Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence, eldest son of Edward VII (1864-1892)


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tiaraprin said:
Here is Queen Mary when she was the fiancee of The Duke of Clarence and Avondale:

http://members3.boardhost.com/Warholm/

she was May then, he died the day be4e the wed, I believe he was poisoned, it could be.....there had also been the Cleveland Street scandal, apart from Jack the Ripper, anyway, he was gay and had the habit of going to man brothels in the night- he was also backward, Queen Alix cried so much for his death- what do u think- QV had any say in his death?
 
Where are you getting that he was poisoned?? He died of Syphillis, but the newspapers at the time reported another acceptable illness.
 
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There have been rumours about his death being deliberate because he was so hopeless and wasn't going to make a good king. It's alleged that the described symptoms weren't consistent with the flu, which he's supposed to have had, but were consistent with poisoning of some sort.
 
Elspeth said:
There have been rumours about his death being deliberate because he was so hopeless and wasn't going to make a good king. It's alleged that the described symptoms weren't consistent with the flu, which he's supposed to have had, but were consistent with poisoning of some sort.

Who would have done such a thing Elspeth? Surely you do not think that Queen Victoria or Edward VII would have such a thing done??

Perhaps it was the "Grey Men".
 
I really doubt the Queen would have authorised it. If it was poison, I assume it'd have been courtiers and the physician acting in accordance with what they thought Victoria's wishes might have been. I assume she must have known that Prince Goerge would've been a more suitable heir, however fond a granny she was.

I'm sure that if he did die as a result of poisoning, Queen Alexandra would never have known. From accounts of what happened it seems that he had some sort of bug anyway, and it's possible that the courtiers and doctors decided to grasp the opportunity once it had presented itself. It's also possible that he was a physically weak specimen one way and another and was just unable to throw off the infection.

Reports do say he died in great pain, but then there was something of a tendency for death agonies to be embellished in the retelling in Victorian times, so who knows how accurate these accounts are.
 
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It also has to be remembered that he was a premature baby, born a little over 2 months before his time. This may explain how he ended up the way he did. It was a miracle that he survived as a 7 month baby. We know he was conceived in holy matrimony, Alexandra wouldn't have done anything before the marriage!!
 
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Prince Albert Victor 1864-1892

emily62_1 said:
she was May then, he died the day be4e the wed, I believe he was poisoned, it could be.....there had also been the Cleveland Street scandal, apart from Jack the Ripper, anyway, he was gay and had the habit of going to man brothels in the night- he was also backward, Queen Alix cried so much for his death- what do u think- QV had any say in his death?

I have heard in the past that Princess Alexandra was very ill with some sort of fever or flu when she was pregnant with Prince Albert. Can anybody confirm this? Whatever this illness was while she was pregnant may have contributed to his physical health and state of mind during his life time. It would be interesting to look into. Here is some info I pulled off of a web site in regards to Alberts general health, I posted the link at the bottom.

Prince Alberts tutor noticed early on an "abnormal dormant condition" in Eddy's mind, which was thought to be caused by his premature birth. The Prince failed in all subjects and was unnable to keep his attention in something for more than a few minutes. His younger brother, Prince George always overshadowed him (future George V) in every aspect. His tutor said that Prince Eddy required of Prince George's company to induce him to work so the tutor considered the two boys should be educated together.

In January of 1892 after having spent some days hunting in the cold wind and snow, Albert developed a persistent cough and he was soon cofined to bed after the doctor diagnosed pneumonia and influenza. On January 8, Eddy was unable to attend his birthday dinner. The next day he had developed inflamation of the lungs. On the morning of January 12 , Prince Eddy was rather worse and the next day he was delirious and shouting about his Regiment, his horses, his friends and his love for his grandmother, the Queen.In the early morning of January 14, Eddy's agony began and lasted for six hours The Princess of Wales sat at the head of her dying son's bed, holding his hand. There were also his father, the Prince of Wales, his sisters, the Duchess of Fife, Princess Victoria and Princess Maud and his fiance, Princess Mary, with her mother. Eddy died at 9:35 of the morning of January 14 1892, when he was 28 years old. He was buried at Albert Memorial Chapel in Windsor.


