Maria Theresia of Austria was the only female head of the Habsburg Dynasty. She remained the uncrowned ‘Madam Kaiser’ for life. Her consort Franz I. Stephan was politically unambitious, yet she pushed through his election as emperor in 1745. Although her spouse was the official sovereign, his resolute wife led the government affairs for 40 years until her death. Franz Stephan nevertheless stood steadily by Maria Theresia's side and supported her.

Only very few American icons have aroused a more lasting fascination than Charles Augustus Lindbergh. He belongs to the 20th century's most extraordinary figures.

On 20/21 May 1927, the young pilot was the first person who successfully made a non-stop solo flight across the Atlantic from New York to Paris. The handsome, daring pilot became the acclaimed national hero over night. New York honoured him with a confetti parade, and the US Congress awarded him the Medal of Honor, the highest military award for bravery in the USA. 

The American actress Grace Kelly was the perfect combination of both the American and the European dream. She is among the most admired women in the world and is seen as the epitome of beauty, grace and style. Under the direction of Alfred Hitchcock, the young woman was transformed into the ideal of an elegant, beautiful blonde under whose ice the fire blazes. In 1955 she met Prince Rainier Grimaldi III of Monaco at the Cannes Film Festival. They married one year later,  from then on Grace was known as ‘Her Serene Highness The Princess of Monaco’. The Principality of Monaco owes its present-day glamour factor above all to the star status of Grace Kelly.

During Victoria's 63-year reign the British Empire reached the height of its political and economic power. In her time the monarch was the most influential woman in the world. An entire era was named after her, the 'Victorian Age'.

Charles Dickens is considered one of the greatest writers in the history of literature. Today, many of his books and the characters he created are among the classics of world literature. During his lifetime, Dickens was by far the most popular writer, and he is still one of the most widely read English authors today. Dickens published a total of 15 novels in addition to a large number of short stories. His most popular works include 'The Pickwick Papers', 'Oliver Twist', 'A Christmas Carol' and 'David Copperfield'. His stories are characterized by numerous autobiographical references.

During the reign of his father Frederick William II, the Prussian capital Berlin was considered a veritable den of iniquity. The old king left an almost bankrupt state to his son and successor. The unpretentious young king immediately put an end to the squandering at the royal court. In his private life he cultivated unconventional, almost bourgeois manners that were out of the ordinary for aristocratic circles in his time. Despite his legendary financial austerity, Friedrich Wilhelm III went down in history as a patron of architecture and art.