Alice, The Offbeat Princess

StickyHolocaust, Royalty

Princess Alice was a unique and remarkable individual. She was born in 1885 in the presence of her grandmother, Queen Victoria, at Windsor Castle.

“The Four Generations” by Gustav Mullins

Baby Alice sits on her mother’s lap. Her aunt is standing, and her grandmother, Queen Victoria, is sitting.

Alice knew four languages, was deaf, and fluent at lip reading. Her marriage to Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark in 1902 produced a family of four daughters and one son. She went through World War I bandaging up soldiers in war zones, her husband nearly being executed, and the family fleeing in exile from Greece. By 1923, the family were refugees in Paris.

Though the family didn’t have much money, her son, Philip, told biographer, Gyles Brandeth, “My recollection of the 1920s in Paris was that we were a very happy family, and it was a very good time.”

Prince Philip with his mother in 1926.

Princess Alice’s youngest child and only son didn’t know his mother was going through a breakdown. She told people of erratic religious visions. Other family would send her to a clinic where she was forced to have very inappropriate physical treatments. Alice discharged herself from there after a few months. Her mother wasn’t convinced, and arranged Alice to be taken away to a sanatorium in Switzerland. In 1930, Alice was taken away while her mother took Philip on a picnic. Alice felt like a prisoner and even made an escape attempt. She missed all four of her daughters’ weddings. Her son was sent to British relatives and boarding schools. Her husband lived in France with his mistress.

In 1932, Alice was discharged from the sanatorium. She distanced herself from her family and traveled throughout Europe. But she really missed her son though. Alice began exchanging letters with her son and other family members. In 1937, she briefly reunited with her family (including Philip and her estranged husband) for the funeral of a pregnant daughter who–with her husband and other children–died in a plane crash. The family noticed that Alice was back to being mentally stable. She felt needed again.

In 1938, Alice returned to Greece–which now was more friendly to royals. Upon her return to Greece, Alice went to helping the poor and needy. Food soon ran out in Athens. Her brother would send food or money to her but was frustrated that she would give it away.

The Cohens

The Cohens were a prominent Jewish family in Greece with ties to the royal family. As Greek Jews were being rounded up and sent to death camps in 1943, Rachel Cohen and her daughter, Tilde, were hiding in the outskirts of Athens but needed a safer hiding place.

When the Cohens walked passed the royal residence, Alice’s lady-in-waiting came out and greeted them. Alice and the lady-in-waiting had been on the lookout for the family since the day before. Alice was more than happy to taken Rachel and Tilde in. Later, Rachel’s youngest son, Michel, joined his sister and mother in hiding.

The Gestapo had suspicions that Alice was hiding Jews. They heard conversations (Alice and the Cohens) coming from upstairs. When they questioned Alice, she said it was just the nanny and was able to dodge other questions using her deafness as an excuse.

Evy Cohen, a descendant of the Cohens, credits her existence to Alice. She insists Alice’s story must be told. The Cohens applied for Alice to be recognized as one of The Righteous Among the Nations. In 1994, Philip visited his mother’s grave in Israel (yes, I’m jumping ahead a little bit), and at the ceremony honoring her, he commented how Alice didn’t tell her family the story immediately. He said:

“For years, we did not know, and, as far as we know, she also never mentioned to anyone, that she had given refuge to the Cohen family.”

She gave refuge to the Cohen family for thirteen months. By that time, Athens was liberated. Alice continued to stay in Greece, helping out, but made some important visits to Britain.

Going to Britain

One visit occurred in April 1947 when her son got married to Princess Elizabeth. Alice had arranged for some of her few remaining jewels be incorporated in the engagement ring.

When Alice went back to Greece, she decided to become a nun and start an order. Another important visit to Britain was her daughter-in-law’s coronation. Alice showed up in a designer nun’s habit.

When she was back in Greece, she continued to volunteer but found it hard to find women proper enough to become nuns. With her failing health and a royal coup in Greece, Alice was persuaded by Philip and Elizabeth to return and live in England in 1967. She resided in Buckingham Palace and died in 1969.

