Princess Alice of the United Kingdom
Alice | |||||
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Grand Duchess consort of Hesse and by Rhine | |||||
Tenure | 13 June 1877 – 14 December 1878 | ||||
Born | Buckingham Palace, London, England | 25 April 1843||||
Died | 14 December 1878 New Palace, Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse, German Empire | (aged 35)||||
Burial | 18 December 1878 Neues
Mausoleum, Rosenhöhe Park, Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse, German Empire | ||||
Spouse |
Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (m. 1862) | ||||
Issue |
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House | Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | ||||
Father | Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | ||||
Mother | Queen Victoria | ||||
Signature |
Princess Alice
Alice spent her early childhood in the company of her parents and siblings, travelling between the
Princess Alice showed an interest in nursing, especially the work of Florence Nightingale. When Hesse became involved in the Austro-Prussian War, Darmstadt filled with the injured; the heavily pregnant Alice devoted much of her time to the management of field hospitals.[1] One of her organisations, the Princess Alice Women's Guild, took over much of the day-to-day running of the state's military hospitals. As a result of this activity, Queen Victoria became concerned about Alice's directness about medical and, in particular, gynaecological, matters. In 1871, she wrote to Alice's younger sister, Princess Louise, who had recently married: "Don't let Alice pump you. Be very silent and cautious about your 'interior'". In 1877, Alice became Grand Duchess upon the accession of her husband, her increased duties putting further strains on her health. In late 1878, diphtheria infected the Hessian court. Alice nursed her family for over a month before falling ill herself, dying later that year.
Princess Alice was the sister of
Early life
Alice was born on 25 April 1843 at
Alice's birth prompted her parents to find a larger family home. Buckingham Palace was not equipped with the private apartments that Victoria's growing family needed, including suitable nurseries. Therefore, in 1844, Victoria and Albert purchased Osborne House on the Isle of Wight as a family holiday home. Alice's education was devised by her father and his close friend, Baron Stockmar. At Osborne, Alice and her siblings were taught practical skills such as housekeeping, cooking, gardening and carpentry, as well as daily lessons in English, French and German.[5][6]
Victoria and Albert favoured a monarchy based on family values; Alice and her siblings, who wore middle class clothing on a daily basis, slept in sparsely furnished bedrooms with little heating.
Alice was considered to be one of the most beautiful of Queen Victoria’s daughters. When she was a year old, her father mentioned her as ‘the beauty of the family.’
Family caregiver
Alice's compassion for other people's suffering established her role as the family caregiver in 1861. Her maternal grandmother Victoria, Duchess of Kent, died at Frogmore on 16 March 1861. Alice had spent much of her time at her grandmother's side, often played the piano for her in Frogmore's drawing room, and nursed her through the final stages of illness.[14] Following her mother's death, the Queen broke down with grief and relied heavily on Alice, to whom Albert had given the instruction: "Go and comfort Mama."[14] The Queen wrote to her uncle, King Leopold of Belgium, that "dear good Alice was full of intense tenderness, affection and distress for me".[15]
Only a few months later, on 14 December 1861, Albert died at Windsor Castle. During his final illness, Alice remained at his bedside. Alice sent for the Prince of Wales by telegram, without the knowledge of the Queen, who refused to notify him because she blamed him for Albert's death.[16] The Queen was distraught by her husband's death, and the court entered a period of intense mourning.[17] Alice became her mother's unofficial secretary, and for the next six months, the physical representation of the monarch. Through her passed the Queen's official papers to and from her government ministers, while the Queen secluded herself from all public life.[18] Alice was aided in this task by her younger sister Princess Louise. Although Princess Helena, Louise's elder sister, would normally have been selected to assist, her inability to go long without crying was held against her.[19]
Marriage
Suitors
Alice's matrimonial plans were begun in 1860 by her mother. Queen Victoria had expressed her wish that her children should marry for love, but this did not mean that her choice of suitors would necessarily be extended to anybody outside the royal houses of Europe. Raising a British subject to royalty, however high their rank, was politically objectionable, and also wasted any opportunity for a useful foreign alliance.
With both of the leading candidates now discounted, Princess Victoria suggested
Engagement and wedding
Alice was engaged to Prince Louis of Hesse on 30 April 1861, following the Queen's consent.
