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Prince Alfred of Great Britain; Credit – Wikipedia
August 20, 1752 – Birth of Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, first wife of Carl II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, in Darmstadt, Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Friederike Karoline Luise
In 1768, Friederike married Carl, the future Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Friederike and Carl had ten children. Three days after giving birth to her last child, who died in infancy, Friederike died from childbirth complications. Two years later, her widower married her sister who also died in childbirth.
Unofficial Royalty: Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
August 20, 1783 – Death of Prince Alfred of Great Britain, son of King George III of the United Kingdom, at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England, buried at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle
Before Edward Jenner developed the smallpox vaccine that contained the cowpox virus in 1796 and that led to the eradication of smallpox, there was another way to possibly prevent smallpox called variolation, first seen in China in the fifteenth century. About 3% of those inoculated developed a severe case of smallpox and died but that was preferable to catching smallpox with its mortality rate of 20–40% and scarred survivors. In 1722, King George I allowed the inoculation of two of his grandchildren, the children of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and they survived. King George III also allowed the inoculation of his children. Among the 3% who died after receiving the smallpox inoculation were the two younger sons of King George III, Prince Alfred, and at a later date, Prince Octavius. After the inoculation, Alfred did not recover as he should have. His face and his eyelids had eruptions from the smallpox inoculation and he had difficulty with breathing. The doctors agreed that he would survive for only a few weeks more which came as a great shock to his family. After suffering from prolonged bouts of fever, Alfred died on August 20, 1782, a month short of his second birthday.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Alfred of Great Britain
Unofficial Royalty: Smallpox Knew No Class Boundaries
August 20, 2003 – Birth of Prince Gabriel of Belgium, son of King Philippe of the Belgians, in Erasmus Hospital in Anderlecht, Belgium
Full name: Gabriel Baudouin Charles Marie
Prince Gabriel is the elder of the two sons and the second of four children of King Philippe of the Belgians and his wife Queen Mathilde, born Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz. Belgium changed its succession law in 1991 to absolute primogeniture where the succession passes to the eldest child of the sovereign regardless of gender. Males and females have equal succession rights. This means that Gabriel’s elder sister Elisabeth is the heir apparent and is first in the line of succession as the eldest child. Following Elisabeth in the line of succession are her three siblings in order of their birth.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Gabriel of Belgium
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