Duchess of Kent dies

Victoria Mary Louisa, Duchess of Kent 

March 16, 1861 - Queen Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent passed away shortly before 10 o'clock this morning. She was 75.

The Duchess was reported to have been suffering from cancer and during the week, her health had been steadily declining.

On Tuesday the Queen and the Prince Consort hastened to Frogmore to frail mother. Princess Alice followed on Thursday. Yesterday, 6 o'clock, a telegram has been sent to Buckingham Palace informing the Queen that her mother’s condition had worsened. The Queen, Prince Consort and Princess Alice immediately hurried to her mother’s side riding a special train to Windsor. The Duchess “passed an unfavorable night” until her death came earlier today.

The Queen and the Prince Consort were beside her. News of Her Royal Highness’ death reached Buckingham Palace past 10, after which Princess Helena and other members of the royal family left for Windsor. The Prince of Wales, who was at Cambridge, was immediately telegraphed. The Duchess’ brothers, the King of the Belgians and the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha were also informed of her passing.

The Duchess of Kent was born Victoria Mary Louisa on August 17, 1756.  She was the fourth daughter of Francis Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfield. On December 21, 1803, she married Emich Charles, Prince of Leiningen, who died July 4, 1814. The marriage bore a son, Charles Frederick William, who succeeded his father as reigning Prince of Leiningen, and Princess Feodore, who married the Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg.

On May 29, 1818, he married Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent, fourth son of King George III, in Coburg. Their wedding ceremony was repeated at Kew on July 11. The following year, she gave birth to their only child, Alexandrina Victoria, who ascended to the British throne in 1837 as Queen Victoria. The Duke of Kent died in January 1820. 

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons)

Queen Victoria - The Younger Years

The events in Queen Victoria's childhood, especially her relationship with her mother the duchess of Kent, would have a lasting impact on her life.

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“I never was happy until I was 18,” wrote Queen Victoria in her journal, of her unhappy and somber childhood. She had a very good reason of saying so.

Foremost is the fact that the Duchess of Kent, ambitious and domineering woman, did all she can to  keep Victoria isolated from rest of the royal family. The duchess also feel under the influence of Sir John Conroy, an Irish officer who rose to become the master of the duchess’ household since the Duke of Kent's death.

The couple planned to become the powers behind the throne should Victoria ascend the throne before she turns 18. Because of the growing differ between her and the Duchess of course with her utter disgust to Conroy, the relationship between Victoria and her mother greatly strained. Even the couple strictly looked after Victoria and denied her any acquaintance with people her age or liking, she developed a headstrong and passionate personality.

Indeed, all attempts to control, let alone influence Victoria proved to be in vain. She celebrated her eighteenth birthday just five weeks before her uncle’s death.

The future queen's early life was isolated and her ascension was believed to be the rise of the Coburg dynast, not a continuation of the House of Hanover because everyone who surrounded her were all Coburgh. This feeling  she expressed when she disapproved of the name “George” when her grandson, the future George V, was named.


More about the early years of Queen Victoria in this article. 

Queen Victoria's Birth and Childhood

Queen Victoria was the only child of the Duke and Duchess of Kent. His father's death, as well as her uncles', placed her in direct line of succession.

Read: Events that led to Queen Victoria's birth.

The infant Victoria with her mother, the Duchess of Kent.

Before being forced to marry, Victoria’s father, the Duke of Kent lived with his mistress, Madam de Saint Laurent, for many years. After the government urged him to look for a royal wife, he eventually found a suitable bride in the person of Princess Victoria, daughter of Francis Frederick, reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and of Princess Augusta of Reuss-Ebersdorff.

The duke of Kent takes a bride

The bride had been married before to Emich Charles, Prince of Leiningen-Dachsburg-Hardenburg, who died in 1814 and left him with two children – Charles, who succeeded to his father’s title, and Feodora. She met the duke in Amorbach, where she was then living. Her brother, Leopold, who was married to Princess Charlotte, encouraged her sister’s union with his late wife’s uncle.

Money was one of the reasons why the duke decided to get married. He was already encumbered with debts before she met the princess and marrying her will enable him to receive a substantial income from the parliament.

The wedding between the Duke of Kent and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg was solemnized on July 11, 1818.

Queen Victoria is born

Baby Victoria

The only child of the Duke and Duchess of Kent was born on May 24, 1819. Wanting their daughter to be born on the English soil, the couple departed Franconia for London just in time before the duchess gave birth.

The newborn royal baby was named Alexandrina Victoria, the latter being unheard of in the English-speaking world until that time. It was the product of a conflict of her father with her uncle the prince regent, who refused her to be christened with a “royal” name, like Augusta or Charlotte.

Alas, the duke did not live long after the infant princess’ birth. He succumbed to pneumonia and died on Jan. 23, 1820, six days before his father the king passed away. They were both buried in Windsor.

Prince Leopold’s Influence to Queen Victoria

King Leopold I of Belgium, Victoria's
uncle and surrogate father.

Left with nothing but a debts, the Duchess of Kent and the young princess went to live at Kensington Palace, having the economical support of Prince Leopold. Before his marriage to Princess Charlotte, the parliament provided the prince with an annuity of L50,000 for life. He continued to live in England, at Claremont House in Usher, Surrey until 1831 after he was elected first king of the Belgians.

The widowed mother trusted her brother as her best adviser and he was responsible for the general character of Queen Victoria’s education. After he went to Belgium, Victoria and Leopold carried on an affectionate correspondence throughout the 34 years of their joint lives. After her accession, the niece tactfully eluded and quickly terminated the uncle’s attempts to control British policies behind the backs of the British cabinet. Nonetheless, though she could not accept him as an extra-constitutional adviser, Victoria found in correspondence to her uncle, a delightful outlet for her private and unofficial feelings; only to him for example, did she speak of Palmerston and Russell as “those two dreadful men.”

On his death she recorded on her journal that he had been “ever a father” to her.

Baroness Louise Lehzen plays an important role in Queen Victoria’s childhood

The Baronness Lehzen is the young princess'
nanny. Early in her reign, she was a trusted
confidante. 

The young princess’ home was Kensington Palace, though she stayed at times with her uncle at Claremont and frequently traveled on the continent with her mother. Her half-sister Feodore was her nursery companion and remained her friend until her death in 1872.

When Victoria was five and admirable governess was found for her in the person of Fraulein (later Baroness) Louise Lehzen, a native of Coburg. Louise Lehzen won the whole-hearted devotion of the young princess and was the principal influence in her life until her accession to the throne, quite eclipsing the influence of her mother, the duchess of Kent. Victoria’s relation to her mother may be described as correct and usually friendly but no more. Hers is an elusive, pathetic figure. Her influence was of negative character, yet not this reason unimportant.