Helena, Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein (1846-1921), and her family, Part II

[GrandDuchessAndrea]

I love the last two, and also the tiny painting. Anyone have it bigger? (I mean the one with all of Victoria's daughters except Beatrice.)

Here you go:
http://i1100.photobucket.com/albums/g401/PieceOfLivingHistory/3-1.jpg

Oh, thank you! It is truly darling.

Little Lenchen:
http://i1100.photobucket.com/albums/g401/PieceOfLivingHistory/2-1.jpg

I love the style of drawings like that from the 1840s/50s. I have seen quite a few illustrations of Renaissance characters from that time, and there is just this distictive look in their faces that says 1840s. Was it a particular person who drew them all or just a style?

[CountessKate]

I have heard that Helena wasn't as close to Louise as is made out, and that they were lumped together by age. Is there any evidence of this or is it just a rumor?

In 'Darling Loosey', the collection of Louise's letters edited by Elizabeth Longford, she gives much biographical information on the shifting relations between Queen Victoria's children. Louise was much closer to her younger brothers Arthur and Leopold in particular, than to Helena, though in their younger years there wasn't outright hostility.  However, Louise came to resent the Queen's closer links to Helena and Beatrice, and she envied them their children; she often made hurtful and insensitive comments about their looks, intellect, their relations with their mother, and their dullness.  But Lady Longford writes of an "unlikely combination of Louise and Lenchen" at one point, suggesting their pairing in photos and the like was indeed more of a lumping together than a natural affinity.

[Aliss_Kande]

http://www.gogmsite.net/_Media/princess_helena_cdv_by_hill.jpg

This may come off as a stupid question, but I have looked all over and I cannot find a date for this photo, other than "mid-1860s".   Thanks for your help!

[Carolath Habsburg]

Its from mids 1870s. The gown she s using fit in that period ;-) . In mids 1860s, crinoline were wider , bigger and rounder

See, this is Helena (with sister Louise) in mids 1860s (1864)

http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/2900888/princess-helena-and-princess-louise-1864-in-portraits-of-royal

And here in "mids 1870s" (1873)

http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/2902667/helena-princess-christian-of-schleswig-holstein-and-her-elder

[gillian]

The NPG has This Pose from the same sitting but still dated only as 1860s. The ever reliable Wikipedia dates it as c.1860 but I don't think that's right, because in this picture dated 1861 she looks much younger than she does in the picture you're asking about.  I'm thinking between 1862-65.  I think that Helena looks too young for this pic to be from the 1870s, after having so many children she looked older and was a bit heavier.

For Comparison

1862
1863
1864
1865

[Carolath Habsburg]

Well, as you can see in those images, Helena used a differente style of Hairdo which fits with the period (early 1860s- Mids 1860).

The image could be from early 1870s or late 1860s, not earlier than that, because 1) the hairstyle 2) the gown . It doesnt fit with the style period. Plus, if you can see her hand, it seems she s wearing a wedding ring, which locate the image after 1866, when she married prince Christian.



Ps: dont trust so much in the info added by the NPG. Here an example of innacuracy, an image of Pss Beatrice labeled as Pss Helena

http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw158814/Princess-Helena-Augusta-Victoria-of-Schleswig-Holstein?LinkID=mp02122&search=sas&sText=princess+helena&OConly=true&wPage=1&role=sit&rNo=34

[gillian]

Sorry to bump an old thread but I found a bio of Christian Victor, the eldest of Schleswig-Holstein children who died during the Boer War. It's fairly old (Published in 1908) however it's a free google e-book and I don't believe there is any other biographies on him so it's worth a look. I haven't read much into it yet but I'm hoping it might have some interesting info.
Link

[grandduchessella]

I actually have the original hardback. It's a nice book--slim but it has some interesting tidbits in it. It is the only standalone bio on him though there are some good bits on him in his sister's autobiography. He seems to have been hard-working, dedicated soldier who was well-liked and respected by his troops. He was also a very good cricket player. Those 2 things seem to have been his overriding interests in life and I don't think I've even seen a rumored romance with anyone mentioned.

