Biography of Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke 1837-1892
Paternal Family Tree: Hesse
1862 Appointment of Garter Knights
1863 Marriage of the future King Edward VII and Alexandra
1874 Wedding of Prince Alfred and Grand Duchess Maria of Russia
In 1836 [his father] Karl Wilhelm Hesse Darmstadt (age 26) and [his mother] Elizabeth Prussia were married. He the son of [his grandfather] Louis Hesse Darmstadt II Grand Duke (age 58) and [his grandmother] Princess Wilhelmine Baden (age 47).
On 12 Sep 1837 Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke was born to Karl Wilhelm Hesse Darmstadt (age 28) and Elizabeth Prussia.
The Times. 24 Dec 1861. Yesterday, with little of the pomp and pageantry of a State ceremonial, but with every outward mark of respect, and with all the solemnity which befitted his high station and his public virties, the mortal remains of the husband (deceased) of our [his future mother-in-law] Queen (age 42) were interred in the last resting-place of England's Sovereigns-the Chapel Royal of St. George's, Windsor [Map]. By the express desire of his Royal Highness the funeral was of the plainest and most private character; but in the Chapel, to do honour to his obsequies, were assembled all the chiefest men of the State, and throughout England, by every sign of sorrow and imourning, the nation manifested its sense of the loss wlhich it has sustaiined. Windsor itself wore an aspect of the most profound gloom. Every shop was closed and every blind drawn down. The streets were silent and almost deserted, and all wvho appeared abroad were dressed in the deepest mourning. The great bell of Windsor Castle [Map] clanged out: its doleful sound at intervals from an early hour, and minute bells were tolled also at St. John's Church. At the parish church of Cleover and at St. John's there were services in the morning and: aternoon, and the day was observed throughout the Royal borough in the strictest manner. The weather was in character with the occasion, a chill, damp air, with a dull leaden sky above, increased the gloom which hung over all. There were but few visitors in the town, for the procession did not pass beyond the immediate precincts of the Chapel and Castle, and none were admitted except those connected with the Castle andi their friends. At 11 o'clock a strong force of the A division took possession of the avenues leading to the Chapel Royal, and from that time only the guests specially invited and those who were to take part in the ceremonial were allowed to pass. Shortly afterwards a of honour of the Grenadier Guards, of which regiment his Royal Highness was Colonel, with the colonrs of the regiment shrouded in crape, marched in and took up its position before the principal entrance to the Chapel Royal. Another guard of honour from the same regiment was also on duty in the Quadrangle at the entrance to the State apartments. They were speedily followed by a squadron of the 2nd Life Guards dismounted, and by two companies of the Fusileer Guards, who were drawn uip in single file along each side of the road by which the procession was to pass, from the Norman gateway to the Chapel door. The officers wore the deepest military mourning-scarves, sword-knots, and rosettes of crape. In the Rome Park was stationed a troop of Horse Artillery, which commenced firing minute guns at the end of the Long Walk, advancing slowly until it reached the Castle gates just at the close of the ceremony. The Ministers, the officers of the Queen's Household, and other distinguished personages who had been honoured with an invitation to attend the ceremonial, reached Windsor a special train from Paddington. They were met by carriages provided for them at the station, and began to arrive at the Chapel Royal soon after 11 o'clock. The Earl of Derby (age 62), the Archbishop of Canterbury (age 81), Earl Russell (age 69), and the Duke of Buccleuch were among the first to make their appearance, and as they alighted at the door of the Chapel they were received by the proper officials and conducted to the seats appointed for them in the Choir. In the Great Quadrangle were drawn up the hearse and the mourning coaches, and, all the preparations having been completed within the Castle, the procession began to be formed shortly before 12 o'clock. It had been originally intended that it should leave the Castle by the St. George's gate, and, proceeding down Castle-hill, approach the Chapel through Henry VII.'s gateway, but at a late hour this arrangement was changed, and the shorter route by the Norman gatewvay was chosen.