Shortly before her death, she wrote her son,

“Dearest Philip, Be brave, and remember I will never leave you, and you will always find me when you need me most. All my devoted love, your old Mama.”

Legacy

Before her death, she wished to be buried in Jerusalem. In 1988, her remains that were buried in England were moved to Jerusalem. Since then, her son, grandson, and great-grandson, have visited her grave.

She was recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. In the 1994 ceremony, Prince Philip also said,

“I suspect that it never occurred to her that her action was in any way special. She would have considered it to be perfectly natural human reaction to fellow beings in distress.”

On Holocaust Memorial Day 2025, Prince William gave a touching tribute to Alice:

Princess Alice was one eccentric, brave princess. Her life could have been a tragedy with all it setbacks, but she did overcome them. Her example of service and not giving into peer pressure is a story that really does need to be told.

Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark by Philip de László, 1922.
From Private collection of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Sources

Videos:

In addition to Prince William’s tribute, check these enlightening videos out:

The Extraordinary Life Of Princess Alice | Queen’s Mother-in-Law | Real Royalty Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

Princess Alice: The Royal’s Greatest Secret | Royal Family Secrets. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

Articles:

The extraordinary life of Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, on the anniversary of her birth by Rebecca Cope. The Tatler. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

How Princess Alice saved an entire family from the Nazis. The Guardian. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

Prince Philip’s Mother Saved Jews during the Holocaust by Adam Ross. aish.com. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

Prince Philip Received a Heartbreaking Letter From His Mother Just Before She Died by Amy Mackeldon. Marie Claire. Accessed Mar 3, 2025

Prince William pays tribute to deaf great grandmother Princess Alice by Heather Lomax. British Deaf News. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

Princess Alice. Yad Vashem: The World Holocaust Remembrance Center. Accessed Mar 3, 2025

Princess Alice of Battenberg: The Other ‘People’s Princess’ by Hannah McCann. New Histories. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

Princess Alice of Battenberg wikipedia article. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

A Righteous Princess. by Daniel Adamson. Holocaust Centre North. Accessed Mar 3, 2025.

ROYAL HERO How Prince Philip’s mum risked her life to hide three members of a Jewish family and save them from Nazi death camps by Alison Maloney. Accessed Mar 3, 2025

Remembering Emilie Schindler

StickyHolocaust,

Early Life

Emilie Pelzl Schindler was born in 1907 in Czechoslovakia. She connected with nature and animals. Life seemed to be pretty good until World War I. Her father served in the army and came back with PTSD. She had to take care of him a lot. So, it’s not really surprising she was ready to get out of her situation when she met the handsome and adventurous son of an electric motors salesman in 1928. That son was Oskar Schindler. After six weeks of dating, the two married.

She was shocked by her new husband’s lifestyle and affairs. She suffered from miscarriages and periods of loneliness.

To the Rescue

Oskar also loved money. He saw that joining the Nazi party provided profiting opportunities. He was able to buy a factory where he hired Jews for cheap labor. As the war progressed, he and Emilie witnessed the brutality of the Nazis and that the Jews were in real trouble. (Her Jewish friend, Rita, had been hung in front of her father’s store.)

She felt she had to do something at the scenes she witnessed:

“I’d seen enough of emaciated bodies, starving children, and desperate mothers.”

Oskar’s factory became a sort of haven for Jews on his list.

The Schindlers used the black market and spent much of their money and valuables for things like food, supplies, and the necessary relocation of the factory and workers. Oskar would go out of town a lot to wheel and deal in order to protect those on the list while leaving the care of the factory to Emilie.

Ludmilla Page said:

“She was wonderful, Mrs. Schindler. She did it in her own quiet way.”

One of the times Oskar was away from the factory, four train wagons of 250 people stopped. The SS officer reported the Jews in these wagons were on their way to a death camp.

Emilie recounted the event:

“We found the railroad car bolts frozen solid…the spectacle I saw was a nightmare almost beyond imagination. It was impossible to distinguish the men from the women: they were all so emaciated – weighing under seventy pounds most of them, they looked like skeletons. Their eyes were shining like glowing coals in the dark.”

