In Hungary, Elisabeth could also indulge her passion for riding in the grounds of the little castle of Godolo, given tot the royal couple of the Hungarian nation as a coronation present. She had a riding school built where she could train in haute ecole and learn many of the skills of horsemanship. She took lessons from the popular circus equestrienne Elise Renz, whom she treated as a personal friend even in public, thereby angering the aristocratic ladies. Nevertheless, the Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary could jump through two hoops on horseback.
With her circus riding, Elisabeth was following in the footsteps of her father Max, who had built a circus ring in his own palace in Munich, shocking Munich society with his horseback stunts. His shy daughter, however, did not perform in front of an audience.
As the shining light of Hungarian society, Elisabeth enjoyed by the Hungarian aristocracy. She was the most beautiful queen in the world; she wanted to be the world’s best horsewoman too. She pent several hours every day with the best riding instructors who could be found, on the most expensive horses and surrounded by Hungarian sports-lovers, training with an eye to showing off her horsemanship at the famous English hunts as well.
She achieved this aim in the 1870s, on several visits to England and Ireland. Enormous sums of money were spent on these luxurious journeys of hers by special train, accompanied by a huge retinue ranging from ladies in waiting to grooms, and numbers of extremely expensive horses. Franz Joseph was still generous, although he hardly ever saw his wife now, for she was far away from Vienna, reigning triumphant as “Queen of the Hunt”.
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