Princess Louise Margaret, Duchess of Connaught
Encyclopedia
Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia (Louise Margaret Alexandra Victoria Agnes; later Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn; 25 July 1860 – 14 March 1917) was a German princess, and later a member of the British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
, the wife of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was a member of the shared British and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha royal family who served as the Governor General of Canada, the 10th since Canadian Confederation.Born the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and...
. She also served as the Viceregal Consort of Canada, when her husband served as the Governor General of Canada
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
from 1911 to 1916.
Early life
Princess Luise Margarete was born at MarmorpalaisMarmorpalais
The Marmorpalais was a royal residence in Potsdam, eastern Germany, built on the grounds of the extensive Neuer Garten on the shores of Lake Heiliger See...
(Marble Palace) near Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
, Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
. Her father was Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia (1828–1888), the son of Karl of Prussia
Prince Charles of Prussia
Prince Frederick Charles Alexander of Prussia born in Charlottenburg, was a younger son of Frederick William III of Prussia and Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz...
(1801–1883) and his wife Princess Marie of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (1808–1877). Her mother was Princess Maria Anna of Anhalt
Princess Maria Anna of Anhalt-Dessau
Princess Maria Anna of Anhalt-Dessau was a princess from the House of Ascania. She was the third child of Leopold IV, Duke of Anhalt and Frederica Wilhelmina of Prussia.-Family:...
(1837–1906), daughter of Leopold IV of Anhalt-Dessau. Her father, a nephew of the German Emperor Wilhelm I, distinguished himself as a field commander during the Battle of Metz and the campaigns west of Paris in the 1870–71 Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
. Her father was a double cousin of the German Emperor Friedrich III
Frederick III, German Emperor
Frederick III was German Emperor and King of Prussia for 99 days in 1888, the Year of the Three Emperors. Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl known informally as Fritz, was the only son of Emperor William I and was raised in his family's tradition of military service...
, the husband of her sister-in-law, Victoria, Princess Royal
Victoria, Princess Royal
The Princess Victoria, Princess Royal was the eldest child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert. She was created Princess Royal of the United Kingdom in 1841. She became German Empress and Queen of Prussia by marriage to German Emperor Frederick III...
.
Marriage
See also: Wedding dress of Princess Louise Margaret of PrussiaWedding dress of Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia
The wedding dress of Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia is the wedding dress of Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia who married Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn at St. George's Chapel, Windsor on 13 March 1879...
On 13 March 1879, Princess Luise Margarete married Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was a member of the shared British and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha royal family who served as the Governor General of Canada, the 10th since Canadian Confederation.Born the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and...
at St. George's Chapel Windsor
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
. Prince Arthur was the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The couple got a great number of expensive gifts; the Queen's gift, for instance, consisted of a magnificent diamond tiara, a pearl and diamond penchant, among other items. Many members of England and Germany's royal families attended, such as the Prince
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
and Princess
Alexandra of Denmark
Alexandra of Denmark was the wife of Edward VII of the United Kingdom...
of Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. After her marriage, she was styled Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Connaught and her name was anglicised as Louise Margaret.
Duchess of Connaught
The Duchess of Connaught spent the first twenty years of her marriage accompanying her husband on his various deployments throughout the British empire. The Duke and Duchess of Connaught acquired Bagshot ParkBagshot Park
Bagshot Park is a royal residence located near Bagshot, a village south west of Windsor and approximately north east of Guildford . It is the current home of The Earl and Countess of Wessex. Bagshot Park is on Bagshot Heath, a fifty square-mile tract of formerly open land in Surrey and Berkshire...
in Surrey as their country home and after 1900 used Clarence House
Clarence House
Clarence House is a royal home in London, situated on The Mall, in the City of Westminster. It is attached to St. James's Palace and shares the palace's garden. For nearly 50 years, from 1953 to 2002, it was home to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, but is since then the official residence of The...
as their London residence. She accompanied her husband to Canada in 1911, when he began his term as Governor-General. In 1916, she became colonel-in-chief of the 199th Canadian (Overseas) Infantry Battalion (The Duchess of Connaught's Own Irish-Canadian Rangers), CEF. In 1885, she became chief of the 64th (8th Brandenburg) Regiment of Infantry "Field Marshal General Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia", Prussian Army.
