Category Archives: German Royals

Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Queen of Denmark

by Emily McMahon and Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Queen of Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

Born on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1879, in the city of Schwerin, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Alexandrine Auguste was the eldest daughter and the eldest of the three children of Friedrich Franz III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia, a granddaughter of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia.

Alexandrine had one brother and one sister:

Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia with her three children, circa 1890; left to right: Cecilie, Alexandrine, Friedrich Franz, Grand Duchess Anastasia; Credit – Wikipedia

It was in the French city of Cannes, located on the French Riviera, that Alexandrine met her future husband, the future King Christian X of Denmark.  Because of the poor health of Alexandrine’s father, the family spent much time in warm climates including Cannes where they had a large estate, Villa Wenden.  Grand Duchess Anastasia had a poor reputation for her dislike of her adopted country and her extravagances.  She also had an illegitimate child during her widowhood. Although there were concerns for Alexandrine’s and Cecilie’s futures due to their mother’s lifestyle, both made impressive marriages. It was Anastasia who urged Alexandrine to marry the future King Christian X of Denmark, to which Alexandrine complied. The two were married in Cannes, France (her mother’s preferred residence) on April 26, 1898.

Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Christian of Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

The couple had two sons:

Prince Frederik and Prince Knud, 1912; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Christian and Alexandrine received the newly built Marselisborg Palace in Aarhus as a wedding present from the Danish public, but it was not completed until 1902. The couple made Christian VIII’s Palace at Amalienborg their Copenhagen base. The couple also spent considerable time at Sorgenfri Palace just outside Copenhagen. It was at Sorgenfri that both of the couple’s children, the future Frederik IX and Knud, were born.

Marselisborg Palace; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Christian and Alexandrine were devoted to one another and enjoyed a happy marriage. The couple became king and queen of Denmark in 1912. While their popularity waxed and waned throughout Christian’s rule, he and Alexandrine are generally viewed as successful. Before the World Wars, Alexandrine and Christian traveled extensively, often returning to Cannes where they met and married.

Alexandrine was somewhat shy and disliked the ceremonial and public aspects of being queen. She preferred more solitary activities and was known for her talents in needlework and for her avid interest in gardening. She also had a deep appreciation for music and was the patron of several musical organizations. Her eldest son Frederik shared his mother’s passion for music.

At the start of the German occupation of Denmark during World War II, it was unknown whether Alexandrine’s sympathies would ally with her native country or her adoptive one. Alexandrine proved herself loyal to Denmark by working with various relief organizations to bring aid to the Danes affected by the occupation. She also received General Kaupisch, the German head of the occupation, with a less than warm welcome. Alexandrine and her husband were lauded by the Danish public for their devotion to the country during wartime. Alexandrine was also able to save the sizable Danish royal jewel collection from Nazi looters by hiding it in churches and even farmhouses.

King Christian X with his wife Queen Alexandrine and grandchildren – Standing in back, from left to right: Princess Elisabeth, Prince Ingolf, Princess Margrethe (later Queen Margrethe II), Front, from left to right: Prince Christian, Queen Alexandrine holding Princess Anne-Marie (later Queen Consort of Greece), Princess Benedikte, King Christian X

 

Alexandrine was widowed in 1947. During her time as dowager queen, she devoted most of her time to charitable causes, particularly those dedicated to children. She was known simply as Queen Alexandrine until she died in 1952, the first former queen to forgo the title of Dowager Queen.

On December 28, 1952, Alexandrine died in her sleep four days after her 73rd birthday,  at a hospice, Saint Lukas Foundation in Hellerup, Denmark. She had undergone an intestinal operation a week and a half before her death. At her funeral, her son Frederik conducted her favorite song, Edvard Grieg’s “Springtime.” Alexandrine is buried with her husband in the Glücksburger Chapel at Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark.

Tombs of Alexandrine and her husband at Roskilde Cathedral; Photo Credit – Susan Flantzer

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Kingdom of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz; By Alfred Ellis: 51 Baker Street, London – RCIN 2109487, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=88769843

On December 5, 1916, Her Royal Highness The Dowager Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz died at the age of 94.  She had been born a British Princess on July 19, 1822, and was the longest-lived grandchild of King George III of the United Kingdom and the last link to the British branch of the House of Hanover.

Her Royal Highness Princess Augusta Caroline Charlotte Elizabeth Mary Sophia Louisa of Cambridge was the elder daughter and the second of three children of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, the seventh son of King George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel.  At the time of her death, Augusta was 94 years, 4 months, and 16 days old which made her, at that time, the longest-lived British Princess of the Blood Royal.  Princess Alice of Albany, Countess of Athlone, the daughter of Queen Victoria’s son Prince Leopold, became the longest-lived British Princess of the Blood Royal in 1977 and died four years later at the age of at age 97 years and 313 days.

Princess Augusta was born at the Palace of Montbrillant in the Kingdom of Hanover, where her father was serving as Governor-General and later Viceroy of the Kingdom of Hanover for his brothers King George IV and King William IV.  She was christened Augusta Caroline Charlotte Elizabeth Mary Sophia Louisa on August 16, 1822, at the Palace of Montbrillant in the Kingdom of Hanover.  Her godparents were:

When Augusta’s first cousin Queen Victoria succeeded their uncle King William IV in 1837, their uncle Ernest became King of Hanover because the Salic Law did not allow female succession in Hanover.  Augusta’s family then returned to England and lived at Cambridge House in Piccadilly, London.

Augusta had two siblings:

Friedrich Wilhelm of Mecklenburg-Strelitz; Credit – Wikipedia

On June 28, 1843, Augusta married Friedrich Wilhelm, Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz at the Private Chapel in Buckingham Palace in London, England.  The bride and groom were first cousins through their mothers and second cousins through their fathers.  This marriage meant that Augusta would live in Neustrlitz, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. However, the couple visited London frequently, staying with the Duchess of Cambridge at Kensington Palace, and Augusta retained close ties with the British Royal Family.

