The final illness and death of Prince Albert through Queen Victoria’s letters and journals, 14th December 1861:

“I have never had the courage to attempt to describe this dreadful day – but I will now at the distance of ten years (Feb. 1872), with the terrible facts imprinted on my mind as clearly as tho’ they had occurred yesterday, & with the help of notes scrawled down at the time, try to describe it. At 1., 2., & 3. o’clock I heard repeatedly good news, my maid having come back with the reports, as I had sent her over. I slept again till ½ p. 5. when Mr Brown (he & good Sir James are both gone from this World now) came in about 6. & said: “I’ve no hesitation in saying that I think he is better than he has been yet; I think there is ground to hope the crisis is over.” – Went over at 7. as I usually did. It was a bright morning; the sun just rising & shining brightly. The room had the sad look of night-watching, the candles burnt down to their sockets – the Doctors looking anxious. I went in, & never can I forget how beautiful my Darling looked lying there with his face lit up by the rising sun, his eyes unusually bright gazing as it were on unseen objects, & not taking notice of me. I remained in & out of his room till 20 mts to 8. – when I went to dress. – Breakfast at ½ p. 9. Bertie, who arrived last night, was there. Sir James was very hopeful & so was Dr Jenner, & said it was a “decided rally” – but that they were all “very, very anxious”. Sir H. Holland was very anxious. All constantly there or in the next room & so was I. – More Bulletins issued which were of course shown to me. – They gave him brandy every half-hour which at last he disliked very much. The quantities of every thing he took were measured out & written down, – & all were placed on the table below the fine picture in the place he was wheeled through to the other room. – The day was very fine & very bright. I asked whether I might go out for a breath of fresh air. The doctors answered: “Yes, just close by for half-an-hour”. – At about 12. I went out on the Terrace with Alice. The military band was playing at a distance & I burst out crying & came home again – my anxiety & distress were so great. Hurried over at once. I asked Dr Watson who was in the room whether he was not better as he seemed stronger tho’ he took very little notice, & he answered: “We are very much frightened, but don’t & won’t give up hope”, & he said he had just been reading a very fine article in the “Times” which he showed me. They would not let him sit up to take his brandy or broth as he wasted his strength so much by doing so. – “The pulse keeps up” – they said – “he is not worse”. Every hour, every minute was a gain & Sir James was very hopeful, he had seen much worse cases. But the breathing was the alarming thing – so rapid, I think 60 respirations in a minute – tho’ the brandy always made it slower when taken. There was what they call a dusky hue about his dear face & hands which I knew was not good. – I made some observations to Dr Jenner about it & was alarmed by seeing that he seemed to notice it. He spoke of the railway & a journey & Dr Watson quietly said: “We’ll not think of railways now.” – He folded his arms & began arranging his hair just as he used to do when well, – & he was dressing. These were said to be bad signs! Strange, as tho’ he were preparing for another & a greater journey. – […]

[…] They wished him later to change his bed, but they feared to do it. – My distress terrible. I never hardly left the next room in which Alice & also dear Marie were almost constantly – & Augusta in & out. Was persuaded to have a little brought in for me to eat. – I asked Dr Jenner whether there was any hope? He answered: “Humanly speaking it is not impossible” – There was nothing to prevent his getting over it, & yet it seemed as though that precious Life, the most precious there was, was ebbing away! Lay down on the sofa in dreadful agony not to be described. Miss Hildyard came in & was most kind, also good Sir Charles Phipps, whose hand shook & when I was crying in despair saying how should & could I ever get on, – most kindly said he would help me in every way he could. It was about ½ p. 5. when I went in & sat down next his bed, which was in the middle of the room rather, having been pushed forward. “Gutes Frauchen” he said, & kissed me & then gave a sort of piteous or rather more sigh, not of pain, but as if he felt that he was leaving me, & laid his head on my shoulder and I put my arm under his. But that passed away again, & he seemed to wander & to doze, & yet to know all. Sometimes I could not catch what he said, occasionally he spoke French. Alice came in & kissed him & he took her hand; then I asked if he would see Bertie, which I rather dreaded, lest it should excite or agitate him, & he said he would. Bertie, Lenchen, Louise, & Arthur came in one after the other & took his hand & Arthur kissed it. But he was dozing & did not perceive them. Then he opened his dear eyes & asked for Sir Ch. Phipps, who came in & kissed his hand, but then again his dear eyes were closed. General Grey & Sir Thomas Biddulph each came in to kiss that dear hand, & were dreadfully overcome. It was a terrible moment, but, thank God! I was able to command myself & to be perfectly calm, & remained sitting by his side. […]

