There are few historical references about the presence of bed bugs in Mexico, which does not mean that people of the past were not devastated by this annoying plague. One of those people was Maximilian of Habsburg.
After the arrival of the emperor and his wife to the mexican capitalthis on June 12, 1864, the couple was sent to live from day one to Imperial Palacea building that we currently know as National Palace. However, that place did not have any comfort, on the contrary, it was in clear deterioration.
Bed bugs of emperors
Wilhelm Knechtel, Maximilian’s gardener, who had been sent ahead to find out the needs of the nobles’ next quarters, noticed damage to the windows, ceilings, floors, and deterioration of the furniture. Details that he probably let his boss know so she could prepare, at least mentally, that he wouldn’t have a good time at least the first few days.
However, something you probably didn’t notice was that the bed in which the emperors would sleep, had tiny and elusive blood-sucking guests. So when the couple lay down in bed, it didn’t take long for them to be pecked.
The pool table saved Maximiliano from bedbugs
It is assumed that the night must have been a dog’s night for Maximilian and Charlotte. Who surely felt, more than ever, the contrast of their new Mexican residence with the Miramar Castlein Italya majestic building that had, among other advantages, a spectacular view of the Adriatic sea.
After the bites Charlotte hurried to sleep on a sofa, while Emperor Maximilian lay down on a pool table that was in the palace. How she must have suffered from the bed bugs in that bed that she preferred to lie on the cloth than on the soft mattress.
The bedbugs did not follow them to Chapultepec Castle
It is not known how many nights they spent like this, nor how they resolved their bed bug problem. However, shortly after their arrival, the couple occupied the Cerro del Chapulín Castle, known today as Castle chapultepec.
So let no one be ashamed to face a bed bug infestation at school, work, public transportation or even in one’s own home, since even the nobility has suffered from these bugs.
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