The couple had two sons, but only one survived to adulthood:

In 1860, Friedrich Wilhelm succeeded his father as Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and Augusta became Grand Duchess.  Because she had no daughter of her own, Augusta became very close with her niece Mary (May) of Teck, later the wife of King George V of the United Kingdom, and the two corresponded regularly until Augusta’s death.  In 1887, Augusta participated in the Golden Jubilee celebrations of her first cousin Queen Victoria.  When Augusta’s mother died in 1889, Augusta purchased a home near Buckingham Palace and stayed there for a portion of each year until her infirmity made it difficult to travel.  Augusta attended Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 1897 and was heard to say in a loud voice, “Why is she thanking God in the street?” as Queen Victoria sat in her carriage in front of St. Paul’s Cathedral for a blessing because she was too infirm to enter the cathedral.

Before the coronation of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and his wife Queen Alexandra in 1902, Augusta was consulted on matters of ceremony and attire as she was almost the only person alive who could remember the coronation of King William IV and Queen Adelaide.  Her recollection of Queen Victoria’s coronation also proved invaluable.

Augusta, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz at the coronation of King Edward VII in 1902, Credit – Wikipedia

1904 was not a good year for Augusta as both her brother and husband died.  Augusta had been on a visit to England when her husband died.  Their son succeeded his father as Adolf Friedrich V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.  Unfortunately, due to old age, Augusta was unable to attend the coronation of her niece May (Queen Mary) and her husband King George V of the United Kingdom in 1911.

In August 1914, Augusta was 92 when World War I started.  Her only child had died two months earlier and now her grandson Adolf Friedrich VI was the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.   Adolf Friedrich was devoted to his grandmother and the war was stressful for both.  Because Augusta was living in an enemy country, the British government suspended paying her pension.  Sadly, two years after Augusta’s death, her grandson Adolf Friedrich VI died by suicide. During the war, Augusta was able to keep up her correspondence with her niece May through Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden, born Princess Margaret of Connaught, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

In the autumn of 1916, Augusta’s health began to fail. She lay in her bed for a month, sleeping most of the time.  When she was awake, she was lucid and listened to letters or newspapers read aloud to her.  Augusta sent a message to King George V: “Tell the king that it is a stout old English heart which is ceasing to beat.”  She died in Neustrelitz, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, on the morning of December 5, 1916.  Her last word was “May,” the name of her beloved niece.  Augusta was interred in the New Crypt at Johanniterkirche (link in German) in Mirow, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now a small town in northeastern Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.  The church, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, has two crypts that have been the burial place for the Mecklenburg-Strelitz family for the past 300 years.

Johanniterkirche in Mirow; Credit – Von Niteshift (talk) – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9970572

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Mecklenburg-Strelitz Resources at Unofficial Royalty

November 16, 1937 – Deaths of the Grand Ducal Family of Hesse and by Rhine

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Hesse-family

The Hereditary Grand Duke and Grand Duchess with their sons. Photo: personal collection

On November 16, 1937, a scheduled flight left Germany, bound for London. It was scheduled to stop in Brussels, however, the weather did not allow for a safe landing and the pilot continued on to Ostend with the intent of landing there. Unfortunately, the weather was just as bad, with almost no visibility. While attempting to land, the plane clipped a chimney on a factory near the airport. The plane was torn apart and crashed. The seven passengers, the pilot, and three crew members were all killed.

Onboard the plane were most of the members of the Grand Ducal Family of Hesse and by Rhine –  Hereditary Grand Duke Georg Donatus, his wife the former Princess Cecilie of Greece, their two elder children, Ludwig and Alexander, and Georg Donatus’ widowed mother, the Dowager Grand Duchess Eleonore. They were heading to London for the wedding of Georg Donatus’ younger brother Prince Ludwig to Margaret Geddes scheduled for November 20, 1937. Traveling with the family were Lina Hahn, the children’s nurse, and Baron Joachim Riedesel zu Eisenbach, the intended best man at Ludwig’s wedding. The couple’s youngest child Johanna had remained in Darmstadt. The Hereditary Grand Duchess Cecilie was heavily pregnant with her fourth child at the time and the remains of her unborn son were found amongst the wreckage. This has led to speculation that she may have gone into labor while in flight, which would explain the pilot’s attempt to land in Ostend despite the weather conditions. It is also possible that the distress and trauma of the crash caused her to give birth to the stillborn child.

Once news of the plane crash reached London, a wedding was quickly arranged for Prince Ludwig and Margaret on October 17, after which the couple flew to Belgium to visit the crash site and make arrangements to bring the remains home to Darmstadt. The wedding was already overshadowed by grief. Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig, the father of Ludwig and Georg Donatus had just died a few weeks earlier. Despite this, it was decided that the wedding would go on as scheduled.

The funeral was held several days later, attended by Prince Ludwig and his new wife, and most of Cecilie’s family. These included her parents, Prince Andrew of Greece and Princess Alice of Battenberg; her three sisters with their husbands – Margarita, The Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Theodora, The Margravine of Baden, and Sophie, Princess Christoph of Hesse; her brother Philip, the future Duke of Edinburgh; her maternal uncle, Lord Louis Mountbatten (later Earl Mountbatten of Burma), and her maternal grandmother, The Dowager Marchioness of Milford Haven. The family was all buried in the burial ground next to the New Mausoleum in the Rosenhöhe, Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany.

The Grand Ducal couple’s young daughter Johanna was adopted by her uncle Ludwig and his wife Margaret. However, less than two years later, she contracted meningitis and died. She is buried with the rest of the family.

