Princess Alice of the United Kingdom

Princess Alice (25 April 1843 – 14 December 1878) was Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine from 1877 until her death in 1878 as the wife of Grand Duke Louis IV. She was the third child and second daughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

She was the sister of Edward VII of the United Kingdom and German Empress Victoria and the mother of Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia.

 Biography 

 Early life 
Alice was born on April 25, 1843 as Alice Maud Mary at Buckingham Palace in London.Packard, p. 25

Alice's birth prompted her parents to find a larger family home. In 1844, her parents purchased Osborne House on the Isle of Wight as a family holiday home. 

At Osborne, Alice and her siblings were taught skills such as housekeeping, cooking, gardening and carpentry, as well as daily lessons in learning English, French and German.Van der Kiste, p. 22

Alice was said to be fascinated with the world outside at Balmoral, where she visited the tenants living and working on the estate.Packard, p. 64 In 1854, during the Crimean War, Alice visited hospitals in London for wounded soldiers with her mother and her older sister.Van der Kiste, p. 28

 Marriage 
Alice was engaged to Prince Louis of Hesse on April 30, 1861. On July 1, 1862, Alice and Louis got married in a private ceremony in the dining room of Osborne House.

 Illness and death 
On December 14, the 17th anniversary of her father's death, Alice became seriously ill with the diphtheria that she caught from her son. She died in the early morning hours, she was 35 years old.Packard, p. 167 Alice was buried on 18 December 1878 at the Grand Ducal mausoleum at Rosenhöhe outside Darmstadt.Noel, p. 241

 Honours 

 1 January 1878: Companion of the Order of the Crown of India
  26 June 1871: Cross of Merit for Women and Girls
  Dame of the Order of Louise, 1st Division
  1864: Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of Saint Catherine

 Issue 
NameBirthDeathRef(s).Victoria Alberta Elisabeth Mathilde Marie5 April 186324 September 1950Elisabeth Alexandra Luise Alix1 November 186418 July 1918 †Irene Louise Marie Anne11 July 186611 November 1953Mager, p. 27Ernest Louis Charles Albert William25 November 18689 October 1937Friedrich William Augustus Victor Leopold Louis7 October 187029 May 1873Mager, pp. 45-46Alix Viktoria Helene Luise Beatrix6 June 187217 July 1918 †Marie Victoria Feodore Leopoldine24 May 187416 November 1878

 References 

Category:1843 births
Category:1878 deaths
Category:House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Category:19th-century British people
Category:British princesses