Category Archives: German Royals

Victoria Melita of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna of Russia

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Victoria Melita of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna of Russia; Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Victoria Melita of Edinburgh (known as ‘Ducky’ in the family) was born on November 25, 1876, at the San Anton Palace in Malta, where her father was stationed with the Royal Navy at the time. She was the second daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (later Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. She was a granddaughter of both Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Alexander, Emperor II of All Russia.

Victoria Melita was christened on  January 1, 1877, at San Anton Palace in Malta by a Royal Navy chaplain. Her grandmother Queen Victoria was one of her godparents.

Ducky had four siblings:

During her childhood, the family’s primary homes were Clarence House in London and Eastwell Park in Kent. They also spent several years at the San Anton Palace in Malta when her father was stationed there with the Royal Navy. In addition, they had homes in Coburg – Palais Edinburg and Schloss Rosenau – where her father was heir to his childless uncle, the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

In 1891, Queen Victoria began promoting the idea of a marriage between Ducky and her first cousin, Ernst Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine. He was the son of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, and Grand Duke Ludwig IV of Hesse and by Rhine. The two were both visiting The Queen and she saw that they got along well and, coincidentally, even shared the same birthday.

Victoria Melita and Ernst Ludwig, 1894. source: Wikipedia

In 1893, Victoria Melita’s father succeeded to the Grand Ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and she became Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The following year, on April 9, 1894, she and Ernie (who was now Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine) married at Schloss Ehrenburg in Coburg. The couple had two children:

Despite the Queen’s observations, the new Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine and her husband were horribly mismatched. Victoria Melita craved Ernie’s attention, while he focused more on their daughter than his wife. For a few years, they seemed to make the best of it, enjoying each other’s company as well as entertaining friends and family from around Europe. But by the late 1890s, it was clear that the marriage was a mistake. Allegedly, the final blow for Ducky was finding her husband in an intimate situation with a male servant. Despite this, Queen Victoria would not permit a divorce and the two continued with their unhappy lives. Following the Queen’s death in 1901, there was no longer any obstacle to ending their marriage, and they divorced on December 21, 1901. Ducky returned to her mother in Coburg, and she and her former husband shared custody of their young daughter. Two years later, while on a visit to the Russian Imperial Family, Princess Elisabeth fell ill with typhoid. Before Ducky could arrive, the young princess died. Her daughter’s death finally severed the connection that Ducky had with her former husband and her former home.

On October 8, 1905, Ducky married for a second time. This time her husband was another first cousin, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia, with whom she had had a mutual attraction for many years. They had first met in 1891 when Ducky traveled to Russia to attend the funeral of her aunt by marriage, Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgievna (the former Princess Alexandra of Greece). However, while the two were attracted to each other, her mother made every effort to dissuade Ducky from the thought of marrying him, as the Russian Orthodox Church did not permit marriages between first cousins.

Despite this, the two maintained their attraction for each other and eventually decided to marry. Upon finding out about the marriage, Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia stripped Kirill of his royal funding and titles as well as his military appointments. He also banished him from Russia, so the couple settled in France. They had three children:

Victoria Melita with her husband Kirill and their two daughters, c.1912. source: Wikipedia

In 1908, Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia put personal feelings aside and permitted Kirill and Victoria Melita to return to Russia. Recent deaths in the Imperial Family brought Kirill to third in the line of succession, and it was deemed necessary to allow his return and restore his funding and military appointments. Victoria Melita was given the style of Imperial Highness and created Grand Duchess Viktoria Feodorovna.

During World War I, Ducky worked as a nurse with the Red Cross. Soon after Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia’s abdication in 1917, she and Kirill decided it was best to leave Russia, and traveled to Finland where they would remain for over two years. In the fall of 1919, they moved on to Munich where they reunited with her mother, and then all moved to Zurich, Switzerland.

After her mother died in 1920, Ducky’s family now had two homes at their disposal – her mother’s villa in Nice and the Villa Edinburg, which later became known as the Kirill Palace, in Coburg, now in Bavaria, Germany, and for the next several years, split their time between the two. In 1926, they settled for the last time in France, purchasing a villa in Saint-Briac. Here they settled into a more quiet life, while Victoria Melita put her energies into raising her son and ensuring her daughters made significant marriages.

Victoria Melita with her husband Kirill and their two youngest children. source: Wikipedia

In February 1936, while attending the christening of her fifth grandchild, Victoria Melita suffered a stroke. She passed away on March 1, 1936, at the age of 59. She was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum at the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany. In March 1995, her remains, as well as those of her husband, were moved to the Grand Ducal Burial Vault at the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, Russia.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

King Ferdinand of Romania

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

King Ferdinand of Romania – source: Wikipedia

King Ferdinand of Romania was born Prince Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, a Roman Catholic branch of the House of Hohenzollern. He was born on August 24, 1865, in Sigmaringen, Kingdom of Prussia, now in southern Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, the second of three sons of Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Infanta Antonia of Portugal.

Ferdinand had two brothers:

Following his primary and secondary studies in Dusseldorf, he attended the Military School in Kassel, graduating in 1887 with the rank of Lieutenant. He then attended the University of Leipzig and the School of Political Science and Economics in Tübingen until early 1889. During his schooling, he shows exceptional skill as a linguist, becoming fluent in French, English, and Russian. Through a tutor sent by his uncle, he also learned Romanian and studied the literature, history, and geography of his future homeland.