Princess Johanna with her aunt and uncle Prince Ludwig and Princess Margaret; Photo: The Esoteric Curiosa

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Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, German Empress, Queen of Prussia

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, Credit – Wikipedia

The first wife of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia, Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg was born on October 22, 1858, in Dolzig Palace in Sommerfeld, Prussia (now Lubsko, Poland).  A great-niece of Queen Victoria, a niece of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, the husband of Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Helena, and a descendant of Danish and British kings, Augusta Victoria was the last German Empress and Queen of Prussia.  Her full German name was Auguste Viktoria Friederike Luise Feodora Jenny, but in her family, she was known as Dona.  Her father was Friedrich VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, a great-grandson of King Christian VII of Denmark, and his wife Princess Caroline Matilda of Wales, sister of King George III of Great Britain.  Her mother was Princess Adelheid of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, the daughter of Queen Victoria’s half-sister, Princess Feodora of Leiningen.

Dona was the eldest surviving child of her parents’ seven children and grew up with her four surviving siblings.  Because of the Schleswig-Holstein Question, the family had lived in several places: Dona’s birthplace Dolzig Palace in Sommerfeld, Prussia (now Lubsko, Poland), in Gotha which was one of the two capitals of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and in Primkenau, formerly in Germany but now in Poland. (I am not attempting to explain the Schleswig-Holstein Question, referring readers to the Wikipedia link above and quoting British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston: “The Schleswig-Holstein question is so complicated, only three men in Europe have ever understood it. One was Prince Albert, who is dead. The second was a German professor who became mad. I am the third and I have forgotten all about it.”)

In 1868 when she was ten years old, Dona first met Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, who was only a few months younger than her and was the eldest child of the Crown Prince and Princess of Prussia (the future Friedrich III, German Emperor and his wife Victoria, Princess Royal).  In the years that followed, Dona fell in love with her cousin Prince Ernst of Saxe-Meiningen and was sent to England to visit relatives to quash the romance. Wilhelm had proposed to his first cousin Princess Elisabeth (Ella) of Hesse and by Rhine. Ella, however, turned him down and later would marry into the Russian Imperial Family and be murdered by the Bolsheviks in 1918.

Dona and Wilhelm were reacquainted in the summer of 1878 in Potsdam, Prussia.  The Prussians did not look favorably upon Dona as a possible wife for Wilhelm.  There were questions about whether the marriage would be equal because Dona’s father was not a sovereign. Furthermore, there were political complications from the Prussian annexation of Schleswig-Holstein when Dona’s father had claimed them.  However, Chancellor Otto von Bismarck was a strong proponent of the marriage because he believed it would end the dispute between the Prussian government and Dona’s father.  The engagement was announced on June 2, 1880, and the couple married on February 27, 1881, in Berlin.  Dona and Wilhelm had a very happy marriage.  Wilhelm was a man who needed to be pampered and since Dona adored him, she had no trouble pampering him.  She had more artistic interests than he did, but they shared very conservative political views and a deep religious faith. Dona had to endure a rough start to her married life because of her in-laws who did not think her rank was sufficient for the wife of a future emperor.

Dona and Wilhelm, Photo Credit – Wikipedia

The couple had seven children, six sons and one daughter:

The year 1888 is called “The Year of Three Emperors” in German history.  Wilhelm’s grandfather Wilhelm I died on March 9, 1888, and was succeeded by Wilhelm’s father Frederick III.  Frederick was already gravely ill with cancer of the larynx and lived only three months more, dying on June 15, 1888, when Wilhelm succeeded to the throne.

When Dona became Empress (Kaiserin in German), she took up and enjoyed the traditional roles of a consort, serving as a hostess and working with charities.  It even seemed that her relationship with her mother-in-law improved although Dona carefully guarded their grandmother’s liberalism from her children.  Dona was with her mother-in-law when she died of cancer of the spine in 1901 and thereafter, there was no question who was the first lady in Germany.  After Wilhelm became German Emperor, he especially needed Dona due to his notorious stress and erratic personality.  Unlike any other person, she had a calming and comforting effect on him.  However, Dona’s attention to her husband meant that she often neglected to take care of herself.  The German people adored Dona even more than her husband.  World War I put a terrible strain on Dona because of the strain it put on Wilhelm.  Nevertheless, Dona did all she could to give aid and comfort to her family and the German people.

Augusta Viktoria in 1920; Credit – Wikipedia

Dona’s health had started to fail even before Wilhelm lost his throne in the aftermath of World War I. In 1918, Dona and Wilhelm went into exile in the Netherlands eventually settling at Huis Doorn, a small manor house near Doorn in the province of Utrecht.  In July 1920, Viktoria Luise, Dona’s daughter, visited her parents at Huis Doorn where she received a report from her mother’s doctor saying that two days previously her mother “suffered a heart spasm.”  Several days later, Joachim, Dona and Wilhelm’s youngest son, died by suicide.  According to Viktoria Luise’s autobiography The Kaiser’s Daughter, the family feared for Dona’s health and decided to tell her that Joachim’s death was due to an accident.  Dona never got over her son’s death. In November of 1920, Dona’s condition worsened.  She died on April 11, 1921.  Viktoria Luise writes in her autobiography about how she learned of her mother’s death.  She was traveling to Doorn to visit her parents…”I had to stop over in Nuremberg and there I happened to glance at an advertising pillar where a crowd of passerby was gathered.  Instinctively, my gaze fastened on the posters and I was startled to see an “extra” which proclaimed the news of the death of the Kaiserin.”

Dona had wanted to be buried in Germany, but this meant that Wilhelm would never be able to visit her grave as he was exiled.  The German government agreed to the burial but insisted that the special train that carried Dona’s coffin only travel at night and that there should be no announcement of the arrangements.  Dona’s sons Adalbert and Oskar accompanied her remains back to Germany while Viktoria Luise remained at Doorn to comfort her father.  Dona was still popular with the German people and even though there were no announcements about the arrangements, the 600-kilometer route through Germany was lined with people.  Viktoria Luise writes: “…thousands upon thousands lined the railway tracks, which were leading their revered Princess home. Every time the train stopped, hundreds and thousands of people in their mourning clothes, waited to say farewell.  Church choirs sang, and bands played the music of hymns.  And along the countryside, waiting by railway embankments, farmers’ wives sank to their knees and prayed.”

