Princess Louise, Duchess of Connaught - photographed by Lafayette, 18 December 1907

Princess Louise Margaret, Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn (born Luise Margarete Alexandra Viktoria Agnes; 25 July 1860, Potsdam – 14 March 1917, London), German princess, later a member of the British royal family as the wife of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn.

Then, as now, retouching of official images was almost de rigeur, and not always terribly subtle. Though the Duchess had a graceful enough
figure in reality, it's quite obvious that her waist and hips have been slimmed down, here - whittled away - to give her a narrower silhouette.

The fourth child and fourth daughter of a reportedly sadistic father, Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia, she married Prince Arthur, the seventh child and third - and favorite - son of Queen Victoria, at St. George's Chapel Windsor. The Duchess of Connaught spent much of the first twenty years of her marriage accompanying her husband on his various deployments throughout the British empire. The couple also frequently represented Great Britain and the British royal family at important foreign events, including the coronation of Nicholas II in 1896. She accompanied her husband when her husband served as the Governor General of Canada from 1911 to 1916.

The Duke and Duchess acquired Bagshot Park in Surrey as their country home in 1880, and after 1900 used Clarence House as their London residence. The couple had three children; their eldest, Margaret, married the future King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and, though she died young, the present King of Sweden and the Queens of Denmark and Greece are among her descendants.

As with all the later photographs of her sister-in-law, Queen Alexandra, the Duchess' face has also been heavily retouched.

For many years, her husband maintained a liaison with Leonie, Lady Leslie, sister of Jennie Churchill, though remaining devoted to his wife; it's believed that the Duchess was aware of the relationship and even approved of it. The Duchess of Connaught died of influenza and bronchitis at Clarence House at the age of fifty-six, in the midst of World War I. (She became the first member of the British royal family to be cremated; her ashes were eventually buried at the royal burial ground, Frogmore.) Her husband survived her by almost twenty-five years.

Prince Arthur, portraits by Winterhalter... and Sargent

At the age of seven weeks, 1850.

Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (Arthur William Patrick Albert; 1 May 1850, Buckingham Palace, London – 16 January 1942, Bagshot Park, Surrey), the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. As an infant and small child, he was a great favorite with his mother; an often critical and demanding parent, the Queen was completely charmed by her young son.

With his mother at Osborne House, 1850.

"The First of May 1851", 1851. Prince Arthur is shown with his parents and his godfather, Arthur, Duke of Wellington. The picture celebrates
a date of threefold significance: the first birthday of the infant Prince, the eighty-second birthday of the "Iron  Duke", and the opening day of
the Great Exhibition, a personal triumph for Prince Albert; the Crystal Palace can be seen in the distance.

He was educated by private tutors before entering the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich at the age of sixteen. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as a lieutenant in the British Army, where he served for some forty years, seeing service in various parts of the British Empire. In 1874, he was created a royal duke, becoming the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, as well as the Earl of Sussex.

1851.

1852.

In 1879, he married Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia, and together they had three children. Their eldest child, Margaret, married the Crown Prince of Sweden; she died at thirty-eight, but the current Swedish Royal family are her descendants. For many years, Arthur maintained a liaison with Leonie Leslie, sister of Jennie Churchill, but remained devoted to his wife; in fact, his wife was very understanding and accepting, making it a congenial arrangement for all concerned.

In costume as Henry VIII, 1853.

The three-year-old Prince is depicted in a uniform is stated to be that of a Lieutenant in the 1st Foot Guards,
but the shoulder-strap plate and the arrangement of the buttons on the cuffs are those of the 3rd, or Scots
Fusilier, Guards, 1853. (The uniform was later passed on to Prince Arthur's son.)

1855.

He was appointed as Governor General of Canada in 1911 by his nephew, King George V, occupying the post until succeeded by the Duke of Devonshire in 1916. Given his military service, the selection of Arthur proved to be prudent, as he acted as the King's, and thus the Canadian Commander-in-Chief's, representative through the first years of the First World War.

With his younger brother Leopold and sister Louise, 1856.

1859.

After the end of his viceregal tenure, Arthur returned to the United Kingdom and there, as well as in India, performed various royal duties, while also again taking up military duties. Though he retired from public life in 1928, he continued to be involved with the army even into the Second World War. He was Queen Victoria's last surviving son at his death at the age of ninety-one.

Portrait by John Singer Sargent, 1908.