King Edward VII (1841-1910) and Queen Alexandra (1844-1925)

[Jackswife]

I actually think Queen Alexandra wore chokers to hide a tracheotomy scar from when she had scarlet fever as a child (which is also why she walked with a slight limp ever afterwards), and not as a result of attempting suicide. And yes, she was quite the beauty of her day, more so than I think her sister Dagmar (Marie of Russia) and Thyra. A very elegant royal lady.

 

[Elspeth]

Unfortunately, physical beauty isn't the only component of compatibility. They don't sound as though they had a great deal in common apart from their royal birth.

 

[Jackswife]

I think Alexandra and Edward had more or less an arranged marriage, and though I'm sure there was mutual fondness and even affection on both their parts, there was *not* great passion or romantic love. Alexandra seemed extraordinarily tolerant of Edward's other ladies, probably because she knew her own position was totally secure and also because of her great popularity among the British people. I guess it was a different era and the press of the time was pretty discreet when it came to royal love affairs. I'm not defending Edward but I do think there was a sort of understanding between him and Alexandra.

 

[EmpressRouge]

I think Alexandra and Edward had more or less an arranged marriage

I would disagree on that. Alexandra of Denmark, although young, royal, pretty, and Protestant, was NOT an ideal choice. The Danes and Germans were at odds over territorial claims, and most of Queen Victoria's lineage/relatives were German (Her eldest daughter, Vicky the Princess Royal, was Crown Princess of Germany). Because he was heir apparent to the British throne from birth, a lot care was taken into finding a future bride for Edward (young, royal, Protestant, etc.). Also, at the time, Edward was very wayward and had had a few liaisons with young actresses/dancers so scandalous that Queen Victoria forever blamed Edward's behavior for Prince Albert's death. So at the time, it was also essential for Edward to actually like his future bride. Edward did take a liking to Alexandra, and thus they were married. Alexandra managed to curb Edward's behavior for a short while, but he reverted back to his old ways. I think Edward, although he did care for his wife, was that type of man who could never control his wandering eye, and his position and times allowed him to pursue his interests. Alexandra, being the dignified royal she was, never complained. However she did manage to make herself irreplacable in the eyes of her devoted children and subjects. I'd call her one smart and dignified cookie...the perfect royal

 

[gogm]

Alexandra wore chokers because of a tracheotomy sore and not a suicide attempt. Edward's parents wanted someone who might hold his interest and Alexandra was the choice. Alexandra was not fond of the Hohenzollern clan. I Googled on Alexdra and found "Historical Boys Clothing" had this in an article "Queen Alexandra and the Germans;"

"Personal Matter
Queen Alexandra was not a person greatly concerned with history or European power politics. She did, however, have one political obsession, a deeply felt dislike for the Gerrmnas. The Prussian war with Denmark in 1864 and the loss of Scheswig-Holstein, however, intensified a life-long distaste for the Germans.

Prussia War with Denmark
Although now a little known historical footnote, the consequences of the Danish War were incalcuable. It was the first step in the organizatin of a future Germany under the most miliataraistic and conservative state in the German Confederation. There were German states with more liberal, democratic institutions (Bavaria, Hanover, and others) and less belicose, militaristic outlooks. The Danish War was the first step in Prussia's absorbtion of some of the more liberal German states such as Hannover and Hesse and the end of their constitutional monarchies. If there had been a more democratic, less miliatristic approch taken to German unification, the history of the 20th century may have been quite different. The Danish War was also an important step in changing the British perception of Prussia and Germany from a potential ally against their historical enemy France to a dangerous enemy. The fact that their popular Princess of Wales was Danish was an important factor in shaping British attitudes."

She wasn't perfect, hanging on to her daughter Princes Victoria, but she did very well, especially given the circumstances.

 

[EmpressRouge]

Vicky, the Princess Royal and Crown Princess of Germany, shared the more liberal views of her father, Prince Albert. However her son, Wilhem II followed Bismark's militaristic approach, to the horror of his parents. Vicky actually encouraged her brother's marriage w/ Alexandra, an unpopular moved in Germany. She didn't approach it politically and thought as gogm said, hold his attention. Alexandra's hatred of all things Prussian/German extended throughout the family. Her sister Dagmar, Empress Marie of Russia shared similar anti-German sentiment, and was greatly opposed to her son Nicholas's marriage to Alix of Hesse.

