Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck & Family, "The People's Princess" (1833-1897)


If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Thanks for the update - I may have to get, though.
Curiosity killed the cat....
 
I think it's worth reading. I read it a few years ago and learned a lot from it. George III's daughters led particularly dull existences because their mother and father wanted them at home and would not allow them to marry in some cases.. a few of them married, but they seem not to have had much of a life. But I think the life of these princesses was interesting, if only because they haven't been much written about apart from this book, and their lives illuminate the lives of their brothers and the history of England during this period. Sophia and Amelia, I think her name was ( George III's youngest daugter who died young) are interesting.
 
How sad. I remember seeing the portrayal of Fat Mary in the "Lost Prince" and found it quite tragic that Queen Mary adopted many of her somewhat OCD traits in response to her mother's clumsiness and slack attitude.

I would not regard "The Lost Prince" as an accurate enough portrayal of royal personalities to make judgement on them. The production was part documentary/part drama and as such had factual and fictional elements to it.

May I ask what OCD traits you regard Queen Mary as having?
 
I think it's worth reading. I read it a few years ago and learned a lot from it. George III's daughters led particularly dull existences because their mother and father wanted them at home and would not allow them to marry in some cases.. a few of them married, but they seem not to have had much of a life. But I think the life of these princesses was interesting, if only because they haven't been much written about apart from this book, and their lives illuminate the lives of their brothers and the history of England during this period. Sophia and Amelia, I think her name was ( George III's youngest daugter who died young) are interesting.


Thank you - I got me a copy today!
 
While we are on the subject of books, James Pope-Hennessy's "Queen Mary" goes into great detail about Princess Mary Adelaide and her trials and tribulations. For an "official" biography the first two hundred pages [May is engaged to Eddy at page 210] is surprisingly humorous, and sometimes a riot. The escapades in Italy are very colourfully described and it is sometimes forgotten that Princess May was a keen observer of, as well as being exposed to, her mother's interactions with various nationalities and classes of people during this period. Mary Adelaide's run-ins with Queen Victoria, and the Queen's resulting helpless exasperation, are also very amusing.
Mary Adelaide was certainly a larger-than-life character and it can be quite rewarding reading about her life.
 
I became very fond of Princess Mary Adelaide while reading James Pope-Hennessy's biography of Queen Mary. She was a fascinating, hard working, and very likeable person.

From Chapter 7: "Princess Mary Adelaide gave her patronage to any charity, bazaar or organisation which seemed to her genuine and efficiently run. This patronage was never of a merely nominal character: 'When she gave her name, she gave also her time, energy, and thought.' She would herself open all letters addressed to her, decide which were worthy of immediate attention, draft replies and, with her daughter's aid, classify each case in one of her charity ledgers. This was a habit which Queen Mary also adopted. Until the end of her life the Queen would open all her letters: and her assistants were often surprised at the perspicacity with which she could assess whether an application for help was genuinely worthy or bogus. The aid she gave her mother in these years at White Lodge before her marriage was never grudging; it might be tiring and at times dispiriting, but Princess May worked with a will".

I also became very fond of Queen Mary because of this book.
 
So did I... ;)

I wonder if she'd have spent her life as her mother's secretary if she hadn't married. It sounds as though Princess Mary Adelaide was as chaotic as she was well-meaning.
 
You wonder if May would have been as successful if she had been her mother's book-keeper, rather than her defacto secretarial assistant. Quite possibly Mary Adelaide would have continued spending money she didn't have while May (and Queen Victoria) tut-tutted in exasperation. :D
 
Who is Princess mary I thought she was only of Denmark.(Just testing my writing)
 
Princess Mary Adelaide was a granddaughter of King George III; her daughter Princess May married the then Duke of York in 1893.
When the Duke became King George V in 1910 May became Queen Mary.
 
May I ask what OCD traits you regard Queen Mary as having?

I think she was a bit of a kleptomaniac and maybe you could call her a hoarder. I heard (and maybe I'm wrong, not being a Queen Mary authority) that she would go to jewelry shops/antique shops,etc. and things would turn up missing... and BP had standing orders to pay the merchants off.

Additionally, if she visited your house and saw you had something she thought would go well in the royal collections, you were virtually expected to turn it over (no wonder HM has lovely collections today!).
 
I've always liked Mary Adelaide too since reading Pope- Henessy's biography. She was certainly different than her daughter who had a more dutiful proper public persona. Mary Adelaide might not be much remembered today if not for who her daughter married, but she was interesting character.
 
Princess Mary Adelaide image

Being no small princess myself, it makes me sad to hear her referred to as "Fat Mary". I comfort myself by looking at her beautiful Winterhalter portrait. Now, granted, Winterhalter never made anyone look less than stunning, but I think this picture takes you beyond the whole "Fat Mary" persona.
From the Portrait Gallery:
 

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The princess does have a Hanoverian resemblance to Queen Victoria (which might account to some extent for the weight problem).
 
Agreed, Iowabelle - she does bear a resemblance to Victoria.

Despite her size, Princess Mary Adelaide was very attractive and very stylish - even though she doesnt fit the typical "wasp-waist" gals of the era.... she was STUNNING!
 
...it makes me sad to hear her referred to as "Fat Mary".
There's a danger in applying today's usage of terms to a period well over a century ago. Princess Mary Adelaide was a very popular and gregarious figure in her day and from what we've read, the nickname of "Fat Mary" was not used in a derogatory manner but was said with great affection and respect.
 
So true! Being large was once considered a sign of great wealth and socially, was very well accepted.

