It may be said of the august House of Austria, That as few Princes equal them in Piety, so there are few that equal them in Birth. There may be Families that have been longer grac'd with the Diadem; but of these there are very few that have such great Alliances. There is no King, and not many Sovereign Princes but what are related to them; and there are very few Kingdoms to which the House of Austria has not given Queens. 'Tis now 300 Years that it has been Mistress of the Empire; and since Albert II. it has given thirteen Emperors to Europe successively. One of the Princesses of Austria had so many great Relations that I cannot help mentioning her. This was the Empress Mary, Wife to the Emperor Maximilian, Son to Ferdinand I. This Princess was Sister to Philip II. King of Spain, and the Daughter, the Wife, the Daughter-in-law, and the Mother of five Emperors; the Grand-daughter, the Daughter, the Sister, and the Aunt of four Kings of Spain; and the Mother-in-law of two Kings, viz. Charles IX. King of France, and Philip II. King of Spain. A modern Author says, that the Origin and Kindred of this Princess infinitely surpassed those of Agrippina, who, according to the Report of Tacitus, was the Daughter of Germanicus, the Sister of Caligula, the Wife of Claudius, and the Mother of Nero. But when I consider how perfect a Master you are, both of History and Genealogy, I ought to beg your pardon for my Impertinence in troubling you with these Instances.
What remains for me now, is to communicate some Remarks to you which I have made upon the Austrians in general. I shall begin with the Women, whom I shall paint to you, as Burrhus says, with the Freedom of a Soldier, who is not the best Limner.
The Women here, as in all other Countries, are either handsome or ugly. In general they are rather handsome than pretty, for they are dull Beauties. They are all tall and well shap'd; they walk well, but when they curt'sy, do it in such an aukward manner, that one would think their Backs were in danger of breaking. In their Dress they affect Finery rather than a good Fancy. Two or three excepted, there's none that lay on the Red, much less the White, and Patches are very little worn; in a word, they have nothing about them that denotes Coquettry. As to their Humour, they are reckon'd frank, tho' not easily made familiar; they are naturally vain, and like all our German Women, pretty reserv'd, and not so fond of Gallantry as they are of Gaming, Luxury, and Magnificence. Such is their Indolence that they concern themselves no more about their Houshold Affairs than if they were Strangers. They know no Books but their Prayer-Books, are extremely credulous, and give into all the Externals of Religion: This makes their Conversation sometimes insipid; and unless now and then a Love-Story falls in, Rain and Fair-Weather are their general Topics. They have at least as great a Conceit of Vienna as the Parisians have of Paris; for out of Vienna they think there's no Salvation. But all these little Defects are repair'd by an uncommon Greatness of Soul, and Generosity. They are hearty Friends, and warm Protectors of those whose Interests they espouse. When they are in love, their Passion is sincere; and instead of ruining their Lovers, there are some who have
made the Fortunes of those to whom they have taken a Fancy. Upon this Head I have been told, that in the Reign of the Emperor Joseph, when Gallantry was more in vogue than 'tis now, there was a Lady, who being in love with a Gentleman, and having a mind to make his Fortune without the Censure of the Public, thought fit in an Assembly where her Spark cut at Basset, to punt against him. She set a Bett, without telling a Soul how much she stak'd. Her Husband coming into the Room where they were at play, she rose up, took the Marks that were against her, threw them on the Ground, and said to the Banker, loud enough to be heard by her Husband, I owe you, Sir, 40000 Florins. The Husband in a very great Surprize ask'd what was the matter? I have been such a Fool, said she, pointing to the Banker, as to lose 40000 Florins to Monsieur N——. You have reason to chide me; but however my Debt must be paid. The Husband indeed grumbled very much, and said he wou'd not pay. What! reply'd the Wife, won't you pay the Gentleman? It shall fare the worse with you if you don't, for I am resolv'd to pay him in some Coin or other. The Husband perceiving his Wife so resolute, and that if he did not deposite the Money it wou'd subject him to the Loss of what was more precious, chose rather to part with the Cash; and indeed he had no reason to repent of it, for the Lady's Heart was so won by it, that she renounc'd the Sight of her Lover from that Moment, and made a very sober Wife.
This, Sir, is all I have to give you concerning the Temper of the Women. Let me tell you also how they spend their Time. They rise late. As soon almost as their Eyes are open, they call for Chocolate, and send to their Husbands to know who they have invited to Dinner, and whether there is room for any more Guests. If the Lady does
not like the Company, she sends notice to some Lady of her Acquaintance that she intends to dine with her; but if there be room at home, as a polite Husband always takes care to leave some at the Disposal of his Wife, she sends an Invitation to whom she pleases. After this she dresses and goes to Mass; for here the Ladies are all so devout that there's none but what hears at least one Mass in a day. There they read in five or six different Prayer-Books, kiss all the Pictures that are at the head of the Prayers, and very devoutly toss their Beads. After the Office is over, they commonly chat a quarter of an Hour in the Church. Then they go abroad and make some friendly Visits, or else go home to receive them. At these Visits, they hear all the News in Vienna. During this they have all a little Box of Indian Lack upon their Knees, in which they thread Gold till Dinner-time. When that's over, they drink Coffee or play at Quinze till Night, when they go to Court. From the Empress's Apartment they adjourn to the Assembly, where they divert themselves at Piquet, or at Quadrille; and then retire, undress themselves, go to Supper, and thence to Bed, well pleased to think with what Indolence and Idleness they have spent the Day.
The Women of the second Class, in which I include the Gentlewomen that have no Titles of Honour, viz. the Wives of the Assessors, Referendaries and Agents of the Court, discover such an Air of Plenty and Prosperity as is remarkably surprizing. Their Houses are richly furnished, and their Tables well served. If a Referendary has a mind to a nice bit, no body must offer to take it; and the best of every thing is what they are sure to lay hands on. Belly Cheer is one of those things which the Austrians generally think of most: They require a great many Dishes, and those well-cramm'd.
They are so very much accustom'd to this Profusion of Eatables that I have known some young People in Austria affirm they don't know what good Eating is in France, because they don't serve up a couple of Loins of Veal in one Dish. Different sorts of Wines are what they are also very much us'd to, which certainly is very expensive because foreign Wines pay considerable Duties; yet nothing less will serve them than eight or ten sorts of Wine, and I have been at Houses where there have been no less than eighteen. They place a Note upon every Plate expressing the several sorts of Wine at the Beaufet.
The Burghers and common sort of People mimick the Nobility as far as their Purses will afford; and it may be said that no Nation in the World is so extravagant as this.