Ferdinand (left) with his uncle, King Carol I, and his son, the future Carol II. source: Wikipedia

In 1866, his uncle Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen had been elected Ruling Prince of the Romanian United Principalities, and in 1881 was proclaimed King Carol I of Romania. King Carol and his wife Princess Elisabeth of Wied had only one daughter who died at the age of three. With no sons to inherit the throne, the succession passed to his younger brother Leopold, Ferdinand’s father. Leopold renounced his rights in 1880, as did his eldest son in 1886. Ferdinand became heir-presumptive to the Romanian throne. He was formally recognized as Crown Prince by the Romanian government in 1889. As part of the agreement, he was permitted to retain his Catholic faith but agreed that any children would be raised in the Orthodox church.

After arriving in Romania in 1889, Ferdinand (‘Nando’ as he was known in the family) became involved with the Romanian writer and friend of Queen Elisabeth, Elena Văcărescu. This caused a scandal because of her unequal rank and because the Romanian constitution banned Ferdinand from marrying a Romanian. In 1891, the relationship ended, the young woman was exiled to France, and Queen Elisabeth, who had encouraged the romance, was sent away for several years. King Carol I then sent Ferdinand on a tour of Europe to find a suitable bride.

 

On January 10, 1893, at Sigmaringen Castle in Sigmaringen, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, Ferdinand married his third cousin, Princess Marie of Edinburgh, daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (and later Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Following the civil ceremony held at the castle, a Catholic ceremony was held in the city’s cathedral, and then an Anglican ceremony was held at the palace. The couple officially had six children.  The two youngest children are believed to have been fathered by Marie’s lover but were formally acknowledged by Ferdinand as his own:

Ferdinand and Marie overseeing the crossing of the Tisza River, August 1919. source: Wikipedia

On October 10, 1914, Ferdinand became King of Romania upon the death of his uncle. Already in the early stages of World War I, Ferdinand maintained Romania’s neutrality until finally entering the war, on the side of the Allied Powers, in August 1916. During the war, Ferdinand and his wife traveled extensively to support the troops and boost morale among the Romanian people. By the end of the war, through Ferdinand’s leadership, the Kingdom of Romania had grown to include the regions of Bessarabia, Bukovina, and Transylvania.

Following World War I and the Hungarian-Romanian War of 1919, King Ferdinand and Queen Marie were finally crowned in an elaborate ceremony held in Alba Iulia, in Transylvania, on October 15, 1922. The following years were focused on rebuilding the country and returning it to the once-flourishing region it had been.

 

King Ferdinand died of intestinal cancer on July 20, 1927, at Peleș Castle, in Sinaia, Romania. He is buried at the Monastery of Curtea de Argeș in Curtea de Argeș, Romania. As his elder son Carol had renounced his rights to the throne, Ferdinand was succeeded by his five-year-old grandson King Mihai.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Romania Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit: Wikipedia

Prince Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Alfred Alexander William Ernest Albert), was the eldest child and only son of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, second son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, only surviving daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. Known within the family as ‘Young Affie’, he was born on October 15, 1874, at Buckingham Palace. At the time of his birth, he was styled HRH Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, as his father had not yet become Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

His christening was held November 27, 1874, in the Lower Bow Room at Buckingham Palace, with the following godparents:

Young Affie had four younger sisters:

Affie with his mother and sisters. source: Wikipedia

As it was expected he would one day inherit the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, young Affie was raised primarily in Germany. Separated from his family, he received a strict German education and later served as a Lieutenant in the Prussian 1st Foot Guards in Potsdam. Unlike many of his relatives, he did not enjoy military life. It is believed that during this time he first contracted syphilis, which would later be a likely factor in his death.

In August 1893, his father succeeded to the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and young Alfred became the Hereditary Prince. Less than two years later, it was announced that Alfred was engaged to Duchess Elsa of Württemberg, but the marriage never took place.

In January 1899, he was noticeably absent from the celebrations for his parents’ 25th wedding anniversary. The details surrounding his death were never formally given, and vary from source to source. Some say he was suffering from a breakdown, others a tumor, others tuberculosis. More than likely, he was suffering serious effects of syphilis he had contracted some years earlier.

It is generally accepted that Prince Alfred shot himself while the rest of the family was gathered for the anniversary celebrations. Having survived the gunshot, he was cared for at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Thuringia, for several days, before being moved, against the doctors’ recommendation, to the Martinnsbrunn Sanatorium in Gratsch, near Meran, Austria (now Merano, Italy). This was apparently done at the direction of his mother who was both angry and embarrassed that his injury happened while the whole family was gathered together.

Prince Alfred, aged 24, died at the sanatorium on February 6, 1899. He was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum at the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany.

Below are some suicide prevention resources.

In the United States, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 988. Anyone in the United States can text or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to reach trained counselors who can help them cope with a mental health emergency. National Institute of Mental Health: Suicide Prevention is also a United States resource.

Other countries also have similar resources. Please check the resources below.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, Duchess of Edinburgh, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

********************

source: Wikipedia

Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, Duchess of Edinburgh, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia was the wife of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the second son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. She was born on October 17, 1853, at Tsarskoye Selo, near St. Petersburg, Russia, the only daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia and Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine.

Marie had seven siblings:

Marie with her father and siblings, 1860. source: Wikipedia

Raised as the only daughter, Maria was very close to her father, who was completely devoted to her. She also had very close relationships with her brothers but was not particularly close to her mother. Despite this, her mother’s death in 1880 was very difficult for Maria.