Between the engagement and the wedding, Alice's father
Prince Louis of Hesse
Settling in Darmstadt
Alice and Louis arrived at
Already nearly a fortnight since our dear Alice has left and strange to say – much as she has been to me – and dear and precious as a comfort and an assistance, I hardly miss her at all, or felt her going – so utterly alone am I – by that one dreadful loss – that one thought, that everything passed by unheeded![35]
The question of Alice's residence became an issue after her arrival, with the Grand Duke unwilling to fund a residence befitting a daughter of Queen Victoria with the low Hessian funds. The pair were given a house in Darmstadt's "Old Quarter", which overlooked the street. The carts rumbling past could easily be heard through the house's thin walls. However, it seemed to suit Alice well, and she spent as much time in Hesse as possible to familiarise herself with her new surroundings. She took art lessons from the court painter Paul Weber.
In 1863, she travelled to England for the marriage of her brother, the Prince of Wales, and
Austro-Prussian War
In 1866, Austria called for Prussia to hand over administration of Schleswig-Holstein, which had until that point been jointly administered by the two powers, to the Duke of Augustenberg. Prussia refused, and Otto von Bismarck sent troops into Austrian-administered Holstein. This provoked war between Austria and Prussia, with Hesse siding with the Austrians, technically making Alice and her sister Victoria enemies.[38]
Alice, heavily pregnant with her third child, saw Louis depart to command the Hessian cavalry against the Prussians, and sent her children to stay with Queen Victoria in England.[39] Despite her pregnancy, she performed the royal duties expected of her sex and station, making bandages for troops and preparing hospitals. On 11 July, she gave birth to Princess Irene; Prussian troops were on the verge of entering Darmstadt, she begged the Grand Duke to surrender on Prussia's terms. This provoked fury from the fiercely anti-Prussian Prince Alexander, but Alice realised that the conquered German states would likely form a union which she, like her sister Victoria, supported.[39]
Alice and Louis communicated extensively during the war, with Alice urging Louis not to take too many risks, and Louis urging her not to worry. Panic ensued in Darmstadt, with the youth corps fleeing their posts, leaving only the palace sentries to defend the city.[40] Eventually an armistice between Prussia and Hesse was concluded, and Louis wrote that they were now "safe". He was reunited with Alice after the two met unexpectedly in the street, and they visited the wounded together.[41] The Prussians entered Darmstadt, and Alice devoted much of her time to the sick and wounded. She was a friend of Florence Nightingale, who was able to collect and send money from England, and Alice used Nightingale's advice as to cleanliness and ventilation in hospitals.[42]
Despite being relieved that war was over, Alice was appalled by the behaviour of Prussian troops in Hesse; Berlin took the grand duchy's railways and telegraph systems, and assessed Hesse for three million
Religious beliefs
Alice developed a friendship with the theologian
Later life
Tragedy befell Alice on 29 May 1873, when her youngest and favourite son,
After Frittie's death, Alice attached herself more closely to her only surviving son, Ernest, and her newborn daughter Marie. In 1875 she resumed her public duties, including fund-raising, medical and social work, which had always held her interest.[50] She maintained active correspondence with the social reformer Octavia Hill. However, in these years, relations with her husband deteriorated. In late 1876, she travelled to England for treatment due to an internal complaint caused by a backward curvature of the womb, and remained at Balmoral while she recovered. From Balmoral, she wrote to her husband criticising the childishness of his letters: "[i]f my children wrote me such childish letters – only short accounts – of where and what they had eaten or where they had been etc., and no opinions, observations and remarks, I should be surprised – and how much more so when you write like that!"[50] On 3 October 1876, she wrote another despairing letter to Louis:
I longed for real companionship, for apart from that life had nothing to offer me in Darmstadt...So naturally I am bitterly disappointed with myself when I look back, and see that in spite of great ambitions, good intentions, and real effort, my hopes have nevertheless been completely ship-wrecked...You say, darling, that you would never have caused me hardship intentionally...I only regret the lack of any intention or desire – or rather insight – to be more to me, and that does not mean spending all your time with me, without wishing to share anything with me at the same time. But I am wrong to talk of these things. Your letters are so dear and kind – but so empty and bare – I feel myself through them that I have less to say to you than any other person. Rain – fine weather – things that have happened – that is all I ever have to tell you about – so utterly cut off is my real self, my innermost life, from yours...I have tried again and again to talk to you about more serious things, when I felt the need to do so – but we never meet each other – we have developed separately...and that is why I feel true companionship is an impossibility for us – because our thoughts will never meet...I love you too so very much, my darling husband, and that is why it is so sad to feel that our life is nevertheless so incomplete...But you are never intentionally to blame for this – I never think that, never...[51]
