August 27, 1918
Cupid has aimed his arrow at "war-worn veteran" Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, who, according to the New York Times, "amid the preoccupation of a series of victorious retreats"has become engaged to Princess Antonia of Luxembourg.
Antonia is a sister of Grand Duchess Marie Adelaide of Luxembourg.
Despite the disparity in their age -- Rupprecht is 49 and Antonia 19 -- the marriage will be a "happy one."
Crown Prince Rupprecht is far better off than his "distinguished rival" Crown Prince Wilhelm, eldest son of Kaiser Wilhelm II. He has never displayed "an inclination of Wilhelm's habit of stealing clocks and silverware" from the homes where he is quartered.
Princess Antonia will certainly find a "well-furnished" home in Bavaria, as Rupprecht's throne is seen as "more secure" than Wilhelm's, when the "German people have the leisure to sit down and figure out whether the war was worth what it cost."
Crown Prince Rupprecht's first wife, Duchess Marie Gabrielle in Bavaria, died in 1912. They had five children, although only one son, Prince Albrecht, 13, is alive.
Princess Antonia is a first cousin of the late Princess Marie Gabrielle, as their mothers were sisters.
Germany has occupied Luxembourg since August 2, 1914, and "German intrigue" has done its best to have Grand Duchess Marie Adelaide marry a German prince, and "facilitate the inclusion of her realm into the German Empire."
Marie Adelaide has consistently refused Germany's requests regarding her marriage. Now the third sister, Antonia, has been selected as the "sacrifice."
A marriage between a princess of Luxembourg and the future King of Bavaria can only help Germany's "work at the peace conference. German kings are being selected for new thrones in Lithuania and Poland, and if a "good German bridegroom could be admitted to a share of the throne of Luxembourg he might be used as a counterweight" to the wishes of the Luxembourg people who "want the war to restore their independence.
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