Busty women with expansive waists stringently shaped and concealed by whale bone and the finest fabrics, garlanded with strings of pearls and diamond rivieres set upon chiffon lace.

'Fat Mary? Lucky Mary!
 
Queen Victoria letter

Hi all, first time on here so apologies if I have not posted in the right place.

I wonder if any members on here can help. My mother in law has been having a sort out and has found some letters of thanks from members of the Royal family. All bar one are from the 20's & 30's saying thankyou for various wedding gifts. The one I would like to know more about is dated May 21st 1869 it is on letterheaded paper from White Lodge, Richmond park. At first I thought it was from Prince Albert, but he was obviously dead 8 years before this. I cant make out alot as the writing is so elaborate but it goes something like

"Dear Mr Daniell, I have to .......... you Her Royal Highness' and my very best thanks for having so kindly .......our wishes I am sure that the Queen will be much pleased with these two handsome pieces of china and the ........ Will not forget to mention to Her Majesty where we got them. Yours faithfully, ..........".

The dots are words that I cannot figure out and include the signature . I have looked at countless autographs of Queen Victoria's children and none of them are anything like the one on this letter. What I am trying to establish is, who is the sender of the note. It is obviously somebody who was close to her as they use the words " our wishes" and "where we got them from". Any of your thoughts would be much appreciated, I am out of ideas here. Thankyou for reading, Richard.
 
Quite possible a servant or secretary, if it does not match the signatures of the royal family.
 
Quite possible a servant or secretary, if it does not match the signatures of the royal family.


Hi, I did wonder that, but the signature seems to be just one christian name. Judging by the date, I suppose it could be an early 50th birthday present for her.
 
If she was close to TRF, close enough to recieve a present, then you would be able to match up the signatures.
 
If she was close to TRF, close enough to recieve a present, then you would be able to match up the signatures.

I was kind of hoping that it was written by Mr Brown, but there is no image or record of his handwriting or signature anywhere that I have found. If you really squint at the signature, it could say "teddy" - In fact it could say anything, bit like a doctors handwriting on a perscription haha
 
richardtt said:
...dated May 21st 1869
The Prince and Princess of Wales made occasional use of White Lodge, Richmond Park in 1867 and 1868.
The Duke and Duchess of Teck lived there from 1870.
However, in March 1869 Queen Victoria wrote to Princess Mary Adelaide (later Duchess of Teck and mother of Queen Mary) "am quite ready to let you try the White Lodge for a month."
As your letter is dated May 1869 it is possible that it was from Princess Mary Adelaide or one of her staff.

source:'Queen Mary' by James Pope-Hennessy, pp 60,63.
 
:previous:
Hi there, thankyou for the reply. I sent a copy of the note to an autograph auctioneer and you were very close indeed. It is from her husband Francis, Duke of Teck. I have also managed to figure out another note that was with it which is from Edward the 7th (prince of wales at the time) to Lord Henry Lennox making arrangements to go for tea with Lady Mount Edgecumb - whoever she might be. Fascinating stuff, and I thought my handwriting was bad!
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The Princess Mary Adelaide Memorial

The following question has been received privately but I am posting it here in the event that someone has detailed knowledge of the Princess Mary Adelaide Memorial.

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To the left hand side of Richmond Park Gate is a memorial to Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge, Duchess of Teck, erected by the local council in 1904. There were originally four large brass panels executed by Francis John Williamson, said to be Queen Victoria's favourite sculptor. I believe they were removed when the Royal Family's German names were changed in 1917.

In their place are four marble panels suggesting that the original brass panels were carefully removed and stored away. It is unlikely they have been covered over because although inset reliefs (and judging from photos), they would have stood proud to some extent.

The fate of the brass panels is unknown.
Any help your members can give would be most appreciated.
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Queen Mary of England (Victoria Mary of Teck) had a brother, Adolphus, the Marquess of Cambridge. I know that before he got the title of Marquess, he was Adolphus of Teck. However, The Royal Genealogy Database at Hull mentioned him as Adolphus II of Teck, Duke of Teck. Was he Prince of Teck or Duke of Teck? Was there an Adolphus I, Duke of Teck?

Princess Mary Adelaide had hoped that her son, Prince Francis of Teck, should marry Princess Maud of Wales.
 
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Mary and Adolphus' father was Francis, Duke of Teck. Originally, Francis was created HSH Prince Francis of Teck in 1863 by King William I of Württemberg. In 1871, he was created Duke of Teck. His children were each HSH Prince(sse)s of Teck.

As the eldest son, when Francis died in 1900 Adolphus inherited his father's title. I don't know if he was I or II; he would have been the first Adolphus in his line, but there may have been an Adolphus in an earlier line.

It's important to remember that the Tecks lived in London - Adolphus was born at Kensington Palace - and during the First World War they were the siblings of the Queen. So, during the rise of anti-German sentiments they were among the group who officially renounced their German titles in 1917. At this point, both Adolphus and his brother Alexander took on Cambridge as a surname - out of deference to their maternal grandfather, Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge. This Adolphus was later created Marquess of Cambridge.

The third brother, Francis, died before this all happened, while Mary had married long before then. Alexander was created the Earl of Athlone.
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But had to settle for her daughter marrying Maud's brother George and thus becoming the Queen Consort of the UK.
 
"Settle." Somehow, I think the Tecks bagged a far bigger prize in that one.
 
What years was Princess Mary Adelaide's father, Prince Francis the president of the Royal Botanic Society?

After the demise of Prince Albert Victor, do you think Princess Mary Adelaide took his loss as hard as her daughter, Princess May?

Did not Princess Mary Adelaide inherit a lot of money from her father Prince Adolphus?
 
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