1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:04,600 Speaker 1: Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grimm 2 00:00:04,600 --> 00:00:12,799 Speaker 1: and Mild from Aaron Manky listener discretion advised. In January 3 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:17,880 Speaker 1: eighteen twenty one, Prince Wilhelm of Prussia went to the theater. 4 00:00:18,600 --> 00:00:21,800 Speaker 1: But he wouldn't merely be a member of the audience. 5 00:00:22,440 --> 00:00:25,880 Speaker 1: He would actually be performing in a production based on 6 00:00:25,920 --> 00:00:29,680 Speaker 1: a poem by Thomas Moore, staged in honor of the 7 00:00:29,800 --> 00:00:34,559 Speaker 1: Grand Princess Alexandra Fedorovna, in front of an audience of 8 00:00:34,680 --> 00:00:38,440 Speaker 1: three thousand at the Whitehall of the Royal Castle. Prince 9 00:00:38,479 --> 00:00:42,440 Speaker 1: Wilhelm and a number of other aristocrats were acting in 10 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:46,760 Speaker 1: a romance about the fictional daughter of a seventeenth century 11 00:00:46,840 --> 00:00:50,440 Speaker 1: Mughal emperor falling in love with another man instead of 12 00:00:50,479 --> 00:00:54,760 Speaker 1: the king she was arranged to marry. Little did Prince 13 00:00:54,800 --> 00:00:59,520 Speaker 1: Wilhelm know that life would imitate art, he too, would 14 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:03,920 Speaker 1: fall for a forbidden partner that very night. Her name 15 00:01:04,240 --> 00:01:10,040 Speaker 1: was Princess Elisa van Radswell or Ragevue, a Polish noble 16 00:01:10,080 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 1: woman who happened to be playing a goddess heavenly desire 17 00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:19,920 Speaker 1: in the production. Wilhelm was enamored with her performance, noting 18 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:23,560 Speaker 1: that it had overcome the audience. He wrote in his 19 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 1: diary quote magical, idealistic, an ethereal touch hung over the whole, 20 00:01:29,520 --> 00:01:35,880 Speaker 1: unforgettable Elisa forever. When Alisa and Wilhelm showed up together 21 00:01:36,040 --> 00:01:40,640 Speaker 1: at her parents' silver wedding, shortly thereafter, people began to 22 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:45,559 Speaker 1: suspect that the two were an item. One minister sought 23 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:49,560 Speaker 1: out more information about Elisa and discovered that her family 24 00:01:50,160 --> 00:01:55,040 Speaker 1: was of relatively low rank within the Polish aristocratic hierarchy. 25 00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:59,840 Speaker 1: Even though Elisa's mother was a Prussian princess, she married 26 00:01:59,880 --> 00:02:04,200 Speaker 1: into a lower rank, meaning that Eliza was ineligible for 27 00:02:04,280 --> 00:02:08,440 Speaker 1: the throne. The minister put together his findings in a 28 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:14,600 Speaker 1: report titled a Memorandum on the Legally Inappropriate Status of 29 00:02:14,639 --> 00:02:19,400 Speaker 1: the Marriage of a Royal Prince of Prussia to Princess Radswell, 30 00:02:19,919 --> 00:02:25,240 Speaker 1: which speaks to the disastrous results of the investigation, with 31 00:02:25,360 --> 00:02:31,000 Speaker 1: the disapproval of Wilhelm's family codified in writing. A union 32 00:02:31,080 --> 00:02:35,560 Speaker 1: between Prince Wilhelm and Elisa seemed less of a heavenly 33 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:40,400 Speaker 1: romance and more like a tragedy. But that wouldn't be 34 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:44,200 Speaker 1: the end of Elisa and Wilhelm's love story. The two 35 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:47,440 Speaker 1: would do everything in their power to overcome the odds 36 00:02:47,480 --> 00:02:52,800 Speaker 1: and stay together, much to the chagrin of Wilhelm's royal family. 