Princess Margaret of Connaught
| Princess Margaret of Connaught | |||||
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| Crown Princess of Sweden; Duchess of Skåne |
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| Born | 15 January 1882 Bagshot Park, Surrey |
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| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Stockholm |
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| Spouse | Gustaf Adolf, Crown Prince of Sweden | ||||
| Issue | Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten Count Sigvard Bernadotte of Wisborg Ingrid, Queen of Denmark Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland Count Carl Johan Bernadotte of Wisborg |
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| House | Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | ||||
| Father | Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn | ||||
| Mother | Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia | ||||
Princess Margaret of Connaught (Margaret Victoria Charlotte Augusta Norah; 15 January 1882 – 1 May 1920) was Crown Princess of Sweden and Duchess of Skåne as the first wife of the future King Gustaf VI Adolf. She was the elder daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria, and Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia. Nicknamed Daisy and known in Sweden as Margareta,[1] she died before her husband's accession to the throne of Sweden.
Contents
Early life
Princess Margaret was born at Bagshot Park and baptised in the Private Chapel of Windsor Castle on 11 March 1882 by, The Archbishop of Canterbury. Her godparents were Queen Victoria (her paternal grandmother); The German Emperor (her maternal great-granduncle, who was represented by the German Ambassador, Count Münster); the German Crown Princess (her paternal aunt, who was represented by her sister, Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein); Prince and Princess Friedrich Karl of Prussia (her maternal grandparents, for whom her paternal uncle the Duke of Edinburgh and aunt The Princess Beatrice stood proxy); and the Prince of Wales (her paternal uncle).[2]
She was also confirmed in the Private Chapel of Windsor Castle in March 1898.
Princess Margaret grew up as a member of the British Royal Family, taking part in family holidays and weddings. She was a bridesmaid at the wedding of The Duke and Duchess of York on 6 July 1893. [3]
Marriage
When Princess Margaret of Connaught was 23 and her younger sister Princess Patricia of Connaught was 18, both girls were among the most beautiful and eligible princesses in Europe. Their uncle, King Edward VII, wanted his nieces to marry a European king or crown prince. In January 1905, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught visited Portugal where they were received by King Carlos and his wife, Amélie of Orléans, whose sons Luís Filipe, Duke of Braganza, and Prince Manuel entertained the young British princesses. The Portuguese expected one of the Connaught princesses would become the future Queen of Portugal.
The Connaughts continued their trip to Egypt and Sudan. In Cairo, they met Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, the future Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden, grandson of the Swedish King Oscar II. Originally, Margaret's sister Patricia had been considered a suitable match for Gustaf; without his knowledge, a meeting was arranged with the two sisters.[4] Gustaf and Margaret fell in love at first sight. Prince Gustaf proposed at a dinner held by Lord Cromer at the British Consulate in Egypt, and was accepted. Margaret had certainly fallen completely in love with Gustaf. Her parents were very happy with the match. Prince Gustaf was short of sight and used spectacles; he was "tall, dark, well informed, fond of music, an excellent shot and a good dancer." Gustaf and Margaret married on 15 June 1905, in St. George's Chapel, at Windsor Castle. The couple spent their honeymoon in Ireland, and arrived in Sweden on 8 July 1905.
One of Margaret's wedding presents was the Connaught tiara, which remains in the Swedish royal jewellery collection today.[5]
The couple had five children:
- Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, born 22 April 1906. Married Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha on 19/20 October 1932 and had five children including the future King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. Died 26 January 1947.
- Prince Sigvard, Duke of Uppland, born 7 June 1907. Married Erica Maria Patzek on 8 March 1934, thereby losing his royal titles. They had no issue and divorced on 14 October 1943. Married secondly Sonja Christensen Robbert on 26 October 1943 and had one son. They divorced on 6 June 1961. Married thirdly Marianne Lindberg on 30 July 1961. The couple had no issue. Died 4 February 2002.
- Princess Ingrid, born 28 March 1910. Married the future King Frederick IX of Denmark, on 24 May 1935 and had three daughters including the future Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and the future Queen Anne-Marie of Greece. Died 7 November 2000.
- Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland, born 28 February 1912. Married Lilian Craig on 7 December 1976 with approval of the King and had no issue. Died 5 January 1997.
- Prince Carl Johan, Duke of Dalarna, born 31 October 1916. Married Kerstin Wijkmark on 19 February 1946, thereby losing his royal titles, and adopted two children. Married secondly Countess Gunnila Wachtmeister af Johannishus on 29 September 1988. Died 5 May 2012.
When Gustaf Adolf's father, Crown Prince Gustaf, acceeded to the throne as King Gustaf V in 1907, the couple became Crown Prince and Princess of Sweden.
Crown Princess
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The marriage between Margaret and Gustaf Adolf is described as a happy love match.[4] Gustaf Adolf felt great pressure from the "Prussian" military discipline with which he had been raised by his mother, and he was greatly affected and attracted to Margaret's English customs, which contrasted with that of his mother's.[4]
After her arrival in Sweden, Margaret, who in Sweden was called "Margareta," received lessons in the Swedish language, and asked to be educated in Swedish history and social welfare. After two years, she spoke good Swedish. During her first years in Sweden, Margaret behaved with great seriousness and was therefore regarded as stiff, but the view of her changed because of her great interest in sports, where she showed a more relaxed and natural manner. Margaret took a great interest in many forms of sports; she used the winters for skiing, ice skating and playing hockey (what is nowadays called bandy), and played tennis and golf during the summers. She also corresponded with various relatives.
