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Did the Queen’s rebellious daughter conceal an illegitimate child?
Unique amongst Queen Victoria’s children, Princess Louise, her fourth daughter, did not marry a prince. While the Queen’s other children made alliance solidifying matches with various princes and princesses, Louise was married to John, Marquess of Lorne. Lorne was a Scottish nobleman who would later become the Duke of Argyll after his brother’s death. While marrying in with the nobility was not unheard of in England’s history, particularly for male royals, the practice had fallen out of favor with the Hanoverian monarchs, who’s predilection for their subjects brought about the Royal Marriages Act 1772 and a return to the practice of marrying like with like. Louise, however, pursued a marriage with a nobleman, not finding the proffered princes to her liking. Her mother approved of the idea. Victoria believed, given the hemophilia plaguing her family, that it would bring new blood into the line.
Amongst her sisters, Louise was the wild child. Indeed, Louise was first rumored to have a relationship with Arthur Bigge, the Queen’s assistant private secretary. Louise rebuffed these rumors, saying they originated from her sisters, Helena and Beatrice, who she thought were jealous of her. Louise was also said to have an affair with Beatrice’s own husband, Prince Henry of Battenberg. At the…