The following day, Alice wrote a much shorter letter to Louis in which she looked forward to their meeting, and hoped that "my letter did not distress you – but it is better to be quite honest about all one's feelings".[52] Despite marital problems, Alice remained a strong supporter of her husband, being highly critical when his abilities or talents were not fully recognised. On 20 March 1877, Louis' father Prince Charles died, making Louis heir apparent. On 13 June the same year, Charles' older brother Grand Duke Louis III died, and Louis and Alice became the Grand Duke and Duchess of Hesse. Her continued unpopularity in Darmstadt, however, coupled with her mother not wanting her in England, caused strain, and she and her children spent July and August in Houlgate, Normandy, where Louis often visited them.[53] She was hurt by her reputation in Darmstadt, and she became increasingly bitter towards it; Louis wrote in August 1877 expressing the hope that "bitterness of the salt water will drive away the bitterness that you still feel against Darmstadt. Please my darling, don't speak so harshly of it when I come to join you – it would quite spoil my happiness at seeing you again."[54] Alice took Louis's letter to heart, responding: "I shall certainly say nothing to you about Darmstadt when you come...I have no intention of saying anything unpleasant, least of all to you. You shake off anything unpleasant like a poodle shaking off the water when it comes to the sea – natures like yours are the happiest in themselves, but they are not made to help, comfort and advise others, nor to share with others the heat of life's noon-day or the cool of the evening, with insight, understanding and sympathy."[55] In response, Louis sent a letter that "made [Alice] cry", and after this letter, Alice's letters to Louis were more encouraging, assuring him of his ability to make decisions by himself.[56]
Alice and Louis's return to Darmstadt as Grand Duke and Duchess was met with celebration that Alice did not expect.[57] However, she found her duties overwhelming, writing to her mother that she "dreaded everything".[58] Alice used her new role to reform the social conditions of Darmstadt, but found the responsibility of being Landesmutter (mother of her people) strenuous. In another letter to her mother, she wrote that her duties were "more than she could stand in the long run".[59] She was distressed by a rumour that she was once unkind to Louis's aunt, Grand Duchess Mathilde Caroline, and she was hurt by an unkind letter from Queen Victoria. Alice complained to Louis that the letter "made me cry with anger...I wish I were dead and it probably will not be too long before I give Mama that pleasure."[60] However, no mention is made of what provoked this angry outburst.[61]
While she tried to involve herself in the arts and sciences and distance herself from society protocols, she continued to feel the burden of her duties.[42] Christmas 1877 provided respite for Alice, as all the family gathered together again, and she doted on her youngest daughters Alix and Marie. She was too exhausted to attend the wedding of her niece, Princess Charlotte of Prussia, in Berlin, in January 1878. In the Autumn of 1878, Queen Victoria paid for the Grand Ducal family to holiday in Eastbourne, where they stayed in a house on the Grand Parade. Alice performed various royal duties on this trip and visited her mother at Osborne before returning to the New Palace at Darmstadt in late 1878.[62]
Final illness and death
In November 1878, the Grand Ducal household fell ill with
Marie became seriously ill on 15 November, and Alice was called to her bedside, but by the time she arrived, Marie had choked to death. A distraught Alice wrote to Queen Victoria that the "pain is beyond words".
She was the first child of Queen Victoria to die, with her mother outliving her by more than 20 years. Victoria noted the coincidence of the dates of Albert and Alice's deaths as "almost incredible and most mysterious".[69] Writing in her journal on the day of Alice's death, Queen Victoria referred to the recent sufferings of the family: "This terrible day come round again!"[70] Shocked by grief, she wrote to her daughter Princess Victoria: "My precious child, who stood by me and upheld me seventeen years ago on the same day taken, and by such an awful and fearful disease...She had darling Papa's nature, and much of his self-sacrificing character and fearless and entire devotion to duty!" The animosity that Victoria had towards Alice seemed no longer present.[71] Princess Victoria expressed her grief to her mother in a 39-page letter, and deeply mourned Alice, the sister to whom she was closest. However, both she and her husband were forbidden from attending the funeral by the German Emperor, who was worried about their safety.[72]
Alice's death was felt in both Britain and Hesse.
