"The Queen has received with great sorrow the news of the death of Her Royal Highness Princess Arthur of Connaught, Duchess of Fife, Her Majesty's cousin."
The Lord Chamberlain announced that the Queen "is observing family mourning for one week." She will "carry out as arranged official engagements during this period."
It was reported in The Times on February 24, 1959, that Princess Arthur of Connaught "has developed pneumonia and her condition gives rise to anxiety," at her home in Regent's Park
The 67-year-old princess was a granddaughter of King Edward VII, the widow of HRH Prince Arthur of Connaught, a grandson of Queen Victoria, and a first cousin of Alix's mother, Princess Louise.
Another bulletin was issued the following day. The Princess' condition was said to be unchanged -- "continuing grave." In a third bulletin, she was described as a "little weaker," but her condition "remained unchanged and she was still gravely ill."
Princess Arthur of Connaught, Duchess of Fife in her own right, died at her home 64 Avenue Road, London. She was no longer seen in public after March 1946. She had suffered from chronic rheumatoid arthritis since the 1940s.
"Arthritis had attacked every joint in my body, from head to toes, and the pain was indescribable. I was quite helpless and had to be fed, unable to raise my head from the pillow or to move at all... When I was in bed for three years there was a slight improvement," Alix wrote in the privately printed A Nurse's Story (London:1956).
The Duke of Windsor was able to send her new drugs from the United States to help alleviate the pain from arthritis.
The Princess was born on May 17, 1891, at East Sheen Lodge in Richmond. She was the elder of two daughters of HRH Princess Louise, Princess Royal, and Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife. In 1913, she married her mother's first cousin, HRH Prince Arthur of Connaught, the only son of Queen's Victoria's third son, HRH Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught.
Princess Alexandra is predeceased by her husband (1938) and son, Alistair, Duke of Connaught (1943).
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| 1936 Lord Macduff Princess Arthur and Prince Arthur of Connaught |
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| All images Marlene A. Eilers Koenig collection |
If you enjoyed this article,
Were they HRH, I have always believe HM Edward VII, made them just HH.
ReplyDeleteYes, Edward created them HH Princess but Alexandra married HRH Prince Arthur of Connaught so she became HRH
ReplyDeleteOh right, naturally she took her husband title. I forgot about that not so small detail, thanks Marlene.
ReplyDelete