That led to the catastrophic worldwide conflict. During this brief break, we are joined by katrine clay, the kaiser. F king thank you for being with us on American History tv. The fifth. Georgie andbout willie and nicky. What they were like as boys and young men growing up. That is a very important question. Sometimes, if you look at this if he hadlie not been born with the crippled , things might have been extremely different. Being born like that, he also had a mother who cannot really love him. He grew up extremely disadvantaged and prone later. Two, georgie and nicky had adoring parents. You might say they were indulged. Georgie and his brother eddie who later died, their used to go in the middle of class and take them out for visits into the park. They had a lovely childhood. Nikki was adored by his father and mother. There was great contrast between these three. As they grew up, they would go to each others parties. Is they would gradually shape up the likes and dislikes within that royal family. They were like any other family. Surprisingly, the danish lot did not really like willie. Who gradually became more and more difficult. , williehat family gradually came to hate england. Thats a very important factor in the whole lead up to the first world war. Can you talk about the role Queen Victoria played in the lives of these three cousins . She played quite an Important Role, of course. Was for Important Role her eldest daughter. She married the crown Prince Frederick in prussia. For theextremely keen countries to come together. It did not work because the prussians did not like the british and increasingly the british did not like the prussians. William was caught between the two. Otherwise, he was ached she was a good grandmother. Not a particularly good mother. Booku mentioned in your that the king, the kaiser and czar failed to recognize the signs of this. I suppose they were caught up with their own lives. They had a wedding in berlin in 1913 which was the kaisers youngest daughter. She was getting married. All three of the cousins were together for the wedding. They would get together for weddings and funerals. The normal family way. This was a splendid occasion. There they all were. They had no idea there was this thing coming up within a year. ,he kaiser later admitted george the fifth soon realized the kaiser cap trained to listen to what georgie and nicky were saying. Them. Ere plotting against a warhad already been castle in berlin in 1912. Politically, war was in the cards long before it officially broke out. , ithis berlin wedding looked like a happy occasion. But it was not. When they went from standing together to defending the monarchies of europe to contributing to their downfall 1908 . You thinking of im not quite sure what you are referring to. At what point was it that they went from standing together to helping contribute to its downfall . Was the wedding the turning point for them or had it started before . The turning point was long before. They never really got along. Wasof the turning points that willie did not get along at all with edward. You have to understand, this all goes back a long way. In denmark, there was the war with the prussians. Had parther, the king of his kingdom taken away by the prussians. Princesses, won the mother of georgie and the load loaky, thed the prussians from that moment on. As soon as he became king when Queen Victoria dies, he started planning the one thing which was an unconstitutional act. The germans and russians were autocrats. We had the constitutional monarchy. You could not do something entirely on your own. No minister. He said he was going to he established the basis. , analyzet you do that between france and britain ininst germany, that was 1904. Imagine how far back all that goes. This goes on through the years. Many strands to the first world war. He nevertheless made his contributions. One of the problem with the royals is that they did not fully appreciate that their private lives and their comings become political acts on the big stage. We have about one minute left. Did any of these three cousins lament their lost relationship before the end of the war or the end of their lives . Im sorry, im not getting you very clearly. This appreciate your time morning. Thank you for joining us on American History tv. We will be taking your calls today between 12 001 00 here eastern time on cspan3. The role of the u. S. Navy in world war i. Youre watching American History tv on cspan 3. Today at 8 55 p. M. Eastern time, historian peter henry k discusses George Washingtons history would edited arnold. The response of arnold pasha failed plan to deliver west offerso the british insight about washingtons leadership and character. Each week, American History tvs railamerica shows us archival films that helps to tell the story of the 20th century. Henry fords mirror of america shows a glimpse of life in the United States between 1914 and 1930. Automaker henry ford developed the ford Film Department to document current events, culture, and to produce