The Orthodox wedding of Maria and Alfred, painting by Nicholas Chevalier. source: Wikipedia

During a family holiday in Hesse in 1868, Marie first met Prince Alfred. Despite the misgivings of both her parents and Alfred’s mother, the couple was married on January 23, 1874, at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. Upon their return to London, they took up residence at Clarence House in London, and Eastwell Park in Kent, which they leased until 1893.

Marie and Alfred had five children:

The new Duchess of Edinburgh was not well received by British society, many of whom thought her very condescending and haughty. And from most accounts, this was very true. Used to the splendor and pageantry of the Russian court, she found the British court very dull by comparison. She also felt that, as the daughter of an Emperor, she should outrank all the other members of the British royal family – in particular, her sister-in-law, The Princess of Wales, who was merely the daughter of a king. Despite the demands of Marie and her father, Queen Victoria would not sanction anything of the sort.

In August 1893, her husband became the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha upon the death of his childless uncle, Ernst II. They had owned a home in Coburg – Palais Edinburg – since the early 1880s, but now took up permanent residence in Schloss Ehrenburg, the traditional ducal residence in the city. They also lived at Schloss Rosenau, which Ernst II had given to Alfred as his personal property. The new Grand Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Marie was very pleased with her new position, no longer outranked by her sisters-in-law, and no longer under the constant watchful eye of her mother-in-law. From that point on, she rarely spent any significant amount of time in Britain.

The Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha with their daughters, and the Dowager Duchess. source: Wikipedia

In 1899, Marie and Alfred celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. During the celebrations in January, their son Affie attempted suicide and died shortly thereafter. The following year, her husband died and the Ducal throne passed to his nephew, Charles Edward, Duke of Albany. Marie returned to Palais Edinburg and also spent much of her time at Schloss Rosenau.

The remaining years of her life saw the overthrow of the Russian monarchy, the murders of many of her Russian relatives, and the end of the Duchies of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Her last remaining brother, Grand Duke Paul, was murdered by the Bolsheviks in January 1919, leaving Marie the last of her generation.

The Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha died on October 24, 1920, in Zurich, Switzerland. Legend has it that she received a telegram addressed to ‘Frau Coburg’ which distressed her so greatly that it caused her death. She is buried alongside her husband in the Ducal Mausoleum at the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany.

Following her death, Palais Edinburg was left to her daughter, Princess Alexandra. The villa behind it, which had formed part of the residence, was left to her daughter Victoria Melita and became known as the Kirill Palace. Both would eventually be sold to the government around 1940.

The Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery. photo: by Störfix – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4010189

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

********************

Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha – source: Wikipedia

Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was the fourth child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Born at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England on August 6, 1844, Alfred was christened on September 6, 1844, in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle with the names Alfred Ernest Albert. His godparents were:

Alfred had eight siblings:

 

After being educated at home, along with his older brother The Prince of Wales (future King Edward VII), Alfred entered the British Navy at just 14 years old. Rising quickly through the ranks, by February 1866 he had been elevated to the rank of Captain, and the following year was given command of his own ship, HMS Galatea.

During his military career, Alfred found himself potentially taking a throne of his own. After deposing their ruler King Otto, the people of Greece voted to determine the future of the Greek monarchy. Prince Alfred received 95% of the votes. Despite this, under the terms of the London Conference of 1832, members of the ruling families of the Great Powers (Britain, France, and Russia) were prohibited from ascending the Greek throne. In addition, Queen Victoria was adamantly opposed to the idea, as Alfred was already intended to succeed his uncle Ernst as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Alfred’s father and elder brother had both renounced their rights of succession, leaving Alfred as heir-apparent to his uncle. The Greek throne ended up going to Prince Vilhelm of Denmark, who reigned as King George I of the Hellenes.

Along with his military career, from 1863-1865, Prince Alfred studied at the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Bonn. With his future role as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in mind, in 1865 Alfred purchased a palace in Coburg, just across the square from Schloss Ehrenburg, the official ducal residence. This palace, known as Palais Edinburg,  would be his residence in Coburg until his accession 28 years later. The following year, in May 1866, he was created Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Ulster, and Earl of Kent. Along with this came a parliamentary allowance of £15,000 per year, and a seat in the House of Lords.

From a young age, Prince Alfred developed a strong interest in stamp collecting. Through the years, he amassed a rather extensive collection, which he later sold to King Edward VII who passed it on to his son, King George V. Today, it forms part of the Royal Philatelic Collection, housed at St James’ Palace in London, England.

On January 24, 1867, Alfred set sail on HMS Galatea for a trip around the world. Following a visit to Cape Town in South Africa, he arrived in Australia on October 31, the first British royal to set foot in the country. On March 12, 1868, while visiting Sydney, Prince Alfred was the victim of an assassination attempt. An Irishman, Henry James O’Farrell, fired at the Prince from behind, striking him just to the side of his spine. Alfred was quickly taken to Government House in Sydney, where he spent several weeks recovering before again assuming command of his ship and returning home in June 1868. In an outpouring of support for the Prince, the people voted for some sort of memorial to be built in his honor. This led to the construction of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney. In addition to being the first British royal in Australia, Prince Alfred was also the first to visit New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong, India, and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in visits over the next several years.

 

On January 24, 1874, at the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, Russia, Alfred married Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, the only daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia and Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine. The couple settled at Clarence House in London, England, and Eastwell Park in Kent, England which they leased until 1893.