Temple of Antiquities; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

The train reached Potsdam where Dona was buried at the Temple of Antiquity, built by Frederick the Great to house his collection of antique artifacts, coins, and antique gems.  More than 200,000 people lined the route of the funeral cortege.  Wilhelm remarried and survived Dona by 20 years.  When he died in 1941, he was buried in a mausoleum on the grounds of Huis Doorn.

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Prussia Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Oktoberfest’s Bavarian Royal Connection

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2013


Credit – Wikipedia

October 12, 1810 – Wedding of King Ludwig I of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen

Oktoberfest is a well-known festival held each autumn for sixteen days in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.  Six million people attend Oktoberfest in Munich and more than one million gallons of beer are consumed. Cities around the world have their own Oktoberfests, but many people do not know that it all began with a royal wedding on October 12, 1810.  On that day Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria married Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen.  The Bavarian royal family invited the citizens of Munich to attend the festivities, held on the fields in front of the city gates. These famous public fields were named Theresienwiese  (“Therese’s fields”) in honor of the new crown princess, but in Munich, the name became known as the “Wies’n,” and it is on these fields that Oktoberfest has been held since 1810.

Horse races were held to mark the end of the wedding festivities and the decision to repeat the horse races in subsequent years started the tradition of Oktoberfest.  The horse races, which had at one time been the most popular event of the festival are no longer held today.
An agricultural show designed to boost Bavarian agriculture began in 1811 and is still held every three years during the Oktoberfest on the southern part of the festival grounds. Amusement rides, a carousel, and two swings made their first appearance in 1818, and visitors to the festival were able to quench their thirst at small beer stands, which grew rapidly in number. In 1896, the beer stands were replaced by the first beer tents set up with the backing of the breweries.  Since 1810, Oktoberfest was canceled 24 times due to cholera epidemics and war.

Today there are fourteen large beer tents and twenty small tents at Oktoberfest.  Only beer conforming to the Reinheitsgebot, with a minimum of 13.5% Stammwürze (approximately 6% alcohol by volume) may be served at Oktoberfest. The beer must also be brewed within the city limits of Munich. The breweries that can produce Oktoberfest Beer under the criteria are:

Having visited Munich in August 2012 and sampled beers from several of these breweries, I can attest that they are wonderful.

Inside one of the tents at Oktoberfest, Photo Credit – Wikipedia

King Ludwig I (born in 1786) was the son of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria and his first wife Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt.  Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen  (born in 1792) was the daughter of Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen (later Duke of Saxe-Altenburg) and Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Ludwig succeeded his father as King of Bavaria in 1825.

Although the marriage of Ludwig and Therese began with great celebration and promise, it was not a happy marriage.  Ludwig had many affairs that Therese reluctantly tolerated.  Several times, she left while Ludwig was having affairs and she refused to associate with his mistresses.  Among Ludwig’s mistresses were the scandalous English aristocrat Lady Jane Digby, Italian noblewoman Marianna Marquesa Florenzi, and Lola Montez (born Eliza Rosanna Gilbert), an Irish dancer and actress who became famous as a “Spanish dancer.”  Ludwig’s affair with Lola Montez likely contributed to his abdication in 1848.  Therese died in 1854 in Munich and was buried in St. Boniface’s Abbey in Munich.  Ludwig lived for another twenty years after his abdication, died in Nice, France in 1868, and was buried next to his wife.

Ludwig and Therese had nine children:

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Thyra of Denmark, Crown Princess of Hanover

by Emily McMahon  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Thyra of Denmark, Crown Princess of Hanover; Credit – Wikipedia

Thyra was the youngest of the three daughters and fifth child of the six children of King Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse-Kassel. She was born on September 29, 1853, at the Yellow Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark where the family lived in relatively humble circumstances. Her father Christian had been chosen as the heir to the childless King Frederik VIII shortly before Thyra’s birth.

Thyra had five siblings:

Christian IX, King of Denmark and his family by Georg Emil Hansen, albumen carte-de-visite photomontage, 1862, NPG x74402 © National Portrait Gallery, London

Encouraged by the prominent marriages her elder daughters had made, Louise had the same hopes for Thyra. However, before any serious marriage negotiations could occur, Thyra fell in love with a Danish cavalry officer Vilhelm Frimann Marcher. Louise knew of Thyra’s attachment to Marcher but considered it a harmless adolescent flirtation. However, by the summer of 1871, it was clear that the “flirtation” had blossomed into a full-blown affair and that Thyra was pregnant with Marcher’s child.

News of Thyra’s pregnancy was restricted to the family as it could be lethal to her reputation. Arrangements were made to send Thyra to Greece to visit her brother George, where she could have the baby in relative anonymity, and then the baby could be given to a Greek family. Thyra gave birth to a daughter in Greece (some claim Glücksburg Castle) on November 8, 1871. It is believed that Thyra convinced her family to let the baby be adopted by a Danish couple, rather than a Greek one. The Danish court has never confirmed the story of Thyra’s pregnancy.

Marcher was allegedly distraught over losing Thyra and his child. Although he was said to have told Thyra’s father he would marry Thyra, this was refused due to Marcher’s low rank. Marcher had a second confrontation with King Christian IX in early 1872 resulting in a verbal altercation. Marcher died by suicide on January 4, 1872. There is no record of Thyra’s reaction to his death.

Following her involvement with Marcher, Thyra was one of the leading candidates for a bride for Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, the third son of Queen Victoria. The two had met as children in the early 1860s when Thyra’s sister Alexandra married Arthur’s brother, the Prince of Wales. Thyra’s sister and brother-in-law strongly supported the match, with Alexandra cleverly mentioning that Thyra treasured a note Arthur had given her in 1863. Although Thyra and Arthur met a few times in preparation for a possible engagement, Queen Victoria eventually decided that a second British-Danish union would interfere with her pro-German leanings. Arthur went on to marry a Prussian princess in 1878.

