Princess Margaret of Connaught
| Synopsis of the article Princess Margaret of Connaught |
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| Princess Margaret of Connaught was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria and daughter of Arthur, Duke of Connaught. She married the future King Gustav VI Adolf of Sweden and became Sweden's crown princess. She died before he became king. She was the grandmother of the present King of Sweden. | |
Princess Margaret of Connaught VA CI DJStJ (Margaret Victoria Charlotte Augusta Norah) (January 15, 1882 – May 1, 1920), later Crown Princess of Sweden, was the daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria, and his wife, Princess Luise Margarete of Prussia. A Princess of Great Britain and Ireland, she was nicknamed Daisy.
Childhood
The Princess was baptised in the Private Chapel of Windsor Castle on 11 March 1882 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Archibald Tait and her godparents were: Queen Victoria, the German Emperor and German Empress, the German Crown Princess, the Prince and Princess Friederich Karl of Prussia and the Prince of Wales. She was confirmed in the same chapel in March 1898, aged 16. Confirmation traditionally marked the end of childhood, after which a girl would 'come out' and be considered for marriage. Prior to her marriage she was styled Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret of Connaught
Marriage
She became the first wife of Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, later Gustav VI Adolf, on June 15, 1905. When Gustaf Adolf's father Gustav V acceeded to the throne as King in 1907, the couple became Crown Prince and Princess of Sweden. In Sweden she was known as Margareta (styled Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Sweden)
Their children were:
- Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten (1906-1947), father of the present King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.
- Prince Sigvard, Duke of Uppland, later Count Sigvard Bernadotte af Wisborg (1907-2002)
- Princess Ingrid, later Queen of Denmark (1910-2000), mother of the present Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.
- Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland (1912-1997)
- Prince Carl Johan, Duke of Dalarna, later Count Carl Johan Bernadotte af Wisborg (born 1916)
Charity work during World War One
During World War I she created a sewing society in Sweden to support the Red Cross. When paraffin supplies ran low she organized a candle collection and in November 1917 she instituted a scheme to train girls to work on the land. She also acted as a point of contact for relatives divided by the war. With her help, private letters were passed on and requests to trace men missing in action. She was also tireless in her work on behalf of prisoners.
Sudden death
On May 1, 1920, she died suddenly when infection set in following a mastoid operation. At the time, she was expecting her sixth child.
She was the grandmother of the current King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf.
Styles and Titles
- Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret of Connaught (15 January 1882–15 June 1905)
- Her Royal Highness Princess Margareta of Sweden, Duchess of Scania (15 June 1905–8 December 1907)
- Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Sweden (8 December 1907–1 May 1920)
