Helena of Waldeck & Pyrmont, Duchess of Albany

(Helena as a young woman, at around the time of her marriage to Leopold.  Photo credit: royalglitter.com)

February 17, 1861 – Birth of Helena of Waldeck & Pymont, Duchess of Albany

Helena's Wikipedia page

The marriages of Victoria’s children were by in large successful to varying degrees, but the most unexpected pairing was very happy and surprisingly fruitful.  The union also did not provoke political controversy, unique among Victoria’s children.  It was also by far the briefest marriage of the group, cut short by a death caused by reasons that are still unclear.  This was the marriage of Leopold, Victoria’s fourth son, and Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont, a princess of a small German principality.

Helena (also known as Helen or Helene) was born in Arolsen, a small town in the present day German state of Hesse.  She was the fifth daughter of Georg Victor, the reigning prince of Waldeck and Pymont, and Helen of Nassau, a German princess who counted a Luxembourgish Grand Duke and a Swedish queen among her siblings.  At the time of Helena’s birth, Waldeck and Pyrmont was controlled largely by Prussia, with who it remained in good standing. 

Besides her four older sisters Sophie (who died at age 15 in 1869), Pauline, Marie, and Emma, Helena had a younger brother Friedrich and a younger sister Elisabeth.  Helena and her siblings received an excellent education, and all of the children were quite bright. Typical for the time, Helena had an English nanny and thus spoke the language fluently by the time she reached adolescence.  This skill was likely in her favor for her consideration as Leopold’s future wife. 

The Waldeck and Pyrmont family traveled a great deal while their children were young.  Two trips to Britain are documented in the 1860s and 1870s, along with additional travel in Germany, Denmark, Italy, France, and Sweden.  The family’s frequent travel and somewhat enlightened attitudes had put the children in touch with a wide variety of artists, scholars, writers, and other great minds of the day.  Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, Helena’s niece, later said that when meeting any one of her maternal aunts (and her mother), “one was invariably struck by their culture and general knowledge.”  Whereas other courts at the time were mired in excessive rules of etiquette and strict rules of isolation for royal daughters, Helena’s upbringing was nearly bohemian.

Helena herself was known to enjoying solving difficult mathematical problems, and, as her daughter later recounted, was an enthusiastic and passionate debater.  At age 18, Helena’s father made her superintendent of the principality’s nursery schools.  Helena was charged with creating the courses and materials of study for the students.  She and her sisters were also encouraged to participate in social causes in the principality; this practice powered by a strict sense of duty were to guide Helena throughout her life.  

Helena’s mother, Helen, appeared to be a rather excellent matchmaker for her daughters, seeking and securing high profile marriages whenever possible.  She reached out to the elderly, libidinous widower William III of the Netherlands when he was seeking a second wife to visit her daughters.  Marie had already married the future William II of Württemberg in 1877, but Helena, Pauline, and Emma were still unmarried.  Helena and Pauline thought William was far too old for them, Emma became fond of William despite the age difference and the two married in 1879.  These marriages raised the stock of the Waldeck and Pyrmont princesses, but following Emma’s marriage Helena had few (If any) new suitors.

By the middle of 1881, Leopold had had several setbacks in his search for a wife. It is rumored that Leopold was involved with Alice Liddell of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland fame, but evidence suggests that she and Leopold were merely good friends. At least two prospective brides (Daisy Maynard and Frederica of Hanover) were in love with – and married – other men.  Others declined due to Leopold’s health problems; he was all set to propose to one princess, Karoline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg in 1879, when her family stepped in and refused to allow it. 

William of Württemberg, the husband of Helena’s sister Marie, paid a visit to Victoria in 1881.  He suggested his then 20-year-old sister-in-law as a possible bride for Leopold.  A union with tiny Waldeck and Pyrmont was hardly advantageous for Britain, but principality at least had good relations with Prussia, meaning a prospective marriage wouldn’t unduly upset the Germans.  And with Emma already married to William III, an indirect familial relationship with the Netherlands was hardly a bad idea. 

Victoria was acquainted with the Waldeck and Pyrmont family, and instructed Leopold to meet with Helena on a trip to Germany during the summer of 1881.  Helena’s education and intellect made her an excellent match for Leopold, the most scholarly of Victoria’s children.  Leopold did as he was asked, although he was hesitant to get his hopes up.  But he did his duty and met Helena, her mother, and her younger sister in Bad Soden, a small resort town near Darmstadt in early September 1881. Evidently Leopold and Helena saw something they liked in one another, and after the visit Helena’s family requested information on Leopold’s health.

Figuring his hemophilia and possible epilepsy (he had had what seemed to be seizures since childhood, although they were infrequent and not severe) would scare off Helena, Leopold did his best not to think about the next step.  Both he and Victoria were surprised when, in the early fall of 1881, the Waldeck and Pyrmont family sent word that they had no objections to the marriage based on Leopold’s health.  Another visit by Leopold to Arolsen would be needed for the couple to make a decision.  Leopold made the trip in November 1881 and after visiting for a few days, he proposed to Helena.  She accepted, and the child Victoria thought would never marry was engaged.  Plans were made in London for a wedding in the spring of 1882. 

