The Mayerling incident is the series of events surrounding the apparent murder–suicide pact of Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, and his mistress, Baroness Mary Vetsera. They were found dead on 30 January 1889 in an imperial hunting lodge in Mayerling.
Mayerling: Directed by Terence Young. With Omar Sharif, Catherine Deneuve, James Mason, Ava Gardner. Based on real life events that led to tragic deaths of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and his lover Baroness Mary Vetsera.
The Mayerling Incident Crown Prince Rudolph and Mary were found dead at Mayerling on 30 January 1889. The family initially claimed that the prince had suffered a heart attack. But it was not true. The press were quick to note that the couple had a suicidal nature.
At times a woman is forced into that shape by her partner. At others she seems almost to choose it, knowingly placing herself there. In Mayerling, submission, pleasure and coercion remain dangerously close to one another.
In this latest revival of Kenneth MacMillan’s Mayerling, The Royal Ballet presents a roster of powerful and vivid interpretations across the board.
Certainly, fans of the opera Mayerling and history buffs will know the Mayerling incident. On a sunny July morning, I toured the former Mayerling lodge where Habsburg Crown Prince Rudolph’s once shot Mary Vetsera and then committed suicide.
When Rudolf betook himself to Mayerling in January 1889, he was thought to be hosting just such a hunting party, but on the day after his arrival he shot his lover and himself with a pistol. On the official level, efforts were made to hush up the murder and suicide committed by the Emperor’s son.