Alfred and Marie had five children:

Over the next nearly twenty years, Alfred’s distinguished naval career saw him serve as Admiral Superintendent of Naval Reserves, Commander-in-Chief of both the Channel Fleet and the Mediterranean Fleet, and  Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth. In June 1893, he was made Admiral of the Fleet, the highest rank in the British Navy.

Prince Alfred (right) with his brothers Edward, Prince of Wales (left) and Arthur, Duke of Connaught. source: Wikipedia

However, Alfred’s Royal Navy career would soon come to an end. On August 23, 1893, Alfred’s uncle Ernst died, and he became the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. While this had been the plan for many years, Alfred resented having to give up his naval career and his British life. He gave up his British annuity, his seat in the House of Lords, and became the first person to voluntarily resign from the Privy Council. However, he successfully petitioned Parliament to continue the separate funding he received to maintain Clarence House for the rest of his life.

The transition to his new position was not easy. The people were mostly against the idea of a British prince being their Duke even though his father was born a Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. But Alfred managed to build up the people’s confidence in him and soon became quite popular. Leaving most of the governing to the State Ministry, Alfred spent his time traveling, hunting, and following all the latest advances of the Royal Navy which he greatly missed.

Sadly, Alfred’s reign would be rather short. On July 30, 1900, at Schloss Rosenau, in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany, Alfred died from throat cancer at the age of 55. He was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg. He was succeeded by his nephew, Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Albany, son of his late brother Leopold.

The Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery. photo: by Störfix – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4010189

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Recommended Book

  • Dearest Affie: Alfred, Queen Victoria’s Second Son – John Van Der Kiste

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Queen Victoria Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Prince Henry of Battenberg

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Prince Henry of Battenberg; Credit – Wikipedia

The husband of Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Beatrice, Prince Henry of Battenberg (Henry Maurice, German: Heinrich Moritz) was born on October 5, 1858, in Milan, Lombardy–Venetia, Italy. Henry (called Liko) was the fourth of the five children of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine and Countess Julia Hauke. As his parents’ marriage was morganatic, Henry and his siblings took their titles from their mother, who had been created Countess of Battenberg and was later elevated to Princess of Battenberg in 1858. See Unofficial Royalty: Who Are The Battenbergs?

Henry had three brothers and one sister:

Henry received a military education and was commissioned a lieutenant in the 1st Regiment of the Rhenish Hussars of the Prussian Army.  He also served in the Gardes du Corps, the personal bodyguard of the King of Prussia and, after 1871, of the German Emperor.

In 1884, Henry’s brother Louis married Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, the daughter of Queen Victoria’s third child Alice. Of course, Henry attended the wedding and so did the bride’s aunt Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom, the youngest child of Queen Victoria. Queen Victoria expected that Beatrice would never marry and remain her personal assistant and secretary. However, during the wedding celebrations, Henry and Beatrice fell in love. When Beatrice told her mother of her desire to marry Henry, Queen Victoria did not speak to Beatrice for seven months. Eventually, the Queen realized that Beatrice would not back down and decided to allow the marriage with several conditions: Henry must renounce his career, nationality, and home and agree to live with Beatrice and the Queen.

On the day before the wedding, Queen Victoria created Henry a Knight of the Garter and granted him the style Royal Highness. This style was in effect only in the United Kingdom and not in the German Empire, where Henry was still considered a Serene Highness. Beatrice and Henry were married on July 23, 1885, at Saint Mildred’s Church in Whippingham, Isle of Wight, England near Queen Victoria’s beloved home Osborne House. On the wedding day, a bill passed in the House of Lords making Henry a naturalized British subject. After the wedding, the couple was styled as Their Royal Highnesses Prince and Princess Henry of Battenberg.

Photo Credit – www.victorian-gothic.co.uk; THE BACK: (L-R): Prince Alexander of Bulgaria, Princess Louise of Wales, Princess Irene of Hesse and by Rhine, Princess Victoria of Wales, Prince Franz Joseph of Battenberg * THE MIDDLE: (L-R): Princess Maud of Wales, Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine, Princesses Marie Louise and Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein * THE FRONT: (L-R): Princesses Victoria Melita, Marie and Alexandra of Edinburgh and bridal couple

Beatrice and Henry had three sons and one daughter. The Spanish Royal Family descends from their marriage.

Queen Victoria with Henry and Beatrice and their three eldest children in 1889; Credit – Wikipedia

Unfortunately, Beatrice was a hemophilia carrier. Henry and Beatrice’s son Leopold was a hemophiliac and their daughter Victoria Eugenie was a carrier. Leopold died after an emergency operation at Kensington Palace when he was almost 23. Victoria Eugenie, known as Ena, brought hemophilia into the Spanish Royal Family. Two of Ena’s sons had hemophilia. Her son Alfonso died in a car accident at age 31 and her son Gonzalo also died as the result of a car accident at age 20.

NPG P1700(21b); Prince Henry Maurice of Battenberg by Walery

Prince Henry Maurice of Battenberg by Walery, albumen print, 1895 NPG P1700(21b) © National Portrait Gallery, London

Beatrice and Henry kept their promise and lived with Queen Victoria and Beatrice remained her full-time confidante and secretary. Henry was often bored by the lack of activity and to give him more to do, Queen Victoria appointed him Governor of Carisbrooke Castle and Captain-General and Governor of the Isle of Wight in 1889, Lieutenant-Colonel in the Army in 1887, Colonel in 1893, and a member of the Privy Council in 1894.