37 00:02:53,639 --> 00:03:00,400 Speaker 1: I'm Dana Schwartz and this is noble blood. Visa and 38 00:03:00,480 --> 00:03:04,680 Speaker 1: Wilhelm had actually first met as children, although under less 39 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:10,000 Speaker 1: than ideal circumstances. It was during a politically tumultuous time, 40 00:03:10,440 --> 00:03:14,920 Speaker 1: as Napoleon was advancing into Germany and Prussia, culminating in 41 00:03:14,960 --> 00:03:19,320 Speaker 1: a battle at jennen ousterstad And October eighteen o six. 42 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 1: Wilhelm's father, King Friedrich Wilhelm the third, was leading the 43 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:30,160 Speaker 1: Prussian forces, but he suffered a crushing defeat, with Napoleon 44 00:03:30,240 --> 00:03:34,920 Speaker 1: and his troops occupying Berlin. This sent the king's family 45 00:03:35,120 --> 00:03:39,080 Speaker 1: into a three year exile in Koenigsburg, which was a 46 00:03:39,080 --> 00:03:42,760 Speaker 1: center of resistance to Napoleon, where they met up with 47 00:03:42,840 --> 00:03:46,360 Speaker 1: the Radswills, who were also in exile at that time. 48 00:03:46,480 --> 00:03:50,360 Speaker 1: Eliza was three years old and print Wilhelm was six. 49 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:55,160 Speaker 1: While the adults were fretting about their potential return to Germany, 50 00:03:55,600 --> 00:04:00,120 Speaker 1: the children were enjoying their new found freedom. Contempt Lip 51 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: Praiary recalled quote. They spent the summer on the Amber 52 00:04:04,120 --> 00:04:08,040 Speaker 1: coast of the Baltic sea, the winter, tobogganing together, and 53 00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:11,280 Speaker 1: there were places to play in front of the steined 54 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:15,480 Speaker 1: Amerateur and in the old castle. Eliza could not only 55 00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:19,480 Speaker 1: play with her siblings Wilhelm, Ferdinand and Louise, but also 56 00:04:19,680 --> 00:04:23,159 Speaker 1: with Prince Wilhelm, his brother, the Crown Prince, who was 57 00:04:23,160 --> 00:04:26,440 Speaker 1: two years older than he was, and his favorite sister 58 00:04:26,800 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: Charlotte end Quote. In eighteen o nine, King Friedrich Wilhelm 59 00:04:32,400 --> 00:04:37,400 Speaker 1: the third agreed to Napoleon's repatriation claims, so the royal 60 00:04:37,480 --> 00:04:41,600 Speaker 1: family and the Radswells could end their exile and return 61 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:46,040 Speaker 1: to Berlin. But the families would grow even more intertwined 62 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:49,960 Speaker 1: after Wilhelm's mother, Queen Louise, died at the age of 63 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:53,839 Speaker 1: thirty four. Eliza's mother became something of a mother figure 64 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:56,839 Speaker 1: two Wilhelm, who was only twelve at the time of 65 00:04:56,880 --> 00:05:01,320 Speaker 1: his mother's death. The Radswells moved from Poland to Berlin 66 00:05:01,440 --> 00:05:04,919 Speaker 1: depending on the season, and when they moved more permanently 67 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:08,599 Speaker 1: to Berlin, the love affair between Alisa and Wilhelm began 68 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:12,359 Speaker 1: to flourish. Wilhelm was twenty at the time and began 69 00:05:12,440 --> 00:05:15,719 Speaker 1: cavorting with the seventeen year old Eliza at the palace 70 00:05:15,920 --> 00:05:17,880 Speaker 1: where Wilhelm's sisters lived. 