g now towards
middle life withal, and has had enough to cross her in the world. Was
already married thirteen years ago; not wisely nor by any means too
well. A terrible dragon of a woman. Has been in nameless domestic
quarrels; in wars and sieges with rebellious vassals; claps you an iron
cap on her head, and takes the field when need is: furious she-bear of
the Tyrol. But she has immense possessions, if wanting in female charms.
She came by mothers from that Duke of Meran whom we saw get his death
(for cause), in the Plassenburg a hundred years ago. [Antes, p.102.]
Her ancestor was Husband to an Aunt of that homicided Duke: from him,
principally from him, she inherits the Tyrol, Carinthia, Styria; is
herself an only child, the last of a line: hugest Heiress now going.
So that, in spite of the mouth and humor, she has not wanted for
wooers,--especially prudent Fathers wooing her for their sons.

In her Father's lifetime, Johann King of Bohemia, always awake to such
symptoms of things, and having very peculiar interests in this case,
courted and got her for his Crown-Prince (as we just saw), a youth of
great outlooks, outlooks towards Kaisership itself perhaps; to whom she
was wedded, thirteen years ago, and duly brought the Tyrol for Heritage:
but with the worst results. Heritage, namely, could not be had without
strife with Austria, which likewise had claims. Far worse, the marriage
itself went awry: Johann's Crown-Prince was "a soft-natured Herr," say
the Books: why bring your big she-bear into a poor deer's den? Enough,
the marriage came to nothing, except to huge brawlings far enough
away from us: and Margaret Pouch-mouth has now divorced her Bohemian
Crown-Prince as a Nullity; and again weds, on similar terms, Kaiser
Ludwig's son, our Brandenburg Kurfurst,--who hopes possibly that HE now
may succeed as Kaiser, on the strength of his Father and of the Tyrol.
Which turned out far otherwise.

The marriage was done in the Church of Innspruck, 10th February, 1342
(for we love to be particular), "Kaiser Ludwig," happy man, "and many
Princes of the Empire, looking on;" little thinking what a coil it would
prove. "At the high altar she stript off her veil," symbol of wifehood
or widowhood, "and put on a JUNGFERNKRANZ (maiden's-garland),"
symbolically testifying how happy Ludwig junior still was. They had a
son by and by; but their course otherwise, and indeed this-wise too, was
much checkered.

King Johann, seeing the T