July 19, 1822: Birth of Princess Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.

Tags

Adolphus-Frederick of Cambridge, Augusta of Cambridge, Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz., Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Grand Duke Frederick William of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, King George III of the United Kingdom

Princess Augusta of Cambridge (July 19, 1822 – December 5, 1916) was a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of George III. She married into the Grand Ducal House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and became the Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.

Princess Augusta of Cambridge

Early life

Princess Augusta was born on July 19, 1822 at the Palace of Montbrillant, Hanover. Her father was Prince Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge, the seventh son of George III of the United Kingdom and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Her mother was Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, third daughter of Landgrave Friedrich of Hesse-Cassel, and his wife, Princess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen.

Prince Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge (Father)

Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel

As a male line granddaughter of the British monarch, she was titled a British Princess with the style of Royal Highness. The young princess was baptized at the same palace on August 16, 1822, by Rev Edward Curtis Kemp (Chaplain to the British Ambassador to the Court of Berlin, The Rt. Hon. Sir George Rose).

The Princess spent her earlier years in Hanover, where her father was the viceroy on behalf of his brother, George IV.
Princess Augusta had one brother, Prince George, later 2nd Duke of Cambridge; and one sister, Princess Mary-Adelaide, later Duchess of Teck. As such, Princess Augusta was an aunt to Mary of Teck, later consort of George V. Additionally, Princess Augusta was a first cousin through her father to Queen Victoria and through her mother to Princess Louise of Hesse-Cassel the wife of King Christian IX of Denmark.

With her mother, she was part of the royal party at the 1838 coronation of Queen Victoria.

Prince George, 2nd Duke of Cambridge (Brother)

Princess Mary-Adelaide of Cambridge (Sister)

Marriage

On June 28, 1843, Princess Augusta married her first cousin, Friedrich-Wilhelm of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, at Buckingham Palace, London. (The two were also second cousins on their fathers’ side.) Upon marriage, Augusta became the Hereditary Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and, on September 6, 1860, the Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz following the death of her father-in-law, Grand Duke Georg of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.

Grand Duke Friedrich-Wilhelm of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

The marriage of the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess produced two children:
* Duke Friedrich-Wilhelm of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (born and died in London, 13 January 1845)
* Duke Adolph-Friedrich of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (July 22, 1848 – June 11, 1914); succeeded his father as Adolph-Friedrich V in May 1904.

Friedrich Wilhelm and his wife Augusta celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary by distributing 25 Pfennig from the public treasury to every citizen of the grand duchy.

Later life

Although she spent most of her adult life in Germany, the Grand Duchess Augusta retained close personal ties to the British Royal Family. She frequently visited her mother, the Duchess of Cambridge, at her Kensington Palace apartments.
After her mother’s death in 1889, the Grand Duchess acquired a house in London’s Buckingham Gate area, where she spent a portion of the year until advanced old age made it impossible for her to travel abroad.

In making preparations for the coronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra in 1901, the Duke of Norfolk consulted her on matters of etiquette and attire. This was due to her presence at the coronation of King William IV and Queen Adelaide seventy-one years earlier. She was nine years old at the time and kissed the Queen’s hand. She was also able to provide details of the coronation of Queen Victoria.

The Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was particularly close to her niece, the future Queen Mary. However, old age prevented her from attending the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary on June 22, 1911.

Following the outbreak of World War I, the British Government suspended the annuity she had been receiving as a member of the British Royal Family under the Annuity, Duchess of Mecklenburgh Strelitz Act 1843. During the war, the Swedish Embassy passed letters from the Queen to her aunt, who still lived in Germany.

As an elderly lady, she was known for being cantankerous. She was also known as being quite shrewd and intelligent. In his book, Queen Mary (London, 1959), the Queen’s official biography, James Pope-Hennessy reports that the Queen’s Aunt Augusta was not fond of the new science of photography, fearing it would intrude deeply into the private lives of Royal personages; at pp. 101–105 he offers a masterly sketch of this formidable lady.

The Dowager Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz died on December 5, 1916 in Neustrelitz and was buried in Mirow. As the longest-lived grandchild of George III, she was the last link to the British branch of the House of Hanover.

At the time of her death, she was 94 years, 4 months and 16 days old, making her the longest-lived British princess by blood, until Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, a male-line granddaughter of Queen Victoria, surpassed her in 1977.

July 8, 1850: Death of Prince Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge.

Tags

Adolphus-Frederick of Cambridge, Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, Duke of Cambridge, King George III of the United Kingdom, King George IV of the United Kingdom, King William IV of the United Kingdom, Princess Mary of Teck, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, Viceroy of Hanover

Prince Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge, (February 24, 1774 – July 8, 1850) was the tenth child and seventh son of the British king George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He held the title of Duke of Cambridge from 1801 until his death. He also served as Viceroy of Hanover on behalf of his brothers George IV and William IV.