In November 1895, Henry persuaded Queen Victoria to allow him to go to West Africa to fight in the Anglo-Ashanti Wars. Henry arrived in Africa on Christmas Day 1895. By January 10, 1896, Henry was sick with malaria and it was decided to send him back to England. Henry died aboard the ship HMS Blonde off the coast of Sierra Leone on January 20, 1896, at the age of 37. His funeral took place on February 5, 1896, at St. Mildred’s Church on the Isle of Wight where he had been married. He was interred at St. Mildred’s Church in what became known as the Battenberg Chapel.

Beatrice survived Henry by 48 years, dying on October 26, 1944, at the age of 87, the last surviving child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. She was buried with Henry at St. Mildred’s Church.

Tomb of Princess Beatrice and her husband Prince Henry of Battenberg; Credit – Wikipedia

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

********************

Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (Viktoria Adelheid Helene Luise Marie Friederike) was born on December 31, 1885, at Grünholz Manor (link in German) in Thumby, Duchy of Schleswig-Holstein, now in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. She was the eldest of the six children of Friedrich Ferdinand, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and his wife Princess Karoline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg. Her father was the eldest son of Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and a nephew of King Christian IX of Denmark. Her mother was a granddaughter of Princess Feodora of Leiningen, the half-sister of Queen Victoria from her mother’s first marriage.

Princess Viktoria Adelheid’s birthplace Grünholz Manor; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Viktoria Adelheid had four sisters and one brother:

Viktoria Adelheid and Charles Edward in 1905; Credit – Wikipedia

On February 15, 1905, at a court ball at the Berliner Stadtschloss, the engagement of Viktoria Adelheid and Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was announced. Charles Edward, born a British prince, was the only son of Queen Victoria’s youngest son Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany and Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont.  Sadly, Prince Leopold, who had inherited hemophilia from his mother, died following a fall three months before Charles Edward was born.  Charles Edward became Duke of Albany at birth and succeeded his uncle Alfred as the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha at the age of 16.  The wedding was held on October 11, 1905, at Glücksburg Castle.

The couple had five children:

Viktoria Adelheid and her family in 1918; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

After World War I, Charles Edward abdicated from the throne of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. During the period between the two World Wars, Charles Edward became active in the Nazi Party.  In 1932, Princess Sibylla, the daughter of Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid, married Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Duke of Västerbotten. As Sibylla’s father was a prominent member of the Nazi Party, the wedding almost was a state affair. Adolf Hitler, who would soon become the German Chancellor, wrote a letter to Sibylla’s father congratulating the couple. The civil service was held on October 19, 1932, at Veste Castle in Coburg with the Nazi mayor of Coburg officiating, followed by a large reception, which included a torchlight procession of 4,000 members of the Nazi party. The religious wedding was held the following day at St. Moritz Church in Coburg. During the wedding festivities, numerous swastikas and other Nazi symbols could be seen throughout Coburg. The Nazi connection did not sit well with the Swedish people, and the groom’s grandfather King Gustaf V of Sweden, protesting Coburg’s close relation to the Nazi Party, refused to attend the wedding.

Pre-wedding activities 1932 from left to right: Charles Edward, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Princess Sibylla (bride), Prince Gustaf Adolf (groom), Crown Princess Louise of Sweden, Viktoria Adelheid; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Three sons of Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid served in the German armed forces during World War II and their son Hubertus was killed in action in 1943. After the end of World War II, Charles Edward was placed under house arrest on June 4, 1945, at his residence, the Veste Coburg, because of his Nazi sympathies. Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid were housed in a stable cottage on the grounds of the Veste Coburg. Charles Edward’s sister Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone and her husband the 1st Earl of Athlone came to Coburg to plead for his release but were unsuccessful. However, they successfully negotiated for an improvement in the couple’s living conditions. Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid were able to move into a part of one of their own houses, close to the market where it was easier for them to do their own shopping.

Several times Charles Edward faced trial for his alleged Nazi activities. His relatives insisted that his support of the Nazis had not been for ideological reasons, but because Charles Edward believed Hitler could save Germany from Communism, and that he had confined himself to the humanitarian activities of the German Red Cross. In 1949, a denazification appeals court classified Charles Edward as a Nazi Follower, Category IV. He was heavily fined and almost bankrupted.

After World War II, some of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha properties that were in East Germany were seized. The family was left with Schloss Callenberg in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany and Schloss Greinburg an der Donau in Grein, Austria, still owned by the family. Charles Edward spent the last years of his life in seclusion. He died of cancer on March 6, 1954, at the age of 69 in Coburg and was buried in the family cemetery in the forest of Schloss Callenberg.

After her husband’s death, Viktoria Adelheid spent time traveling, often with her sister-in-law, Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone. Viktoria Adelheid was much happier than she had been during the dark days after World War II. She spoke animatedly in broken English or Princess Alice, whose German was excellent, provided a rapid translation.  Viktoria Adelheid died on October 3, 1970, at the age of 84 at Schloss Greinburg in Grein, Austria, and was buried beside her husband in the Waldfriedhof (Forest Cemetery) at Schloss Callenberg.