Quick summary from this website http://www.geocities.com/jesusib/EdwardVII.html
 
tiaraprin said:
Where are you getting that he was poisoned?? He died of Syphillis, but the newspapers at the time reported another acceptable illness.
many said it at the time and historians, some of them, think it's true, I'm not the 1 who thinks it, obvious you have never read about it, though i think it's weird, any1 who knows about the Edward and Alix's story life, have heard about it.
Elspeth said:
There have been rumours about his death being deliberate because he was so hopeless and wasn't going to make a good king. It's alleged that the described symptoms weren't consistent with the flu, which he's supposed to have had, but were consistent with poisoning of some sort.
I think it may be true as, after the Cleveland scandal of 1889, and the ppl whispering Eddy could even be Jack the Ripper, which was ridiculous, but Londoners thought it could be true, being Eddy gay and also backward, he could not really be the future King of UK, his father was not young, though he died 18 years after his son, QV was very old, ppl, as tiaraprin call them- the Grey Men- from the Palace, got frantic, also as he was to get married to May, no chance they could let Eddy be King of England , after his own father's death- his brother Georgy was far more suitable for the job, instead. poor Eddy, I'm also sorry for his mum, she loved him so much.
 
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emily62_1 said:
many said it at the time and historians, some of them, think it's true, I'm not the 1 who thinks it, obvious you have never read about it, though i think it's weird, any1 who knows about the Edward and Alix's story life, have heard about it.

I don't think it's fair to say that anyone who knows about Edward and Alexandra's lives would have heard about it; I read the official biographies of Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary quite a long time before really hearing much about the possibility that he was poisoned. I don't remember without going to look, but I don't think those two books mention it.
 
I Agree With Elspeth

You are correct Elspeth. I have read the official biographies of both Alexandra and Mary. There is no mention of the poison theory.
 
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well, Elspeth, do u think they would have written something like this in official bios ? I think u're very bright, so u know better than me what I'm talking about, then, why such a wonder, why not thinking of Monsieur and his his wife, sister of a King of England ? what happened just 1 and a half century be4e Eddy at French Court ? why are u talking about fair or unfair, I mean - let's not read the official bios- that's all, what has fairness to do with it- iIm not saying it's true or not true, but that it may be true. so, I told tiaraprin that it was weird she had never heard of it, and that I was not making it up , maybe it was me who should feel hurt-
 
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emily62_1 said:
well, Elspeth, do u think they would have written something like this in official bios ?
The official biography of King George V by Kenneth Rose states that the King was poisoned (it was more euthanasia-like, of course, but...)

emily62_1 said:
why are u talking about fair or unfair, I mean - let's not read the official bios- that's all, what has fairness to do with it- iIm not saying it's true or not true, but that it may be true. so, I told tiaraprin that it was weird she had never heard of it, and that I was not making it up , maybe it was me who should feel hurt-
It is better to read official biographies than sensationalistic novels and websites, I suppose. I've already read that Queen Victoria was Jack the Ripper, that Tsesarevich Alexei did not die in Ekaterinburg and that Queen Elizabeth II is a drug kingpin on an equal footing with John Paul II (now with Benedict XVI, I presume). As for now, there is no documentary evidence that the Duke of Clarence died of poison.
 
Never stated there was evidence.

" Thre has been speculations that Eddy was poisoned due to the extreme agony which he exhibited at death. His overall unsuitability for the throne is apparently the reasoning behind this suspicion."

this from a website, 1 of the many-
for the last time, I never stated that there was any evidence.
 
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well, Elspeth, do u think they would have written something like this in official bios ?

No, which is why I was saying that it's quite possible to be familiar with Edward and Alexandra's lives without ever hearing about this stuff about whether Eddy was poisoned.