The crowd which had gradually collected at the foot of Castle-hill, owing to this change, saw nothing of the procession but the empty carriages as they returned to the Castle after setting down at the Chapel. The few spectators who were fortunate enough to gain admission to the Lower Ward stood in a narrow fringe along the edge of the flags in front of the houses of the Poor Knights, and their presence was the only exception to the strict privacy of the ceremonial. The [his future brother-in-law] Prince of Wales (age 20) and the other Royal mourners assembled in the Oak Room, but did not form part of the procession. They were conveyed to the Chapel in private carriages before the coffin was placed in the hearse, passing through St. George's gatewayinto the Lower Ward. In the first carriage were the Prince of Wales, [his future brother-in-law] Prince Arthur (age 11), and the [his future brother-in-law] Duke of Saxe Coburg (age 8). The Crown Prince of Prussia (age 30), the Duke of Brabant (age 26), and the Count of Flanders (age 24) followed in the next; and in the others were the Duke de Nemours (age 47), Prince Louis of Hesse (age 24), Prince Edward of Saxe-Weimar (age 38), and the Maharajah Dhuleep Singh, with the gentlemen of their respective suites. Scarcely had they alighted at the door of Wolsey's Chapel, from which they were conducted through the Chapter Room to the door of the Chapel Royal to be in readiness to meet the coffin, when the first minute gun fired in tlhe distance, and the rattle of the troops reversing arms announced that the procession had started, and exactly at 12 o'clock the first mourning coach moved from under the Norman gateway. First came nine mourning coaches, each drawn by four horses, conveying the Physicians, Equerries, and other members of the household of the late Prince. In the last were the Lord Steward (age 63) (Earl St. Germans), the Lord Chamberlain (age 56) (Viscount Sidney), and the Master of the Horse (age 57) (the Marquis of Ailesbury). The carriages and trappings were of the plainest description; the horses had black velvet housings and feathers, but on the carriages there, were no feathers or ornaments of any kind. The mourning coaches were followed by one of the Queen's carriages, drawn by six horses, and attended by servants in State liveries, in which was the Groom of the Stole (age 26), Earl Spencer, carrying the crown, and a Lord of the Bedchamber, Lord George Lennox, carrying the baton, sword, and hat of his late Royal Highness. Next escorted by a troop of the 2nd Life Guards, came the hearse, drawn by six black horses, which, like the carriages, was quite plain and unornamented. On the housings of the horses and on the sides of the hearse were emblazoned the scutcheons of Her Majesty and of the Prince, each surmounted by a, crown, the Prince's arms being in black and Her Majesty's in white. The procession was closed by four State carriages.
In 1862 [his future mother-in-law] Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (age 42) appointed seven Knights of the Garter:
729th Charles Canning 1st Earl Canning (age 49). He died a month later.
730th Edward Adolphus Seymour 12th Duke of Somerset (age 57).
731st. John Russell 1st Earl Russell (age 69).
732nd Anthony Ashley-Cooper 7th Earl Shaftesbury (age 60).
733rd William Thomas Wentworth-Fitzwilliam 6th and 4th Earl Fitzwilliam (age 46).
734th Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 24).
735th Grand Duke Frederick William of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (age 42).
On 01 Jul 1862 Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 24) and Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 19) were married at Osborne House, Isle of Wight. She the daughter of Prince Albert Saxe Coburg Gotha and Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (age 43).
On 10 Mar 1863 [his brother-in-law] King Edward VII of the United Kingdom (age 21) and Alexandra Glücksburg Queen Consort England (age 18) were married at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle [Map]. She the daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark (age 44) and Queen Louise Hesse-Kassel of Denmark (age 45). He the son of Prince Albert Saxe Coburg Gotha and [his mother-in-law] Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (age 43). They were third cousin once removed. She a great x 3 granddaughter of King George II of Great Britain and Ireland.
On 05 Apr 1863 [his daughter] Victoria Hesse Darmstadt Marchioness Milford Haven was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 25) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 19) at Windsor Castle [Map]. She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 01 Nov 1864 [his daughter] Elizabeth Feodorovna Hesse Darmstadt was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 27) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 21). She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 24 May 1866 [his brother-in-law] Prince Alfred Windsor (age 21) was created 1st Duke Edinburgh.
On 11 Jul 1866 [his daughter] Irene Hesse Darmstadt was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 28) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 23). She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 25 Nov 1868 [his son] Ernest Louis Hesse Darmstadt Grand Duke was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 31) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 25). He a grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 07 Oct 1870 [his son] Friedrich Hesse Darmstadt was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 33) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 27). He a grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 21 May 1871 John Campbell 9th Duke Argyll (age 25) and [his sister-in-law] Princess Louise Caroline Alberta Windsor Duchess Argyll (age 23) were married. She the daughter of Prince Albert Saxe Coburg Gotha and [his mother-in-law] Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (age 51). He the son of George Douglas Campbell 8th Duke Argyll (age 48) and Elizabeth Georgiana Leveson-Gower Duchess Argyll.