71 00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:22,720 Speaker 2: The two were spotted at parties, salons, and receptions, even 72 00:05:22,760 --> 00:05:27,040 Speaker 2: at times taking trips to the country together. Wilhelm noted 73 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:30,480 Speaker 2: in his diary, Alisa has really grown up and become 74 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:36,400 Speaker 2: somewhat stronger and more to the point charming. By eighteen twenty, 75 00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:41,200 Speaker 2: Wilhelm began to visit the Radswells more frequently, which drew 76 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:45,720 Speaker 2: even more attention because in March of that year, Elisa 77 00:05:45,800 --> 00:05:48,520 Speaker 2: was confirmed by the court chaplain and the dean of 78 00:05:48,560 --> 00:05:52,320 Speaker 2: the cathedral in the Chapel of the Royal Castle, which 79 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:57,560 Speaker 2: made Elisa eligible for marriage, putting her relationship with Wilhelm 80 00:05:57,680 --> 00:06:03,320 Speaker 2: under scrutiny. Some even suspected that King Friedrich Wilhelm had 81 00:06:03,360 --> 00:06:08,080 Speaker 2: engineered the confirmation so Eliza could become his daughter in law. 82 00:06:08,680 --> 00:06:12,200 Speaker 2: Wilhelm announced that he was in love with Eliza at 83 00:06:12,240 --> 00:06:17,240 Speaker 2: the Prussian King's summer residence in June eighteen twenty. When 84 00:06:17,320 --> 00:06:20,719 Speaker 2: the two returned to Berlin, Wilhelm was seen coming out 85 00:06:20,760 --> 00:06:25,640 Speaker 2: of the Radswell Palace almost every day. Little did Wilhelm 86 00:06:25,760 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 2: know that the minister was drawing up a dossier against 87 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:33,080 Speaker 2: the Union and that many of his friends and family 88 00:06:33,120 --> 00:06:37,200 Speaker 2: members were working together to try to tear the two 89 00:06:37,279 --> 00:06:43,640 Speaker 2: of them apart. In late eighteen twenty, Wilhelm saw Eliza 90 00:06:43,720 --> 00:06:46,960 Speaker 2: while she was on holiday at the Summer Palace, but 91 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:50,320 Speaker 2: rather than greeting her warmly as he had so many 92 00:06:50,400 --> 00:06:55,160 Speaker 2: times before, he ignored her. When Alisa left, he burst 93 00:06:55,279 --> 00:07:00,520 Speaker 2: into tears. Wilhelm's strange behavior was a result of threats 94 00:07:00,560 --> 00:07:05,120 Speaker 2: to his relationship with Elisa. From behind the scenes. Wilhelm's 95 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:09,120 Speaker 2: family had been discouraging him from pursuing her. His sisters 96 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:13,440 Speaker 2: suggested he marry a different princess instead, while his adjunct 97 00:07:13,480 --> 00:07:17,040 Speaker 2: and took a stronger approach, mandating that it would be 98 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:22,200 Speaker 2: impossible for him to marry Elisa without his father's approval. Meanwhile, 99 00:07:22,280 --> 00:07:24,880 Speaker 2: the king had heard these rumors that his son was 100 00:07:24,920 --> 00:07:28,720 Speaker 2: involved with Elisa, and he started meeting with his advisers. 101 00:07:29,280 --> 00:07:33,200 Speaker 2: Some were actually supportive of the union. The King's brother 102 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:35,960 Speaker 2: in law, for instance, fought for the two to be together. 103 00:07:36,400 --> 00:07:38,920 Speaker 2: He argued that there is actually a precedent for the 104 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:43,880 Speaker 2: two to be together. Elisa's father, Prince Radswell, had aristocratic 105 00:07:44,040 --> 00:07:48,960 Speaker 2: ties to the Holy Roman Empire from fifteen fifteen. Moreover, 106 00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:52,840 Speaker 2: there had been marriages between the princes of Brandenburg and 107 00:07:52,880 --> 00:07:57,240 Speaker 2: the Radswells for two hundred years. That suggested that the 108 00:07:57,320 --> 00:08:00,760 Speaker 2: Radswells were high status enough to marry in to the family, 109 00:08:01,240 --> 00:08:05,040 Speaker 2: as Wilhelm's father was the Elector of Brandenburg in the 110 00:08:05,040 --> 00:08:09,240 Speaker 2: Holy Roman Empire before it was dissolved in eighteen o six. 111 00:08:10,040 --> 00:08:16,960 Speaker 2: But some technicalities complicated what seemed like Eliza's blue blood bonafides. 