I don't suppose we'll ever know for sure unless they do a posthumous autopsy, and somehow I doubt that would ever be authorised.
 
Victorian Royalty

One of my main interests is Queen Victoria and her descendants. Queen Alexandra is also one of my favorites. It may seem a bit morbid but, I have heard that there is a deathbed photograph of Prince Albert Victor (Eddy) Duke of Clarence. Can anyone tell me where I can find it on the web.

This is my first post.

Elizabeth
 
Welcome to the forum Elizabeth. I'm not sure where you'd find it on the net, although www.findagrave.com might give you something. Just click the link, go to "Famous" and put in Prince Albert Victor.
 
These photographs always show the dead person to look extremely natural whereas in reality, corpses don't look very natural. Prince AV embalmed? He does look very natural.
 
I cannot be sure about embalming, though I'm pretty sure Queen Victoria wasn't. She left instructions that no undertakers were to be involved in her laying out and her personal doctor, Dr. Reid, did this. Afterwards, her surviving sons together lifted their mother into her coffin.

I would have thought most royals would have been embalmed after death though, given that their funerals were not usually held until 7-10 days after death.

I think the photo of Prince Albert Victor (Eddy) was taken the same day he died (the scene was sketched also) so that may explain his natural appearance.
 
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How old was he when he died?
 
Prince Albert Victor: 8 Jan 1864 - 14 Jan 1892, so he had just turned 28 when he died.
 
Prince Eddy's Death

This may be a bit of a strech. I have worked in the medical field and I have wondered if Eddy might have had colitis or crones disease besides being sick from the flu. I have known people with these conditions and they have told me that the suspected that relatives in the past might have died from these diseases. The discriptions of the Princes death and their relatives seem the same. Just a thought.
 
Interesting point, Elizabeth. However, I've never heard of Prince Eddy having any problems of this nature. I have read quite a lot about him and the long-held idea that he was somehow physically weak or sickly doesn't seem accurate. Although he was two months premature, his nurse stated after his death that "he was never a frail baby at all" and he seems to have suffered from no more illnesses than the rest of his family.

I think the descriptions of his last illness and death by his mother and other family members are consistent with influenza/pneumonia which was epidemic during the winter of 1891/1892. :)
 
Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence (1864-1892)

Prince William will not be created a Duke, as Royal Dukedoms only go to Princes who are members of the royal family that will not inherit the throne. Prince Andrew is Duke of York, Prince Edward will be Duke of Edinburgh when his father dies.

That's not true. Prince Albert Victor (Edward VII's first son) was created Duke of Clarence and Avondale, even though it was fully expected that he would become King. He died before that could happen, though.
 
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So he wouldve become Duke of Cornwall right ??
 
So he wouldve become Duke of Cornwall right ??

I assume you're talking about Albert Victor. Yes, he would have, had he lived at least until his father's accession. Instead, it went to the Duke of York (later George V), who was known as "The Duke of Cornwall and York" for the 10 months until he was created Prince of Wales.
 
Interesting wonder what Kind of King A V Would have made.
 
Interesting wonder what Kind of King A V Would have made.

We will never know. I understand there were nasty things said about him, but he was dearly loved by his family. His brother was understood to be devastated by his death, for the understandable personal reasons of loss of a brother, as well as the interuption of ambitious naval career which George had to forego in order to.... go on to be George V. Thinking about it, I am sure it was terribly hard on everyone in the family, and it makes sense in this context, the hasty courtship and marriage between AV's fiancee and George. I understand they fell in love quickly. This can happen when a tragedy occurs like this. People take solace in each other and their emotions are bare and very raw, and they can fall in love more quickly than perhaps in more sober times. It's an interesting story.
 
With all due respect, C-T, I think that the royal family was indeed very fortunate that he died.

Albert Victor, from my perspective, was a decidedly unattractive and reprehensible human being. Heaven only knows how the larger-than-life and naughty but nice Edward VII, and the delightful Queen Alexandra produced such an unlovely, morally repugnant and ugly character as I think that this son was.
 
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