Prince Andrew of Greece and his family

[jfkhaos]

That photo of Cecile in the magnificent tiara is quite stunning; it's very odd how closely she resembles the daughters of Helen and Nicholas, especially Marina.

[QueenEna1887]

She looks very much like Marina

[Marc]

For me almost all the Greek Princesses have similar faces,bones structure and all of them look very much alike(except Queen Sophia of Spain)!

[Guinastasia]

Okay, I'm reading the Vickers bio, and it seems that she mixed up religion and sexual matters.  She referred to herself as the Bride of Christ (which in a way, she believed literally, not figuratively), she claimed she could heal people with her hands, she would sleep on the floor because she thought that helped her "develop the power from above".  She called herself a Saint, claimed to have had visions of Christ, she was fasting to the point that she was underweight and weak, she said that she should be the link between all the great spiritual beings (Buddha, Krishna, Christ, Mohammed, etc).

At one point, she would speak of sexuality and Christ, saying that Christ flirted with her the way her husband used to, she wrote letters to various spiritualists and political figures, wanting to start some kind of revolution.  It sounds like she had a breakdown, of sorts.  So while yeah, the science of mental illness back then was not understood, but it sounds like she definitely had some legitimate issues.  NOT that there's anything wrong with that.  I am VERY big on getting rid of the stigma of mental illness-I myself suffer from depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, so I greatly sympathize.

What exactly happened between her and Andrew?  In the book, it never really explains.  Before, I assumed that he had left her to go out and run around, and as a result she became a nun, but I see now that's not the case-that they sort of grew apart.  

I find myself feeling sorry for the whole family-poor Philip spent most of his time with his grandmother Victoria, and his various aunts, uncles and his sisters.  Maybe that's why he's kind of grouchy and snobbish.  

[felix]

I just finished  the book on Marie Bonaprte, I wonder if she ever spoke to Alice about these issues? They are some how related. Marie found her way,not going toward religion,but following a modern course. Her relationship with her husband was, I would think a nightmare. These sister-in-laws, most likely kept the things to themselves.

[bluetoria]

What exactly happened between her and Andrew?  In the book, it never really explains.  Before, I assumed that he had left her to go out and run around, and as a result she became a nun, but I see now that's not the case-that they sort of grew apart.  

Princess Alice's illness is very sad, I think, & in a way it seems more sad that all these fantasies she had didn't remain confidential with her doctors. It seems that while suffering from her breakdown all the different aspects of her life somehow became mixed together... :-/

It doesn't seem to me that her mental illness was connected solely to her marriage; perhaps it was something that would have happened anyway. Maybe her husband simply couldn't deal with it.  
It is more sad when you think how happy their wedding day was.
 

[aleksandra]

what happened after the marrige end.  

[Guinastasia]

Basically, they never divorced, but they just lived apart.  It does seem like they were still friendly with one another.  How sad.

I'm glad though that Andrew wasn't a jerk, the way I always figured.  

[aleksandra]

have any photos of her. I'd love to have them in my printed diary. lot5s of pictures of her?

[aleksandra]

Do you guys have any younger ones of her like baby?

[aleksandra]

thank you very much there great, Do you have toddler/ teenager years?

[Frederika]

i think it was in 1902 when she was 16 they married in 1903

[Frederika]

sofia with her husband frederika brother

[Prince_Christopher]

According to their mother's biography, the girls were all reaching marriagable age just as Princess Alice lost her grip and had to be institutionalized. I don't think she attended any of the weddings. I think the girls felt bewildered and somewhat confused at this sudden loss. Their grandmother, Victoria Milford Haven and their aunt Princess Louise had to attend to the trousseaus and other details. Their family having been broken up, with no mother and little money, I think Prince Andrew was eager to get his girls married off, and turned to relations in Germany to help him. I believe Sophie, the youngest, was the first to marry, at 15 or 16 years of age. Cecile's marriage was next, and Victoria Milford Haven may have played a role here, as Cecile's bridegroom was Victoria's nephew, Don of Hesse, making them first cousins once removed. I believe all the girls married within the span of a year.

[brnbg aka: liljones1968]

Do you know, Felix, I was just looking again at those pictures of her which were described earlier & I had always thought they reminded me of someone. I remember now it was a profoundly deaf lady whom I met in a hospital. The angle at which she held her head etc. as though perhaps trying either to make some sense of sound or even to stare to lip read...How very interesting. I wonder if there is anyone on this forum with the ability to lip read in another language...or anyone who could throw more light on how her deafness may have affected her.
How very interesting.

this may be extremely late in coming, but i just now saw this part of the thread.   and i figured i'd toss-in my 2˘ worth of opinion (as well, as personal experiences...)


there's a genetic defect that runs in my family which robs the individual of his/her hearing... but it's lost in leaps.   at any given point, the individual will lose (let's say...) 25% of his/her hearing all at once.    i have no idea if this is better or worse than losing it slowly, over a long stretch of time.     in any event, i'm completely deaf in my left ear & have approximately 75%-85% hearing in my right.

i can verify that depending on the type of loss, the rest of one's body may do odd things to compensate.     i must admit that while the complete loss of my hearing frightens me to no end,  the situations in which i can only hear the fractured, vague, muffled, unintelligeable mumbling are absolutely maddening!    i'll turn my head, twist my neck, bend my back & otherwise contort into the most impossible positions, in what becomes a violently unrealistic attempt to hear clearly.    personally speaking, i have realized something rather odd....  sort of.......

much like cats seem drawn to those people with cat allergies, when people approach me they 8 to 9 times out of 10, will start speaking into my left ear!       in most crowded (and loud) situations,   in order to hear them,  i usually must pivot my entire upper torso and then turn my head as far as i can (i can almost cast a glance downward & see my own butt!  lol)      most candid shots of me are terrible....  i always look rather odd.   it's usually due to the position i'm in.


i don't know how profound her hearing loss was, but i must mention again, how inconcievably FRUSTRATING (and yes, MADDENING) it can be to BARELY be able to hear the sounds someone's voice is making but not quite enough to discern the words.

most of the time, though, i do fine with the combination of the hearing i have left & reading lips.   i don't know HOW i developed that ability..... and i'm not actually sure i'm really reading them.    i think some sort of unconscious comprehension takes place.....because if i concentrate on reading lips (or even think about it too much) i instantly lose the ability.   whatever it may be.  
(or maybe i'm just a freak?)

who can say.    


so, i guess there's a certain amount of empathy there.