Queen Victoria's Mysterious Daughter A Biography of Princess Louise

Description

Introduction : how it all beganPrologue : a celebrity comes to Liverpool -- Born in the year of revolution -- A royal education -- In the shadow of her siblings -- An Annus Horribilis -- The first sculpture -- What really happened with Walter Stirling? -- The Locock family secret -- An art student at last -- Falling in love with the Cult of Beauty -- The people's princess -- A controversial betrothal -- "The most popular act of my reign" -- A battle for independence -- Politics and aestheticism -- The first year in Canada -- A marriage lived in different continents -- Escaping the Fenians in Bermuda -- Return to London, and tragedy -- Keeping up appearances -- Scandal amongst the Campbells -- Celebrating the Golden Jubilee -- The princess and the sculptor -- Trying to dull the pain -- Scandal in the royal household -- A new century and the end of an era -- The death of Henry Locock -- The king, the kaiser and the duke -- Widowhood and war -- The Grande Dame of Kensington -- "This remarkable lady" -- One last rebellious command -- Epilogue.;"In Queen Victoria's Mysterious Daughter, Lucinda Hawksley delves into artistic and royal secrets to discover the life of Princess Louise, whose true story has either been lost in history or has been deliberately kept secret. The sixth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert had a difficult childhood and troubled adolescence, a world away from the usual perception of the life of a privileged princess. For such a prominent public figure, much of her life story has been hidden away inside impenetrable walls. What was so scandalous about this princess that her files in the Royal Archives and at her husband's home, Inveraray Castle in Scotland, still need to be locked away? Can we believe, as many do, that Louise in fact gave birth secretly to an illegitimate royal child? An indomitable woman, Louise lived her life to the full, in a manner that few 21st-century readers would believe possible for a 19th-century woman. She lived through wars and revolutions. As well as being a prominent member of the Aesthetic art world, Princess Louise was a passionate campaigner for women's rights, health reform and education for all. She travelled widely, holidaying in Europe, Africa and North America, and she lived in Canada for five years as the wife of the Governor General. Here is our best evidence yet that Queen Victoria's many secrets have yet to be fully disclosed"