Thyra traveled to the United Kingdom during the winter of 1875 to spend Christmas with the family of her sister Alexandra at Sandringham in Norfolk, England.  Ernst Augustus, Crown Prince of the defunct throne of Hanover was also visiting. Although Ernst Augustus did nit have a throne and was not considered handsome, he had a kind and easygoing manner. He was also lucky enough to keep a large amount of his fortune despite his exile from Hanover. However, the Prussians did not view a union between Denmark and Hanover favorably. Both had lost considerable (or all, in the case of Hanover) territory to Prussia in the aftermath of the war.

After meeting Ernst Augustus, Thyra was considered as a second wife of King Willem III of the Netherlands. Willem’s first wife, Sophie had died in 1877, leaving him with two surviving sons who had not (and would not) produce children. In his sixties, Willem needed a younger princess who could bear him further children. However, Willem had a reputation as a shameless womanizer. His questionable moral character coupled with his age led Thyra to refuse William. He did find his younger princess in Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, who married Willem and became the mother of his successor Queen Wilhelmina.

Thyra’s hopes of marriage kept coming back to Ernst Augustus, who apparently knew of Thyra’s illegitimate child and still wished to marry her. Thyra’s parents and her sister the Princess of Wales, arranged a meeting in Frankfurt between Thyra and Ernst Augustus in early 1878 and the two became engaged.

Schloss Cumberland, Thyra and Ernst Augustus’ home in Gmunden, Austria; Credit – By Pepito Tey – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22858180

On December 21, 1878, Thyra and Ernst Augustus were married at the Christiansborg Palace Chapel in Copenhagen, Denmark. Following the wedding, Thyra and Ernst Augustus made their home in exile at Schloss Cumberland (link in German) in Gmunden, Austria, the home they built and where they raised six children:

Thyra with her husband and children; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

According to some sources, Thyra struggled with periodic bouts of mental illness during her marriage. Additionally, Ernst Augustus was somewhat asocial and disliked gatherings, which isolated the family. Nonetheless, the marriage was happy and lasted until Ernst Augustus died in 1923.

Thyra in the 1900s; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Although she never officially became a queen like her sisters, Thyra was the titular queen consort of Hanover as her husband had never renounced his rights to the throne. She also counts among her descendants the late King Constantine II of Greece, his sister Queen Sofia of Spain, and Queen Sofia’s son King Felipe VI of Spain, and future Spanish monarchs. Thyra died at Schloss Cumberland in Gmunden, Austria on February 26, 1933, and is buried with her husband in the family mausoleum in Gmunden.

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Feodora of Leiningen, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

Feodora of Leiningen, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg in middle age. Photo credit: erhj.blogspot.com

September 23, 1872 – Death of Feodora of Leiningen, Princess consort of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

Feodora’s Wikipedia page

Anna Feodora Auguste Charlotte Wilhelmine was born in Amorbach, Germany, in December 1807. Her parents were Emich Carl, 2nd (ruling) Prince of Leiningen and Viktoria of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Feodora (as she was known) had a brother, Carl, who was three years older.

Feodora’s father died in 1814. The family stayed in Amorbach for the next few years, where Viktoria served as regent for Carl. Viktoria’s brother Leopold and his wife Charlotte of Wales, the only legitimate grandchild of George II of the United Kingdom, began working in early 1817 to marry Viktoria to Edward, Duke of Kent (Charlotte’s uncle). Both parties were somewhat lukewarm to the idea of marriage, as Viktoria had a comfortable and secure position in Amorbach and Edward had a long-time mistress.

In November 1817, the British were facing a succession crisis as Charlotte died after giving birth to a stillborn son. George’s unmarried sons took to continental Europe to find brides to sire children and secure the succession. Not to be left out of the race, Edward convinced Viktoria to marry him in May 1818. Leaving her brother Carl in Amorbach, Feodora traveled with her stepfather and pregnant mother to the United Kingdom in early 1819. Feodora’s sister, the future Queen Victoria, was born at Kensington Palace that May.

Consequently, this is sildenafil online no prescription truly an exceptionally humiliating issue for the man as it makes him barren and does not permit him to have any sort of physical delight. Prostatic fluid produced by produced prostate is a buy female viagra major ingredient of semen. It is preferred in cases when the company or cheap levitra uk distributor needs to communicate with you through your phone, you do not have to worry about having therapy and talking it through with a stranger. For those people, order levitra online would definitely be a good option among all. Feodora’s stepfather died in 1820. Victoria’s close proximity to the throne made it unwise for Viktoria to leave Britain and return to continental Europe. Yet restricted funds and poor English kept the family isolated and Feodora bored. She later lamented that the only enjoyment she had was going on her daily rides with Victoria and Victoria’s governess, Baroness Louise Lehzen.

In the meantime, Feodora was growing into a rather beautiful young woman. During the mid-1820s, she began attracting the attentions of her stepfather’s brother, George IV of the United Kingdom. Viktoria realized that if this marriage occurred and produced children, young Victoria’s place in the succession would be jeopardized. Besides, Viktoria despised her gluttonous, arrogant brother-in-law. The idea of becoming his mother-in-law horrified her. Additionally, Feodora did not get along with Sir John Conroy, the Welsh army officer who controlled Viktoria’s finances – and had a Svengali-like influence over her.

Viktoria hurriedly searched for a suitable husband for her eldest daughter. In February 1828, Feodora married Ernst I, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg at Kensington Palace. Ernst was the cousin of Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, the consort of William IV of the United Kingdom, giving Feodora an additional tie to the British monarchy. For her part, Feodora was glad to leave home and return to Germany. Her departure left Victoria lonely and at the mercy of her mother and Conroy.