Margaret was also interested in art. She photographed, painted, and took a great interest in gardening. She and her spouse received Sofiero Palace as a wedding gift, and they spent their summers there and made a great effort in the gardens of the estate. The gardens of Sofiero were in an English style, and her children participated in their improvement. In 1915, Margaret as Kronprinsessan Margareta published the book Vår trädgård på Sofiero ("Our Garden at Sofiero") and two years later also Från blomstergården ("From the Flower Garden") illustrated with her own drawings and photographs, which were sold for the benefit of household schools with childcare.
During World War I, Margaret created a sewing society in Sweden to support the Red Cross. The society was called Kronprinsessans Centralförråd för landstormsmäns beklädnad och utrustning ("The Crown Princess's central storage for clothing and equipment of the home guard"), which was to equip the Swedish armed forces with suitable underwear. When paraffin supplies ran low she organized a candle collection, and in November 1917 she instituted a scheme to train girls to work on the land. She also acted as intermediary for relatives separated by the war. With her help, private letters and requests to trace men missing in action were passed on. She was also active in her work on behalf of prisoners. She aided prisoners of war in camps around Europe, especially British nationals. Margaret's efforts during the war were pro-British, in contrast to that of her mother-in-law's strictly pro-German attitude. In 1917, Margaret organized Margaretainsamlingen för de de fattiga ("The Margaret fundraiser for the poor"). At the end of the war, when the final steps towards full democracy were taken in Sweden, Margaret's positive attitude to reform influenced her husband the Crown Prince. Unlike the attitude of her reform-hostile in-laws, King Gustaf and Queen Victoria, this is believed to have eased political tensions and preserved the Swedish monarchy.[6]
Death
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On 1 May 1920, her father's 70th birthday, Crown Princess Margaret died suddenly in Stockholm. The official announcement said[citation needed] infection set in following a mastoid operation. At the time, she was eight months pregnant and expecting her sixth child. In announcing her death during traditional International Workers' Day celebrations, Swedish Prime Minister Hjalmar Branting said the sun had "gone out" at Stockholm Palace.[7][8]
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles and styles
- 15 January 1882 – 15 June 1905: Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret of Connaught
- 15 June 1905 – 8 December 1907: Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Scania
- 8 December 1907 – 1 May 1920: Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Scania
Honours
VA: Member Second Class of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert
CI: Companion of the Order of the Star of India
DJStJ: Dame of Justice of St John
Arms
Upon her marriage in 1905, Princess Margaret ceased to use the arms of the United Kingdom, with an inescutcheon of Saxony, the whole differenced by a label argent of five points, the first and fifth bearing fleurs-de-lys azure, the second and fourth shamrocks vert, and the central point a cross gules.[9] Instead she used the arms of a Princess of Sweden and Duchess of Scania.
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Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten | 22 April 1906 | 26 January 1947 | Father of Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. |
| Prince Sigvard, Duke of Uppland | 7 June 1907 | 4 February 2002 | Later Count Sigvard Bernadotte af Wisborg. |
| Princess Ingrid | 28 March 1910 | 7 November 2000 | Later Queen-consort of Denmark; mother of the present Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and former Queen Anne-Marie of Greece. |
| Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland | 28 February 1912 | 5 January 1997 | Married Lilian Davies; no issue. |
| Prince Carl Johan, Duke of Dalarna | 31 October 1916 | 5 May 2012 | Later Count Carl Johan Bernadotte af Wisborg, married twice, had adopted issue. He was the last living great-grandchild of Queen Victoria & Albert, Prince Consort |
Ancestry
References
- ↑ Från blomstergården (From the Flower Garden) a book by Margareta kronprinsessa av Sverige published by Norstedts in 1917
- ↑ Yvonne's Royalty Home Page — Royal Christenings
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Lars Elgklou (Swedish): Bernadotte. Historien - och historier - om en familj (English: "Bernadotte. The history - and stories - of a family") Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB, Stockholm 1978. ISBN 91-7008-882-9.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ (Swedish) Lars Elgklou, Bernadotte. Historien - och historier - om en familj. Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB, Stockholm. 1978. ISBN 91-7008-882-9.
- ↑ John Van der Kiste in Northern Crowns; the Kings of Modern Scandinavia ISBN 0-7509-1138-7 p 78 (slightly inaccurate translation)
- ↑ Bernadotte, Wieselgren & Ohlmarks in Sveriges hundra konungar, Biblioteksböcker, Stockholm 1956, p. 563
- ↑ Heraldica – British Royalty Cadency
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Princess Margaret of Connaught. |
- Articles with Swedish-language external links
- Pages with broken file links
- Articles with unsourced statements from January 2015
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- British princesses
- Ladies of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert
- Companions of the Order of the Star of India
- Dames of Justice of the Order of St John
- 1882 births
- 1920 deaths
- House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (United Kingdom)
- Swedish princesses
- People from Bagshot
- People from Windsor, Berkshire
- Burials at Kungliga begravningsplatsen
- Crown Princesses of Sweden