 

[lashinka2002]

Does anyone know what colour Alexandra's eyes are? I can't seem to tell exactly from the portraits. In some they look blue, others green and sometimes even hazel.

 

[pdas1201]

I would say she had hazel color eyes. Most of the pics I have seen of her point to that.

 

[gogm]

Alexandra's Eye Color

This well-known Winterhalter suggests brown eyes (even if the color is a little off) —

Here's an autographed picture of Victoria (her duaghter), her, and Dagmar (Wow! ):

 

[betina]

she has blue eyes. Her sister Dagmar had brown eyes. On a painting at Amalienborg Castle of the two sisters Alexandra and Dagmar is it easy to see

 

[betina]

If you study this picture very close when you see it in real life. Alexandra has blue eyes and Dagmar brown eyes

 

[LaMinka]

Queen Alexandra with her daugther Princess Maud Charlotte Mary Victoria, later Queen of Norway:

Maud Angelica looks like her great-greatgrandmother Queen Maud!

 

[LaMinka]

Her daugther Queen Maud Of Norway looks like Alexandra!(from getty):

With Crown Prince Olav:


Another pics of her daugther Queen Maud:

 

[LaMinka]

Queen Alexandra (from getty):

 

[LaMinka]

With her daugther Princess Victoria(from getty):


Her daugther Princess Victoria (from getty):

 

[LaMinka]

More pics of Queen Alexandra (from getty):

 

[LaMinka]

from getty

23rd July 1885: Princess Alexandra (1844 - 1925), consort of the future King Edward VII, with her three daughters, Princess Louise, the Princess Royal, Princess Victoria and Princess Maud at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight:

 

[LaMinka]

from getty

circa 1887: Queen Alexandra with her three daughters Louise, Princess Royal, (later Duchess of Fife) (1867 - 1931), Victoria and Maud, Queen Of Norway, possibly at the time of the wedding of Louise to the Duke of Fife:

 

[LaMinka]

from getty

1889: King Edward VII as Prince of Wales (right), Queen Alexandra as Princess of Wales (third from left) and their five children. From left, Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence; Maud, Queen of Norway; Louise, the Princess Royal, Duchess of Fife. In front, King George V and Princess Victoria:

 

[LaMinka]

from getty

circa 1880: Princess Alexandra (1844 - 1925), consort of the future King Edward VII with her daughter, Princess Maud (1869 - 1938), the future Queen Of Norway:

 

[LaMinka]

from getty

circa 1876: Princess Alexandra (1844 - 1925), consort of the future King Edward VII, with her five children, Prince George (1865 - 1936), later King George V, Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence, Princess Louise, the Princess Royal, Princess Victoria and Princess Maud:

 

[LaMinka]

from getty

circa 1875: Prince Albert Victor (1864 - 1892), Duke of Clarence with his sister Princess Maud (1969 - 1938), later Queen Maud of Norway. They are two of the five children of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra:

 

[Beetlejuice]

More pics! Mwahahahaha!!

Source: Getty Images

 

[emily62_1]

HI....

IT IS WONDERFUL PICTURE OF HM QUEEN ALEXANDER ... ONE OF MY FAVORITE PICTURE WHEN SHE WAS YOUNG MAYBE AROUND 19 YEARS OLD WHEN SHE MARRY TO PRINCE EDWARD IN 1863 (RIGHT??) I HOPE... AND HOPE MORE PICTURE COME IN.. KEEP... GOOD JOB..... HAVE A GOOD DAY....

KARLA

I have lots of pix of Queen Alix, I came across a diary written by herself,a copy of the original, she wrote it around 1900, it's full of pix taken in Norway, f.i. with "little Olav", as Queen Alexandra calls her young grandson-I have also a diary written by 1 of her Lady in waitings, who had previously had been Lady in waiting to QV, so it started my interest in this queen and in her daughters. Maud was quite beautiful, not like her mother, but the most good looking of the 3 daughters, it looks she disliked Denmark and Norway and was happy only when she could visit her own family in England.

 

[emily62_1]

I think Alexandra and Edward had more or less an arranged marriage, and though I'm sure there was mutual fondness and even affection on both their parts, there was *not* great passion or romantic love. Alexandra seemed extraordinarily tolerant of Edward's other ladies, probably because she knew her own position was totally secure and also because of her great popularity among the British people. I guess it was a different era and the press of the time was pretty discreet when it came to royal love affairs. I'm not defending Edward but I do think there was a sort of understanding between him and Alexandra.

that can also account for her not letting Toria get married, she was scared of being alone, she had had never a husband, as Edward VII had always had a roving eye, in the last years there was only Alice Keppel for him, was Sonia, born by Alice K. in 1900 daughter of Mr. Keppel or not ? I wonder what did Queen Alix think about it all, QV was fond of her for putting up with her husband's ladies.

 

[tiaraprin]

that can also account for her not letting Toria get married, she was scared of being alone, she had had never a husband, as Edward VII had always had a roving eye, in the last years there was only Alice Keppel for him, was Sonia, born by Alice K. in 1900 daughter of Mr. Keppel or not ? I wonder what did Queen Alix think about it all, QV was fond of her for putting up with her husband's ladies.

From what I have read, I do not believe Alexandra ever completely accepted her husband's infidelities. I think Alexandra resigned herself to the fact. There was nothing she could do back then.

When she let Mrs. Keppel in to see her husband before he died, she did it out of love and kindness to her husband. Supposedly he asked Alexandra and Alice to embrace one another at his deathbed. Alexandra did it but did not want to. She wrote her brother I believe about the incident. She told her brother how much it shamed and embarrassed her to embrace Mrs. Keppel and I could understand completely how she felt.

 

[ysbel]

Queen Alexandra was quite fascinating. She had to be the most beautiful woman of her time. When she was born her father was a prince of a minor branch of the Danish royal family with modest means. When she died, her two brothers were kings as were her son and a nephew. She had an eye for regalness and opulence in public but still retained her almost middle class modesty in private. A woman of contradictions.

I think its difficult for us to imagine what people were thinking back then. They lived in different times. I bet that before the era of birth control, a lot of women would have been grateful after 5 or 6 children if their husband took a mistress. I also think that Alexandra who came from some humble upbringing was grateful for the lifestyle and security that marriage to Bertie afforded her.

Alix and Bertie seemed to have a good marriage for the first 5 or 6 years. They seemed both light-hearted with a good sense of fun. But a couple of things cast a cloud on the marriage: first was that England failure to support Denmark when Germany invaded Schleswig-Holstein. I don't think it was a given back then that people married for love but I do think its safe to assume that Christian IX whose royal house was a relative latecomer hoped to form political alliances by arranging marriages for his daughters to the two most powerful nations at the time (Russia and England) A reason for political alliances is to gain allies in eventual war. Christian IX's alliances didn't pan out during the war with Germany. I have a feeling that with Alexandra and her sister Dagmar, you could insult them all you wanted, but insult their darling father to whom they were devoted and you gained an enemy for life. Secondly, because of political difficulties, Bertie did not take Alix with him on his trip to India. Alix had always wanted to go and she resented that he didn't fight harder to allow her to go.

There were other things, the fact that the whole court was in mourning for Prince Albert the first years of their marriage and the fact that she had a miscarriage also put a strain on the marriage. Then her oldest son Eddy died.

Its tough for a marriage to survive all that. I think the affairs were the least of Alexandra's problems.

 

[Iluvbertie]

I think part of it with Edward VII was simply boredom - not with her but with his life. Remember he wasn't allowed to do anything real, unlike Charles whom the Queen has encouraged to make a role for himself whereas Victoria was very critical of anything Albert Edward did that might even suggest that he was representing her.

Had he had something real to do he might have appreciated having a loving wife more.

Her deafness though didn't help.

I do believe that he loved her very much but needed to do more and he found extra-marital affairs the more he could do.

That doesn't mean I condone his behaviour - it is just an attempt to understand it.

 

[iowabelle]

I don't know if being busy keeps men from cheating. After all, look at Bill Clinton. (And it didn't prevent Charles and Diana from disintegrating, either.)

But it was too bad that Victoria couldn't have found something to occupy her heir's time. I always think of his comment, that all men have an Eternal Father, but that he was the only one with an Eternal Mother.

 

[maryprincessroyal]

I noticed in a pic that Edward and Bertie were dressed like little girls, was it the rule in royal Families ?