Her niece, Gertrud, recalled:

“I didn’t know if they were dead or alive. Even the living looked liked skeletons. Some of them were stuck to the walls. Their hair and skin frozen in place. Aunt Milly had warm water fetch so we could thaw them off. Then we go them out. The sight was horrifying.”

Emilie had a makeshift hospital set up in the factory. She and her husband also set up a Jewish cemetery for those Jews who didn’t survive under their care.

Michael Klein recalled the scene when he was rescued:

“Some people who could still walk, were walked in. Others were carried in to a big room where there are several showers nearby. And the showers were turned on, and hot water was running for the showers. I remember I went to this hot water [that] was running, and I lied down, and I slurped the hot water like a pig. I couldn’t imagine that I will ever see hot water, and it would be warmed.”

Celina Binjaz, who was then 12 when she and her mother were saved from Auschwitz and brought to Schindler’s factory, would be forever grateful for the Schindlers. In her interview, Saved by Schindler’s List, she told how by the time she and her mother reached the factory, her then illness was an enlarged liver. She commented:

“It was only through the good graces of Mrs. Schindler-Emilie-who came with a pot of farina [sort of like a cereal that’s easy on the stomach] that she had cooked herself, you know, and fed us sick people, that we survived, really. Because that was the only nourishment that we got.”

The factories were not luxurious, but the Schindlers did tried their best, and Emilie proved to be a maternal lioness. She got grain by asking (while revealing she was helping out Jews) her next neighbor, a woman who ran a grain mill. She succeeded in that. She did personalized things like getting prescription glasses for a boy who broke his.

Survivor Maurice Markheim remembered:

“She got a whole truck of bread from somewhere on the black market. They called me to unload it. She was talking to the SS and because of the way she turned around and talked, I could slip a loaf under my shirt. I saw she did this on purpose. A loaf of bread at that point was gold. There is an old expression: Behind the man, there is the woman, and I believe she was the great human being.”

Post War

Emilie and Oskar had saved 1200 Jews. Europe was an unsafe place for the Schindlers after the war. (A big part of that was the approaching Russians.)

They found refuge in Argentina. It should have been a fresh start. Oskar tried setting up businesses there but failed. He would abandon Emilie and went back to Europe with his girlfriend (whom he had brought with him to Argentina). Emilie was left to settle his debts. She’d later receive pensions from Israel, Germany, and Argentina as well as security.

Emilie worried she would be forgotten. But the survivors she helped would not forget her!

Survivor Francisco Wichter said,

“As long as I live, I will always have a sincere and eternal gratitude for dear Emilie. I think she triumphed over danger because of her courage, intelligence and determination to do the right and humane thing. She had immense energy and she was like a mother.”

Emilie and Oskar were recognized by Righteous Among the Nations. She was able to return to Europe at the very end of her life and died in 2001 in a Berlin hospital.

It’s important not to forget Emilie Schindler. She is VERY relevant to today. At first she was unaware how bad things were for the Jews, but as she witnessed the atrocities, she knew she had to do something to help. She actually did something about it

Shouldn’t we all be doing something to help?

Notes and Sources:

The direct recollections of those on Schindler’s List were from interviews provided by the USC Shoah Foundation, which were gathered for a video, “Emilie Schindler – A forgotten heroine who saved Jewish lives during the Holocaust” and Celina Binjaz’s experience “Saved by Schindler’s List | Celina Biniaz | Jewish-American Heritage Month | USC Shoah Foundation.” Accessed February 15, 2025.

“Emilie Schindler 1907-2001” from Jewish Virtual Library. Accessed February 15, 2025.

“Emilie Schindler” from Arizona Jewish Historical Society. Accessed February 17, 2025.

Emilie Schindler Wikipedia article. Accessed February 17, 2025.

www.emilieschindler.com. Accessed February 17, 2025.

A Look Back At The Life Of Emilie Schindler, The Wife Of Oskar Schindler from Grunge. Written by Jane Shea. Accessed February 17, 2025.

