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Gustav Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg with his wife Carina: newly married
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Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Gustav Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Carina Axelsson have only been married a few weeks when their marriage is already being put to the test: the two 53-year-olds were injured in a coach accident on Lake Starnberg.
The police spoke of minor injuries to the prince and moderate injuries to his wife and the coachman.
According to a spokesman for Gustav Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, the injuries were not too serious: the two survived the incident during a carriage ride in Bernried in Bavaria without consequences, he said.
After the accident on Sunday, they drove home in the evening.
Kutscher advised to jump
During the carriage ride on Sunday afternoon, one of the two draft horses suddenly shied away, said a police spokesman.
The 66-year-old coachman advised the two to jump off.
The man did it too.
However, the woman stayed on the vehicle, which picked up speed.
A few meters further, the team got into an inclined position and overturned, said the police spokesman.
The damage amounts to more than 30,000 euros.
"Your thanks go to the coachman," who mastered the difficult situation well, said the spokesman, looking at the couple.
They are also pleased that ultimately nothing happened to the coachman and the horses.
Gustav Prince zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg is the son of Princess Benedikte, sister of the Danish Queen Margrethe II, and Richard zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, who died in 2017.
Gustav Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and the children's book author Carina Axelsson, who grew up in the USA, have been living together for many years.
They had been married privately at Schloss Berleburg near Siegen.
apr/dpa