112 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:22,360 Speaker 2: The Radswill family had no property within the former boundary 113 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:25,520 Speaker 2: of the Holy Roman Empire, meaning that they were not 114 00:08:25,880 --> 00:08:29,440 Speaker 2: members of the reich Council of Princes, which was an 115 00:08:29,480 --> 00:08:36,000 Speaker 2: important factor in determining aristocratic rank. Moreover, those previous marriages 116 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:40,719 Speaker 2: between the Brandenburgs and the Radswell's occurred when the Princes 117 00:08:40,840 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 2: of Brandenburg had no regal office, making the two families 118 00:08:45,960 --> 00:08:50,000 Speaker 2: more similar in status back then. By the eighteen twenties, 119 00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:54,160 Speaker 2: Friedrich the Third was the King of Prussia, which elevated 120 00:08:54,280 --> 00:08:59,240 Speaker 2: the family into a much higher echelon. The law emphasized 121 00:08:59,360 --> 00:09:03,280 Speaker 2: that prince were only eligible to marry the daughters of 122 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:08,520 Speaker 2: ruling princely houses or sovereigns recognized by the Reich, making 123 00:09:08,559 --> 00:09:13,319 Speaker 2: a union between Wilhelm and Elisa actually illegal. Moreover, if 124 00:09:13,320 --> 00:09:18,520 Speaker 2: Wilhelm's older brother, the crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, died, Wilhelm 125 00:09:18,679 --> 00:09:22,000 Speaker 2: would succeed to the throne, which meant there was even 126 00:09:22,200 --> 00:09:27,400 Speaker 2: more pressure on his marriage. The king's closest adviser compiled 127 00:09:27,480 --> 00:09:32,120 Speaker 2: a list of daughters of twenty nine reigning European royal 128 00:09:32,200 --> 00:09:35,240 Speaker 2: houses who were not yet married to make it easy 129 00:09:35,320 --> 00:09:40,760 Speaker 2: for Wilhelm to choose a different wife instead. In February 130 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:45,000 Speaker 2: eighteen twenty two, the king sat down with Wilhelm and 131 00:09:45,200 --> 00:09:50,280 Speaker 2: formally dissuaded his son from pursuing Elisa, arguing that it 132 00:09:50,559 --> 00:09:55,439 Speaker 2: was against the law. After so many reports and dossiers 133 00:09:55,520 --> 00:10:00,320 Speaker 2: and interventions from family members, Wilhelm seemed to heed his 134 00:10:00,400 --> 00:10:05,640 Speaker 2: father's warnings. It's finished. The precious, loving, angelic being is 135 00:10:05,720 --> 00:10:09,480 Speaker 2: lost to me, he wrote at the time. But in 136 00:10:09,559 --> 00:10:13,880 Speaker 2: spite of his family's disapproval, he and Elisa continued to 137 00:10:14,040 --> 00:10:18,120 Speaker 2: meet up at balls and go on secret dates. Whatever 138 00:10:18,320 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 2: was to come, they swore to be friends forever. Wilhelm 139 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:27,040 Speaker 2: and Elisa parted, with Wilhelm fleeing to the Rhineland and 140 00:10:27,120 --> 00:10:31,560 Speaker 2: the Netherlands to escape his romantic woes. He spent his 141 00:10:31,720 --> 00:10:35,440 Speaker 2: twenty fifth birthday, the day he had once wanted to 142 00:10:35,640 --> 00:10:39,960 Speaker 2: marry Elisa away from her in Holland. She wrote him 143 00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:44,760 Speaker 2: a benign, formal birthday message, and if Wilhelm wanted to 144 00:10:44,800 --> 00:10:47,520 Speaker 2: write her back, he had to send his message to 145 00:10:47,800 --> 00:10:51,600 Speaker 2: her mother. His sister Charlotte sent him a little portrait 146 00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:54,600 Speaker 2: of Elisa as a birthday present, which he kept on 147 00:10:54,720 --> 00:10:59,200 Speaker 2: his desk. After reflecting on his love for Elisa while 148 00:10:59,240 --> 00:11:03,680 Speaker 2: he was away, Wilhelm returned to Berlin with renewed fervor 149 00:11:04,040 --> 00:11:07,120 Speaker 2: to stand up to