Later life
The Duchess of Connaught died of influenzaInfluenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
and bronchitis
Bronchitis
Acute bronchitis is an inflammation of the large bronchi in the lungs that is usually caused by viruses or bacteria and may last several days or weeks. Characteristic symptoms include cough, sputum production, and shortness of breath and wheezing related to the obstruction of the inflamed airways...
at Clarence House. She became the first member of the British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
to be cremated, this was done at Golders Green Crematorium
Golders Green Crematorium
Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000, and was opened in 1902 by Sir Henry Thompson....
. The procedure of burying ashes in an urn was still unfamiliar at the time, and her urn was transported in an ordinary coffin during the funeral ceremonies. Her ashes were eventually buried at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore. The Duke of Connaught survived her by almost twenty-five years.
Titles and styles
- 25 July 1860 – 13 March 1879: Her Royal Highness Princess Luise Margarete of Prussia
- 13 March 1879 – 14 March 1917: Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn
Honours
- CI: Companion of the Crown of IndiaOrder of the Crown of IndiaThe Imperial Order of the Crown of India is an order in the British honours system.The Order was established by Queen Victoria in 1878, when she became Empress of India. The Order is open only to women; no new appointments have been made after the Partition of India in 1947...
, March 1879 - VA: Royal Order of Victoria and AlbertRoyal Order of Victoria and AlbertThe Royal Order of Victoria and Albert was a British Royal Family Order instituted in on 10 February 1862 by Queen Victoria, and enlarged on 10 October 1864; 15 November 1865; and 15 March 1880. No awards were made after the death of Queen Victoria....
(First Class), 1893 - DStJ: Dame of Justice of St. JohnVenerable Order of Saint JohnThe Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem , is a royal order of chivalry established in 1831 and found today throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Hong Kong, Ireland and the United States of America, with the world-wide mission "to prevent and relieve sickness and...
, 1888 - RRC: Member of the Royal Red CrossRoyal Red CrossThe Royal Red Cross is a military decoration awarded in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth for exceptional services in military nursing.The award was established on 27 April 1883 by Queen Victoria, with a single class of Member...
, 1883 - Dame of the Order of LouiseOrder of LouiseThe Order of Louise was founded in 1814 by Frederick William III of Prussia to honor his late wife, the much beloved Queen Luise . This order was chivalric in nature, but was intended strictly for women whose service to Germany was worthy of such high national recognition...
Issue
| Image | Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Princess Margaret of Connaught Princess Margaret of Connaught Princess Margaret of Connaught was the daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria, and his wife, Princess Luise Margarete of Prussia... |
15 January 1882 | 1 May 1920 | married, 15 June 1905, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden Gustaf VI Adolf - Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf - was King of Sweden from October 29, 1950 until his death. His official title was King of Sweden, of the Goths and of the Wends. He was the eldest son of King Gustaf V and his wife Victoria of Baden... ; had issue |
|
| Prince Arthur of Connaught Prince Arthur of Connaught Prince Arthur of Connaught and Strathearn was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandson of Queen Victoria. Prince Arthur held the title of a British prince with the style His Royal Highness... |
13 January 1883 | 12 September 1938 | married, 15 October 1913, Princess Alexandra, Duchess of Fife Princess Alexandra, Duchess of Fife Princess Alexandra, 2nd Duchess of Fife was a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of King Edward VII... ; had issue |
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 |
Princess Patricia of Connaught Princess Patricia of Connaught Princess Patricia of Connaught was a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria... |
17 March 1886 | 12 January 1974 | married, 27 February 1919, Captain Sir Alexander Ramsay, renouncing her title and becoming Lady Patricia Ramsay; had issue |