Cemetery at Schloss Callenberg; Credit – By I, Presse03, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2524640

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

********************

Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Prince Charles Edward was born at Claremont House near Esher, Surrey, England on July 19, 1884. He was the only son and the second of the two children of Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, the youngest son of Queen Victoria, and Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont. Sadly, Charles Edward’s father died three months before he was born. Prince Leopold, who inherited hemophilia from his mother Queen Victoria, died at age 30 from a fall that caused a cerebral hemorrhage. Luckily, Charles Edward was in no danger of inheriting hemophilia. Males have XY chromosomes and females have XX chromosomes. Each parent transmits one chromosome to their offspring. Hemophilia is transmitted on the X chromosome. The hemophiliac male will transmit his Y chromosome to his sons, and therefore the sons will not have hemophilia. However, all daughters of hemophiliac males will be carriers as they all will receive their father’s X chromosome with the hemophilia gene. For more information see Unofficial Royalty: Hemophilia in Queen Victoria’s Family.

His father Prince Leopold had always been drawn to the story of the Stuarts who lost the throne and wanted his son to be named Charles Edward for Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, also known as Bonnie Prince Charlie. The infant prince was named Leopold Charles Edward George Albert. Formally he was known as Charles Edward and in the family, he was called Charlie. At his birth, Charles Edward inherited his father’s title Duke of Albany.

About two weeks after his birth, Charles Edward became ill and it was thought advisable to baptize him privately at Claremont House on August 4, 1884. Later that year, he was christened publicly on December 4, 1884, at Christ Church in Esher, Surrey, England. His godparents were:

Charles had one older sibling, a sister:

 

Charles Edward and his sister Alice were first educated at home by their governess Miss Jane Potts. After Charles Edward got to be “too much for Miss Potts,” as his sister says in her memoir For My Grandchildren, he was sent as a day student to Sanroyd School, then to prep school at Lyndhurst and Eton College.  Charles Edward remained at Eton College until an event occurred that would change his life drastically.

Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was the second of the two sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.  Albert’s elder brother succeeded their father as Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.  Ernst II had married Princess Alexandrine of Baden, but when it became increasingly clear that the marriage would produce no children, a plan for the succession needed to be devised. A union between the United Kingdom and the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was undesirable. For most of Ernst II’s reign, his brother Albert was the heir presumptive. When Albert died in 1861, his second son Alfred became the heir presumptive after his older brother, the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII of the United Kingdom), renounced his succession rights.

Alfred married and had one son and four daughters, and his son Alfred (known as Young Affie) became the next in the line of succession. In 1893, Ernst II died and Alfred became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his son Young Affie became Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Young Affie was involved in a scandal with his mistress and shot himself during his parents’ 25th wedding anniversary celebrations. His parents sent him off to a spa to recover, but Young Affie died two weeks later on February 6, 1899. Prince Albert’s third son, Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, had renounced the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha succession for himself and his only son Prince Arthur of Connaught. That left only Charles Edward. It is rumored that Prince Arthur of Connaught, who was attending Eton with Charles Edward, threatened to beat up his cousin if he did not accept the duchy.

In 1899, 15-year-old Charles Edward left Eton to continue his education in Germany. Various relatives argued about where Charles Edward should attend school. Finally, Cousin Willy, Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia, arranged for Charles Edward to attend Leichterfelde Military Cadet Academy, the German equivalent of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. The Duchess of Albany and her daughter Alice stayed for a prolonged time in Germany to ease Charles Edward’s adjustment, but the adjustment did not last long. Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha died of throat cancer on July 30, 1900, and 16-year-old Charles Edward became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. After becoming Duke, Charles Edward continued his education at the University of Bonn where he studied law and political science. Until Charles Edward reached his 21st birthday, Hereditary Prince Ernst of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, the husband of Alfred’s daughter Alexandra, served as the Regent of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

 

On February 15, 1905, at a court ball at the Berliner Stadtschloss, the engagement of Charles Edward and Princess Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg was announced. Viktoria Adelheid, who was called Dick in the family, was the niece of Empress Augusta Victoria, wife of Charles Edward’s first cousin Wilhelm II, German Emperor, and Wilhelm is said to have selected the bride. She was the eldest daughter of Friedrich Ferdinand, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein and Princess Karoline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg. The wedding was held on October 11, 1905, at Glücksburg Castle.

Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid in 1905; Credit – Wikipedia

The couple had five children:

Charles Edward and his family in 1918; Credit – Wikipedia

Charles Edward showed a great interest in cars and early aviation. In 1910 in Gotha, he built an airplane landing site with a hangar and a flying school. In 1913, he was involved in transforming the Gotha Coach Factory into an airplane manufacturer.

During World War I, Charles Edward was a General on the staff of the General Command of the 3rd Army of the German Empire. Before 1867, the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had its own army, but in 1867 a treaty was signed with Prussia, and the Duchy’s army was added to the 6th Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 95 of the 22nd Division of the Army Corps.  Charles Edward considered the 6th Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 95 his army and accompanied the regiment to the front. He visited the regiment often and spent more than one-third of World War I with the regiment. In December 1914, Charles Edward was promoted to General of Infantry. Although he held the rank of General, Charles Edward had no active command during World War I. To demonstrate his unconditional loyalty to the German Empire, Carl Edward signed a law on March 12, 1917, that said non-German members of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha could not be in the line of succession and succeed to the throne if their home country was at war with the German Empire. An attack on London on June 17, 1917, by seventeen twin-engine bombers built at Charles Edward’s Gotha Coach Factory cost 160 lives and increased the anti-German sentiment in the United Kingdom.

