#that is france england and portugal in the utrecht frame

[ask19thcentury-doctorgilbert]

“That isn’t to say we’ve never been on opposing sides of a conflict, but thankfully that’s never soured the friendship between Markus and the rest of the family long-term. You can still see a lot of Dutch influence around today, especially in Brandenburg! The town of Oranienberg, formerly managed by Electress Luise, was rebuilt in the Dutch style and became the model for any towns that would subsequently be rebuilt.

The sash and ribbon worn with the Order of the Black Eagle, the highest decoration in Prussia, is also orange in color; a nod to Luise and her Dutch heritage. We even have a whole Dutch quarter in Potsdam though that wasn’t built until Frederick William I came to the throne!”

as per usual, more history notes under the cut!

Countess Luise Henriette of Nassau was the daughter of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange and Amalia of Solms-Braunfels. At 19, she had to give up her love for Henri Charles de La Tremoille, Prince of Talmant, to marry Frederick William who would come to be known as the Great Elector. The marriage wound up being a love match and the pair were incredibly happy together. Luise was very politically involved and had more influence in the affairs of her state than most women were allowed at the time. Despite her delicate health, she followed him wherever he travelled including to campaigns. Her husband was known to have said that “nothing went wrong if he followed her advice,”

Gilbert, Konrad, and especially Reiner are very, very fond of her. Gil kind of attached to her as a mother-figure, Konrad views her as a close friend. Reiner sees her in the same light and she’s also one of the few people he would consider to be a true, trusted confidant. They were all equally devastated when she died due to Tuberculosis at the age of 40.

I couldn’t find an official name for Ned so I made up my own: meet Markus van der Meer. He’s one of the maybe three people Reiner would actually call a friend rather than a loose acquaintance.

Gil likely met Markus for the first time during the coronation in 1701. Prior to that he’s only ever heard of him through his brothers.

Reiner’s favorite color is: you guessed it, orange. He’s also fond of Tulips and keeps a bed of them in his garden.