Friday, September 28, 2012

Queen of Denmark dead

September 29, 1898


Queen Louise of Denmark, consort of King Christian IX,
died at 5:30 this morning, according to a dispatch from Copenhagen.  She was "unconscious and her pulse and respiration were almost imperceptible for many hours before," reports the Chicago Daily Tribune.

Her family was at her bedside when she died.

Queen Louise was the daughter of Wilhelm, Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, was born on September 7, 1817.  She married the future King Christian IX in May 1842.

Her appearance was remarkably youthful, in spite of her advanced age.   She also had a "youthful vigor," which was noted when she attended the wedding of her grandson, the Duke of York, to Princess May of Teck in 1893.

Louise was known as the 'mother-in-law' of Europe as she was able to secure, and she concentrated all her efforts for the "highest possible positions" for her three daughters, Alexandra, Dagmar and Thyra.

Alexandra is the Princess of Wales, the wife of the heir apparent to the British throne. Dagmar, now known as Marie, is the widow of Alexander III of Russia, and mother of the current Emperor, Nicholas II.  The youngest daughter, Thyra, is the wife of the Duke of Cumberland, the head of the Hanover Royal Family.  

The Queen's second youngest son, Prince Vilhelm, is now King George  of the Hellenes.

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