OTD March 11th.1895 Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine

March 11th. 1895 marks the birth of Elisabeth Marie Alice Viktoria
(nicknamed Ella). This event took place in Darmstadt (German Empire).

Her parents were Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and
Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. They were both
grandchildren of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.

Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine - Source Wikipedia


When Elisabeth was little, her father gave the order to build a playhouse
where adults were not allowed. This frustrated her royal nurses and tutors.

Elisabeth was the favorite of her great-grandmother Queen Victoria.
She often stayed at Windsor Castle and the Queen called the girl
'my precious'.

When the child heard Queen Victoria's pony coach approaching on the road
bellow she ran to the balcony and called
'Granny Gran I'm here.' This made Queen Victoria laugh.

On October 6th. 1903 Ernst Ludwig hosted a large family gathering
in Darmstadt for the wedding of his niece Princess Alice of Battenberg and
Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark.

A few weeks later Ernst Ludwig traveled to his sister Empress Alexandra
Feodorovna and her husband Tsar Nicholas II of Russia. He took Elisabeth
with him. There she died suddenly in Skierniewice (then located in the
Russian Emire) on November 16th. 1903.

Her early death gave the reason to many rumors like she would be poisoned
by her uncle Tsar Nicholas II. The Court doctor claimed that Elisabeth died
of Typhoid.

Her father, Ernst, was devastated by the death of his daughter. Years later he
wrote in his memoirs:
"My little Elisabeth was the sunshine of my life."

Comments

Vallypee said…
What a sad story, Kathleen. She looked a lovely thoughtful child.
yes it is a very sad story, indeed :-( royal history sometimes is hard and sad

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