Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale
| Prince Albert Victor | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duke of Clarence and Avondale | |||||
.jpg) Photographic Portrait by William and Daniel Downey | |||||
| Burial | 20 January 1892 | ||||
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| House | House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha | ||||
| Father | Edward VII | ||||
| Mother | Alexandra of Denmark | ||||
| Occupation | Military | ||||
Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (Albert Victor Christian Edward; 8 January 1864 – 14 January 1892) was a member of the British Royal Family, as the eldest son of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) and Alexandra of Denmark. At the time of his birth, he was second in the line of succession to the throne after his father. However, he predeceased his father, and the crown eventually passed to his younger brother, Prince George (George V), the grandfather of the current British monarch, Elizabeth II.
Many aspects of the Prince's life have been the subject of speculation and conspiracy theories, among them his intellect, sexuality and sanity, the most notorious of which made him into a suspect in the murders committed by Jack the Ripper.
Early life
Prince Albert Victor was born on 8 January 1864 at Frogmore House, Windsor, Berkshire. His father was Prince Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, the eldest son of the reigning British monarch, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. His mother was The Princess of Wales, (née Princess Alexandra of Denmark). Following the Queen's request, he was named Albert, but was known informally as "Eddy". As a grandchild of the monarch in the male line, he was styled His Royal Highness Prince Albert Victor of Wales from birth.
The Prince was christened in the private chapel of Buckingham Palace on 10 March 1864 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Thomas Longley. His godparents were: Queen Victoria, Leopold I of Belgium, Christian IX of Denmark, the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the Crown Princess of Prussia, Prince Alfred, the Elector of Hesse and the Dowager Duchess of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg.
Education
The Prince's brother, Prince George of Wales (later George V) was born on 3 June 1865. Given the closeness in age of the two royal brothers, they were educated together. The Queen appointed John Neale Dalton as their tutor. Given the importance of his expected future role, the Prince was given a strict programme of study, although he never excelled intellectually.
Later the royal brothers served as Naval cadets on HMS Bacchante, accompanied by Dalton. They toured the British Empire, visiting the colonies in Australia and the Far East, and also acquiring tattoos in Japan. When they returned to the UK, the brothers were parted and Albert Victor attended Trinity College, Cambridge around 1883[1]. However, the Prince showed little interest in the intellectual atmosphere, although he did become involved in the undergraduate life. Leaving in 1885 he was sent to join the Army, in the 10th Hussars.
Reputation
The official biography of Queen Mary by James Pope-Hennessy euphemistically stated that the Prince's private life was "dissipated", and he was intellectually slow. However, at least one historian (Andrew Cook) has attempted to rehabilitate his reputation, arguing that the Prince's lack of academic progress was partly due to his tyrannical tutor, Dalton; that the Prince had liberal opinions, particularly on Irish Home Rule; that he was a warm and charming man; and that his reputation has been diminished by official circles eager to improve the image of his brother, Prince George, later George V.
| British Royalty |
| House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha |
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| Edward VII |
Prospective royal brides
Three women were lined up as possible brides for the Prince. The first, in 1889, was Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine (future Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia) who did not return his affection. The second, in 1890, was Princess Hélène of Orléans, whom he also loved, but the engagement had to be cancelled when Hélène (a daughter of Philippe, Count of Paris and great-granddaughter of Louis-Philippe, the last King of the French) declined to give up her Roman Catholic faith as she had been forbidden to do so by her Father and also by the Pope.
Royal Dukedom
On 24 May 1890,[2] Prince Albert Victor was created Duke of Clarence and Avondale and Earl of Athlone. He was now styled His Royal Highness The Duke of Clarence and Avondale.
Engagement
The Duke of Clarence was engaged on 3 December 1891[3] to Princess Victoria Mary of Teck (known as Princess May), the daughter of Queen Victoria's first cousin Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck and her husband Prince Francis, Duke of Teck. Both Queen Victoria and the Duchess of Teck were granddaughters of George III.
Before the marriage could take place the Duke died of pneumonia at Sandringham House in Norfolk. His younger brother Prince George took his place in the line of succession, eventually succeeding to the throne as George V in 1910. Prince George later married Princess May himself, and she became Queen Mary on George's accession.
Cleveland Street scandal
In July 1889, the Metropolitan Police uncovered a male brothel in London's Cleveland Street. The resulting Cleveland Street Scandal implicated high ranking figures in British society including Lord Arthur Somerset and the Earl of Euston. Rumours swept upper class London of the Prince's involvement, and official papers on the case released by the Public Record Office in 1975 make coded reference to this.
It has been suggested that Lord Arthur Somerset’s solicitor Arthur Newton spread the rumours to take the heat off his client, and this therefore invalidates their truth. However, surviving private letters from Somerset to his friend Lord Esher have been taken to suggest the Prince's involvement. In them, Somerset states that it was he who originally told royal courtiers as "I thought they ought to know. Had they been wise, hearing what I knew and therefore what others knew, they ought to have hushed the matter up, instead of stirring it up as they did".[4]
What is clear is that there was a cover-up at the highest levels. The official biographer of King George V, Harold Nicolson, was told by the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, Rayner Goddard, Baron Goddard, that, with regard to the Prince's involvement in the case, "a solicitor had to commit perjury to clear him". (Lees Milne, Harold Nicolson.) However, he may have been referring to Somerset and his solicitor rather than to the Prince. Arthur Newton, Somerset's solicitor, was indeed convicted of 'obstruction of justice' and sentenced to six weeks in prison.
Illegitimate birth claim
Possibly to avoid the gossip which swept upper class London society in the wake of the Cleveland Street, the Prince was sent to British Raj India in 1889. Here he met Mrs. Margery Haddon, the wife of a civil engineer, Henry Haddon. The following year Mrs. Haddon gave birth to a son, Clarence Guy Gordon Haddon. After the Prince's death Haddon came to England and claimed the Prince was the father of this son. There is no evidence to suggest that Haddon was the son of the Prince.
Her allegations were reported to the royal family and prompted a secret inquiry by the head of the police Special Branch. Papers in the National Archives show that courtiers had no proof about the allegation.
In the 1920s, Clarence Haddon, came to England to repeat the story, and publish a book My Uncle George V. A trip to the United States was paid for him out of police funds but he returned to England to pursue his claims.
In 1934 he was bound over for three years at a hearing at the Old Bailey, on the condition that he made no further fraudulent claims that he was the Prince's son. He breached the conditions and was jailed for a year. Dismissed as a crank, he died a broken man.
Jack the Ripper rumours
- Main article: Jack the Ripper royal conspiracy theories
In the 1960s and 1970s it was alleged that Prince Albert Victor may have committed, or have been responsible for, the Jack the Ripper murders in 1888. It was further alleged that the Prince fathered a child with a woman in the Whitechapel district of London, and either the Prince or several high-ranking men committed the murders in an effort to cover up his indiscretion. Though repeated frequently, historians have dismissed the claims as classic urban legends without foundation, referring instead to indisputable proof of the Prince's innocence.
For example on 30 September 1888, date of the murders of Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes, the Prince was at Balmoral, the royal retreat in Scotland, in the presence of Queen Victoria, other family members, visiting German royalty and large numbers of staff. He was also seen there by newspaper reporters. According to the Court Circular that publishes all royal engagements and whereabouts, he could not have been near to any of the murders.
Later life
Prince Albert Victor appears far left.
| Styles of Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale | |
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| File:Princess Alexandra arms.png | |
| Reference style | His Royal Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
| Alternative style | Sir |
Prince Albert Victor died of pneumonia as a complication of influenza on 14 January 1892. However rumours and conspiracy theories have suggested unfounded and highly improbable alternatives due to the fact that there were many witnesses at his death. One alleges that he actually died of syphilis; another of a morphine overdose, deliberately administered to him; yet another clearly false rumour claims that he survived until the 1920s in an asylum on the Isle of Wight and that his death was faked to remove him from the line of succession. There is no evidence whatsoever to support any of these allegations.
The Prince's mother, Queen Alexandra, never fully recovered from her son's death and kept the room in which he died as a shrine. The Prince is buried in the Albert Memorial Chapel close to St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. His tomb, by Alfred Gilbert, is one of the most magnificent examples of Art Nouveau sculpture in Britain. A recumbent effigy of the Prince in hussar uniform lies above the tomb. Kneeling over him is an angel, holding a heavenly crown. The tomb is surrounded by an elaborated railing, with figures of saints.
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles
- 8 January 1864–24 May 1890: His Royal Highness Prince Albert Victor of Wales
- 24 May 1890–14 January 1892: His Royal Highness The Duke of Clarence and Avondale
Styles
At death, the Duke's full style was Major His Royal Highness Prince Albert Victor Christian Edward of Wales, Duke of Clarence and Avondale, Earl of Athlone, Royal Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Knight of the Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick, Personal Aide-de-Camp to the Queen
Honours
British Honours
- KP: Knight of the Garter, 3 September 1883[5]
- KP: Knight of St Patrick, 28 June 1887[1]
- ADC(P): Personal Aide-de-Camp to the Queen, 1877
- LL.D: Doctor of Laws, University of Dublin
- LL.D: Doctor of Laws, University of Cambridge, 1888
Foreign Honours[1]
Knight Grand Cross, Order of the Dutch Lion
Grand Cross, Order of the Tower and Sword
Grand Cross, Order of Charles III
Grand Cross, Order of the Osmanli
Grand Cross, Order of the Star
Grand Cross, Order of the Annunciata
Grand Cross, Order of the Southern Cross
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Military
- 1877-1879: Cadet aboard training ship Brittania, Dartmouth, Devon
- 1879-1880: Cadet, HMS Bacchante
- Mid, 1880-1883: Promoted to Midshipman, HMS Bacchante
- Lt, 1886-1887: Appointed Lieutenant, 10th (Prince of Wales' Own) Royal Hussars[1]
- Capt, 1887: Promoted to Captain, 9th Queen's Royal Lancers[1]
- Capt, 1887-1889: Captain, 3rd King's Royal Rifle Corps[1]
- Maj, 1889-: Promoted to Major, 10th (Prince of Wales' Own) Royal Hussars[1]
Honorary military appointments
British
- Honorary Colonel, of
4th Bombay Cavalry - Honorary Colonel, of 1st Punjab Cavalry
- Honorary Colonel, of 4th Regiment, Bengal Cavalry
Legacy
Through his connection to the above mentioned theories the Duke of Clarence has occasionally been portrayed in fiction. His appearances in film include:
- David Wickes' Jack the Ripper, first released on 21 October 1988. The actor portraying him was Marc Culwick.
- Janet Meyers' The Ripper, first released on 6 December 1997. The actor portraying him was Samuel West. Coincidentally, West played Prince Albert Victor as a child in the TV miniseries, Edward the King.
- The Hughes Brothers' From Hell, first released on 8 September 2001. The actor portraying him was Mark Dexter.
He is also referenced in the original print version of From Hell, by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell.
The Duke of Clarence is also the basis of a pair of alternative history novels that imagine a world where Prince Eddy survives and reigns as Victor I.
- Dickinson, Peter. King and Joker, London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1976 and Skeleton-in-Waiting, New York : Pantheon Books, 1989.
He also appears in the first of the Lord Francis Powercourt crime novels as the murder victim; the influenza story is invented as a cover up for this scandal.
- Dickinson, David. Goodnight Sweet Prince, London: Constable, 2002.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Cokayne, G.E.; Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors. The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed.. 13 volumes in 14. 1910-1959. Reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000.
- ^ Yvonne's Royalty: Peerage
- ^ Eilers, p178 – Eilers, Marlene A. Queen Victoria's Descendants. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1987.
- ^ Hyde, H. Montgomery
- ^ Weir, p319 – Weir, Alison. Britain's Royal Family: A Complete Genealogy. London, U.K.: The Bodley Head, 1999.
Books
- Aronson, Theo. Prince Eddy and the Homosexual Underworld. London : J. Murray, c1994.
- Hyde, H. Montgomery. The Cleveland Street Scandal. London : W. H. Allen, 1976.
- Knight, Stephen. Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution. New York : McKay, 1976.
- Lees-Milne, James. The Enigmatic Edwardian: The Life of Reginald, 2nd Viscount Esher. London : Sidgwick & Jackson, 1986.
- Lees-Milne, James. Harold Nicolson (two vol.), Chatto & Windus 1980-81.
- Sams, Ed. Victoria's Dark Secrets. Ben Lomond, CA : Yellow Tulip, ?. Web link
- Simpson, Colin, Lewis Chester and David Leitch. The Cleveland Street Affair. Boston : Little, Brown, c1976.
- Cook, Andrew. Prince Eddy: The King Britain Never Had, Tempus Publishing Ltd, 2006. ISBN 0-7524-3410-1. Also a one-hour TV program on Channel 4 (UK), 21 November 2005.