19th Century, History

The Children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

Queen Victoria and her family in the Green Drawing Room, Windsor Castle, 1887 (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
  • Victoria, Princess Royal. Married Prince Frederick William of Prussia
    • She was born 21 November 1840 and died 5 August 1901
      • Her eldest son, Kaiser Willhelm II, was on the opposing side to his cousin King George V of Great Britain during World War One
  • Albert, Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII. Married Princess Alexandra of Denmark
    • Born 9 November 1841 and died 6 May 1910
      • His eldest son, Prince Albert Victor – the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, was linked to the Cleveland Street scandal and was posthumously accused of being Jack the Ripper (there is no evidence for this – court records prove he was not in London on several of the murder dates and he even dined with Queen Victoria on one crucial date)
  • Princess Alice. Married Prince Louis of Hesse and the Rhine
    • Born 25 April 1843 and died 14 December 1878
      • Queen Victoria was so revolted that Alice preferred to breastfeed her children, she named one of the royal cows on her estates ‘Princess Alice’. Alice’s daughter, Alexandra (Princess Alix of Hesse), married Tsar Nicholas II and was murdered by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution
Princess Alice in court dress, 1859 (Image: Wikimedia Commons) SEE ORIGINAL
  • Prince Alfred. Married Marie, Grand Duchess of Russia
    • Born 6 August 1844 and died 30 July 1900
      • Known as Affie, he enjoyed a Naval career and inherited the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg on the death of his uncle – his brother, the Prince of Wales, having renounced his claim
  • Princess Helena. Married Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein 
    • Born 25 Mary 1846 and died 9 June 1923
      • Helena and Christian enjoyed a 50-year marriage, the first members of the royal family to reach that milestone since King George III and Queen Charlotte
  • Princess Louise. Married John Campbell, Marquis of Lorne
    • Born 18 March 1848 and died 3 December 1939
      • Louise studied at the National Art Training School in Kensington, London and was the first female sculptor to have a statue erected in public – the statue depicted her mother, Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria, Kensington Gardens, by Princess Louise (Photo: author’s own)
  • Prince Arthur. Married Princess Louise of Prussia
    • Born 1 May 1850 and died 16 January 1942
      • Arthur went to the Royal Military College at Woolwich and enjoyed a full military career. He lived till the age of 91
  • Prince Leopold. Married Princess Helen of Waldeck-Pyrmont
    • Born 7 April 1853 and died 28 March 1884
      • Leopold was a haemophiliac – the first known sufferer in the royal family and believed to be a genetic mutation from his mother. His sister Alice was a carrier. Her daughter Alix’s son, Tsarevitch Alexis, was also a victim of this cruel disease. Leopold died after a fatal brain haemorrhage resulting from a fall downstairs aged 31
Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, 1861 (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
  • Princess Beatrice. Married Prince Henry of Battenberg
    • Born 14 April 1857 and died 26 October 1944
      • Two of Beatrice’s three sons were haemophiliacs and her daughter was a carrier and took the disease into the Spanish royal family

 

Sources:

http://www.historyinanhour.com/2014/01/22/victoria-alberts-children/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/wilhelm_kaiser_ii.shtml

http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/haemophilia.html

https://www.spectator.co.uk/2014/01/the-mystery-of-princess-louise-by-lucinda-hawksley-review/

 

17 thoughts on “The Children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert”

      2. It never left me! And I don’t watch any fictional dramas so I’ve never seen Victoria or The Crown! I’m more of a documentary watcher. But then I always read the daily dramas in the newspapers, so I get my fix that way.

        Liked by 1 person

  2. If you do the next generation, Alfred (1844-1900)’s son Charles Edward is interesting. In pictures of George V’s funeral he is the one in Wehrmacht uniform complete with Stahlhelm (coal scuttle helmet). A nazi from the early 30s, he was heavily fined after WW2 and died in poverty in 1954. He watched the Queen’s coronation at a local cinema. Oh, and his grandson is King of Sweden.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Some have quite tragic stories, Alice died of diphtheria along with another of her daughters. Queen Victoria remained close to the Hesse children after Alice’s death. Also, Queen Victoria appeared to have actively disliked the Prince of Wales for years – following the Hanoverian tradition of antipathy towards their heirs. It seems though the family were close they were multi-faceted and quite dysfunctional at times.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  5. Great post. I have always enjoyed the paintings from long ago and now I get to read a little history to go along with them from your posts. Thank you. 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I’m not fully sure why specifically, sometimes it’s to avoid confusion with another family member. Queen Victoria named Albert and Alexandra’s first child after her husband and herself – Albert Victor he was also christened Christian Edward and was known as Eddy. I suppose having 4 Christian names gives you options!
      Queen Victoria was Alexandrina Victoria known as Drina growing up. She chose her monarchical name.
      King George VI chose his royal name after the abdication of his brother King Edward VIII (who was known by another one of his names, David) and decided to be known as King George VI (following his father George V) to give the impression of stability after the year of 1936 saw the reign of 3 kings.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  8. Pingback: The Children of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra – HistorianRuby: An Historian's Miscellany
  9. Pingback: Sunshine Blogger Award – Applegate Genealogy

Leave a comment