The principality of Hohenlohe-Langenburg was controlled by Württemberg, giving Ernst little to do. Additionally, Feodora and Ernst barely knew each other at the time of their marriage. Nevertheless, the marriage was a happy one that produced six children.

Despite their eleven year age difference, Feodora and Victoria were quite close. They sent each other letters and sketches frequently, discussing mostly their children, their mother, and their upbringing. Feodora visited the United Kingdom as often as she could. After she became queen, Victoria also granted her sister a small allowance.

Feodora died in Baden-Baden in 1872. Victoria, who long lamented her lack of a large family of origin, was crushed by the loss of her sister. Victoria continued to take a great interest in her sister’s family, promoting the marriage of Feodora’s granddaughter Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein to her own grandson, the future German Emperor Wilhelm II, in 1882. Among Feodora’s other descendants include Regina of Saxe-Meiningen, the wife of Crown Prince Otto of Austria and Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg, the mother of Swedish king Carl XVI Gustav.

Friedrich II, King of Prussia (the Great)

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Kingdom of Prussia: The Protestant Franconian branch of the House of Hohenzollern ruled as Margraves of Brandenburg, Dukes of Prussia, Electors of Brandenburg, Kings of Prussia from 1415 until 1918. In November 1700, in exchange for supporting the Holy Roman Empire in the Spanish War of Succession, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor agreed to allow Friedrich III, Duke of Prussia, Elector of Brandenburg to make Prussia a kingdom and become its first king. In the aftermath of World War I, Prussia had a revolution that resulted in the replacement of the monarchy with a republic. Wilhelm II, German Emperor, King of Prussia abdicated on November 9, 1918.

The Kingdom of Prussia had territory that today is part of Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, and Switzerland. All or parts of the following states of today’s Germany were part of the Kingdom of Prussia: Brandenburg, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saarland, Saxony-Anhalt, and Schleswig-Holstein.

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Friedrich II, King of Prussia (the Great) – Credit: Wikipedia

King Friedrich II of Prussia, best known as Frederick the Great, was born January 24, 1712, at the Berlin City Palace in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany, the eldest surviving son and the fourth of the fourteen children of Friedrich Wilhelm I, King in Prussia and Sophia Dorothea of Hanover, daughter of King George I of Great Britain.

Friedrich had thirteen siblings:

Friedrich with his brothers; Credit – Wikipedia

As Crown Prince, Friedrich had a very distant and tense relationship with his father, whose interests varied greatly from the young prince. While his father was interested in all things military, Friedrich’s interests were in the arts, particularly music. However, he enjoyed a very close relationship with his mother. At the age of 18, he attempted to flee Prussia for England but was captured and jailed. His close friend was implicated in the affair and the King had him executed while forcing Friedrich to watch. This would further alienate the father from his son for the rest of his life.

Friedrich’s marriage to Elisabeth Christine; Credit – Wikipedia

On July 12, 1733, Friedrich married Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, but they spent most of their lives separated, seeing each other only a handful of times after he became King of Prussia. They had no children, and upon becoming King in 1740, Friedrich named his brother Augustus as Crown Prince.  Augustus predeceased Friedrich so his son succeeded as King Friedrich Wilhelm II.

Friedrich became King in Prussia in 1740 upon the death of his father Friedrich II. Aside from his promotion of the arts, Friedrich proved himself a skilled military commander and made great advancements in his kingdom. Through several battles and wars, he united the various parts of his kingdom, taking the title King of Prussia in 1772.

The death of Friedrich; Credit – Wikipedia

Friedrich II died quietly in his study at Sanssouci in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany on August 17, 1786, at the age of 74. He was succeeded by his nephew King Friedrich Wilhelm II. He left strict instructions that he wished to be buried on the grounds of Sanssouci with little fuss or fanfare. However, his nephew had him buried in the Garrison Church in Potsdam with his father. During World War II, his remains were removed and hidden and were later found by American Forces and reburied at St Elisabeth’s Church in Marburg. In 1953, his remains were moved to Hohenzollern Castle where they remained until 1991. Finally, on the 205th anniversary of his death, Friedrich the Great’s wishes were granted. His casket lay in state in the court of honor at Sanssouci with a guard of honor. Late that night, he was laid to rest in the plot he had designated before his death – on the terrace overlooking the vineyards at Sanssouci – near the graves of his beloved dogs.

Grave of Frederick the Great. Photo: Wikipedia

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Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, Queen of the United Kingdom

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, Queen of the United Kingdom; Credit – Wikipedia

On November 6, 1817, a great tragedy struck the British Royal Family. Twenty-one-year-old Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of George, Prince of Wales, died after delivering a stillborn son. At the time of her death, Charlotte, who was second in line to the throne, was the only legitimate grandchild of King George III, even though thirteen of his fifteen children were still alive. Her death left no legitimate heir in the second generation and prompted the aging sons of King George III to begin a frantic search for brides to provide for the succession.

One of the sons was William, Duke of Clarence (the future King William IV).  William had never married but had lived for 20 years with actress Dorothea Jordan.  Together they had ten illegitimate children, all of whom used the surname FitzClarence.  William and Dorothea had separated in 1811 and Dorothea received a yearly allowance and the custody of their daughters, while William received the custody of their sons.  There was a stipulation that Dorothea would not return to acting to retain both her allowance and the custody of her daughters.  However, she did return to acting to help a son-in-law with a debt.  William then got custody of their remaining daughters and Dorothea lost her allowance.  She moved to France to escape creditors and died in poverty in 1816.  Soon after the death of Princess Charlotte of Wales, negotiations began for the marriage of William to Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, and the engagement was announced on April 19, 1818. William was 52 and Adelaide was 25.

