Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #862156 in Books
• Published on: 2000-03-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 166 pages

Synopsis
This is a biography of Princess Helena (aka Princess Christian) a noted writer and social activist.

Customer Reviews

Lenchen - the forgotten daughter of Queen Victoria
HRH Princess Helena (1946-1923) was the fifth-born child and the third daughter of Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort. In the family she was known as "Lenchen". In September 1865, while visiting Coburg, she was introducted to much older Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein -Sonderburg-Agustenburg (1831-1917), the third son of Duke Charles August of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenberg. The Queen gave her permission for the marriage with the provison that the couple live in England. They married in1866. Prince and Princess Chritian made their their home at Frogmore House in the grounds of Windsor Castle and later at Cumberland Lodge in Windsor Great Park and at Schomburg House in London. They had six children. The Princess was the patron of the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) and the National Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Children. She worked to improve the country's nursing facilities and founded the Princess Christian Nursing Home at Windsor. Princess Christian died at Schomberg House, her London residence. She was buried next to husband at the Frogmore Royal Burial Ground in Windsor Great Park.
So far the facts, but who was that more or less forgotten princess:

Lenchen grew up as a shineless, dutiful and reserved girl; she had a tendency towards fat (which was severely criticized by Queen Victoria altough she herself was fat) and was a bit tomboy, showing abilities for the less feminine activities like swimming or racing against her siblings. As she grew into womanhood, Queen Victoria began to wooried about her future; she tought that European protestant prince woul put his eyes on a shy and meek princess. Princess Helena was more attached to her father than to her mother. Lenchen was unable to support her mother to carry on her grief because she used to break down in tears at any moment. Lenchen's fatness was compensated by a wavy brown hair, a little straight nose and lovely amber coloured eyes. She played the piano, had a distinct gift for drawing and painting in water colours and had a very clear though not very strong soprano voice. She was outsandingly loyal to her friends

Quite estonishing she mantained a wealthy correspondence with her father's German-born librarian, Carl Ruland. Her letters revealed, according to Chomet, a serious flirtation between the Princess and Ruland, and this was the cause of his dismissal from England. Helena's lettters to Ruland are now in the Royal Archives of Windsor Castl. Helena was a writer of some ability. In 1887 she translated from the French "The Memoirs of Whilelmine, Margravine of Baireuth", which were describe by The Times as an admirable transaltion of a most interesting book. She also transalted the correspondence between the Margravine and Voltaire. Besides these two books, Helena wrote a Memoir devoted to her sister Alice, Grand Duchess of Hesse, an introduction to a collection of Alice's letters. It was first published by John Murray in 1884. Another transaltion by Princess Helena was the booklet etitled "First Aid to the Injured", which revealed her interest in nursing.

In my view Lenchen was not the most exciting woman and compared to her other siblings rather on the boring side. So I feel it is quite understandable that she is not widely known. Chomet has nevertheless achived to revive that lost princess. The book is well written and a pleasure to read. I am glad I could acquire it as now my biography collection on the children of Queen Victoria is complete. I rate this book fairly high, not because the subject of this biography is exciting, but because it is well written and manage to create a lively picture of a nice, but not too existing woman.

lacking in incisive detail
I was very excited when I saw this book was available. Up until now biographers of Queen Victoria's daughters have afforded Princess Helena an odd chapter or a few paragraphs in bigger works focusing on all the daughters together, so I was hoping that this first full length biography would address many questions I had about this forgotten princess.

The book definitely gives a sympathetic and full portrait of the princess as a public persona - in fact she was very much the modern day princess in organising committees, fighting for women's causes, being involved with several worthy institutions eg nursing etc.We also learn that she was a talented writer and translator. What we do not really see is a portrait of the princess as a private person - even though the author could have drawn upon several published sources there are only a few glimpses of her as a wife, mother and even as a daughter. The author enigmatically hints at an unrequited love affair with the Windsor librarian, but there is very little evidence, and the episode of an imaginary meeting at the beginning of the book between the two putative lovers is rather silly. Helena's alleged drug addiction, hinted at by other biographers, is only granted a few lines.

The author obviously is very sympathetic to her subject, but the book on the whole is decidedly lacking. The proof reading and spelling mistakes, not to mention the grammatical errors, are terrible. The photos are well chosen but the scant references to sources are also unsatisfactory.

I also do not really understand the title - a princess reclaimed...from what?? for what??

If you like reading about Victorian royalty, this is definitely worth [the money], but on the whole I was left wanting to know more than I had found out.

The first People's Princes?
Helena, the third of Queen Victoria's five daughters, was a favourite of the Victorian public. Apart from attending numerous public functions (which was not as common for a Royal Princess to do as it is to-day), she was a successful writer and translator, creator of many charitable organisations, a school administrator, founder of the first organisation of professional women in the world (RBNA), promoter of the state registration of nurses and so on. This biography of her introduces much new information that is not avilable elsewhere. It is easy to read and contains very little "padding". A low-cost, good read.