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Berthe de Rohan

1868–1945

Born
21 May 1868, Teplice
Country of birth
Czechia
Died
19 Jan 1945, Vienna
facts
8
sources
1
images and files
0

Facts and their sources

Tap a fact to see where it comes from.

A life in time

  1. Born · Teplice

    Birth, Teplice

  2. Died · Vienna

    Death, Vienna

What was it like?

The world around Teplice, 1868: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

Berthe was born the same year as Marie Dressler, George Arliss, and Constance Markievicz.

Born the same year

  • Marie Dressler

    Canadian-American actress (1868-1934)

  • George Arliss

    English actor, author, playwright and filmmaker (1868–1946)

  • Constance Markievicz

    Irish politician, first woman elected to the Westminster House of Commons and the Dáil Éireann, and first female Cabinet member in Europe

  • Pompeu Fabra

    Catalan linguist (1868–1948)

  • Maxim Gorky

    Russian and Soviet writer (1868–1936)

  • Nicholas II of Russia

    14th and last Emperor of Russia (1894–1917)

Fashion

Flax drying costs

To dry flax, farmers paid a fee of 20 kreuzers to a local flax worker for scaffold space and provided him with daily food.

Hay-stuffed skirt enhancers

Women prioritized the number of their skirts, which were kept voluminous by a hay-stuffed pouch attached under their bodices.

Music

Popularity of Kde domov muj

The song Kde domov muj was commonly performed at national festivals, banner consecrations, and political demonstrations. It was even sung in a fantastic underworld setting inside caverns during a banner dedication ceremony in 1864.

Intimate musical performances

Beyond formal feasts, people enjoyed music in intimate settings, sometimes accompanied by just a single musician such as a hurdy-gurdy player or a blind harpist. Musicians were often paid not only in cash but also in food, drink, or grain.

Getting around

Easier travel across borders

Administrative barriers to travel were significantly reduced when a decree in 1857 abolished the requirement for passports for travel within the Austrian monarchy. By 1865, passport controls were also removed at the external borders of the monarchy.

Railway revolutionized travel times

Before the railway, a carriage journey from Prague to Vienna took up to 36 hours, but the train reduced this time to 8 hours.

Daily life

Homemade lighting and fire safety precautions

In the 19th century, the cheapest source of light was a simple wooden piece known as a torchlight, which burned for about ten minutes and had to be constantly replaced. To prevent fire in wooden homes, children kept the light over a vessel filled with water so the burning end would drop safely into it.

Around 1875–1875

Scarce hot water and shared baths

Hot water was so scarce that in 1875, a single bucket of hot water brought from a brewery cost 4 krejcary. Families often bathed in the same water in a portable tub in the kitchen.

Food

Affordable meals at workers' cooperatives

Workers’ food cooperatives were established in Prague between 1865 and 1872 to provide affordable meals, such as a full lunch featuring soup, a side dish, and meat for 16 kreutzers. These establishments offered a cleaner alternative to street kitchens, providing diners with tables and cutlery like knives and forks.

Around 1869–1869

Daily meals of working-class families

Ordinary working-class families frequently relied on basic soups, bread, potatoes, and legumes like lentils or peas, with meat being a rare treat for Sunday dinners. Breakfast often consisted of bread and coffee, while evening meals were simple, sometimes just bread with butter, cheese, or beer.

Prices and wages

Survival and extreme dietary measures

Due to extreme poverty, some workers supplemented their scarce diet by hunting sparrows, crows, or even consuming cats and cockchafers. Street kitchens also served the poorest, often reusing tools without cleaning them between customers.

Worker earnings and housing costs

In 1900, an average worker earned between 60 and 120 crowns per month, while mid-19th-century workers typically brought home about 20 gold coins monthly. Rent often consumed nearly half of these earnings.

Work

Long hours for domestic servants

Domestic servants in burgher households during the 19th century faced a grueling existence, with a typical working day lasting between 16 and 18 hours.

Around 1875–1899

Common Skilled Trades

The most common skilled trades included shoemakers, bakers, tailors, carpenters, locksmiths, plumbers, butchers, barbers, and glaziers.

News and letters

Local messengers carried mail on foot

Before official postal routes were expanded, local messengers carried mail on foot in baskets or backpacks to neighboring towns, often three times a week.

Postal fees based on distance

The cost of sending a simple letter was based on distance: 3 kreuzers for up to 10 miles, 6 kreuzers for up to 20 miles, and 9 kreuzers for distances over 20 miles.

During their lifetime

  1. 1873

    The financial crash of 1873

    The financial crash of 1873 led to a severe economic depression and was followed by 152 registered suicides.

  2. 1876

    Metric system becomes mandatory in 1876

    In 1876, the metric system became mandatory for all measurements across Austria.

  3. 1883

    First telephone network in Pilsen

    The first telephone network in Pilsen was established in 1883, serving 11 initial participants.

  4. 1884

    Electric street lighting installed in 1884

    In 1884, the first permanent electric street lighting system in the empire was installed in Temesvár.

  5. 1884

    Social reform laws enacted

    Major social reform laws were enacted in 1884, limiting workdays to eleven hours and requiring Sunday rest.

  6. 1892

    Gold crown currency introduced in 1892

    In 1892, the gold crown currency was introduced, replacing the old florin system.

Family

Parents

Spouses

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.