Description
This is an oversized leather album that measures 2 1/4″ x 10″ 12.” The album cover bears the high-relief, crowned royal cypher of Braunschweig’s Prince Ernst August II. Under that is the date, 29 May 1897. [At this particular point in time, the ruling family was not actually IN a position to rule, as Braunschweig and Hannover had been annexed by Prussia following the 1866 Austro-Prussian War. Braunschweig remained under the direct rule of Prince Albrecht from Prussia’s royal House of Hohenzollern until his death in 1906]. A water stain appears on the album’s lower left.
At one point, a locking mechanism held the album closed. Part of this mechanism remains, but part is missing. The lock no longer operates. Inside the album, we see that some photos and/or other documents were removed from the page. Following that we see a series of twenty telegrams featuring the names of a Leutnant von Lind and a General von Schkopp. I could find no mention of Leutnant von Lind in my brief research, but I did see a General Bernard von Schkopp (1817-1904) who served as a general during the Franco-Prussian War. He was involved in commanding troops at the Battle of Wörth and at Paris. A Freiherr von Frentz is also mentioned. (Two Generalleutnants by the name of von Frentz served in the army during WW I).
While I have not spent a great deal of time with these telegrams, Husaren-Regiment Nr 17 and 2. Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr 2 are mentioned. (The album has some real potential for research). Twenty-plus blank pages follow the last of the twenty telegrams. When we reach the album’s inner back cover, we see something very different. It is a hollowed-out section covered with a flap. When opened, one could place small private papers, photos, or other treasures inside. Furthermore, a lock is on the flap to secure its contents. Its small key is lost to history, but it is still a fun place to keep something different.
One could easily place dozens of postcards or photographs relating to the Duchy of Braunschweig, Herzog Ernst August, or Herzogin (formerly Princess of Prussia) Viktoria Luise, on the more than twenty blank pages.