his father and marry the woman 150 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:11,360 Speaker 2: he loved once and for all. Wilhelm and Elisa continued 151 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:14,679 Speaker 2: to go to the theater together, they took long strolls 152 00:11:14,720 --> 00:11:17,439 Speaker 2: in the gardens of the palace, and they had long 153 00:11:17,679 --> 00:11:22,120 Speaker 2: talks at the Raswell's house in Berlin. Wilhelm recorded these 154 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:26,000 Speaker 2: conversations in his diary at Length, where he wrote quote 155 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:29,200 Speaker 2: no one else in the world but her, and that 156 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:32,959 Speaker 2: she was the joy of his life. To win over 157 00:11:33,040 --> 00:11:36,840 Speaker 2: the rest of his family and the royal officials, Wilhelm 158 00:11:36,920 --> 00:11:42,160 Speaker 2: commissioned a counter study from two legal experts that affirmed 159 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:46,440 Speaker 2: his right to marry Elisa, but that study did not 160 00:11:46,640 --> 00:11:51,040 Speaker 2: sway the Union's detractors. A collection of ministers and the 161 00:11:51,120 --> 00:11:55,839 Speaker 2: director of Police rejected it. Another counselor clapped back with 162 00:11:56,040 --> 00:12:00,559 Speaker 2: not one, but three further dossiers that called a potential 163 00:12:00,760 --> 00:12:05,440 Speaker 2: marriage between Alisa and Wilhelm a mismarriage that would destroy 164 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:09,600 Speaker 2: the hierarchy of the royal family. The Prussian Foreign Minister 165 00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:12,840 Speaker 2: was asked to make the final judgment on the case, 166 00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:17,000 Speaker 2: but he declined, arguing that he didn't have enough information 167 00:12:17,200 --> 00:12:21,920 Speaker 2: to assess the Polish aristocracy that the Radswells belonged to. 168 00:12:22,440 --> 00:12:25,199 Speaker 2: He suggested that the king be the one to make 169 00:12:25,240 --> 00:12:30,320 Speaker 2: the final decision, leaving Elisa and Wilhelm's fate in Wilhelm's 170 00:12:30,400 --> 00:12:38,760 Speaker 2: father's hands. Tensions in the royal household reached a fever 171 00:12:38,920 --> 00:12:43,000 Speaker 2: pitch as the king hemmed and hawed about his decision. 172 00:12:43,480 --> 00:12:47,760 Speaker 2: The Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm sided with his brother, tearing 173 00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:52,360 Speaker 2: apart the various official reports written by government officials who 174 00:12:52,400 --> 00:12:56,280 Speaker 2: he called court toadies. He even got into a violent 175 00:12:56,520 --> 00:12:59,600 Speaker 2: spat with his uncle, who had put together a dossier 176 00:12:59,640 --> 00:13:02,640 Speaker 2: of his own to try to separate Wilhelm and Elisa. 177 00:13:02,920 --> 00:13:06,720 Speaker 2: In response to all of this commotion, the Radswell family 178 00:13:06,760 --> 00:13:11,079 Speaker 2: had fled Berlin. The King's hesitation to approve the marriage 179 00:13:11,440 --> 00:13:15,439 Speaker 2: was deeply insulting to the rads Wills, especially since Eliza's 180 00:13:15,520 --> 00:13:19,640 Speaker 2: mother and the king were related. The family began to 181 00:13:19,720 --> 00:13:24,440 Speaker 2: suspect that the king had ulterior political motives for tearing 182 00:13:24,520 --> 00:13:29,600 Speaker 2: the two apart. In seventeen ninety five, Poland was split 183 00:13:29,640 --> 00:13:34,600 Speaker 2: between Prussia, the Habsburg Monarchy, and Russia. Elisa's father had 184 00:13:34,640 --> 00:13:39,199 Speaker 2: wanted to reunify the country and petitioned both the Congress 185 00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:43,520 Speaker 2: of Vienna and Wilhelm's father to help. Perhaps to unite 186 00:13:43,559 --> 00:13:47,480 Speaker 2: the country under the leadership of Prussia. Maybe the rejection 187 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:51,280 