verily, James has this printed in England, not Scotland: What he said. He's a King, surely he knows better than I, a humble subject. Don't come after me, Walsingham.

Publisher: *also hedging his bets in case the Spaniards win?*