Charles Edward visiting the troops in 1914; Credit – Wikipedia

Charles Edward had been invested as a Knight of the Garter in 1902, but he was struck off the roll of the Order of the Garter in 1915 by his first cousin King George V of the United Kingdom along with six other Austrian or German royals. Further action was taken against him after the British Parliament passed the 1917 Titles Deprivation Act which allowed the Privy Council to investigate “any persons enjoying any dignity or title as a peer or British prince who have, during the present war, borne arms against His Majesty or His Allies, or who have adhered to His Majesty’s enemies.” Under the terms of that act, an Order in Council on March 28, 1919, formally removed Charles Edward’s British peerages, the Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and the Baron of Arklow. Charles Edward and his children also lost their titles of Prince and Princess of the United Kingdom and the styles Royal Highness and Highness. Along with Charles Edward, three others, Ernst August, Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale, Earl of Armagh; Ernst August (Duke of Brunswick), Prince of Great Britain and Ireland; and Henry, Viscount Taaffe of Corren and Baron of Ballymote, lost their titles. According to the Titles Deprivation Act, the male heirs of these four people have the right to petition for restoration of their titles but no heir has ever done so.

On November 9, 1918, the Workers and Soldiers Council of Gotha deposed Charles Edward as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. Saxe-Coburg and Gotha broke into two republics, Coburg and Gotha. In 1920, Gotha joined the newly created state of Thuringia, while Coburg joined the Free State of Bavaria. After losing his throne, being branded as a traitor by his birth country, and fearing the threat of Communism, Charles Edward searched for something new. He became associated with various right-wing paramilitary and political organizations. In 1932, he took part in the creation of the Harzburg Front, through which the German National People’s Party became associated with the Nazi Party.

Charles Edward first met Adolf Hitler on October 14, 1922, when he welcomed Hitler as a guest of honor at a festival in Coburg. In the following decades, Charles Edward met Hitler personally at least 21 times. After the first electoral success of the Nazi Party in Coburg in 1929, Charles Edward openly supported the Nazi Party. On March 23, 1932, in the Coburg National newspaper, Charles Edward supported Hitler in the presidential election against the incumbent Paul von Hindenburg. After the Nazi Party won the general election in 1933, the Nazi swastika flag was flown over the Veste Coburg, the home of Charles Edward.

As a result of his support of the Nazi Party, Charles Edward was appointed to several positions and represented the Nazi Party in Germany and abroad. He became a member of the Sturmabteilung (SA or Brownshirts), the paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party, and rose to the rank of Obergruppenführer.  He served as president of the German Red Cross from 1933 to 1945, and the German Red Cross became a part of the Nazi Party and was no longer affiliated with the neutral International Red Cross. In December of 1935, Charles Edward was elected President of the German-English Society, whose goal was to explore a possible pact between the two countries. In January 1936, Charles Edward returned to his home country when he represented Adolf Hitler at the funeral of King George V. After King Edward VIII abdicated the British throne and married Wallis Simpson, it was Charles Edward who hosted their unauthorized trip to Germany in 1937. Charles Edward was too old for active service during World War II, but three of his sons served in the German armed forces, and his son Hubertus was killed in action in 1943.

Charles Edward giving a speech as President of the German Red Cross in 1936; Credit – Wikipedia

After the end of World War II, Charles Edward was placed under house arrest on June 4, 1945, at his residence, the Veste Coburg, because of his Nazi sympathies. Charles Edward and his wife were housed in a stable cottage on the grounds of the Veste Coburg. His sister Alice and her husband came to Coburg to plead for his release but were unsuccessful. However, they were able to negotiate for an improvement in Charles Edward’s living conditions. Charles Edward and his wife moved into a part of one of their own houses, close to the market where it was easier for them to do shopping. Several times Charles Edward faced trial for his alleged Nazi activities. In 1949, a denazification appeals court classified Charles Edward as a Nazi Follower, Category IV. He was heavily fined and almost bankrupted.

After World War II, some of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha properties that were now in East Germany were seized. The family was left with Schloss Callenberg in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany and Schloss Greinburg an der Donau in Grein, Austria. Charles Edward spent the last years of his life in seclusion. He died of cancer on March 6, 1954, at the age of 69 in his apartment on Elsässer Straße (Street) in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany, and was buried in the Waldfriedhof (Forest Cemetery) at Schloss Callenberg. His wife Viktoria Adelheid died on October 3, 1970, and was buried beside her husband.

The cemetery at Schloss Callenberg; Credit – Wikipedia

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia, Duchess of Connaught

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Louise Margaret of Prussia, Duchess of Connaught; Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Luise Margarete Alexandra Viktoria Agnes of Prussia was born on July 25, 1860, at the Marmorpalais (Marble Palace), a royal residence in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia (now in Brandenburg, Germany). She was the fourth daughter and the fourth of the five children of Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia and Princess Maria Anna of Anhalt-Dessau. Prince Friedrich Karl’s father, Prince Karl of Prussia, was a younger son of King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia and a brother of King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia and Wilhelm I, German Emperor and King of Prussia. Luise Margarete’s mother was also descended from Prussian kings as her great-grandfather was King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia.

Luise Margarete had three sisters and one brother:

NPG x45763; Princess Louise, Duchess of Connaught by Unknown photographer

Princess Louise, Duchess of Connaught (née Princess of Prussia) by Unknown photographer, albumen print, 1870s, NPG x45763 © National Portrait Gallery, London

Luise Margarete’s parents had an unhappy marriage. After her birth, the birth of a fourth daughter, Prince Friedrich Karl reportedly beat his wife for not producing a son. Apparently, only the urgings of Friedrich Karl’s uncle King Wilhelm I of Prussia and future German Emperor, prevented a formal separation. Luise Margarete became engaged to Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, Queen Victoria‘s third son and the seventh of her nine children. However, Queen Victoria considered Luise Margarete a less than satisfactory bride for her son. She was plain-looking and had broken teeth. Her parents were unpleasant, had an unhappy marriage, and lived apart. Victoria wanted to avoid associating her family with a possible scandal.

