Princess Elizabeth Antoinette of France

## Princess Antoinette

**Princess Elizabeth Antoinette of France** (French: Elisabeth Antoinette Iris Alix Guenièvre; later **Princess Elizabeth Iris Antoinette of the United Kingdom, Duchess of Canterbury**; 16 November 1892 – 16 November 1939) was a Princess of the United Kingdom and a Duchess of Canterbury by marriage to Prince Charles. She was the youngest child and only daughter of Napoleon III, Emperor of the French and his wife, Empress Eugénie. She was the younger sister/sibling of Napoléon, the Prince Imperial and the heir presumptive to the French throne—making her a possible heir to inherit the throne of the French Empire. Her brother`s death in 1979, made his younger sister the last dynastic hope for the restoration of the House of Bonaparte to the throne of France—her eldest and first-born child (Princess Elizabeth) disappointed her family`s supporters though her youngest child (Prince Edward) elated her family`s supporters. Her marriage to Prince Charles who had stubbornly refused to marry anybody came as a shock to his mother (Queen Victoria) and his father (Prince Albert)—her quiet demeanor and sternness with which she held herself to uphold intimidated many of her future in-laws—a woman with an iron tongue, she had a keen eye for detail and was devoted to Prince Charles. The young French Princess enjoyed the company of Princess Beatrice and mourned the loss of Beatrice's possible husband—the marriage of Princess Elizabeth to Prince Charles enabled the female royals to bond even closer. The Prince and Princess had two children (Elizabeth and Edward)—while vacationing in Scotland with her favorite sister-in-law (Princess Beatrice), Elizabeth fell incredibly ill and slowly recovered over the course of several slow months—both of her children (Elizabeth and Edward) desperately wanted to see her. She died in 16 November 1939—the morning of her birthday celebration due to a triple case of malaria, and a mild case of hemophilia (which had gone unnoticed).

## Early life

Elizabeth was born at Buckingham Palace. She was the first daughter and youngest of the deposed French Emperor, Napoleon III, and his wife, Empress Eugénie. She was secretly born through the usage of chloroform administered by Dr John Snow. Chloroform was considered dangerous to mother and child and was frowned upon by the Church of England and the medical authorities. Empress Eugénie though unsettled by the danger to her unborn daughter by using chloroform to soothe her pain decided to do so anyway. Eugénie and Napoleon III named her *Elizabeth Antoinette Iris Alice Guinevere*: Elizabeth after Princess Élisabeth of France, the youngest sibling of King Louis XVI; Antoinette after Queen Marie Antoinette of France, the wife of King Louis XVI; Iris after the Iris flower; Alice after Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, a child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert; and Guinevere after Queen Guinevere of Camelot, the wife of King Arthur of Camelot. She was baptised in the private chapel at Buckingham Palace on 16 August 1892. Her godparents were Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (paternal grandmother); Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (paternal grandfather); Emperor Kuro of Dagmar (maternal uncle); Empress Angela of Dagmar (maternal aunt); and the Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom (one of her future sisters-in-law).

From birth, she became a favored child—she even gained several titles in the Empire of Dagmar (namely among them *Her Imperial Highness, Protector of the People*, *The Duchess of Dagmar-Angela*, *The Countess of Mountbatten-Pronate*, and *The Princess of Faith and Loyalty*)—Empress Angela and Emperor Kuro`s eldest daughter (Grand Duchess Flora Maximillia, Madame Royal) was often found in the company of the young Princess Elizabeth. Her older brother, the Prince Imperial, often doted on the young Elizabeth—Princess Beatrice also reportably enjoyed her company. Baron Stockmar (a close adviser to her paternal grandfather) later wrote on his encounter with the young Princess Elizabeth this: "the sheer quietness of her Imperial Highness, it is like the wind has given birth to her. Another life born not out of sacrifice and strife but rather silence and elegance—such is the way of the world."

### Nursing Career

In 16 March 1899, Empress Angela and Emperor Kuro`s eldest daughter (Grand Duchess Flora Maximillia) became incredibly ill—she was called upon to nurse the Grand Duchess back to health—unfortunately, she would die only a few hours later even after having operated on by the best professionals money could buy. The young seven-year-old Princess was devastated—her help however how minor it may have been aided in the advancement and evolution of medicine in the Empire of Dagmar. John Brown`s only sister (Aileen Brown) became her private secretary, maid, lady-in-waiting, hair-dresser, and personal bodyguard—together the two would rise to the top of the Nursing Field as two of the most well-trained nurses of their time. The sharp-witted Aileen balanced her hot-tempered employer—in 11 March 1900, Aileen fell ill with a high fever from falling in the river the previous day before; she was quickly removed, wiped down and placed on a couch directly in front of a roaring fire with a wet rag placed on her forehead to keep her cool. The death in Aileen in 1909 (only nine years after her fever-induced dreams) plunged Elizabeth in a pit of depression—Aileen (who had married to a Scottish Baron (Sir John) had passed only three after her husband`s own passing; the couple left behind seven children. In a daring move—Princess Elizabeth claimed them as her adoptive children which shocked her royal relations—returning to the Empire of Dagmar, she presented them to her paternal aunt and uncle (both of them quite shocked at the news); any records of their birth were erased and they were inducted as Princesses/Princes of the Empire of Dagmar (the secret "illegimente" children of Princess Elizabeth).

### Marriage

After the deaths of Aileen Brown and Grand Duchess Flora—both of them people for whom she cared deeply and greatly, she swore off the idea of marriage completely—in the isolated Empire of Dagmar, she happily raised her adoptive children and enjoyed a fulfilling nursing career. Back in Great Britain, news spread about the mysterious Imperial Princess Elizabeth of Dagmar (actually Princess Elizabeth Antoinette of France) and her incredible beauty—though rumors spread that she was widowed from a previous marriage as she had children flocking around her at all times of the day; Prince Charles (a nephew of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert) ventured to the isolated Empire of Dagmar to find Elizabeth. Princess Viktoria (one of her adoptive children)—disliked the idea of Prince Charles marrying her "mother" and attempted to scare him off, Prince Ryan openly refused and even picked a fight with Viktoria over it—