Early life

Prince Adolphus-Frederick was born at Buckingham House, then known as the “Queen’s House”, in the City and Liberty of Westminster, now within Greater London. He was the son of King George III of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King of Hanover and his wife Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the youngest daughter of Duke Charles of Mecklenburg (1708–1752; known as “Prince of Mirow”) and of his wife Princess Elisabeth-Albertine of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1713–1761).

Prince Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge

On March 24, 1774, the young prince was baptized in the Great Council Chamber at St James’s Palace by Frederick Cornwallis, Archbishop of Canterbury. His godparents were Prince Johann-Adolphus of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (his great-uncle, for whom the Earl of Hertford, Lord Chamberlain, stood proxy), Landgrave Charles of Hesse-Cassel his first cousin once removed, for whom the Earl of Jersey, Extra Lord of the Bedchamber, stood proxy) and Princess Wilhelmina of Orange (the wife of his first cousin once removed, for whom Elizabeth Howard, Dowager Countess of Effingham, former Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Charlotte, stood proxy).

He was tutored at home until summer 1786, when he was sent to the University of Göttingen in Germany, along with his brothers Prince Ernest (created Duke of Cumberland in 1799) and Prince Augustus (created Duke of Sussex in 1801).

Prince Adolphus-Frederick was made honorary Colonel-in-Chief of the Hanoverian Guard Foot Regiment 1789–1803, but his military training began in 1791, when he and Prince Ernest went to Hanover to study under the supervision of the Hanoverian commander Field Marshal Wilhelm von Freytag. He remained on Freytag’s staff during the Flanders Campaign in 1793. His first taste of action was at Famars on May 23.

He was wounded and captured at the Battle of Hondschoote 6 September, but was quickly rescued. As a Hanovarian General-Major, he commanded a Hessian brigade under his paternal great-uncle, General Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden-Gimborn in Autumn 1794, then commanded the Hanovarian Guards during the retreat through Holland. Remaining in Germany, he commanded a brigade of the Corps of Observation from 22 October 1796 until 12 January 1798.

In 1803, he was appointed as commander-in-chief of the newly founded King’s German Legion, and in 1813, he became field marshal. George III appointed Prince Adolphus a Knight of the Garter on June 2, 1776, and created him Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Tipperary, and Baron Culloden on November 24, 1801.

The Duke served as colonel-in-chief of the Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards (Coldstream Guards after 1855) from September 1805, and as colonel-in-chief of the 60th (The Duke of York’s Own Rifle Corps) Regiment of Foot from January 1824. After the collapse of Napoleon’s empire, he was Military Governor of Hanover from November 4, 1813 – October 24, 1816, then Governor General of Hanover from October 24, 1816 – June 20, 1837 (viceroy from February 22, 1831). He was made Field Marshal 26 November 1813. While he was Viceroy, the Duke became patron of the Cambridge-Dragoner (“Cambridge Dragoons”) Regiment of the Hanoverian army. This regiment was stationed in Celle, and their barracks, the Cambridge-Dragoner Kaserne, were used by the Bundeswehr until 1995. The “March of the Hannoversches Cambridge-Dragoner-Regiment” is part of the Bundeswehr’s traditional music repertoire.

Marriage

After the death of Princess Charlotte of Wales in 1817, the Duke was set the task of finding a bride for his eldest unmarried brother, the Duke of Clarence (later William IV), in the hope of securing heirs to the throne—Charlotte had been the only legitimate grandchild of George III, despite the fact that the King had twelve surviving children. After several false starts, the Duke of Clarence settled on Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen. The way was cleared for the Duke of Cambridge to find a bride for himself.

Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel

The Duke of Cambridge was married first at Cassel, Hesse on May 7, and then at Buckingham Palace on June 1, 1818 to his second cousin Princess and Landgravine Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, (July 24, 1797 – April 6, 1889), third daughter of Landgrave Friedrich of Hesse-Cassel and his wife, Princess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen.

Augusta of Hesse-Cassel was born at Rumpenheim Castle, Offenbach am Main, Hesse. Through her father, she was a great-granddaughter of George II of Great Britain, her grandfather having married George II’s daughter Mary. Her father’s older brother was Landgrave Wilhelm IX of Hesse-Cassel. In 1803, her uncle’s title was raised to the dignity of Imperial Elector of Hesse, and became Elector Wilhelm I of Hesse (the territorial distinction of Cassel was dropped) whereby the entire Cassel branch of the Hesse dynasty gained an upward notch in hierarchy.

Issue:

1. Prince George, 2nd Duke of Cambridge, (1819-1904)
illegally married, 1847, Sarah Louisa Fairbrother; had issue

2. Princess Augusta of Cambridge (1822-1916)
married, 1843, Friedrich-Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz; had issue

3. Princess Mary-Adelaide of Cambridge (1833-1897)
married, 1866, Francis, Duke of Teck; had issue, including Mary of Teck, wife of George V of the United Kingdom.

