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Edward VII of the United Kingdom

Edward VII (Albert Edward) (9 November 1841–6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King of the Commonwealth Realms, and the Emperor of India. He was the son of Queen Victoria and was the first British monarch of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. He reigned from 22 January 1901 until his death on 6 May 1910.

Before his accession to the throne, Edward held the title of Prince of Wales, and has the distinction of having been heir apparent to the throne longer than anyone in English or British history. Edward's reign, now called the Edwardian period, saw the first official recognition of the office of the Prime Minister. He became the first British monarch to visit Russia (1908). Edward also played a role in the modernization of the British Home Fleet and the reform of the Army Medical Services, after the Second Boer War.

Early life

Edward was born at 10:48am on 9 November 1841 at Buckingham Palace. His mother was Queen Victoria, the only daughter of Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and granddaughter of King George III. His father was Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, first cousin and consort of Victoria. Christened Albert Edward (after his father and maternal grandfather) at St. George's Chapel, Windsor on 25 January 1842, his godparents were the King of Prussia, the Duke of Cambridge, Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, King consort of Portugal, the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg and Princess Sophia. He was known as Bertie throughout his life.

As the eldest son of a British sovereign, he was automatically Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland. As a son of Prince Albert, he also held the titles of Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and Duke of Saxony. Queen Victoria created her son Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 9 December 1841. He was created Earl of Dublin and a Knight of the Garter on 9 November 1853 and a Knight of the Thistle on 24 May 1867. In 1863, he renounced his succession rights to the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in favor of his younger brother, Prince Alfred, later Duke of Edinburgh.

In 1846, the four-year-old Prince of Wales was given a scaled-down version of the uniform worn by ratings on the Royal Yacht. He wore his miniature sailor suit during a cruise off the Channel Islands that September, delighting his mother and the public alike. Popular engravings, including the famous portrait done by Winterhalter, spread the idea, and by the 1870s, the sailor suit had become normal dress for both boys and girls all over the world.

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert determined that their eldest son should have an education that would prepare him to be a model constitutional monarch. At age seven, Bertie embarked upon a rigorous educational program devised by the Prince Consort, and under the supervision of several tutors. However, unlike his elder sister, the Prince of Wales did not excel in his studies. He tried to meet the expectations of his parents, but to no avail. He was not a diligent student and his true talents were those of charm, sociability, and tact. Other observers in his youth found him to be spoiled, lazy, and occasionally cruel.

The Prince of Wales hoped to pursue a career in the British Army, but this was denied him because he was heir to the throne. He did serve briefly in the Grenadier Guards in 1861; however, this was largely a sinecure. He was advanced from the rank of lieutenant to colonel in a matter of months. In October 1859, he matriculated as an undergraduate at Christ Church, Oxford (where he met Lewis Carroll and signed his autograph book but refused to pose for a photograph). In 1861, he transferred to Trinity College, Cambridge, but he never received a degree.

In his youth, he gained a reputation as a playboy. In December 1861, his father died from typhoid two weeks after visiting Bertie at Cambridge; Prince Albert had reprimanded his son after the latter's affair with an actress became the subject of newspaper gossip. The Queen, who was inconsolable and wore mourning for the rest of her life, blamed Bertie for his father's death. She regarded her son as frivolous, indiscreet, and irresponsible. As a joke of the period went, "How is the Queen like the weather? Because she reigns [rains], and reigns, and reigns... and never gives the poor son [Sun] a chance."

Marriage

Once widowed, Queen Victoria effectively withdrew from public life, but shortly after the Prince Consort's death, she arranged for her son to marry Princess Alexandra of Denmark, the beautiful elder daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark. The couple wed at St. George's Chapel, Windsor on 10 March 1863.

Edward and his wife established Marlborough House as their London residence and Sandringham House in Norfolk as their country retreat. They entertained on a lavish scale. Edward was also an enthusiastic hunter; so much so that he ordained that all the clocks at Sandringham be put forward by half an hour in order to create more time for this pastime. This so-called tradition of Sandringham Time continued until 1936, when it was abolished by Edward VIII.

Their marriage was met with disapproval in certain circles because most of Victoria's relations were German, and Denmark was at loggerheads with Germany over the territories of Schleswig and Holstein. Victoria herself was of two minds as to whether it was a suitable match. After the couple's marriage, she expressed anxiety about their lifestyle and attempted to dictate to them on various matters, including the names of their children.

Edward treated his marriage with indifference, keeping mistresses throughout his married life, including actress Lillie Langtry, and Jennie Jerome (mother of Winston Churchill and wife at the time to Lord Randolph Churchill), Daisy Greville, Countess of Warwick, actress Sarah Bernhardt, and wealthy humanitarian Agnes Keyser.

Keyser, as recorded by author Raymond Lamont-Brown in his book Edward VII's Last Loves: Alice Keppel and Agnes Keyser, held an emotional bond with Edward VII that others did not, due to her being unmarried herself, and preferring a more private affair to that of a public one. This trait also made her the favored in royal circles of his last two loves. He also helped she and her sister fund a hospital for military officers.

His wife, Alexandra, is believed to have been aware of most of his affairs, and to have accepted them. He and Lord Randolph Churchill did quarrel for a time during Edward VII's involvement with Churchill's wife (Jennie Jerome), but eventually mended their friendship, which would then last until Lord Randolph's death. Alexandra was said to have been quite admiring to Jennie Jerome, enjoying her company despite the affair.

His last "official" mistress (although with him simultanious to his involvement with Keyser), society matron and courtesan Alice Keppel, was even allowed by Alexandra to be present at his deathbed in 1910 at his express written instruction. Keppel also is rumored to have been one of the few people who could help quell Edward VII's unpredictable mood swings. One of Keppel's great granddaughters, Camilla Parker Bowles, was later to become the mistress and then wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, one of Edward's great-great grandsons.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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