During their engagement, Leopold referred to Helena as his “darling Nellie,” and the couple continued to see one another as wedding plans were made.  Leopold made the trip to Arolsen again in January 1882 and accompanied Helena and her father to Britain in late February.  The visit was required by Victoria of all of her future children-in-law.  Helena made an excellent impression on the Queen, who found Helena very elegant, and particularly admired Helena’s dark hair.  The Queen noted – and later admired the fact that Helena was quite bold and frank, and generally preferred to address her new mother-in-law directly rather than by customary letter. 

Helena and Leopold were married at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on April 27, 1882.  Helena wore a French-made gown of white satin trimmed with point d'Alençon lace and decorated with myrtle and orange blossoms, tulle, and more lace.  The dress was a gift from the King and Queen of the Netherlands, Helena’s sister Emma and her husband.  Helena also wore several pieces of jewelry that were gifts from her family and from Leopold.   Leopold, was still walking with a cane following a fall the week before the wedding, seemed quite happy.  Of the marriage and Helena, Victoria wrote the following in her journal the night of the wedding:

This exciting day is all over, and past, like a dream, and the last, but one [Beatrice] of my children is married and has left the paternal home…It is very trying to see the dear boy, on this important day of his life, still lame and shaky, but I am thankful it is well over.  I feel so much for dear Helen, but she showed unmistakably how devoted she is to him.  It is a great blessing.  God bless them both.

The couple immediately made their way to Claremont House, which had been Queen Victoria’s gift to Leopold the previous year.  The inhabitants from Esher, the town nearest Claremont, welcomed them enthusiastically.  Aside from the gifts of jewelry, Helena and Leopold received several signed works from Leopold’s friends in the literary world, and a Broadwood grand piano from the Prince of Wales. 

Tragedy struck the day of the wedding, although Helena was not made aware of it until later.  Her sister Marie was unable to attend the wedding as she was at the end of her third pregnancy.  She gave birth to a stillborn daughter on the wedding day and afterward became ill.  Three days later, Marie died, likely of puerperal fever.  Helena was devastated and immediately went into mourning for her sister, which prevented her from being seen in public for most of the following summer.  The first few months of the marriage must have otherwise passed happily, as Helena was soon pregnant with her first child.

Helena gave birth to their daughter, Alice Mary Victoria Augusta Pauline, at Windsor Castle on February 25, 1883.  The baby was given the named of Leopold’s sister Alice, who had died of diphtheria in 1878.  Little Alice was seen as something of a marvel by her paternal family, as few had thought Leopold would live long enough – or would be physically able to – father a child.  Helena and Leopold took delight in their daughter, often choosing to care for her themselves rather than to rely on the service of the nurse.  Leopold was even occasionally seen around Esher pushing baby Alice in her carriage.  

Helena was again pregnant at the end of 1883, and the couple was hoping for Leopold to be given duties abroad, perhaps either in Australia or Canada.  Leopold was having his usual joint trouble that winter brought on by the hemophilia, and went to Cannes for the milder climate.  Helena stayed behind in Britain due to troubles with her pregnancy.  While getting ready one morning, Leopold slipped on a tile floor and hit his knee.  Leopold was in great pain and had to be given a great deal of morphine, but was able to write a sweet letter to Helena telling her he missed her and wanted her to come.  The following morning, Leopold had some type of convulsion – possibly epileptic, or due to the morphine – and died.  

Helena was crushed by Leopold’s sudden death.  Although she was well aware of his health problems, she likely did not expect to be a widow so young.  Three and a half months after Leopold’s death, Helena gave birth to her second child, Charles Edward George Albert Leopold.  Charles Edward was later to become the last reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha – and later a prominent member of the Nazi Party.

Helena never remarried.  Her life, however, remained quite full and busy.  In the years immediately following Leopold’s death, she was dedicated to raising her children and running the household at Claremont on diminished funds – her income had been slashed by 75% upon Leopold’s death.  Although the family lived comfortably, the decreased income meant that they lived rather simply. 

Helena took her children on fairly frequent trips around Europe to visit members of the now far-flung Waldeck and Pyrmont family.  She was also close to her sister-in-law Beatrice, who was also widowed at a young age.  Alice and Charles Edward were friendly with Beatrice’s children, to whom they were close in age. 

Helena also remained active in charity work through the end of her life.  She was one of the founders of the Deptford Fund, which was established to provide additional employment options for women in the cattle slaughter industry.  The Albany Institute, established in 1899, was dedicated to local charities.  Helena was also involved in the aiding of women escaping prostitution and hospital work, the latter of which became her chief focus during World War I. 

Eight grandchildren were born to Helena, the most notable of whom (Charles Edward’s daughter Sibylla) became the mother of Carl XVI Gustaf, the current King of Sweden.  Helena died of a heart attack on September 1, 1920, while visiting her son in Austria, where she is also buried.