Adelaide Louisa Theresa Caroline Amelia (in German Adelheid Luise Therese Karoline Amalie) was born in the Elisabethenburg Palace in Meiningen, Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen now in the German state of Thuringia, on August 13, 1792.  She was the elder daughter and first child of Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and Princess Luise Eleanore of Hohenlohe-Langenburg.  Adelaide’s father died when she was 11 years old and she and her younger siblings Ida and Bernhard, who became the reigning duke, were carefully raised by their mother and received an excellent education.

Adelaide’s siblings:

Adelaide and her mother traveled to England for her wedding and arrived in London on July 4, 1818. They stayed at Grillon’s Hotel where they were visited an hour after their arrival by the Prince Regent (the future King George IV) and William, who met his bride for the first time.  William and Adelaide were married on July 14, 1818, at Kew Palace in the presence of an ailing Queen Charlotte who died in November of the same year.  It was a double wedding as William’s brother Edward, Duke of Kent and Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, who had married in May at Coburg, were remarried by the Anglican rite at the same time.  Despite the age difference, William and Adelaide’s marriage was a happy one.  Adelaide was a good influence on William keeping his eating, drinking, and behavior in line.  She was also a kind stepmother to the six children of William and Dorothea Jordan who were still at home.

Adelaide loved children but was destined not to have one of her own.  Her first child was born prematurely on March 27, 1819, as a result of Adelaide being ill with pleurisy.  The baby girl was christened Charlotte Augusta Louisa and died the same day.  Adelaide suffered a miscarriage on September 5, 1819.  On December 19, 1820, Adelaide gave birth to a girl, Elizabeth Georgiana Adelaide, six weeks prematurely.  Princess Elizabeth, who had been healthy despite being premature, died 12 weeks later on March 4, 1821, of the then-inoperable condition of a strangulated hernia.  Twin boys were stillborn on April 23, 1822.

A child of William and Adelaide would have succeeded to the throne as William’s two elder brothers (George IV and Frederick, Duke of York) had no surviving children.  Adelaide wrote to her widowed sister-in-law the Duchess of Kent, “My children are dead, but your child lives, and she is mine too.”  That child was the future Queen Victoria.  Adelaide had close and loving relationships with her stepchildren and step-grandchildren, with her brother and sister’s children, and with William’s nieces and nephews, the future Queen Victoria and the Cambridge children.  Queen Victoria used the name Adelaide in honor of her aunt when she gave birth to her first child Victoria Adelaide Mary Louise and Adelaide was one of the godparents.

Recumbent effigy of Princess Elizabeth of Clarence in the Grand Corridor of Windsor Castle, Credit – Wikipedia

William succeeded to the throne when his brother King George IV died on June 26, 1830, and both William and Adelaide were crowned on September 8, 1831.  During William’s reign, Adelaide was admired by the British people, and helped her husband with the proper etiquette and often covered many of his gaffes.   Both William and Adelaide were very fond of their niece Princess Victoria of Kent who was the heiress presumptive and wanted to be closer to her.  However, the Duchess of Kent did not allow this. In addition, she was rude to Queen Adelaide by refusing to recognize the Queen’s precedence, ignoring her letters, and taking space in royal stables and apartments for her own use.  At dinner, in front of Queen Adelaide, the Duchess of Kent, Princess Victoria of Kent, and many guests, King William announced that the Duchess of Kent did not know how to behave and he was insulted by her behavior. He further said that he hoped he did not die until Victoria was 18 so that the Duchess would not serve as Regent.  The King, Queen, and Duchess never fully reconciled, but Victoria always viewed the King and Queen with kindness.

King William IV and Queen Adelaide, Credit – Wikipedia

King William IV died of heart failure on June 20, 1837, at Windsor Castle and Victoria had turned 18 on May 24.  Adelaide had stayed at her husband’s side for three weeks, not sleeping in her bed for the last 10 days.  Adelaide was the first Queen Dowager in more than a century, the last one being Catherine of Braganza, King Charles II’s widow.  She survived William by 12 years, dying on December 2, 1849, at the age of 57 at Bentley Priory in Stanmore, Middlesex, England.  She was buried after a simple funeral, in accordance with her wishes, in the Royal Tomb House beneath St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle where her husband had been buried.

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Caroline of Brunswick, wife of King George IV of the United Kingdom

by Susan Flantzer

Caroline of Brunswick, Photo Credit – Wikipedia

August 7, 1821 – Death of Caroline of Brunswick, estranged wife of King George IV of the United Kingdom, at Brandenburg House in Hammersmith, London, England; buried at the Cathedral of St. Blasius in Brunswick, Germany

The marriage of Princess Caroline of Brunswick and the future King George IV, then Prince of Wales, was not one made in heaven.  The two did not meet until three days before their wedding.  The princess had just arrived in London and was staying in apartments at St. James’ Palace prior to her marriage and it was there on April 5, 1795 that Caroline and George first met.  The Prince of Wales came into the apartments to greet Caroline.  There was no one else there except James Harris, 1st Earl of Malmesbury, who had escorted Caroline to London from her native Brunswick, and he described the meeting in his diary:

“She very properly, in consequence of my saying to her it was the right mode of proceeding, attempted to kneel to him.  He raised her (gracefully enough), and embraced her, said barely one word, turned round, retired to a distant part of the apartment, and calling me over to him said, ‘Harris, I am not well; pray get me a glass of brandy.'”

Lord Malmesbury suggested a glass of water.  “Upon which he, out of humour, said, with an oath, ‘No, I will go directly to the Queen,’ and away he went.  The Princess, left during this short moment alone, was in a state of astonishment; and, on my joining her, said [in French], ‘ My God! Is that the Prince? I find him very fat, and not as handsome as his portrait.'”

And so started one of the most disastrous royal marriages.

Caroline Amalie Elisabeth was born on May 17, 1768 in Brunswick, Germany.  Her parents were Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Princess Augusta, elder sister of King George III of the United Kingdom.  Caroline was not well-educated although she could understand French and English.  In 1794, Caroline became engaged to her first cousin George, the Prince of Wales.  Despite being first cousins, the two had never met.  George, who was in debt, had been promised a raise in his allowance if he married an acceptable princess. In 1785, George had married Maria Fitzherbert, but the marriage was invalid because it was against the Royal Marriages Act of 1772.

