When was Sisi’s last major appearance in Vienna? Which building did Emperor Franz Joseph have built to keep her in Vienna longer and more often?
No matter where Sisi appeared, she was greeted with enthusiasm. She herself felt overwhelmed by imperial duties and tried as best she could to avoid them.
The rigid traditions of the Viennese court and the strict protocol did not appeal to her at all. She cultivated a much more liberal attitude, as did her son Rudolf. Both doubted the longevity of the monarchy and the multi-ethnic state, and were ultimately proved right.
Sisi always found the residential city of Vienna gloomy and oppressive, even describing it as a “dungeon castle”. She withdrew more and more into her own dream world, consisting of traveling throughout Europe, reading and writing poetry, as well as a permanent longing for the sea. As a result, she increasingly became an outsider at the Viennese court, felt misunderstood and neglected her imperial duties of representation.
The silver wedding anniversary – a parade on the Ringstrasse
Sisi at the silver wedding anniversary at the age of 41
Elisabeth’s last major appearance at the Viennese court was in 1879 on the occasion of the imperial couple ‘s silver wedding anniversary. The painter Hans Makart designed a procession along the newly built Ringstrasse in honor of the imperial couple and for the inauguration of the Ringstrasse.
The parade started in the Prater and led along the still unfinished Ringstrasse. It is estimated that around 14,000 people took part. Homage was paid not only to the imperial family, but also to all classes and occupational groups of the population. Makart directed the parade and sat on a Lipizzaner dressed as Rubens.
The imperial family then celebrated the silver wedding anniversary in the palace of Archduke Carl Ludwig, Franz Joseph’s younger brother, on Favoritenstrasse. This was only intended for a private circle and the family history of the Habsburgs was re-enacted.
After this, Sisi avoided her imperial representational duties and was rarely seen in Vienna. She preferred southern climes, sun and sea.
The Hermes Villa – the castle of dreams
Hermes Villa in the Lainzer Tiergarten © CC BY-SA 4.0
The emperor had a private palace built for Sisi, the Hermesvilla in the Lainzer Tiergarten. There she was able to devote herself to her love of poetry and write over 600 printed pages of poetry. She admired the poet Heinrich Heine and lived in the fantasy world of William Shakespeare‘s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” .
Elisabeth referred to the Hermes Villa as the “castle of dreams”. In one of her poems, she referred to it as Titania’s magic castle. The exterior and interior of the Hermes Villa were designed entirely according to Sisi’s preferences: with statues of the gods Hermes and Achilles, as well as a bust of Heinrich Heine.
The palace is located in the former hunting grounds of the Habsburgs, the Lainzer Tiergarten, a 2,600-hectare nature reserve on the outskirts of Vienna. However, Sisi was not there very often.
In the last 15 years of her life, Elisabeth was restless and constantly traveling throughout Europe. Unfortunately, Franz Joseph’s idea of keeping Sisi in Vienna for longer with this palace did not work out.
Tip from Sisi’s Amazing Journey: The Hermesvilla can also be visited and can be easily combined with a walk through the Lainzer Tiergarten. Hermesvilla : VIENNA MUSEUM