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One of the Emperor’s leading diplomats of the era was the Imperial Prince, Akihito Komatsu (小松宮彰仁親王) who had been charged with building relations with the great European powers and the nearby Ottoman Empire.
Komatsu was of imperial blood, a former Lieutenant-General who proved his worth and loyalty by suppressing samurai uprisings; and had studied in England in the early 1870s.
In 1887 Prince and Princess Komastu arrived in Vienna and took up a suite of rooms at the grand Hôtel Imperial. The Emperor of Austria-Hungary, Kaiser Franz Joseph, personally called on the Japanese Princely couple at their hotel, before hosting a welcome dinner at the Hofburg Palace on 10 February.
Over the subsequent days Prince Komatsu’s itinerary was entrusted to the care of the Emperor’s son and heir to the Habsburg throne: officially styled His Imperial and Royal Highness the Most Serene Crown Prince Archduke Rudolf.
This dinner menu for 16th February was hosted by the Crown Prince and Princess and carries their dual embossed arms (those of the Habsburgs intertwined with the royal arms of the Belgians in recognition of Crown Princess Stépahnie’s family as the daughter of King Léopold II).
Earlier in the day Prince Komatsu accompanied the Crown Prince on a tour and inspection of Rennwegkaserne, an infantry barracks within Vienna.
For a foreign royal guest, it was a “light” dinner by imperial standards and the hand-written menu indicates the number of attendees was small. This is because both the Crown Prince and Prince Komastu had accepted an invitation to a late-night ball at the nearby palace of the Marquess Johann von Pallavicini, which was also attended by a string of other Austrian Archdukes and Princes.
A former chef to King Maximillian II of Bavaria once described the steps to prepare and assemble the Gigot de Mouton à la Dubouzet which started by steaming a leg of mutton - with its bone replaced by a flavoursome core of bacon fat mixed with ham - in a stock of beef, veal, kidney fat, onions and turnips. The leg was then sliced and reassembled back in its original shape and was surrounded by potatoes stuffed with minced veal, truffles and sautéed herbs. The dish was then coated in a demi-glaze and served with a tomatoe and white-wine sauce on the side.
W
ith the restoration of imperial power in the late 1860s, Japan’s Emperor Meiji set about reconnecting his nation with the western world after almost two centuries of self-imposed seclusion.
Royal Menu Collection / © Jake Smith
Menu
Huîtres et Citrons: Fresh Oysters with lemon | Potage Crème de Homards: Cream of lobster soup | Pâté de gibier en Crôute: Game terrine with a layer of game aspic and encased in a lard-based pastry | Gigot de Mouton à la Dubouzet: Deglazed boned leg of Mutton surrounded with potatoes stuffed with minced veal mixed with truffles and sautéed herbs; and served with a tomato and white-wine sauce | Purée de Dinde à la Talleyrand: Rissoles of puréed turkey breast mixed with truffles; set atop a bed of diced foie-gras and dressed in a cream sauce flavoured with Madeira, truffles, ham and cured-tongue | Gelinottes rôties Salade et Compote: Roast grouse with salads and compotes | Hagenberg Cheese | Glaces Crème de Chocolat: Chocolate Ice-Creams.
Dinner guest:
His Imperial Highness
Prince Komatsu Akihito of Japan
Photo: FM Archive, Alamy Images
Good Friday Menu for Crown Princess Stéphanie
When Crown Prince Rudolph took his life in January 1889, it plunged the Habsburg Monarchy and its line of succession into turmoil. The widowed Crown Princess Stéphanie left Vienna and sought seclusion at Miramare Palace overlooking the Gulf of Trieste. She reportedly refused all visitors until early April when she was joined by her mother the Queen of the Belgians, and her sister Princess Clémentine.
This menu, still embossed with the royal arms of the Crown Princess alongside those of her deceased husband of 10 weeks, is from when her mother and sister joined her at Miramare Palace. The menu is for Good Friday explaining the all-fish menu of skate in black-butter; and fried fresh anchovies with salad.
Menu
Potage de pois à la St. Germain: Green pea and lettuce soup based on chicken consommé named after the War Minister to King Louis XV of France, the Comte de Saint-Germain | Salade à l'Italienne: Timbales of macaroni salad bound in a sauce made from mushrooms and herbs; and garnished with artichoke hearts | Raie au beurre noir: Fillets of skate (flat seawater fish) with the "wing" still attached, dressed in black butter made from butter, lemon juice and black vinegar; and garnished with cappers | Croquettes d'oeufs aux épinards: Spinach and egg croquettes | Anchoises fraiche frites Salade: Fried fresh anchovies with salad | Soufflé aux abricots: Apricot soufflé | Fromage Roquefort, Eidam: Cheeses: Roquefort and Edam | Glaces Crême, Schmankerl, Framboise: Vanilla ice-Cream with wafers and raspberries.
Royal Menu Collection / © Jake Smith
Photo: Pictorial Press Ltd, Alamy Images