Prince Arthur, 1st Duke of Connaught and Strathearn; Princess Louise, Duchess of Connaught after Léon Abraham Marius Joliot, albumen carte-de-visite, 1870s, NPG Ax131371© National Portrait Gallery, London

Luise Margarete and Arthur were married on March 13, 1879, at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. The bride received a magnificent diamond tiara and a pearl and diamond pendant from her mother-in-law Queen Victoria. After her marriage, Luise Margarete was styled Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Connaught and her name was anglicized to Louise Margaret.

Louise Margaret of Prussia_wedding

Louise Margaret in her wedding dress;  Credit – http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/2905669/the-duchess-of-connaught-when-princess-louise-margaret-of-prussia-1860-1917-in Royal Collection Trust/© Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2014

Arthur and Louise Margaret had one son and two daughters. The Swedish and Danish Royal Families are their descendants. The family resided at their country home Bagshot Park and Clarence House, their London residence.

The Duke and Duchess of Connaught with their children, Portrait by Hughes & Mullins, 1893; Credit – Wikipedia

Louise Margaret spent the first twenty years of her marriage accompanying her husband on his various military assignments. In 1911, Arthur was appointed the first Governor-General of Canada who was also a member of the Royal Family. Louise Margaret and her youngest child Patricia accompanied Arthur to Canada. They lived in Rideau Hall in Ottawa, Canada, and undertook extensive travels in Canada. After the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the family remained in Canada and Louise Margaret worked for the Red Cross and other organizations.

In the summer of 1916, Louise Margaret and her family returned to England from their five-year stay in Canada. A little more than six months later, on March 14, 1917, Louise Margaret died from bronchial pneumonia at Clarence House at the age of 56. She became the first member of the British Royal Family to be cremated, which was done at Golders Green Crematorium. Burying ashes in an urn was still unfamiliar at the time, and her urn was placed in a coffin during the funeral, which was held at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. Louise Margaret’s ashes were buried at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore. Arthur survived his wife by nearly 25 years, dying on January 16, 1942, at Bagshot Park at the age of 91.

Arthur_Louise Margaret grave

The Duchess of Connaught, along with her husband is buried in the grave on the right-hand side of the photo, nearest the wall; Photo Credit – Connie Nissinger, www.findagrave.com

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Prince Albert, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Duchy of Schleswig-Holstein: In November 1863, Prince Friedrich of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg claimed the twin duchies as Friedrich VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein after the death without a male heir of King Frederick VII of Denmark, who was also the Duke of Schleswig and the Duke of Holstein.  In 1864, following the Second Schleswig War, the Duchy of Holstein and the Duchy of Schleswig became occupied territories of the German Confederation and two years later, following the Austro-Prussian War, part of the new Prussian Province of Schleswig-Holstein. However, Prussia recognized the head of the House of Oldenburg as the *mediatized duke of these two duchies, with the rank and all the titles. The Duchy of Schleswig and the Duchy of Holstein are now the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.

*mediatize – to annex (a principality) to another state, while allowing certain rights to its former sovereign

*********************

Prince Albert, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein – source: Wikipedia

Prince Albert, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein (Albert John Charles Frederick Arthur George) was the second son of Princess Helena of the United Kingdom and Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. He was born on February 26, 1869, at Frogmore House in Windsor, England.

He was christened Albert John Charles Frederick Arthur George in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle on March 31, 1869. His godparents were:

Albert had four siblings:

Princess Helena with her sons Christian Victor and Albert, c. 1875. source: National Portrait Gallery. NPG x95876

Princess Helena with her sons Christian Victor (l) and Albert (r), 1875. source: National Portrait Gallery; half-plate glass negative, by Alexander Bassano (NPG x95876)

Like his elder brother Christian Victor, Albert attended Lambrook and was destined for a military career. However, unlike his brother, Albert joined the Prussian Army, eventually reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. This meant that Albert was separated from his family during World War I. Having refused to fight against the British, Albert’s cousin, Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia, excused him from active service, and he spent the war years serving on the staff of the Governor of Berlin.

By the end of the war, Albert was the heir apparent to his childless cousin, the Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, a brother of the German Empress Augusta Viktoria. He succeeded to the Dukedom in 1921, also becoming head of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg. The title was merely in pretense, as the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein had been annexed by Prussia following the Austro-Prussian War in 1866.

Albert never married, but just before his death, he acknowledged an illegitimate daughter born in 1900. The child, Valerie Marie, had quickly been given up and was raised by a Jewish family. Albert wrote to her just weeks before he passed away, acknowledging that he was her father. He also informed his two sisters, although he never disclosed the mother’s name to any of them. Some years later, when Valerie was planning to marry the Duke of Arenberg, this acknowledgment would become very important. At the time, because of her perceived Jewish heritage, she was not permitted to marry the Duke. Fortunately, Albert’s sisters attested to her true parentage, and the wedding was then permitted. Valerie died, by apparent suicide, in 1953.

Prince Albert, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein died on April 27, 1931, in Primkenau, Germany (now Przemków, Poland). He is buried near the church in Primkenau.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Schleswig-Holstein Resources at Unofficial Royalty