Originally posted by mercia
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"congratulations, hercule!
to sum up:
1.) the car city is Turin, headquarters of Fiat (Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino)
2.) the circuit is the Formula 1/Italian Grand Prix autodromo nazionale di Monza
3.) the quartet is "Crisantemi" composed by Puccini in 1890 as an Elegy "alla memoria di Amadeo di Savoia Duca d'Aosta"
and the U is Umberto, King of Italy, born Turin 14 March 1844, assassinated Monza 29 July 1900,
brother of Amadeo di Savoia, in honour of whom Puccini composed his only quartet.
Amadeo was by all accounts a pretty unattractive personality, and, briefly, a not very successful King of Spain (Nov 1870 - abdicated Feb 1873). I like the trivia connected with his wedding day (to Donna Maria Vittoria) - which was marred by the following tragic events:
The best man shot himself.
The Palace Gatekeeper slit his throat.
The King's aide died after falling from his horse.
The bride's wardrobe mistress hanged herself.
The colonel leading the wedding procession collapsed from sunstroke.
The stationmaster was crushed to death under the wheels of the honeymoon train.
It was said of him that he was neither very intelligent nor very cultivated, and not well-liked by his Spanish subjects. For instance, legend has it that once, whilst he was going for a drive around Madrid in his carriage, his secretary pointed out that the house they where passing by was that of the famous writer Miguel de Cervantes, upon which he replied that "Well, if he is so famous, even though he has not come to see me yet, I'll pay him a visit soon". Cervantes had died 200 years earlier...
Quite why Puccini wrote his little masterpiece for him is unclear... "
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