Legacy
Alice founded the Alice-Hospital in Darmstadt in 1869, to treat the city's sick and wounded. The organisation continued to flourish long after Alice's death, and in 1953, her grandson Louis, Earl Mountbatten of Burma gave a lecture on the hospital. He spoke highly of Alice, saying "[for her] the point of departure always remained a human being who was ill and needed help, and his needs in war and peace. At his side stood the person willing to give help, wishing to ameliorate his needs and for this purpose could make use of an organisation which was becoming more and more streamlined."[75] Among Alice's other establishments were the Alice Society for Women's Training and Industry, for the purpose of educating women, and the Princess Alice Women's Guild, an organisation devoted to training nurses. These organisations were especially active and important during the Austro-Prussian war, but the time Alice dedicated to them annoyed her husband, who saw them as consuming his wife's time at his expense.[76]
There are memorials to Alice in Darmstadt, Germany; Whippingham, Isle of Wight; and in the Frogmore Royal Mausoleum, Windsor. In 1879, Queen Victoria erected a memorial to Alice in the form of a Celtic cross, situated in the grounds of Balmoral Castle. It is inscribed 'Her name shall live though now she is no more'.[77]
Descendants
Alice's descendants went on to play significant roles in world history. Her fourth daughter,
Honours
- 1 January 1878: Companion of the Order of the Crown of India[83]
- 26 June 1871: Cross of Merit for Women and Girls[84]
- Dame of the Order of Louise, 1st Division[85]
- 1864: Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of Saint Catherine
Arms
In 1858, Alice and the three younger of her sisters were granted use of the royal arms, with an inescutcheon of the shield of Saxony, representing her father. The shield is differenced by a label argent of three points, demonstrating that she is the child of a monarch; the outer points bore an ermine spot each, and the centre bore a rose gules, to differentiate her from other members of the royal family.[86][87]
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Complete arms of Alice as a princess of the United Kingdom
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Shield of Alice as a princess of the United Kingdom
Issue
Name | Birth | Death | Notes | Ref(s). |
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Victoria Alberta Elisabeth Mathilde Marie | 5 April 1863 | 24 September 1950 | m. 30 April 1884 Queen Louise of Sweden ).
|
[88][89] |
Elisabeth Alexandra Luise Alix | 1 November 1864 | 18 July 1918 † | Took the name Elizabeth Feodorovna upon her baptism into the Russian Orthodox Church, m. 15 June 1884 Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia (11 May 1857 – 17 February 1905), the seventh child and fifth son of Tsar Alexander II of Russia; had no issue. | [89][90] |
Irene Louise Marie Anne | 11 July 1866 | 11 November 1953 | m. 24 May 1888, her first cousin Prince Henry of Prussia .
|
[89][91] |
Ernest Louis Charles Albert William | 25 November 1868 | 9 October 1937 | Succeeded as Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, 13 March 1892; ousted by revolution, 9 November 1918; m. (1), 9 April 1894 his first cousin HRH Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (25 November 1876 – 2 March 1936); 1 son (stillborn) and 1 daughter, div. 21 December 1901.
m. (2), 2 February 1905, HH Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich (17 September 1871 – 16 November 1937); 2 sons. |
[89] |
Friedrich William Augustus Victor Leopold Louis | 7 October 1870 | 29 May 1873 | Suffered from haemophilia and died from internal bleeding after a fall from a window at the age of two and a half. | [89][92] |
Alix Viktoria Helene Luise Beatrix | 6 June 1872 | 17 July 1918 † | Took the name Alexandra Feodorovna on her baptism into the Tsar Nicholas II of Russia (18 May 1868 – 17 July 1918 †); 1 son and 4 daughters. Their only son, Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia , suffered from haemophilia.
|
[89][93] |
Marie Victoria Feodore Leopoldine | 24 May 1874 | 16 November 1878 | Died from diphtheria at age four. | [89][94] |
† murdered by Bolshevik revolutionaries
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[95] |
Ancestors
Ancestors of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | | ||||||||||||||
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10. Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg | |||||||||||||||
5. Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg | |||||||||||||||
11. Duchess Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin | |||||||||||||||
1. Alice, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine | |||||||||||||||
12. George III | |||||||||||||||
6. Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn | |||||||||||||||
13. Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz | |||||||||||||||
3. Victoria of the United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||
14. Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (= 8) | |||||||||||||||
7. Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld | |||||||||||||||
15. Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf (= 9) | |||||||||||||||
Citations and references
Citations
- ISBN 9780226680101.
- ^ Packard, p. 25
- ^ Packard, p. 26
- ^ "No. 20231". The London Gazette. 6 June 1843. p. 1889.
- ISBN 9780701183684.
