Nicknamed ‘Affie’ because he was so affable, the young prince got on well with his elder brother and sister. He was a quick learner and good at geography and the sciences. Prince Albert was so pleased with him that he even thought that it was a pity that Alfred wouldn’t be King unless something happened to poor Prince Edward, nicknamed ‘Bertie’.
Alfred always wanted to enter the Royal Navy and his chance came when he was only 14. He exceeded in his exams and joined the HMS Euryalis. The Queen was very upset about her second child leaving and lamented that he was the second child ‘lost to our family within one year.’ This was another great trial to her.
Prince Alfred certainly wasn’t given ‘royal’ treatment on the ship and wanted to be treated like everyone else. Whenever a ceremonial royal salute was fired the officers would haul him over the gun room table and apply the dirk scabbard to make sure that Alfred didn’t ‘give himself airs.’
In 1860 the young Prince toured South Africa where he enjoyed hunting and the new pursuit of photography. He also coped well with his royal duties even though he was only 15. The Queen was so pleased when he came back with his trophies and photographs that she said: “He is really such a dear, gifted, handsome child that it makes one doubly anxious that he should have as few failings as mortal man can have."
She wasn’t too pleased when Alfred had an affair at Malta, however, when he was older. The Queen started to worry that he might become ‘decadent’ like his brother, Bertie.
Prince Alfred’s progress in the Navy must have met with Queen Victoria’s approval. Prince Alfred’s career in the Navy went from strength to strength. He became a lieutenant in 1863 and was promoted to the rank of captain in 1866. He took command of the frigate, HMS Galatea in 1866. He was also created Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Ulster and of Kent in that year.
Prince Alfred’s Tour of Australia
Prince Alfred was the first member of the Royal Family to visit Australia. He was greeted by enthusiastic crowds but his visit was also plagued by Fenian demonstrations. The Fenians were very annoyed that three fellow Fenians had been shot by police in Manchester in early 1868 when the Prince was on his tour. Catholics and Protestants were also demonstrating against each other.
The Prince was enjoying a picnic in Clontarf, a beachside suburb in Sydney, when he was shot in the back by a Fenian, Henry James Farrell. Farrell, who said that he was motivated by the ‘wrongs of Ireland’, was hanged for his crime. The Prince’s sufferings shocked the young country.
Luckily the Prince recovered well. A memorial fund was set up in honour of his tour. This was used to pay for the construction of the Royal Prince Alfred hospital in Sydney.
The Prince toured many other countries, including New Zealand, the Far East and India. There were rumours that he had ‘a good time’ on these tours. He was even thought to have tried opium at one stage.
Prince Alfred Marries Grand Duchess Marie
The Prince married Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, Tsar Alexander II’s daughter, in 1874. The Grand Duchess didn’t make a good impression on the royal family. She wanted to take precedence over Princess Alexandra, Prince Edward’s wife. She also flaunted her splendid jewellery – this was thought to be vulgar by the rest of the royal family.
Prince Alfred and Grand Duchess Marie did not have a happy marriage. Prince Alfred blamed Marie for the tragedy of his son, Alfred's death. Alfred shocked his mother by falling in love with a commoner. She wanted the marriage annulled. The distraught Alfred shot himself and died a week later.
Prince Alfred , who became the Duke of Saxe-Coburg in 1893, spent the last years of his life ruling over this small kingdom in Germany. This didn’t compensate for the unhappiness of his marriage or his son’s death. He drank heavily and became very sad and tired. He died at only 55 of cancer. Queen Victoria, whose husband died when he was only young, lamented: “Oh God! My poor darling Affie gone too,” when she heard the news.
Sources
Ahoy! - Mac's Web Log
Prince Alfred's Obituary in The Age
Van Der Kiste, John, Queen Victoria's Children, Sutton Publishing, London, 2004, p.40.
Lisa Sanderson - Lisa has been a freelance-writer for many years. She used to write for the topic, British Social History, for Suite 101 under the ...
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