During the ceremony, the Duchess of Gloucester, one of the few children of King George III who was still alive, forgot where she was, and suddenly got up in the middle of the service and knelt at the queen's feet, much to the queen's horror. Her godparents were Duke Gustav of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (her paternal great-great-uncle, for whom Prince Albert stood proxy) the Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen (for whom her great-aunt Queen Adelaide stood proxy) and the Hereditary Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (her first cousin once-removed, for whom the Duchess of Cambridge stood proxy). Though she was christened Louisa at the service, she was invariably known as Louise throughout her life. She was baptized on in Buckingham Palace's private chapel by John Bird Sumner, the Archbishop of Canterbury. Queen Victoria painted a portrait of Princess Louise after an original by Franz Xaver WinterhalterĪlbert and Victoria chose the names Louisa Caroline Alberta. The queen's labour with Louise was the first to be aided with chloroform. Her birth coincided with revolutions which swept across Europe, prompting the queen to remark that Louise would turn out to be "something peculiar". She was the fourth daughter and sixth child of the reigning British monarch, Queen Victoria, and her husband, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Louise was born on 18 March 1848 at Buckingham Palace, London. After the First World War she began to retire from public life, undertaking few public duties outside Kensington Palace, where she died at the age of 91.
Louise's marriage with Lorne survived thanks to long periods of separation they reconciled in 1911, and Louise was devastated by Lorne's death in 1914. Following her mother's death in 1901, she entered the social circle established by her elder brother, the new king, Edward VII. Her names were used to name many features in Canada, including Lake Louise and the province of Alberta. Louise was viceregal consort, starting a lasting interest in Canada. In 1878, Lorne was appointed Governor General of Canada, a post he held 1878–1884.
After a happy beginning, the two drifted apart, possibly because of their childlessness and the Queen's constraints on their activities. Victoria consented to the marriage, which took place on 21 March 1871. Despite opposition from members of the royal family, Louise fell in love with John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne, the heir of the Duke of Argyll. Suitors from the royal houses of Prussia and Denmark were suggested, but Victoria did not want her to marry a foreign prince, and therefore suggested a high-ranking member of the British aristocracy. The question of Louise's marriage was discussed in the late 1860s. She was also a supporter of the feminist movement, corresponding with Josephine Butler, and visiting Elizabeth Garrett.īefore her marriage, Louise served as an unofficial secretary to the Queen from 1866 to 1871. She was an able sculptor and artist, and several of her sculptures remain today. When her father died in December 1861, the court went into a long period of mourning, to which with time Louise became unsympathetic. Her early life was spent moving among the various royal residences in the company of her family. In her public life, she was a strong proponent of the arts and higher education and of the feminist cause. Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, VA, CI, GCVO, GBE, RRC, GCStJ (Louisa Caroline Alberta 18 March 1848 – 3 December 1939) was the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.
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