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Today in History - November 28th. 1634 - Marie Louise von Degenfeld

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Marie Louise von Degenfeld was born on November 28th. 1634 in Strasbourg (now located in eastern France). Marie Louise von Degenfeld - Source picture: Wikipedia Her parents were the impoverished baron Martens-Christof von Degenfeld  and his wife Maria Anna Adelmann von Adelmannsfelden. In 1650 Marie Louise von Degenfeld was appointed to become the  lady-in-waiting of Charlotte of Hesse-Kassel, the consort of  Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine. She moved to the Electoral Palace in Heidelberg (now located in south-west Germany). The marriage of Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine was very bad.  His wife, Charlotte, openly protested that the wedding had been contracted against her will. Charles I Louis turned his affection to Marie Louise von Degenfeld but she declined to become his mistress. So, the elector contracted a morganatic and bigamous marriage to her.  They had 13 children together, but only one of them could  married and have children on

27 November 1630 Sigismund Francis, Archduke of Austria

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On November 27th. 1630, Sigismund Francis was born at Innsbruck in Austria. Sigismund Francis, Archduke of Austria - Source picture: Wikipedia His parents were Leopold V, Archduke of Austria and Claudia de' Medici. In 1662 Sigismund Francis became Archduke of Further Austria and Tyrol after the death of his brother Archduke Ferdinand Charles. Further Austria or Anterior Austria were the early possessions of the  House of Habsburg in the former Swabian stem duchy in south west of Germany, including the Alsace region and in Vorarlberg. On June 3rd. 1665 Sigismund Francis married Hedwig of the Palatinate- Sulzbach. Unfortunately he died on June 25th. 1665. With his death the younger Tyrolean line of the House of Habsburg ended.

Today in History - November 26th. 1847 - First performance of the Grand Opera Jérusalem in Paris

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The First performance of Jérusalem, a Grand Opera made by Giuseppe Verdi, took place at the Salle Le Peletier (Paris Opera from 1821 till 1873) in France. This work of Verdi was translated from Italian to French. Jérusalem - Source picture: Wikipedia Story Jérusalem is an opera made in 4 acts about the first crusade. The story ends with the proclamation of the victory on July 15th. 1099. Music On next Youtube link you can listen to the Introduction.

25 November 1868 Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse with the nickname 'Ernie'

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On November 25th. 1868 Ernest (in German: Ernst) Louis Charles Albert William was born in Darmstadt (Germany). His nickname in the family was Ernie. Ernest Louis 'Ernie', Grand Duke of Hesse - Source picture: Wikipedia His parents were Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom. Princess Alice was a daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Ernest Louis was the brother of Alix of Hesse, the later Tsarina Alexandra of Russia. During his youth, Ernest Louis was regularly confronted with death. First his younger brother, Prince Friedrich died, later his sister May and then his mother Princess Alice. This affected Ernest Louis for the rest of his life. In 1892 Ernest Louis became Grand Duke of Hesse, after the death of his father. He was a patron of arts and founded the Darmstadt Artists 's Colony. With the encouragement of Queen Victoria, Ernest Louis married on April 9th. 1894 his first cousin Princess V