[Kalafrana]

All the Schleswig-Holsteins seem to have been pleasant people who devoted themselves to useful things. During World War 1 Albert, torn between two countries, spent most of his time on Red Cross work, and his posting to the staff of the Military Governor of Berlin was purely nominal. Interestingly, in view of his brother's prowess at cricket, Albert was a very good golfer. according to one of Lord Stamfordham's letters about the titles Deprivation Act, he was a scratch player.

Albert

[grandduchessella]

I actually have a few photos of Albert golfing--he was indeed quite good. So was his sister Helena Victoria who had a mean swing.

[Kalafrana]

The letter about Albert's golfing prowess was written some time in 1918 when Lord Stamfordham was obviously getting impatient with the whole business of the Titles Deprivation Act. The relevant part reads something like, 'I do not think Prince albert has any property in England except possibly a set of golf clubs - he is a scratch player!'

Ann

[Marc]

I actually have a few photos of Albert golfing--he was indeed quite good. So was his sister Helena Victoria who had a mean swing.

I found very interesting article in The Esoteric Curiosa blog about Thora's wedding prospects...After being humiliated by future Queen Alexandra,who did not like "Christians" because of this whole Schleswig-Holstein question,it seems that Queen Victoria wanted her granddaughter Helena Victoria to marry Catholic Prince Johannes von Hohenlohe-Bartenstein:

"As early as 1890, her aunt, the Empress Friedrich, wished “someone nice could be found.” Four years later she tried in vain to have her marry Prince Ernst, the future 7th Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg, a grandson of Queen Victoria’s half-sister, Princess Feodore. This plan, like the others prior turned out fruitless and rather humiliatingly; the Prince rather married Helena’s cousin, Princess Alexandra of Edinburgh.

By 1899, nearing the age of thirty, at a time when most Princess’ were considered past their prime a suitable candidate was found, albeit a minor German Prince. Her grandmother the Queen Empress commented on the project herself in a candid letter to her daughter the Empress Friedrich; “. . . .I now revert to the idea of the Prince of Hohenlohe-Bartenstein for Thora. It sounds well but the great difficulty and annoyance mixed marriages cause now would make it absolutely necessary to know before. You could find it out much better than me, through the Reischachs. Lenchen (Queen Victoria’s daughter, Princess Helena) did not dislike the idea, but Thora wishes it to be clearly understood what would be done about the marriage. Else, as she said, if she should like him and great difficulties arise afterwards about the religion, it would be very unpleasant and painful. It therefore would be very kind if you could find this out before anything more is done.”

Unfortunately, religion was an issue and the plans ended in nothing; Princess Helena Victoria remained a spinster.

The above mentioned Prince, Johannes, 8th Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Bartenstein und Jagstberg, eventually married Archduchess Anna of Austria, Princess of Tuscany, a younger sister of the erstwhile, Crown Princess Luise of Saxony."

[LisaG]

Has one ever seen the memorial, sculpted by Jules Dalou, to Helena's deceased infants, Harald and the unnamed stillborn boy? Where is it?

[grandduchessella]

I think I had posted it once years ago but it may not be on the Forum any longer. I believe it is this one--for all of QV's lost grandchildren (to that point) including Helena's 2:


A terracotta group comprising a winged angel sitting on a rock, holding three children in her arms and with two older children at her knees. Mounted on circular pedestal with inscription reading 'Of such is The Kingdom of Heaven, Dalou Fecit 1878'. Queen Victoria commissioned this terracotta group in 1877, for her Private Chapel at Windsor Castle, as a memorial to five of her grand-children who died in infancy. The children represented in the group were Prince Sigismund of Prussia, Frederick Wilhelm of Hesse, Prince Alexander John of Wales, and Prince Harold and a still-born child, both children of Princess Helena. In 1879 Dalou made an additional group representing Princess Marie of Hesse, daughter of Princess Alice, who died, aged 4, in 1878.

[LisaG]

Oh, that's so beautifully sad. Thanks so much, grandduchessella.