Oskar and Emilie Schindler. Righteous Among the Nations. Accessed February 17, 2025

Images

Featured Image and Wedding pic from A Forgotten Heroine – Emilie Schindler Saved Jewish Lives article. Accessed February 17, 2025.

Emilie in a Light Dress from Arizona Jewish Society. Accessed February 17, 2025

Schindler in 2000 from Wikipedia. Accessed February 17, 2025

Franceska Mann: The Ballerina’s Revolt

StickyBlog,

As I was going through some old school assignments and art projects, I found an essay from my sophomore of high school on Auschwitz. Two decades ago. In the paper, I mentioned that there were no rebellions in the camp. I’ve learned in recent years, that couldn’t be further from the truth! I’ve learned there were many ways people rebelled in Auschwitz and other Nazi camps.

Very recently, I learned about Polish ballerina Franceska Mann (born Franceska Manheimer-Rosenberg) who was a rising star who got deported from the Warsaw Ghetto.

There are reports of whether she was involved in rebellions helping or betraying her fellow Jews before being deported. What seems to be more clear is that she ended up arriving at Aushwitz on October 23, 1943 on a passenger train.

I was surprised to learn that Mann wasn’t saved for a while longer at the camps. She was beautiful and a little bit of a celebrity. Instead, she and and perhaps 100 other women (depending on account) were sent to the gas chambers.

Again, the story gets a little blurred, but there was some sort of riot that these women started. Here is the most famous one:

Franceska noticed the guards were watching her undress. While the guards were in a trance, she struck a guard’s forehead hard with her Stiletto.

She grabbed his gun and shot two guards. She killed Joseph Schillinger and wounded Wilhelm Emmerich, who walked with a limp the rest of his life.

Franceska’s actions caused the other women to fight the guards. The revolt was shut down, and the women were killed. The details aren’t too clear as there were few surviving witnesses. The main story is that there was a women revolt, and two guards were shot. There was a rebellion which inspired prisoners. She has also inspired art—and even a ballet.

The story of Franceska Mann and the other women uprising is one of the many stories about Jews who fought back, and who didn’t go to their fates as lambs to the slaughter.

Links:

A story of hope,tenacity and bravery. The Jerusalem Post. Accessed January 27, 2025.


Ballerina Franceska Mann Kills Nazi Guard and Injures Two Others at Auschwitz. This Week in History. Accessed January 27, 2025

Franceska Mann’s last dance at Auschwitz. World Jewish Congress YouTube video. Accessed January 27, 2025

Franceska Mann Wikipedia article Accessed January 27, 2025

Strong women of the Jewish faith: Franceska Rosenberg-Manheimer 1917-1943 Part V. Accessed January 27, 2025

Jochebed: Willing to Put Her Child First

StickyBlog, Scriptures,

A post from nine years ago…

With Mother’s Day being last week and wrapping up the subject of Moses in Sunday School, I am going to share part of an article called “Who Do You Admire?” by Brenda Combs

Jochebed, mother to Moses, here is a woman to admire!  She had the courage to defy the Pharaoh no less and refused to condemn her son to death as so decreed.  In our society we are surrounded with individuals who give in to popularity, fads, whims, and politically correctness but here was a woman who had everything to lose yet willingly put her child first despite what society wanted her to do. She had the creativity to hide him in a basket upon the Nile and care for him once the Pharaoh’s daughter claimed him took him to her heart.  She only had him for a short time, but you can bet she taught him of the Lord’s way and loved him completely each and every second she had with him.  Finally, she placed her confidence in God after all she could do and her children are examples to all who value strength, integrity, faithfulness and righteousness.

Side Note: I love having discussions with Brenda, and yesterday we talked about the heroine, Rahab, whose bravery helped Joshua and the Israelite army conquer Canaan. And the Bible will continue with women making sure that Israel goes forward.
Coming soon A royal aunt’s sacrifice in the French Revolution. A glimpse at my book in progress about  a timeless and biblical princess plus Poet’s Profile.