Speaker 2: of the marriage between Elisa and Wilhelm was a signal 188 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:56,840 Speaker 2: of the rejection of Polish unification and independence. Elisa and 189 00:13:56,920 --> 00:14:02,840 Speaker 2: Wilhelm continued corresponding, sending each other flowers, leaves, jewelry, and 190 00:14:02,960 --> 00:14:07,680 Speaker 2: locks of hair. On Elisa's nineteenth birthday, Wilhelm wrote to 191 00:14:07,720 --> 00:14:11,960 Speaker 2: her parents quote, Elisa is indispensable for the happiness in 192 00:14:12,040 --> 00:14:17,080 Speaker 2: my life. Meanwhile, the crown Prince, Wilhelm's older brother wrote 193 00:14:17,200 --> 00:14:20,200 Speaker 2: a written statement of his own to counter all of 194 00:14:20,240 --> 00:14:23,480 Speaker 2: the dossiers that were being drawn up to spite his 195 00:14:23,600 --> 00:14:27,720 Speaker 2: younger brother's relationship. After all, it turned out that the 196 00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:31,360 Speaker 2: King's new daughter in law from the Crown Prince's marriage 197 00:14:31,360 --> 00:14:36,120 Speaker 2: to the Princess Elizabeth of Bavaria, was actually descended from 198 00:14:36,120 --> 00:14:40,560 Speaker 2: a Radswell, but that did little to sway the royal officials, 199 00:14:40,880 --> 00:14:44,120 Speaker 2: who maintained that Elisa did not come from a high 200 00:14:44,200 --> 00:14:49,160 Speaker 2: status enough royal family. Wilhelm wrote a letter of his 201 00:14:49,280 --> 00:14:52,840 Speaker 2: own asking the King for a decision, pleading with him 202 00:14:52,960 --> 00:14:55,880 Speaker 2: to let him marry Elisa, but he conceded in the 203 00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:59,680 Speaker 2: letter that he would agree to whatever decision the King made. 204 00:15:00,200 --> 00:15:03,040 Speaker 2: Elisa also wrote the King a letter that complained of 205 00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:06,840 Speaker 2: the public humiliation she was enduring as a result of 206 00:15:06,880 --> 00:15:12,840 Speaker 2: the King's waffling, imploring him to officially condone the marriage. Finally, 207 00:15:13,000 --> 00:15:16,720 Speaker 2: the King called a family meeting in the Hirshburg Valley, 208 00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:20,560 Speaker 2: where the royal family and the Radswells met together for 209 00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:24,080 Speaker 2: the first time since they all were in exile in 210 00:15:24,160 --> 00:15:29,520 Speaker 2: eighteen o six. The meeting didn't have Wilhelm present, but 211 00:15:29,680 --> 00:15:33,520 Speaker 2: Elisa made a positive impression on the King, who noted 212 00:15:33,560 --> 00:15:38,560 Speaker 2: her beauty and friendliness. After years of mounting dossier's and 213 00:15:38,760 --> 00:15:43,840 Speaker 2: counter dossiers, the King decided to let the couple marry. 214 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:48,840 Speaker 2: The plan would be to have Elisa be adopted by 215 00:15:48,840 --> 00:15:51,680 Speaker 2: a ruling royal house so that the marriage would be 216 00:15:51,800 --> 00:15:56,640 Speaker 2: legally permitted. The king asked the Russian Czar to adopt Eliza, 217 00:15:56,720 --> 00:16:01,360 Speaker 2: but he declined. The Habsburgs also declined. That left Prince 218 00:16:01,400 --> 00:16:05,920 Speaker 2: August of Prussia the infantry general and the wealthiest landowner 219 00:16:05,960 --> 00:16:10,920 Speaker 2: in Russia. This whole ordeal humiliated the Radswills, since it 220 00:16:11,040 --> 00:16:14,360 Speaker 2: rhified that their family was so low status that they 221 00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:18,000 Speaker 2: had to literally let their daughter be adopted out to 222 00:16:18,080 --> 00:16:23,000 Speaker 2: another family. To add insult to injury, Prince August of 223 00:16:23,040 --> 00:16:26,840 Speaker 2: Prussia was a known for landerer who had over twelve 224 00:16:26,920 --> 00:16:31,200 Speaker 2: illegitimate children, which made him an embarrassing choice as an 225 00:16:31,240 --> 00:16:37,480 Speaker 2: adopted father for Eliza. Still, the couple