Coburg prince in card scandal

September 9, 1888 (reported September 25th).


Hereditary Prince Alfred of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, who is the heir apparent to the Duchy (as well as the dukedom of Edinburgh) was recently involved in a scandal in Berlin. The prince and two other officers, Lt. von Goetze and Baron von der Planitz, were involved in a card game, where the prince "dropped" $12,000 and "poor Goetze lost all he possessed."
Von Goetze turned out to be a "poor loser", an altercation ensued, where von der Planitz was accused of cheating. This altercation did not escape the attention of Col von Plettenberg, who brought the scandal to the attention Kaiser Wilhelm II (Alfred's first cousin). He then went to Coburg to settle the matter. Thankfully, the proposed duel did not takeplace between Goetze and von der Planitz, as a "court of honor" was appointed to handle the affair.
A few days later, both young men resigned their commissions. Hereditary Prince Alfred was granted a leave of absence until the end of September. Young Affie, "whose wild escapades have often been the talk of Berlin," is now in Moscow "with his mamma," where they are visiting her brother, Grand Duke Serge.
The young prince has also been promoted to the rank of Captain, and when he returns from Russia, he will be assigned to a Hessian regiment.

$12,000 is nearly $270,000 today.