Moses in his Mother’s Arms was painted by the British artist Simeon Solomon (1840–1905)

I’m Sorry I Left

Blog

I’m embarrassed and sorry with how long I’ve been gone. After a leave of absence, I came to the realization that I need certain people. Those people include you-the reader-and the people mentioned on this site.

And I hope one contribution can be a sort of museum or display. I already have wonderful art I commissioned and received from talented artists.

Now, I can’t compete with the cool history blogs out there, but I hope to contribute to your interests.

Overall, I hope to learn more and then share what I learn about our friends from the past.

Image from pixabay.com. Creator’s page is https://www.creativefabrica.com/designer/emmie-norfolk

Happy Birthday, Elizabeth Barrett Browning!

Blog, Poets, True Love, ,

I was thinking of Elizabeth Barrett Browning last night. It’s probably because as she got older as a single maid, she got more ill, but she managed to go on with her work and eventually found true love. I wrote her a note last night/this morning. I decided just to do a little research and read she was born March 6!

So of course, I’ll have to include that birthday note to her!

I still can’t believe it! I was writing today thinking I should post my note, and I was determined after I discovered it was Mrs. Browning’s birthday!

Letter

EBB~

Elizabeth Barrett Browning-I keep you in mind as I age. Maybe when I’m 40, I’ll be married, but if not, what can I do? I’m not married yet or have your talent, and so it’s depressing. You had a lot going for you, but I bet it was hard. I have spinal and head problems myself. Perhaps I’m…of what was I going to say? No, I won’t ever know your genius or exact pain, but somehow you give me inspiration and my heart reaches out to you because you triumphed when it came to love. No one ever could have predicted what you ended up doing–eloping with such a seemingly eccentric poet. Maybe your husband eloping with someone–but not you! It’s cool that he took a chance on a 35-plus-year-old woman.

Birthday wishes,

~A 35+ woman 

P.S. Upon further research, I’ve discovered just how much you fought for causes with all you had. So it’s not surprising that when you found the one, you went for it. 

Elizabeth Barrett Browning and her husband, Robert Browning

Further Thoughts

I noticed I lost my thoughts in the middle of the letter. I really might be getting senile.

Anyway, I don’t have enough thoughts presently to even write a poem, but hopefully Elizabeth Barrett Browning would think this post is good enough.

Happy birthday, Mrs. Browning!

Images

Birthday cake image from pixabay.com, public domain.

Photograph of EBB and Robert Browning, public domain.

Engraving EBB, engraved by Thomas Oldhan Brown, public domain.

The Queen’s Name

French Revolution, Mothers, , ,

The queen’s name is precious to me.

Louis XVI

My tenth grade word history book inferred Marie Antoinette was a careless spender. A novel I read in college portrayed her as a loose woman.

Of course that’s been years, and through surprising study and realizations, I came to discover that the messages those writers conveyed were lies. I usually roll my eyes every time a piece of entertainment comes out about Marie Antoinette because it includes slander–and the filmmakers make lots of money from it.

Usually, I can get over it to a reasonable degree. After seeing a recent trailer, though, I can’t this time. I immediately wanted to find production and say:

In the name of all that’s good, stop!

Stop defaming the name of Marie Antoinette.

Stop defaming the name of her husband, Louis XVI.

Stop defaming the names of their faithful friends and family.

Stop it!

As an American, I feel a strong inclination to make these strong requests. Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI contributed generously to the Americans during the Revolutionary War. I enjoy many freedoms, and so I feel that Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI’s efforts should be recognized and honored—and no more lies!

To those in the entertainment industry, academic circles, and different types of influencers  who encourage these crude rumors–please, please stop.  


“Portrait of Marie-Antoinette at Temple” by (maybe after) Alexander Kucharsky

Hatshepsut: Nearly Erased From History, But Why?

Royalty, , , ,

This question started out at the airport. But it started with the Internet search, “pharaoh during Moses’ time.” I’m still wondering what Moses’ time in Egypt was like, and I was surprised that Hatshepsut was mentioned in a possible timeline.

