announced till the last moment. In great relief and joy Prince Philip rejoined the detachment and went to the place of execution. The unfortunate soldier was placed, blindfold against a wall, and those who were to fire stood with laden muskets ready, when the shout of Pardon was uttered. The men either did not hear and understand or else in their nervousness drew the trigger unconsciously, and the man fell with bullets in his heart and head. At the same moment Prince Philip dropped senseless from his horse. He suffered for several weeks from nervous fever, confined to his bed, and the shock so affected him that he never wholly recovered his spirits.
He was morganatically married to Anthonia, the widowed Baroness of Schimmelpfennig, whom the King of Prussia created Countess of Naumberg. The Landgrave was much inclined to be courteous and hospitable to such strangers as visited Homburg, but some English ladies never would accept invitations to the palace, not really understanding the position of a morganatic wife, and it went against the grain with them to be received by the Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg and the Countess of Naumberg. She died before her husband in 1845, he in the ensuing year.
The brothers Blanc of Paris ran the gaming-tables, and these men, out of the plunder, provided assembly-balls, reading-rooms, laid out public walks and gardens with bands that played in the open every day; and it was they really who were, or conducted themselves as if they were, sovereigns in the land, as may be judged by the following incident.
The bank had obtained an order from the Landgrave that the highest stakes should be limited to 4000 gulden. In the year 1853, Charles Louis Bonaparte, Prince of Canino, appeared at the tables and invariably staked the maximum and won. On the evening of the second day, the bank feared that another run would break the bank, for Prince Bonaparte had already reaped 200,000 gulden. But when he entered the gaming-hall on the morning of the third day he was confronted with an order signed by the Landgrave, that henceforth the maximum should be reduced to 2000 florins. In disgust, the Prince left Homburg with the 200,000 gulden in his pocket. No sooner was his back turned than the maximum was reinstated, by order of the Landgrave, at 4000 gulden.