was elated. Wilhelm 226 00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:41,240 Speaker 2: hadn't seen Eliza in three years, but he traveled to 227 00:16:41,320 --> 00:16:45,720 Speaker 2: Poland in February eighteen twenty five, where the two officially 228 00:16:45,840 --> 00:16:51,520 Speaker 2: got engaged. But the marriage hit yet another snag before 229 00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:55,920 Speaker 2: it could get off the ground. Crown Prince Friedrich had 230 00:16:55,960 --> 00:16:59,720 Speaker 2: been unable to produce an air he and his wife 231 00:17:00,120 --> 00:17:05,560 Speaker 2: had only daughters. This left Wilhelm responsible for the royal 232 00:17:05,640 --> 00:17:11,080 Speaker 2: succession putting increased pressure on his potential marriage to Elisa, 233 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:16,119 Speaker 2: the royal ministers implored him to call off the marriage. 234 00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 2: Elisa was forced to wait away from Wilhelm, celebrating her 235 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:25,720 Speaker 2: twenty second birthday alone in her family's hunting lodge. Meanwhile, 236 00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:28,960 Speaker 2: Wilhelm traveled with his younger brother Karl to w Weimar 237 00:17:29,320 --> 00:17:33,840 Speaker 2: to visit the princesses Marie and Augusta von saken Weimar Eisenach. 238 00:17:34,520 --> 00:17:38,600 Speaker 2: Marie and Augusta had yet to get engaged, and Karl 239 00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:42,760 Speaker 2: hit it off with Marie instantly, but the princess's mother, 240 00:17:43,080 --> 00:17:46,800 Speaker 2: sister of the Czar, would only agree to let Karl 241 00:17:46,880 --> 00:17:51,400 Speaker 2: and Marie get married if Wilhelm did not marry Elisa. 242 00:17:52,160 --> 00:17:56,879 Speaker 2: Grand Duke Karl august von saken Weimar Eisenach doubled down, 243 00:17:57,359 --> 00:18:00,720 Speaker 2: sending an ultimatum to the king that Karl and Marie 244 00:18:00,840 --> 00:18:04,280 Speaker 2: could only be wed if the royal family had no 245 00:18:04,480 --> 00:18:09,120 Speaker 2: links with the Radswells, who the second Vaimar eisenachs considered 246 00:18:09,240 --> 00:18:14,399 Speaker 2: to be too low status. With that ultimatum in mind, 247 00:18:14,560 --> 00:18:18,920 Speaker 2: in June eighteen twenty six, King Friedrich Wilhelm the third 248 00:18:19,040 --> 00:18:22,520 Speaker 2: wrote a letter to his son that prohibited him from 249 00:18:22,520 --> 00:18:26,800 Speaker 2: marrying Elisa once in for all. Wilhelm, with no choice, 250 00:18:27,240 --> 00:18:32,440 Speaker 2: reluctantly accepted the decision. He wrote to the Radswells, the 251 00:18:32,480 --> 00:18:36,000 Speaker 2: bond of love between Elisa and me has been dissolved. 252 00:18:36,320 --> 00:18:40,639 Speaker 2: May her friendship with me remain until death. Karl and 253 00:18:40,800 --> 00:18:44,520 Speaker 2: Marie married in May eighteen twenty eight, and one year 254 00:18:44,600 --> 00:18:49,520 Speaker 2: later Wilhelm proposed to her sister Augusta. Those two were 255 00:18:49,560 --> 00:18:53,840 Speaker 2: married in June eighteen twenty nine. Meanwhile, the House of 256 00:18:53,920 --> 00:18:58,320 Speaker 2: Radswell was suffering setbacks and deaths. In response to an 257 00:18:58,400 --> 00:19:02,520 Speaker 2: uprising in the Russian heart of Poland led by Elisa's uncle, 258 00:19:02,960 --> 00:19:07,639 Speaker 2: the Prussian King revoked Elisa's father's role in the Prussian state. 