Alexei in 1912

“Science” journal published results of a study which found that some of Queen Victoria’s male descendants suffered from a severe form of blood clotting disorder Haemophilia B, also known as the Christmas Disease. Although it has already been known that the British Queen’s descendants were affected by Haemophilia, this is the first time the exact form of the disease was identified.

The scientists examined DNA samples extracted from the remains of the Romanovs and found that Tsarevich Alexei suffered from Haemophilia B, while one of his sisters, Anastasia, was a carrier. Alexei and Anastasia were the children of Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra, and female-line descendants of Queen Victoria: they inherited the mutation from their mother, who was Queen Victoria’s granddaughter.

Haemophilia lowers the level of the chemicals that cause blood to clot after injury. Haemophilia A, resulting from a lack of clotting factor VIII, is the most common form, affecting one in 5,000–10,000 males. Haemophilia B is caused by a deficiency of factor IX and affects one in 20,000–35,000 males. Because the disorder is linked to the X chromosome, only males suffer from the disease. This is because males have only one X chromosome, so if that single chromosome is affected, than the male in question will be a victim of the disease. Females only carry it because their second X chromosome is extremely unlikely to have the same mutation. Through Queen Victoria, Royal Houses of Russia, Spain and Germany were plagued with the “Royal Disease”.

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Marsel British Royals, Historical Royals, Russian Royals Grand Duchess Anastasia, Haemophilia, Health, Queen Victoria, Science, Tsarevich Alexei

On September 25, 1896, Queen Victoria became the longest-reigning Monarch in British History, surpassing George III’s reign, who was King for 59 years. Victoria also left behind the longest-reigning English and Scottish Monarchs, Henry III and James VI, who had reigned for 56 and 57 years respectively. She was a Queen for 63 years and 216 days.

Click to see the portrait at Newspaper Collections

Grand commemorative events were planned for the occasion; however the Queen requested all public celebrations to be delayed for a year, until 1897, to coincide with her Diamond Jubilee. The double celebrations of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee and her long reign were truly spectacular and were held in every corner of the British Empire. The banquet in honour of the glorious events was attended by 50 European Kings and Princes, numerous Queens and Princesses, and the Prime Ministers of all the colonies and dominions. The Jubilee procession held next day included troops from every British colony and dominion, as well as soldiers sent by Indian Princes as a mark of respect to the Empress of India. Mark Twain, who was a witness to the procession, later wrote that it “stretched to the limit of sight in both directions”.

The celebrations were marked by great display of affection for the Queen: tens of thousands of people had lined the streets to catch a glimpse of their beloved Monarch, newspapers and bulletins seemed to be unable to find enough words to express their deepest regard and devotion, foreign dignitaries were united in their praise. Although Victoria had to pass through years of unpopularity because of her prolonged mourning period, by the time of the celebrations she was immensely popular once again. Read more…

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From the TRF avatar collection

 Few royal friendships have spawned controversy and even a movie a century later, but Queen Victoria’s attachment to her ghillie, John Brown, was exceptional. There were even rumors in their time that the depressed widow had married her wild Scotsman, earning her the nickname Mrs. Brown. In 1997 Dame Judi Dench and Billie Connolly reenacted the relationship in the movie Mrs. Brown.

The Queen mourned when Brown, who had advanced from ghillie to personal attendant, died in 1883. Her grief endured and when she died she asked to be buried with a lock of his hair, his ring, and his photograph. All to the disapproval of the moral rectitude of the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. After Brown’s death Victoria ordered the creation of memorials and statues, most of which were destroyed by King Edward. You have to wonder at the spite with which the king acted; what caused his enormous and public resentment?

Click for the photo at collectinguk.com

Perhaps it is a result of the king’s venom that few memorial objects remain. Among them is a stickpin that will be auctioned in Edinburgh on August 18. It is expected to reach as much as £700.

The originals were ordered by the Queen from an Aberdeen jeweler. The gold pin shows Brown’s silhouette on one side and Victoria’s monogram on the other. The Queen gave them to her highland retainers and cottagers, to be worn along with a mourning scarf on the anniversary of Brown’s death. Few stickpins remain, perhaps because, with the death of the Queen and Edward VII’s disdain, it was no longer advantageous for them to be worn in the royal presence.

iowabelle British Royals Jewellery, John Brown, Queen Victoria

Picture this. The Prince and Princess of Wales are feuding, much to their families’ dismay. It is quite clear that the marriage has ended, although, thank goodness, the succession is secure. They have produced an heir. But then tragedy strikes in a “King Ralph” moment and the heir is dead. What’s a royal family to do?

Click the image to see the photo at amazon.co.uk

I’m not talking about the misadventures of Charles and Diana, but about the tragedy that befell the Hanoverians when Princess Charlotte died. Charlotte was the only child of the future George IV, who was Prince of Wales and Regent at the time of his daughter’s death in 1817 (poor George III was still haunting Windsor in the grips of porphyria-induced madness). For the nation, this was sheer tragedy. Charlotte was, according to Kate Williams, the author of Becoming Queen, as popular in her day as Princess Diana was in ours. In part her popularity was due to her youth and that she was the perfect counterweight to the excesses and unpopularity of her parents and the other Hanoverian princes.

The public had rejoiced at her royal wedding and at the news that she was to become a mother in the autumn of 1817. Her handsome groom was the Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, an impecunious German prince who would play a much more significant role in British, European and African history than would have been expected in 1817. Unfortunately, Charlotte’s pregnancy and delivery was hopelessly botched. After the stillborn death of her son, 22-year-old Charlotte gave up and died. And the House of Hanover was without an heir after the generation of George III’s sons. Read more…

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Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha loved to design jewellery for his wife, Queen Victoria. Throughout their marriage he designed a number of key pieces which naturally became some of the most treasured possessions of Victoria. Of these jewels, Albert designed at least four tiaras for Victoria to wear – two of these were the diamond and emerald tiara and the sapphire and diamond tiara. Victoria gifted many of jewels to her numerous children and grandchildren throughout her life as well as placing some key items into the hands of the state to ensure that they would remain in the possession of future monarchs. However both the emerald and sapphire tiaras never became part of the Crown jewels collection and today are no longer with the British Royal Family.

Today, the emerald and diamond tiara exists intact in a private collection of a descendant of Queen Victoria’s. It was loaned out for an exhibition at Wartski in 1997 but recent reports that the tiara might have been either sold or dismantled circulate.

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PrincessofEurope British Royals, Historical Royals Jewellery, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Queen Victoria, Tiaras