[…] Dr Watson gave me the glass with brandy, & asked if I would give it him, but my hand shook so (the only thing which I never can command when I am nervous) that I could not do it. – So it went on, not really worse, but not better. It was thought necessary to change his bed & he was even able to get out of his bed & sit up, & tried to get into his bed alone which however he could not, & Löhlein & Shackle, one of the Pages of the Backstairs, helped to place him on the other bed. – The digestion was perfect, but when I observed to Dr Jenner that that was surely a good sign, he said alas! with such breathing it was of no avail! – He turned over on his side & said he was quite comfortable. The doctors said plenty of air passed through the lungs which of course gave one still hope. – Went into the other room for a little while, where the others were in & out, & my Maids could be seen waiting anxiously in the rooms which led to our room. I heard heavy breathing & Alice who had been in the next room came in & said: “I’m afraid this takes away all our hope.” I went in & found him bathed in perspiration, but not cold, & the doctors who were standing near (& were constantly in the room) said that this might be an effort of Nature. I bent over him & said to him: “Es ist kleines Frauchen”, & he bowed his head; I asked him if he would give me “ein Kuss” & he did so. He seemed half dozing, quite quiet & only wishing to be left quiet & undisturbed, as he so often did when tired or not well. He had cried out & resisted the brandy so much that they did not give it any more, & the last attempt was on attempt was on a sponge! – I left the room for a moment & sat down on the floor in utter despair. Attempts at consolation from others only made me worse. Dear Marie Leiningen was so sweet & gentle. […]

[…] Alice told me to come in, Sir James having told her to do so, & I came in & took his dear left hand which was already cold, tho’ the breathing was quite gentle, & I knelt down by him. – Alice was on the other side, Bertie & Lenchen on her side kneeling at the foot of the bed, Ernest Leiningen, the doctors & Löhlein (who was much overcome) not far from the foot of the bed. – Sir Charles Phipps, the Dean, & General Bruce – who knelt almost opposite to me – (& who was the first to leave this World after Him) were also in the room. Two or three long but perfectly gentle breaths were drawn, the hand clasping mine, and (oh! it turns me sick to write it) all, all was over – the heavenly Spirit fled to the World it was fit for, & free from the sorrows & trials of this World! I stood up, kissed his dear heavenly forehead & called out in a bitter & agonizing cry: “Oh! my dear Darling!” & then dropped on my knees in mute, distracted despair, unable to utter a word or shed a tear! Ernest Leiningen & Sir Ch. Phipps lifted me up, & Ernest led me out. – I know not what I did & whether the Children remained, I think not – except Alice. Dear Marie was there, she had knelt just at the door with Augusta. Then I laid down on the sofa in the Red room, & all the gentlemen came in & knelt down & kissed my hand, & I said a word to each. General Bruce I begged to remain with our Son & be a father to him. Lord Alfred Paget sobbed out loud & said he had been in waiting at our marriage & was so now! All were kind & feeling, & who would not? The gentlemen there were: Lord Camoys, Sir Henry Bentinck, Lord Alfred Paget, & Colonel Duplat. […]

[…] They all left again, & good Sir James came to say – if I would like to come & take a look? Oh! that I can even now write it – & that I did not go out of my mind! – I went in alone with that kind, fatherly old Friend – who so loved us both, & when I saw the beautiful form I said: “I can’t look”, & good Sir James answered: “I don’t wonder”. – Then I took courage, & kissed my precious Darling, my all in all, the thought of losing whom I had never thought possible! He was as warm as tho’ he slept. The Duchess of Athole came to me for a moment in great distress, & was most kind, & I took her & Miss Hildyard in to see my Darling, & stroked his dear face – Miss Hildyard asked if she might kiss his dear hands… Then, at last, it was about 12. (the dreadful moment when he was taken was at 20 mts p. 11.) I went to my room, & there sat gazing wildly & as hard as a stone on my Maids (Sophie Weiss, Emilie Dittweiler, & Mary Andrews, of whom the first & last are no longer with me), who strove kindly to soothe me, & was taken to my dressing room & went to bed. Alice slept in the same room. – But I could get no sleep & could not cry, – at length I sent for Dr Jenner, who came into the room & sat there a little while till I went to sleep, & then woke & had a dreadful burst of crying, which relieved me.”

Queen Victoria’s account of the Prince Consort’s illness and death (RA VIC/MAIN/Z/142)