She was included in the article, “Who Were the Egyptian Pharaohs During the Time of Moses?” The article discusses Alfred J Hoerth’s book Archaeology and the Old Testament where he presents an interesting timeline, and Rameses II–a pharaoh usually included in Moses’ story–isn’t that present. Instead, the article talks about the possibility that the pharaoh that eventually let the slaves go was Thutmose III, the stepson/nephew of Hatshepsut.  

It’s said Thutmose III was responsible for making Hatshepsut disappear from history.

What I mean by “disappear” is that it was him who tore down her monuments, hid her achievements, and had her pictures scratched out from the wall art.

Back to the airport, I went to YouTube to a Horrible Histories’ sketch I vaguely remember watching about Hatshepsut.

If the video is taken off the Internet, the history you “learn” from it is that Hatshepsut ruled for nearly 22 years, but was probably murdered by her stepson, and then he erased her from history. He was super mad.

It’s a great story, and I love Horrible Histories. But I decided to do a more thorough search.

Well, it was a quick search. My plane was boarding shortly. I scanned some information, and the only information I remembered was she made her stepson head of the army.

I thought about that fact for the whole flight.

Taking a Dig?

So, after I got to my destination and during some free time, I watched a documentary titled Hatshepsut: Secrets of Egypt’s Lost Queen. It’s a about archeologists and other historians examining her life and mummy candidates to see if they could find her.

What stood out to me most was the excitement of those involved in the project. I totally get it. You want to meet a person in history so badly, and this is chance to get close! There were discovered, little trinkets probably owned by Hatshepsut, and I would love to get my hands on something owned my one of my historical heroes!

And of course I was impressed how they narrowed the mummies to one candidate.

If you accept that candidate to be her, then Hatshepsut wasn’t murdered. (Sorry, Horrible Histories.) The documentary reports she died from a tooth infection/disease. Other reports showed diabetes or bone cancer. Whatever the case, she wasn’t killed by someone else.

Then the documentary shifts to a team also looking at certain wall art where they discovered where her images had been. But the images had been scratched away, and they had been replaced with images of Amenhotep II, who happened to be the son of Thutmose III.

The commentators said this action was probably taken for Amenhotep II to have a stronger claim to the throne, and that the throne is usually passed down from father to son.

Plus, Thutmose III didn’t go on a rampage right after her death to destroy Hatshepsut’s legacy. He removed her from history when he got older. Like two decades later. There’s a good chance that Thutmose III wasn’t taking a dig at his stepmother.

She wasn’t the only ruler carved out of Egyptian history–even men were. It was a strategic move to avoid future conflicts. It is sad, but that’s the way it was.

If the documentary was right in their claims, I’d like to imagine she celebrated when found.

Wrapping It Up

Gathering other information, Hatshepsut prepared her stepson very well to rule. I’ve concluded that Hatshepsut practically gift-wrapped Egypt for him.

To Thutmose III With Love, Hatshepsut

Ancient Egypt rulers were unlikely to predict the way good technology that was to come. (I’m always surprised with new tech that comes out myself.) Maybe Thutmose III meant to do a sloppy job. But that’s just a speculation.

I believe Hatshepsut and Thutmose III were more of a team than enemies.

Other Thoughts

In one of Simon Whistler’s videos on Hatshepsut, he reflects on remembering Hatshepsut, and how she was unsure how or if she would be remembered.

In case you didn’t make it through this whole video, Mr. Whistler quotes the female phaoroh saying:

“Now my heart turns this way and that, as I think what the people will say. Those who see my monuments in years to come, and who shall speak of what I have done.”

Hatshepsut

I think Hatshepsut’s story offers hope people who think they’ll be forgotten.

But the forgotten part can be temporary…even if thousands of years go by!

When Moses Met Zipporah

Scriptures, True Love

“Where ever there’s water, there’s people,” says my biblical lands instructor during each lesson.

So, of course, the well is a popular place. It’s a great place to meet people!

It was somewhat romantic when Jacob met Rachel at the well. He knew she was the one he was looking for, and he helped water the sheep, gave her a kiss, and then she ran to her dad.

Zipporah (a.k.a. Tzipora or Sephora), and Moses had a similar experience, but a little different…

So Moses had been on the run because Egypt’s leader found out Moses had killed an Egyptian who had been attacking a fellow Hebrew. To quote Moses’ flight:

Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well.

