Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein
| Princess Helena Victoria | |
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| Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein | |
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| Princess Helena Victoria, in 1920 | |
| Full name | |
| Victoria Louise Sophia Augusta Amelia Helena | |
| House | House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg |
| Father | Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein |
| Mother | Princess Helena of the United Kingdom |
| Born | 3 May 1870 Frogmore House, Windsor |
| Died | 13 March 1948 (aged 77) Berkeley Square, London |
| Burial | Frogmore, Windsor |
Princess Helena Victoria (formerly Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein; Victoria Louise Sophia Augusta Amelia Helena; 3 May 1870 – 13 March 1948) was a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria.
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[edit] Early life
Princess Helena Victoria was born at Frogmore House, near Windsor Castle. Her father was Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, the third son of Christian, Duke of Augustenborg and Countess Louise of Danneskjold-Samsøe. Her mother was The Princess Helena, the fifth child and third daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Her parents resided in the United Kingdom, at Cumberland Lodge, and the Princess was considered a member of the British Royal Family. Under letters patent of 1866, she was styled Her Highness Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein.
She spent most of her childhood at Cumberland Lodge, her father's residence as Ranger of Windsor Great Park. Known to her family as "Thora," or sometimes "Snipe," in reference to her sharp facial features. She officially used the names "Helena Victoria" out of her string of six Christian names.
[edit] Royal Duties
Princess Helena Victoria never married. She followed her mother's example in working for various charitable organizations, most notably the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) and Princess Christian's Nursing Home at Windsor. During World War I, she founded the YWCA Women's Auxiliary Force. As its president, she visited British troops in France and obtained the permission of the Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener, to arrange entertainments for them. Between the world wars, she and her younger sister, Princess Marie Louise, were enthusiastic patrons of music at Schomberg House, their London residence. After a German air raid damaged the house in 1940, the two princesses moved to Fitzmaurice Place, Berkeley Square.
[edit] World War I
In July 1917, King George V changed the name of the British Royal House from the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to the House of Windsor. He also relinquished, on behalf of himself and his numerous cousins and brothers-in-law who were British subjects, the use of their German titles, styles, and surnames. Princess Helena Victoria and Princess Marie Louise ceased to use the territorial designation "of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenberg." Instead, they became known simply as "Her Highness Princess Helena Victoria" and "Her Highness Princess Marie Louise," giving them the odd distinction of being Princesses but not Princesses of any family or monarchy. Although the two Princesses had borne German titles, they were both quintessentially English.[1]
In ill health and using a wheelchair after World War II, one of Princess Helena Victoria's last major appearance was at the 20 November 1947 wedding of her first cousin twice removed, the then-Princess Elizabeth, to the then-Lt. Philip Mountbatten, RN. Princess Helena Victoria died at Fitzmaurice Place, Berkeley Square. Her funeral took place at St. George's Chapel, Windsor and she was buried at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore, Windsor Great Park.
[edit] Titles, styles, honours and arms
| Royal styles of Princess Helena Victoria |
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| Reference style | Her Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Highness |
| Alternative style | Ma'am |
[edit] Titles
- 1870–1917: Her Highness Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein
- 1917–1948: Her Highness Princess Helena Victoria
[edit] Honours
British honours
- VA: Lady of the Order of Victoria and Albert (1883)
- CI: Lady of the Order of the Crown of India (1889)
- GBE: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (1918)
- GCStJ: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St John (1928)
Foreign honours
[edit] Ancestry
[edit] Notes
- ^ As a male-line granddaughter of the Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, Princess Helena Victoria would have been styled Serene Highness. However, in May 1866, Queen Victoria granted the style of Highness to any children born of the marriage of Prince and Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. The children were still Princes or Princess of Schleswig-Holstein and the style Highness was only in effect in the United Kingdom, not in Germany. In June 1917, a notice appeared in the Court Circular that a Royal Warrant was to be prepared permitting his cousins to stop using the "of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg" part of their titles. However no warrant was prepared and they were never formally granted them the titles of Princesses of Great Britain and Ireland.
[edit] Sources
- Ronald Allison and Sarah Riddell, eds., The Royal Encyclopedia (London: Macmillan, 1992).
- "Obituary: Princess Helena Victoria, Charity and Social Services," 15 March 1948, p. 7.
- "Royal Titles: German Names Dropped, British Peerages for Princes," The Times 20 July 1917, p. 7.
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- British princesses
- House of Augustenburg
- Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
- Ladies of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert
- Companions of the Order of the Crown of India
- Dames Grand Cross of the Order of St John
- 1870 births
- 1948 deaths
- People from Old Windsor
- People from Windsor, Berkshire
- Princesses of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg
