Thursday, March 17, 2022

Prince Henry heading home

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 March 17, 1902


Prince Henry of Prussia and his entourage arrived in Cherbourg, France, at 6:30 p.m. from Plymouth, England, reports the Washington Post.

The prince was seen on the Deutschland's bridge when it entered Plymouth Harbor.  He "waved a cheerful greeting" to the German naval attache, Capt. Koeper and other friends went out to "the steamship on the company's tender."

The voyage was "pleasant and uneventful," although Prince Henry was "tired out" during the first few days of the trip across the Atlantic.  He spent little time with other passengers," but during the latter part of the journey, the prince appeared often on the promenade deck and he was seen often in pleasant communication with other passengers.

After the ship docked in Cherbourg, the German consul delivered to Prince Henry "a number of telegrams and letters, including a message of welcome." from the prince's older brother, Kaiser Wilhelm II.

The Kaiser has made arrangements for a reception at Cuxhaven when Prince Henry arrives.  He said he was "greatly pleased" with the messages from the Emperor as it shows an "expression of his majesty's complete satisfaction" of Henry's visit to the United States. 


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Prince Henry told reporters that when he "finally boarded the Deutschland in New York," he went to his cabinet and "slept almost continuously for forty-eight hours."  He did, however, appear for his meals," and take short walks on the bridge.  

He said he had never "worked so hard in his life" when he was in the United States.  He noted that he had to change his uniform several times a day, or "faced a succession of situations requiring such alertness and a certain initiative on his part."

When asked what impressed him the most, Prince Henry responded that the "great, orderly and cheerful crowds had been the most continuous impression."  

Prince Henry will also be reunited with his wife, Princess Irene, and their three sons, Prince Waldemar, who turns 13 on March 20,  Prince Sigismund5,  and 2-year-old Prince Henry.   

The family live in Hemmelmark, near Eckernförde in Schleswig-Holstein.

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