[How long Moses had been in Midian, I don’t know. Maybe he knew a few people before the following incident.]

Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.

And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.

I think I can speak for many women when I say guys helping and caring for animals are very attractive! The perfect gentleman who’s good with animals. Can’t get much better than that!

Let’s check out some of Hollywood’s famous dramatizations of that famous “meeting.”

The Ten Commandments:

Well, in the both the movie and Exodus account, there were seven daughters, a well, sheep, and bad guys…I think that’s what the movie got right. Even though I’m not too sure if the girls flirted with him, I do love the heroic music and observation comments!

The Prince of Egypt:

Huh…four daughters shown. I wonder where the other three are hiding. But the film does feature a well, sheep, and bad guys. This encounter in the film is Moses and Zipporah’s second meeting, which isn’t accurate. But there is a possibility he liked her, but let’s get back to the scriptural text about what the daughters did after Moses helped them:

And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day?

And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread.

I find the daughters’ father hilarious. His daughters were just being cautious. I can imagine that the daughters were caught off guard and awkwardly said they had to go after the chores was done.

It’s the type of thing I would do. My dad has reacted similarly. One example was when a cute guy (I knew already) asked to give me a ride. I said no. When I told my dad about it, he said, “You should have said yes!”

Reuel (referred to as Jethro later in the text) and Moses hit it off.

And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.

Darn, no details of Moses and Zipporah’s courtship. I agree with the rabbis when they said as Jethro got to know Moses, he approved of Moses. The “eat break” line (I used the King James Version of the Bible) is translated in other versions as “break bread.” “Break bread” might be a hint to Moses that he’d marry one of Jethro’s daughters. Zipporah might have heard this and made a plan to get Moses. Or Moses noticed her good qualities and went after her.

Or maybe the two fell in love through a song…to end this post, let’s watch The Prince of Egypt’s, “Through Heaven’s Eyes.”

P.S. The Hebrew slaves didn’t build the pyramids. That’s what my biblical lands teacher told me.

Featured image: Moses and his Ethiopian wife Zipporah by Jacob Jordaens. Public domain.

I don’t own the videos or movies.

I want to find a nice guy like Moses though.

Arranged: Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI

Blog, French Revolution, Royalty, True Love,

If their lives had crossed paths, would there have been any chance that they’d get together? Yes, yes, YES!

First of all they were the same religion. I’ve concluded that in all marriages—you better have the same standards.

Marie-Antoinette and Louis remind me of the couples that knew each other in high school and went to some of the same church functions, but hooked up after graduation. They became adults, noticed, and took a strong interest in each other.

 

Click here to read a more detailed analysis of this couple.

 

Featured image:Marie Antoinette, Emperor Maximilian and Louis XVI by Josef Hauzinger  Josef Hauzinger public domain.

 

Arranged: Catherine of Braganza and Charles II

Artists, Royalty, , , ,

Catherine and Charles’ marriage didn’t end in divorce, but it wasn’t exactly a success. The man had many mistresses before and during their marriage, but the couple stayed on somewhat good terms.

Would Charles’ character had been different if he hadn’t had access to so many women? If he lived today, would he had signed up for an addiction recovery program?

Catherine had admirers herself. One man got fired from her service for getting too close with her. After Charles’ death, there were rumors she had a relationship with a Frenchman who had served her for years.

Maybe the mothers would still have played an important part in matchmaking; only this time it would be for everyday life, not making alliances between two countries. The mothers of this couple were both Catholics. Charles’ mother was happy when her decided to marry a good, Catholic girl.

Once again, religion is an important factor. Charles declared himself a Catholic at the end of his life, which is what Catherine had been her whole life.

I don’t know if they would have picked each at an ordinary party, but their marriage probably would have been better if they hadn’t been in high positions where they had opportunities to interact with questionable characters and temptations.

 

 

Featured Image: Charles II of England and Queen Catherine of Braganza (Dutch engraving, 3rd quarter of the 17th century)