- ^ Van der Kiste, p. 22
- ^ Van der Kiste, p. 23
- ^ Packard, p. 64
- ^ Van der Kiste, p. 28
- ^ Packard, p. 50
- ^ Alice, p. 6
- ^ Pakula, p. 261
- ^ Packard, p. 51
- ^ a b Packard, p. 87
- ^ Benson, p. 66
- ^ Magnus, p. 52
- ^ Zeepvat, p. 42
- ^ Packard, p. 102
- ^ Packard, 102
- ^ a b Packard, p. 77
- ^ Packard, p.79
- ^ Packard, p. 78
- ^ Pakula, p. 138
- ^ a b Pakula, p. 139
- ^ "No. 22507". The London Gazette. 3 May 1861. p. 1889.
- ^ Packard, pp. 88–89
- ^ Packard, p. 89
- ^ Packard, p. 104
- ^ Van der Kiste, p. 52
- ^ a b Noel, p. 95
- ^ Noel, p. 96.
- ^ Noel, p. 106
- ^ a b c Noel, p. 107
- ^ Alice, p. 28
- ^ Noel, p. 108
- ^ a b Packard, p. 119
- ^ Noel, p. 115
- ^ Packard, p. 121
- ^ a b Packard, p. 122
- ^ Noel, p. 131
- ^ Noel, p. 132
- ^ a b Noel, p. 233
- ^ a b Packard, 123
- ^ a b Packard, p. 159
- ^ Packard, pp. 159–160
- ^ Noel, p. 182
- ^ Noel, p. 183
- ^ Packard, p. 161
- ^ a b Noel, p. 215
- ^ a b Noel, p. 223
- ^ Quoted in Noel, pp. 224–225
- ^ Noel, p. 225
- ^ Noel, p. 226
- ^ Quoted in Noel, p. 227
- ^ Quoted in Noel, pp. 227–228
- ^ Noel, p. 228
- ^ Noel, p. 229
- ^ Packard, p. 165
- ^ Quoted in Packard, p. 165
- ^ Packard, pp. 165–66
- ^ Noel, p. 231
- ^ Noel, pp. 233–234
- ^ Packard, p. 166
- ^ a b Packard, p. 167
- ^ a b Noel, p. 239
- ^ "Death of the Grand Duchess of Hesse". The Times. 16 December 1878.
- ^ a b c Noel, p. 241
- required.)
- ^ Longford, p. 425
- ^ "Queen Victoria's Journals". Princess Beatrice's copies. RA VIC/MAIN/QVJ (W). 14 December 1878. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
- ^ Packard, p. 169
- ^ Packard, p. 170
- ^ Noel, p. 240
- ^ Martin, p. 113
- ^ Quoted in Noel, p. 141.
- ^ Packard, p. 157
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "Balmoral Castle, Princess Alice's Monument (Category C Listed Building) (LB51485)". Retrieved 20 April 2023.
- ISBN 978-0-19967-650-7.
- ISBN 0-8264-5618-9.
- ISBN 0-8264-8788-2.
- ^ "On This Day: 27 August 1979: IRA Bomb Kills Lord Mountbatten". BBC News. 27 August 1979. Retrieved 20 September 2012.
- ISBN 1-58768-034-3.
- ^ "No. 24539". The London Gazette. 4 January 1878. p. 113.
- ^ "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), 3, Berlin: 1255, 1877 – via hathitrust.org
- ^ "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), 1, Berlin: 1028, 1877 – via hathitrust.org
- ^ Boutell, Charles (1868). "The Royal Armory of England". The Art Journal. 7. London: Virtue & Co: 274.
- ISBN 0-316-64141-3.
- ISBN 0-297-78470-6.
- ^ ISBN 0-6848-3486-3.
- ISBN 978-5-5191-0649-8.
- ^ Mager, p. 27
- ^ Mager, pp. 45-46
- ISBN 978-0-3123-2423-0.
- ISBN 978-1-9214-9706-3.
- ISBN 978-1-1373-2390-3.
- ISBN 1-85605-469-1.
References
- Alice, Grand Duchess of Hesse (1885). Letters to Her Majesty the Queen. London: John Murray.
- ISBN 0-297-17001-5.
- Mager, Hugo (1998). Elizabeth: Grand Duchess of Russia. New York, USA: Carroll and Graf Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0-7867-0678-3.
- Noel, Gerard (1985). Princess Alice: Queen Victoria's forgotten daughter. London: Constable and Company Limited. ISBN 0-09-465980-X.
- Packard, Jerrold M. (1998). Victoria's Daughters. New York: ISBN 0-312-24496-7.
- Martin, Theodore (1908). Queen Victoria as I knew her. W. Blackwood.
- Pakula, Hannah (1995). An Uncommon Woman: The Empress Frederick. London: Phoenix Press. ISBN 1-84212-623-7.
- ISBN 0-7509-3476-X.