At 6am on 26th February 1869, Princess Helena, fifth child of Queen Victoria, gave birth to her second child, Prince Albert, at Frogmore House in Windsor. At the time of his birth, Queen Victoria was staying at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. In her journal the Queen wrote that she was “most truly thankful … & relieved to be spared the great anxiety and suspense” of the labour, which she had “dreaded”. However, she also described being “distressed” that she couldn’t be there to support her daughter at her time of need. Nonetheless, when she arrived at Windsor later that day, the Queen rushed straight to Frogmore to meet her newest grandchild, who she described as “a fine large child, with a quantity of dark hair.”
©️ Royal Collection Trust / HM King Charles III
Just over a month after his birth, on 31st March, the baby was christened in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle. He was given the names Albert John Charles Frederick Alfred George, although he was simply known as ‘Abby’ amongst his close family. The baby’s godparents included: Caroline Amelie, Dowager Queen of Denmark; Alexandra, Princess of Wales; Princess Alice of Hesse and by Rhine; Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh; Frederick VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein; Johann, King of Saxony; and Prince George, Duke of Cambridge.
Growing up, Albert and his siblings lived a relatively modest life by royal standards. They learnt basic life skills and would regularly play with children local to their home, Cumberland Lodge. When he was old enough, the Prince began attending Lambrook Preparatory School in Berkshire before eventually joining the Prussian army. Throughout his time in service, Albert was commissioned as lieutenant in the 1st Hessian Dragoon Guards and eventually reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the 3rd Uhlans of the Guard.
©️ Royal Collection Trust / HM King Charles III
When the First World War broke out, Albert found himself on the opposite side to the rest of his family. Understandably, the Prince was reluctant to fight against his own family and, as a result, the German Kaiser – Albert’s maternal cousin – excused him from service. So, instead of fighting, Albert spent the duration of the war in Berlin in the staff of the Governor of the City.
On 22nd February 1921, the Prince’s life changed forever when his cousin, Ernst Günther, passed away without an heir, causing Albert to succeed him as Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, the senior branch of the House of Oldenburg. And while we know little about his time as Duke, we do know that he was a keen golfer and was captain of the Sunningdale Golf Club. The image below shows him playing at the club in 1910.
Like his late cousin, Albert never married. However, he did father an illegitimate daughter called Valerie Marie, who was born in Hungary in April 1900. Soon after her birth, the baby had been placed in the care of a Jewish couple named Anna Rosenthal and Rubin Schwalb. For thirty one years Albert remained silent about his daughter. However, on 15th April 1931 he wrote her a letter claiming paternity. While Albert also told his two sisters about Valerie, he never disclosed the name of the mother, besides hinting that she was of high noble birth.
Just twelve days after writing the letter, Albert passed away – aged 62 – at Primkenau in Germany. He was later buried in a nearby church. Shortly after his death, Valerie changed her surname from Schwalb to “Zu Schleswig-Holstein” in honour of her biological father.
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