259 00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:12,960 Speaker 2: Eliza's two brothers, sister in law, father, and godchild all 260 00:19:13,080 --> 00:19:17,280 Speaker 2: died within a few years. Elisa herself fell ill after 261 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:22,160 Speaker 2: caring for her late brother Vadislov, and she died shortly after, 262 00:19:22,720 --> 00:19:28,560 Speaker 2: on September twenty seventh, eighteen thirty four. Wilhelm would go 263 00:19:28,640 --> 00:19:32,440 Speaker 2: on to become the King of Prussia in eighteen sixty 264 00:19:32,480 --> 00:19:37,119 Speaker 2: one after his brother's death. Even after all of those 265 00:19:37,240 --> 00:19:41,080 Speaker 2: years apart and a marriage to another woman, he still 266 00:19:41,359 --> 00:19:45,639 Speaker 2: longed for Elisa he kept Elisea's portrait, the one his 267 00:19:45,760 --> 00:19:49,359 Speaker 2: sister had sent him, on his desk, until his death 268 00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:53,479 Speaker 2: in eighteen eighty eight, more than fifty years after his 269 00:19:53,560 --> 00:20:01,720 Speaker 2: love had died. That's the story of Wilhelm and Alisa, 270 00:20:01,760 --> 00:20:05,440 Speaker 2: but stick around to hear about the band film based 271 00:20:05,480 --> 00:20:17,679 Speaker 2: on their love story. In nineteen thirty eight, the Forbidden 272 00:20:17,840 --> 00:20:21,000 Speaker 2: love story between Alisa and Wilhelm was made into a 273 00:20:21,080 --> 00:20:25,119 Speaker 2: movie titled A Prussian Love Story. The film takes some 274 00:20:25,200 --> 00:20:29,440 Speaker 2: liberties with the story setting their fateful meeting at Frihenwald, 275 00:20:29,480 --> 00:20:32,520 Speaker 2: where they spent the day falling in love, before meeting 276 00:20:32,560 --> 00:20:37,040 Speaker 2: again by chance in Berlin, where Wilhelm listens to Elisa's singing. 277 00:20:37,560 --> 00:20:40,600 Speaker 2: The rest of the movie follows the King's attempts to 278 00:20:40,680 --> 00:20:44,440 Speaker 2: break the two apart, albeit in a more dramatic form 279 00:20:44,520 --> 00:20:48,600 Speaker 2: than a series of dossiers written by various royal officials. 280 00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:53,880 Speaker 2: The film starred Lyda Barrova, a check actress, as Elisa. 281 00:20:54,440 --> 00:20:57,360 Speaker 2: At the time she was shooting the film, Barrova had 282 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:02,760 Speaker 2: been having an affair with Joseph Gebels, the chief propagandist 283 00:21:02,920 --> 00:21:07,119 Speaker 2: for the Nazi Party. When Gebels and Barrava began to 284 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:12,440 Speaker 2: make their affair public, Gerbel's wife asked Hitler himself for 285 00:21:12,520 --> 00:21:17,360 Speaker 2: permission to divorce her husband. Hitler rebuked Gebels, forcing him 286 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:21,720 Speaker 2: to end his affair with Barrava in August nineteen thirty eight. 287 00:21:22,359 --> 00:21:25,399 Speaker 2: A Prussian Love Story was set to come out later 288 00:21:25,520 --> 00:21:29,399 Speaker 2: that year, but the Nazis banned the film because of 289 00:21:29,480 --> 00:21:34,000 Speaker 2: the purported similarities between Eliza's forbidden love affair with Wilhelm 290 00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:39,720 Speaker 2: and the actresses with Gerbels. At screenings of her other movies, 291 00:21:40,200 --> 00:21:45,040 Speaker 2: Paid Shills yelled out get out Minister's Whore when her 292 00:21:45,160 --> 00:21:49,760 Speaker 2: character appeared on screen. She fled back to Prague that winter. 293 00:21:50,560 --> 00:21:54,240 Speaker 2: The film wouldn't come out until nineteen fifty, when it 294 00:21:54,320 --> 00:22:02,680 Speaker 2: was renamed Story of Love. Noble Blood is a production 295 00:22:02,880 --> 00:22:06,399 Speaker 2: of iHeart Radio and Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankey. 296 00:22:07,000 --> 00:22:10,880 Speaker 2: Noble Blood is hosted by me Dana Schwartz, with additional 297 00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:15,639 Speaker 2: writing and research by Hannah Johnston, Hannahswick, Courtney Sender, Amy 298 00:22:15,720 --> 00:22:19,800 Speaker 2: hit and Julia Melaney. The show is edited and produced 299 00:22:19,920 --> 00:22:25,040 Speaker 2: by Jesse Funk, with supervising producer rima il Kaali and 300 00:22:25,200 --> 00:22:29,679 Speaker 2: executive producers Aaron Manke, Trevor Young, and Matt Frederick. For 301 00:22:29,760 --> 00:22:35,200 Speaker 2: more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, 302 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:39,520 Speaker 2: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.