Manfred

The other day I visited the Hohenstaufen Exhibition at Mannheim. Time was too short to see all the exciting exhibits, but one name, my own, fascinated me.

King Manfred's coat of arms

Manfred, King of Sicily and son of Emperor Frederick II. What a consolation! Although he never became German Emperor, I finally found a decent man carrying my name. What else do we have?

I don't have a Saint, just the Blessed Manfred of Rive commemorated on January 28.

Then there is the famous physicist Manfred von Ardenne who changed his socks from brown to red and still managed to lead a luxurious and happy life.

Manfred, the Symphony in B minor, Op. 58, composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, treats Manfred's incest with his step-sister, which is irrelevant since I do not have a sister.

Remains Manfred von Richthofen, the Prussian junker, racist, arrogant, flying an airplane in the First World War painted in red, daredevil par excellence. This guy, at least, was so prominent that he carried several nicknames: The Red Baron, The Red Battle Flyer, Red Devil, Le Diable Rouge, Le petit Rouge, and the Red Knight. As the title of his memoirs of 1917, von Richthofen used the name The Red Fighter Pilot.

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