Prince Albert Victor (Eddy)

I don't think he was close to his Edinburgh cousins. George had such a close relationship because of his naval time spent at Malta.

I'd agree about the specialness of January birthdays.  

Was looking through QV's letters to VMH and saw this:

[after noting that Eddy died on the 14th 'that fatal date] 'the last 48 hours had flown to the brain & caused fearful delirium. It was evident that there was blood poisoning for Dr Broadbent the clever Dr who, with Dr Laking attended Georgie as well as him, said that he died from the effects of it--just as if he had taken a dose of Prussic Acid.'

What do you think of this? I hadn't heard the blood poisoning before. How could it have formed from influenza/pneumonia? So many of the stange rumors of his being poisoned because he was unfit for the throne come from some of the odd symptoms he had, perhaps blood poisoning explains them?

Was looking through QV's letters to VMH and saw this:

[after noting that Eddy died on the 14th 'that fatal date] 'the last 48 hours had flown to the brain & caused fearful delirium. It was evident that there was blood poisoning for Dr Broadbent the clever Dr who, with Dr Laking attended Georgie as well as him, said that he died from the effects of it--just as if he had taken a dose of Prussic Acid.'

What do you think of this? I hadn't heard the blood poisoning before. How could it have formed from influenza/pneumonia? So many of the stange rumors of his being poisoned because he was unfit for the throne come from some of the odd symptoms he had, perhaps blood poisoning explains them?

I don't believe it for a moment.

All the symptoms exhibited by Eddy in his fateful illness were consistent with influenza/pneumonia, including the blue fingers/toes, lips, not to mention the extreme delirium.

His lungs would have been rendered increasingly useless by the filling of the small air sacs with fluid, therefore, less and less oxygenated blood in his system meant the gradual failure of everything.  The poor man - he basically suffocated to death.  

There is the story that Eddy deteriorated rapidly after the arrival of the specialist Broadbent.  A coincidence - his illness was raging by this time.  Antibiotics would have been fairly useless against the influenza but probably would have saved him from pneumonia, had they been around at the time.  I have never seen details of his actual treatment, other than it seems he received an injection/s of morphine for pain relief.

Influenza still kills many, many people today, in its most virulent forms.

At whose behest would he have been poisoned?  Emphatically NO, in my opinion.

P.S. Happy birthday GDE.  

Yes, happy birthday GDella.   Hope you get all them royal-themed gifts you wanted.  

Just my little tribute to Eddy.

P.S. Another January baby here. I was born the 20th.  

Lovely Mrs Eddy!!!!  

  :oEddy is smiling...  

:oEddy is smiling...  

For the low, low price of £200-300 and he can be all yours...

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It's difficult to read into and diagnose from bits and pieces in family letters, but I've always thought of Eddy as thin and perhaps somewhat frail, which would mean that it wasn't difficult for the flu to take hold on him so hard.  Plus I read where he was in a very small room full of people and it would have been hard to get enough fresh, healthy air for him.  Do we have any posters who have visited his tomb?

It's difficult to read into and diagnose from bits and pieces in family letters, but I've always thought of Eddy as thin and perhaps somewhat frail, which would mean that it wasn't difficult for the flu to take hold on him so hard.  Plus I read where he was in a very small room full of people and it would have been hard to get enough fresh, healthy air for him.  Do we have any posters who have visited his tomb?

Yes, Booklady, I have visited Eddy's tomb a long time ago on holiday.  It is very ornate and detailed and it is well worth the visit to see his resting place at St. George's Chapel, Windsor.  There are many other royals buried there too.    Eddieboy has been there also!

I agree that it difficult to be very well informed about Eddy's fatal illness, as we can only glean pieces here and there, as you say.

Eddy has always been described as "frail" although his health seemed to be average, i.e. he appeared to suffer no more illnesses than George, for example.  There was an influenza epidemic in the winter of 1891/1892 and quite a number of people died from it, including some young people like him.

Regarding all those people in his small room towards the end - it certainly seems highly inappropriate now, doesn't it, both from the point of view of a very sick person, not to mention their privacy and dignity.  

P.S.  I just remembered this...

Queen Victoria and, I think, Vicky's Sophie, after he had stayed with her, referred to Eddy as looking "ill and yellow..."

He was also described as looking "wretched" upon his return from India in 1890.

I don't know if his appearance was caused by any illness as such.  Perhaps too much wine, women and song?  

Eddy has always been described as "frail" although his health seemed to be average, i.e. he appeared to suffer no more illnesses than George, for example.  

 

I think all of Bertie and Alix's children were regarded as quite susceptible to sickness, weren't they?

I think all of Bertie and Alix's children were regarded as quite susceptible to sickness, weren't they?

The girls, yes. Letters they wrote are full of references to endless colds, attacks of sciatica, Toria even had a nasty abcess removed from her eyelid .    That's why it was all the more surprising that Eddy seemed to succumb so quickly to his last illness...but as Grace pointed out there was a horrible epidemic that winter, and standing out in the freezing rain and snow a few days beforehand at a funeral surely didn't help Eddy's chances...  

One can always wonder if more could have been done for Eddy, but the royal family had the exclusive use of doctors and could probably get care whenever they needed it.  They were probably healthier in their own homes than in hospitals or institutions also.  I know we still  feel sadness for his death today.  Obviously the medical world was much different then than it is today.