Will You Marry Me?: Seven Centuries of Love
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"Madam, it is in your power to take me off this rack...." -- JOHN RUSSELL TO LADY FRANCES RICH, COUNTESS OF WARWICK This lavishly illustrated tribute includes marriage proposals spanning seven hundred years, all delivered in the form of love letters. Each of these enchanting missives illustrates the unique sensibilities of the time period in which it was written, from the commanding negotiations of the Gothic age to the beautifully written declarations promising eternal devotion of the Renaissance and beyond. Unabashedly nostalgic -- not to mention irresistibly romantic -- Will You Marry Me? transports modern-day lovers to a time gone by, when ordinary people and historical figures alike poured their hearts onto the page for their soul mates. Jonathan Swift, Sir Walter Scott, Victor Hugo, Friedrich Nietzsche, and King Henry VIII (to Anne Boleyn and Jane Seymour) are represented in this diverse and enormously entertaining collection. Will You Marry Me? is for members of any generation, from those who are hopeless romantics at heart to amateur history buffs who long for a glimpse of the past. Whether there is a proposal in your future or just the wistful dream of a secret admirer, this timeless collection combining history and romance is one to cherish.Publishers WeeklyThis literary valentine edited by poet and translator Scheu-Riesz presents epistolary marriage proposals by historical figures. Grouped by era (Renaissance, Baroque, Victorian, etc.) and including declarations of love by Henry VIII, Abraham Lincoln and Victor Hugo, these letters offer models for popping the question for those without their own personal Cyrano de Bergerac. By turns funny and sincere, with delightful illustrations, this is a great gift for the paramour who's reluctant to settle down and might take the hint. (Jan. 8)Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information
ContentsINTRODUCTIONGOTHICDavid to Joab, sent by the hand of Uriah the Hittite (1035 BC)Isabella of Angouleme to King Henry of England (AD 1220)Margery Brews to John Paston (1477)Arthur, Prince of Wales, to Catherine of Aragon (1499)RENAISSANCEHenry VIII to Anne Boleyn (undated, before 1533)Henry VIII to Jane Seymour (1536)Archduke Charles of Austria to Queen Elizabeth of England (1567)Queen Christina of Sweden to Prince Karl Gustaf (1644)BAROQUEJohn Russell to Lady Frances Rich, Countess of Warwick (about 1662)Thomas Otway to Elizabeth Barry (1682)John Hervey to Elizabeth Fulton (1695)ROCOCORichard Steele to Mary Scurlock (1707)Jonathan Swift to Mrs. Howard (1727)EMPIREHodge the Plowman to his Sweetheart Joan (1741)James Boswell to Isabella de Zuylen (1764)Laurence Sterne to Eliza Draper (1767)Friedrich Schiller to Charlotte von Lengefeld (1789)Sir Walter Scott to Charlotte Carpenter (1797)Field Marshal von Blücher to Frau von S. (1795)Emperor Napoleon I to Archduchess Maria Louise of Austria (1810)Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, to Lady Augusta Murray (1820)Prince William of Prussia to Princess Augusta of Saxe-Weimar (1828)COLONIALSamuel Sewall to the widow Gibbs (1722)Samuel Parr to Jane Morsingale (undated)Thomas Walker to Jeremiah Moore (1760s)Abraham Lincoln to Mary Owens (1837)THE VICTORIANSWilliam Hazlitt to Sarah Stoddart (1808)Charles Lamb to Fanny Kelly (1819)Robert Schumann to Friedrich Wieck, for his daughter Clara (1837)Prince Otto vonBismarck to Herr von Puttkamer, for his daughter Johanna (1846)Thomas Carlyle to Jane Welsh (1823)Victor Hugo to Adele Faucher (1822)Johann Nestroy to Frälein Koefer (1855)Count Leo Tolstoy to Sofia Behrs (1862)Anton Bruckner to Josefine Lang (1866)Friedrich Nietzsche to Mathilde Trampedach (1876)Adolf Stoecker to Anna Krueger (1864)August Strindberg to Frieda Uhl (1893)August Strindberg to Friedrich Uhl (1893)