James Harris, 1st Earl of Malmesbury, who escorted Caroline to England had doubts about her appropriateness when he first met her in Brunswick.  He thought Caroline spoke her mind too readily, acted indiscreetly, and often neglected to wash, or change her dirty clothes.  He went on to say that she had “some natural but no acquired morality, and no strong innate notions of its value and necessity.”  On April 8, 1795, three days after their ill-fated first meeting, Caroline and George married at the Chapel Royal of St. James’s Palace in London.  On the day of his wedding, George told his brother William, Duke of Clarence to tell Mrs. Fitzherbert she was the only woman he would ever love.

William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (Lord Melbourne) said about George as he walked down the aisle, “…the Prince was like a man doing  a thing in desperation, it was like Macheath [character from The Beggar’s Opera] going to execution; and he was quite drunk.”  Lord Malmesbury agreed in his diary that George literally had to be supported by the Duke of Bedford and the Duke of Roxburghe.  On the other hand, Caroline appeared joyful and chattered with George’s brother William, Duke of Clarence as she waited at the altar.  The wedding night was a disaster.  Caroline confided to Lady Charlotte Campbell, “Judge what it was to have a drunken husband on one’s wedding day, and one who passed the greatest part of his bridal night under the grate, where he fell and where I left him.”  Evidently George and Caroline performed their marital duty at least once because nine months later, on January 7, 1796, their only child Charlotte was born.  A little more than a year after the marriage, George and Caroline were living separately.
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George did not allow Caroline to have any part in their daughter Charlotte’s upbringing and ordered that Caroline’s visits to Charlotte had to be supervised by a governess.  However, some sympathetic staff did allow Caroline to be alone with Charlotte.  Princess Charlotte married Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, the uncle of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.  Unfortunately, Charlotte died at age 21 of childbirth complications along with her baby.

Since Caroline was living in a household separate from her husband, she entertained whomever she pleased and there were rumors of affairs.  In 1802, Caroline adopted a three month old boy named William Austin and raised him in her home.  There were accusations that the boy was Caroline’s illegitimate son and a special commission was established called the Delicate Investigation to look into the matter.  The commission found that there was no evidence that the allegations were true.

After George became Prince Regent in 1811 upon the worsening of King George III’s illness, Caroline’s visits to Charlotte were cut off and she was further socially isolated.  Caroline was very unhappy with her situation and treatment and after Napoleon’s defeat in 1814, when she would be able to travel, she  negotiated a deal with the Foreign Secretary to leave the United Kingdom in exchange for an annual allowance of £35,000.  Caroline spent several years traveling through Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Tunisia, Malta, Greece, and Palestine.  She established a household in Milan, Italy and hired Bartolomeo Pergami and his sister as servants.  Pergami rose to become the head of Caroline’s household and rumors swirled that they were having an affair.

King George III died on January 29, 1820 and Caroline’s husband became king and she became, at least in name, queen.  Caroline decided to return to the United Kingdom to assert her rights as queen.  As she was traveling back to London, she received a proposition from her husband offering her £50,000 per year if she would continue to live abroad which she refused.  Caroline arrived back in London on June 5, 1820 where she was greeted by a stage-managed enthusiastic greeting.  King George IV wished to divorce Caroline and on July 5, 1820 the Pains and Penalties Bill was introduced into Parliament which would dissolve the marriage of George and  Caroline and deprive her of the title Queen of the United Kingdom.  During the reading of the bill, witnesses were called and there was effectively a public trial of Caroline.  The bill passed the House of Lords, but never made it to the House of Commons as there was little chance it would pass there.  Caroline joked with her friends that she had committed adultery only once, with the king, the husband of Mrs. Fitzherbert.

The Trial of Queen Caroline (she can be seen in the middle of the painting sitting in a chair), Photo Credit – Wikipedia

King George IV’s coronation was to take place on July 19, 1821, but no plans had made for Caroline’s participation.  Nevertheless, on the day of the coronation Caroline went to Westminster Abbey and demanded entrance, but was barred at every door.  When she demanded entrance to Westminster Hall where processions were being formed, the door was slammed in her face.  Finally, she left to the sound of jeering crowds.

On the evening of the coronation day, Caroline went to the Drury Lane Theatre and felt unwell.  She had suffered on and off from bowel problems and took a large amount of milk of magnesia and some laudanum.  When she did not feel better in two days, she sent for her doctor who diagnosed “acute inflammation of the bowels,” bled her, and gave her a large amount of calomel and castor oil.  Over the next three weeks, her condition worsened and it became apparent that she would die.  Caroline died on August 7, 1821 after a long night of pain.   The cause of her death is unknown.  Possibly there was a bowel obstruction or cancer, and there were rumors that Caroline had been poisoned.

Caroline had requested to be buried in her native Brunswick in a tomb bearing the inscription “Here lies Caroline, the Injured Queen of England.”  On August 14, 1821, her casket was to leave London and start its journey back to Brunswick.  It was decided that the funeral procession would avoid central London, but the crowd accompanying the procession blocked the planned route and forced the procession to go through London.  On August 25, 1821, Caroline’s casket was placed in the vault at the Cathedral of St. Blasius.  The reigning duke, Caroline’s nephew, ordered that a hundred young girls holding flowers and candles line the aisles as Caroline’s casket was brought into the cathedral.  In the vault, a prayer was said as the young girls encircled the casket and then extinguished the flames of their candles.

Coffin of Caroline of Brunswick, Photo Credit – http://www.findagrave.com

Wikipedia: Caroline of Brunswick

Recommended biography: The Unruly Queen: The Life of Queen Caroline by Flora Fraser

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