On 01 Dec 1871 George Philip Cecil Arthur Stanhope 7th Earl Chesterfield (age 40) died of typhoid unmarried. His third cousin George Philip Stanhope 8th Earl Chesterfield (age 49) succeeded 8th Earl Chesterfield, 8th Baron Stanhope of Shelford in Nottinghamshire. He had been staying at Londesborough Lodge Scarborough with the [his brother-in-law] Prince of Wales (age 30) who also contracted typhoid but survived.
On 06 Jun 1872 [his daughter] Alix aka Alexandra Hesse Darmstadt was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 34) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 29). She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 23 Jan 1874 [his brother-in-law] Prince Alfred Windsor (age 29) and Maria Holstein Gottorp Romanov (age 20) were married. He the son of Prince Albert Saxe Coburg Gotha and [his mother-in-law] Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (age 54). They were half third cousin once removed. She a great x 5 granddaughter of King George I of Great Britain and Ireland.
On 24 May 1874 [his daughter] Marie Hesse Darmstadt was born to Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 36) and [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 31). She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 24 May 1874 [his brother-in-law] Prince Arthur Windsor 1st Duke Connaught and Strathearn (age 24) was created 1st Duke Connaught and Strathearn. Luise Margarete Hohenzollern Duchess Connaught (age 13) by marriage Duchess Connaught and Strathearn.
On 13 Jun 1877 Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 39) was appointed IV Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine.
On 14 Dec 1878 [his wife] Princess Alice Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 35) died.
On 30 Apr 1884 father and daughter, Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 46) and Victoria Hesse Darmstadt Marchioness Milford Haven (age 21), were both married on the same, of near, days, he taking advantage pf his relatives being in Darmstadt for his daughter's wedding. He, apparently, didn't approve of his daughter's choice of his first cousin Prince Louis of Battenburg 1st Marquess Milford Haven (age 29) since they, Prince Louis of Battenburg 1st Marquess Milford Haven and Victoria Hesse Darmstadt Marchioness Milford Haven would live in Britain.
Prince Louis of Battenburg 1st Marquess Milford Haven and Victoria Hesse Darmstadt Marchioness Milford Haven were married. They were first cousin once removed. She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
In the evening Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke and Alexandrina Hutten Czapska (age 29) were married. She being his former mistress. Apparently, they separated within a week and the marriage was annulled within three months.
On 24 May 1888 [his son-in-law] Prince Henry Hohenzollern (age 25) and [his daughter] Irene Hesse Darmstadt (age 21) were married. He the son of Frederick III King Prussia (age 56) and [his former sister-in-law] Victoria Empress Germany Queen Consort Prussia (age 47). They were first cousins. He a grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. She a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
On 13 Mar 1892 Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke (age 54) died.
On 08 May 1941 [his former wife] Alexandrina Hutten Czapska (age 86) died.
Kings Wessex: Great x 25 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings England: Great x 20 Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 24 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 21 Grand Son of Louis VII King Franks
Kings France: Great x 25 Grand Son of Robert "Pious" II King France
Great x 4 Grandfather: Landgrave Ernest Louis of Hesse-Darmstadt 14 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Landgrave Louis VIII of Hesse-Darmstadt 15 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Landgrave Louis IX of Hesse-Darmstadt 16 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Louis I Grand Duke of Hesse 17 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Count Palatine Christian III of Zweibrücken
Great x 2 Grandmother: Countess Palatine Caroline of Zweibrücken
GrandFather: Louis Hesse Darmstadt II Grand Duke 18 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Father: Karl Wilhelm Hesse Darmstadt 19 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Grand Duke Charles Frederick of Baden
Great x 1 Grandfather: Prince Charles Louis of Baden 17 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Landgrave Ernest Louis of Hesse-Darmstadt 14 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Landgrave Louis VIII of Hesse-Darmstadt 15 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Caroline Louise of Hesse-Darmstadt 16 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
GrandMother: Princess Wilhelmine Baden 18 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Landgrave Ernest Louis of Hesse-Darmstadt 14 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Landgrave Louis VIII of Hesse-Darmstadt 15 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Landgrave Louis IX of Hesse-Darmstadt 16 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Princess Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt 17 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Count Palatine Christian III of Zweibrücken
Great x 2 Grandmother: Countess Palatine Caroline of Zweibrücken
Prince Louis Hesse Darmstadt IV Grand Duke 20 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Mother: Elizabeth Prussia