Viceroy

From 1816 to 1837, the Duke of Cambridge served as viceroy of the Kingdom of Hanover on behalf of his elder brothers, George IV and later William IV. When his niece succeeded to the British throne on June 20, 1837 as Queen Victoria, the 123-year union of the crowns of the United Kingdom and Hanover ended, due to Hanover being under Salic Law. The Duke of Cumberland became King of Hanover and the Duke of Cambridge returned to Britain.

Death

The Duke of Cambridge died on July 8, 1850 at Cambridge House, Piccadilly, London, at the age 76 and was buried at St Anne’s Church, Kew. His remains were later removed to St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. His only son, Prince George, succeeded to his peerages.

Through his granddaughter, Mary of Teck, wife of George V of the United Kingdom, Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge is the Great-great-great-great grandfather of Prince William, the current Duke of Cambridge.

On this Date in History: April 6, 1889. Death of Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, Duchess of Cambridge.

Tags

Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, Charlotte of Wales, Duchess of Cambridge, George III, George III of Great Britain, Kate Middleton, Kingdom of Hanover, Prince William, Prince William of Wales, Royal Marriages Act of 1772, United Kingdom, Viceroy

Today is the 130th anniversary of the death of the Duchess of Cambridge, (born Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel), on April 6, 1889.

Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel

Augusta was the Last holder of the title Duchess of Cambridge prior to the current Duchess of Cambridge. Augusta is the Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandmother of the current Duke of Cambridge.

Princess Augusta Wilhelmine Luise of Hesse-Cassel (July 25, 1797 – April 6, 1889) was the wife of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, the tenth-born child, and seventh son, of George III of the United Kingdom and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. The longest-lived daughter-in-law of George III, she was the maternal grandmother of Mary of Teck, wife of George V of the United Kingdom.

HRH The Dowager Duchess of Cambridge

Princess and Landgravine Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, third daughter of Landgrave Friedrich of Hesse-Cassel and his wife, Princess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen, was born at Rumpenheim, Offenbach am Main, Hesse. Through her father, she was a great-granddaughter of George II of Great Britain, her grandfather having married George II’s daughter Mary. Her father’s older brother was the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel. In 1803, her uncle’s title was raised to Imperial Elector of Hesse—whereby the entire Cassel branch of the Hesse dynasty gained an upward notch in hierarchy.

Marriage

Prince Adolphus Frederick, The Duke of Cambridge

On May 7, 1818 in Cassel, and then, again, on June 1, 1818 at Buckingham Palace, Princess Augusta married her second cousin, Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, when she was 20 and he 44. Their marriage was a result of the “rush to the alter” for the unmarried sons of George III after the death in childbirth of their niece Princess Charlotte of Wales the previous year. The death of Princess Charlotte meant there was no legitimate heir to the throne of the United Kingdom in the third generation.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had three children: George, 2nd Duke of Cambridge (1819-1904); Augusta of Cambridge (1822-1916)(who married Friedrich Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenberg-Strelitz); Mary Adelaide of Cambridge (1833-1897) (who married Prince Francis, Duke of Teck, the parents of Princess Mary of Teck wife of George V of the United Kingdom).

At this time in the history of the British Monarchy the King of the United Kingdom was also the King of Hanover, a state within the German Confederation of the Rhine. The union of these two crowns was a personal union and not a political union. Shortly after their marriage in 1818 the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge moved to Hanover where her husband served as viceroy on behalf of his brothers, George IV (1820-1830) and William IV (1830-1837). The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to Great Britain, in 1837 when Prince Ernest-Augustus, Duke of Cumberland became King of Hanover (1837-1851).

Since Hanover was ruled by the Salic Law which barred women from inheriting the throne, Victoria (1837-1901) inherited the British throne and her uncle Prince Ernest-Augustus, Duke of Cumberland inherited the Hanoverian crown. With the King of Hanover now living in Hanover there was no longer a need for a Viceroy and therefore the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to Britain where they lived at Cambridge Cottage, Kew, and later at St. James’s Palace.

Prince Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland and King of Hanover

The Duke of Cambridge died on July 8, 1850 at Cambridge House, Piccadilly, London, at the age of 76 and was buried at St Anne’s Church, Kew. His remains were later removed to St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. His only son, Prince George, succeeded to his peerages. The 2nd Duke of Cambridge married privately and in contravention of the 1772 Royal Marriages Act at St. John’s Church, Clerkenwell, London, on January 8, 1847 to Sarah Fairbrother (1816 – January 12, 1890), the daughter of John Fairbrother, a servant in Westminster. As the marriage was contrary to the Royal Marriages Act, the Duke’s wife was not titled Duchess of Cambridge or accorded the style Her Royal Highness, nor was their son born after the marriage eligible to succeed to the Duke’s titles. This was why Augusta was the last Duchess of Cambridge until Kate Middleton married the current Duke of Cambridge, Prince William of Wales in 2011.

Death

The Duchess of Cambridge survived her husband by thirty-nine years, dying on April 6, 1889, at the age of ninety-one. Queen Victoria wrote of her aunt’s death: “Very sad, though not for her. But she is the last of her generation, & I have no longer anyone above me.”