Obscure Book of the Day: Princess Victoria and Kaiser Frederick

Traditionally, British princesses were married to “foreign” princes. It was considered a good way to expand the bloodline and form favorable ties with other empires. Germany, it seems, was thick with princes. So, by the time Queen Victoria ascended the throne, let’s be honest, her bloodline was more German than it was British, and then, she married a German Prince.

So, when it came time for the eldest daughter of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria to marry, the natural inclination was to match her up with a German Prince (also a Prince of Prussia) who would eventually ascend as Emperor of Germany and King of Prussia. Enter Prince Frederick. Queen Victoria liked the idea. Prince Albert definitely liked the idea. And, no one was happier than Uncle Leopold who had arranged the marriage of Victoria and Albert and who had long been a champion of getting a German stronghold on the British throne.

Princess Victoria and Prince Frederick greatly admired the relationship of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and decided that when Frederick ascended the throne of Germany they would rule in a similar Monarch/Consort arrangement as Princess Victoria’s parents. They waited 30 years for their chance. In 1888, Frederick and Victoria ascended as Emperor and Empress of Germany and King and Queen of Prussia. But, then, after 99 days on the throne, Frederick died a painful, horrible death from cancer of the larynx at the age of 57. And, that was that.

Princess Victoria remained in Germany throughout her widowhood. She kept constant communication via post with her mother and her younger brother, the future King Edward VII. Victoria would die in 1901 after suffering for two years from breast cancer.

The twenty-fifth in the series “Royal Romances: The Love Affairs that Shaped History” chronicles the relationship of Princess Victoria and Kaiser Frederick.

Let’s take a look inside: