Prince Alfred of Great Britain

Prince Alfred (22 September 1780 – 20 August 1782) was a member of the British Royal Family as the fourteenth child and ninth and youngest son of King George III and his queen consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. At that time smallpox was a dreaded disease and many royal princes and princesses were getting infected around Europe. Near 2 years old Alfred became ill after his inoculation against the smallpox virus; his early death at the age of nearly two, along with the demise of his brother Prince Octavius six months later, was a complete shock to their parents as both children were healthy. In his later bouts of madness King George would have imagined conversations with both of his youngest sons. It is said that George adored and loved his younger children dearly. This led George III to think that all his children were immortal and would live forever after the death of his youngest child Princess Amelia in 1810.

Prince Alfred
Portrait by Thomas Gainsborough, 1782
Born	22 September 1780 Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire, England
Died	20 August 1782 (aged 1) Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire, England
Burial	27 August 1782 Westminster Abbey 11 February 1820 St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
House	Hanover
Father	George III of the United Kingdom
Mother	Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Life

Prince Alfred was born on 22 September 1780, at Windsor Castle, Windsor, England.[1] His father was King George III, his mother Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. The prince was baptised by Frederick Cornwallis, The Archbishop of Canterbury, in the Great Council Chamber at St James's Palace on 21 October 1780. His godparents were The Prince of Wales (his eldest brother), The Prince Frederick (his second brother) and The Princess Royal (his eldest sister).[2][3] As his parents' fourteenth child and ninth son, his birth was no surprise but it did bring joy to his family, especially to his older sister Sophia, who, their sister Elizabeth reported, called the new baby her "grandson".[4]

Death and aftermath

In 1782, Prince Alfred was inoculated against smallpox. The sickness proved too much for the child and in June he was taken to Deal with his governess Lady Charlotte Finch to recover.[5][6] It was hoped that the sea air, bathing in the water, and horseback riding would improve his condition. While he was there, Alfred endeared himself to many, including an old woman to whom he waved. In spite of his charming disposition, he continued to break out in spots and his chest was troubling him.[5] When he returned to Windsor in August 1782, the doctors inspected him and realized that the boy had only weeks to live. After suffering bouts of fever and continuing problems with his chest,[7] Prince Alfred died on 20 August 1782, at Windsor Castle, Berkshire, not even two years old.[1][8]

Although the household did not go into mourning (it was not prescribed for royal children younger than fourteen),[9] his parents took the loss harshly. According to Lady Charlotte Finch, the Queen "cried vastly" and was "very much hurt by her loss and the King also."[10] Later in August 1782 the Queen sent Finch a lock of Alfred's hair stating "Receive This ... as an Acknowledgement for Your very affectionate attendance upon my dear little Angel Alfred, and wear the inclosed Hair, not only in remembrance of that dear Object, but also as a mark of esteem from Your Affectionate Queen".[11] Alfred was buried at Westminster Abbey,[12] though his remains were later moved to the Royal Vault in St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle on 11 February 1820.[13][14][15] His father continued to dwell on his death, and the sight of Alfred's posthumous portrait in a family painting by Thomas Gainsborough nearly a year after Alfred's death sent his three eldest sisters into tears.[16] Six months after Alfred's death, his elder brother Octavius succumbed to the smallpox virus, further devastating the king.[17][18] During one of his bouts of madness in 1812, George would have imaginary conversations with his two youngest sons.[note 1]

His youngest sister Princess Amelia was conceived in the months after Alfred's death, born almost exactly a year after he died.[19] The first of George III and Queen Charlotte's children to die,[12][20] Alfred died nearly seventy five years before his older sister Mary, who was the last survivor of George III and Queen Charlotte's fifteen children.[21] Alfred is also unique among their first fourteen children for never being an older sibling while he was alive, as the only child younger than him was born after his death.[22]

Title and style

• 22 September 1780 – 20 August 1782: His Royal Highness The Prince Alfred

Ancestry

Ancestors of Prince Alfred of Great Britain[23]

8. George II of Great Britain 4. Frederick, Prince of Wales 9. Princess Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach 2. George III of Great Britain 10. Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg 5. Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha 11. Princess Magdalena Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst 1. Prince Alfred of Great Britain 12. Adolphus Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz 6. Duke Charles Louis Frederick of Mecklenburg-Strelitz 13. Princess Christiane Emilie of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen 3. Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz 14. Ernest Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen 7. Princess Elisabeth Albertine of Saxe-Hildburghausen 15. Countess Sophia Albertine of Erbach-Erbach

Notes

1. Jeremy Black lists these conversations occurring in 1812,[17] while Kenneth Panton believes they happened the previous year, in 1811.[12] The King's last bout of madness occurred from 1811 until his death in 1820, so either date is possible.

References

1. Weir 2008, p. 300.
2. Sheppard 1894, p. 59.
3. Watkins 1819, p. 276.
4. Fraser 2004, p. 70.
5. Fraser 2004, p. 75.
6. Watkins 1819, p. 282.
7. Fraser 2004, pp. 75–76.
8. Holt 1820, p. 251.
9. Fritz 1982, p. 305.
10. Fraser 2004, p. 76.
11. "RA GEO/ADD/15/443a-b - Letter from Queen Charlotte to Lady Charlotte Finch, probably August 1782". Georgian Papers Project. Royal Collection Trust. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
12. Panton 2011, p. 39.
13. "Royal Burials in the Chapel since 1805". College of St. George. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
14. "Royal Burials in the Chapel by location". College of St. George. Archived from the original on 22 January 2010. Retrieved 18 November 2011.
15. Holt 1820, p. 256.
16. Fraser 2004, p. 77.
17. Black 2006, p. 156.
18. Fraser 2004, pp. 74–77.
19. Fraser 2004, p. 78.
20. Hibbert 2000, p. 99.
21. Fraser 2004, pp. 398–399.
22. Fraser 2004.
23. Genealogie ascendante jusqu'au quatrieme degre inclusivement de tous les Rois et Princes de maisons souveraines de l'Europe actuellement vivans [Genealogy up to the fourth degree inclusive of all the Kings and Princes of sovereign houses of Europe currently living] (in French). Bourdeaux: Frederic Guillaume Birnstiel. 1768. p. 5.

Bibliography

• Black, Jeremy (2006). George III: America's Last King. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-11732-9.
• Fraser, Flora (2004). Princesses: The Six Daughters of George III. London: John Murray. ISBN 0-7195-6109-4.
• Fritz, Paul S. (1982). "The Trade in Death: The Royal Funerals in England, 1685-1830". Eighteenth-Century Studies. 15 (3): 291–316. doi:10.2307/2738157. JSTOR 2738157.
• Hibbert, Christopher (2000). George III: A Personal History. Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-02724-5.
• Holt, Edward (1820). The public and domestic life of His late Most Gracious Majesty, George the Third, Volume 1. London: Sherwood, Neely, and Jones.
• Panton, Kenneth J. (2011). Historical Dictionary of the British Monarchy. Scarebrow Press, Inc. ISBN 978-0-8108-5779-7.
• Sheppard, Edgar (1894). Memorials of St. James's Palace, Volume 2. London: Longmans, Green, and Co.
• Watkins, John (1819). Memoirs of Her most excellent Majesty Sophia-Charlotte: Queen of Great Britain, Volume 1. London: Henry Colburn.
• Weir, Alison (2008). Britain's Royal Families, The Complete Genealogy. London: Vintage Books. ISBN 978-0-09-953973-5.