Princess Sophia of the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
The Princess Sophia was a member of the British Royal Family
, the twelfth child and fifth daughter of King George III
and Queen Charlotte
. Sophia is perhaps best known for the rumours surrounding a supposed illegitimate child to which she gave birth as a young woman.
In her youth, Sophia was closest to her father, who preferred his daughters over his sons; however, she and her sisters lived in fear of their mother. The princesses were well-educated but raised in a rigidly strict household. Though he disliked the idea of matrimony for his daughters, King George had intended to find them suitable husbands when they came of age. However, the King's reoccurring bouts of madness, as well as the Queen's desire to have her daughters live their lives as her companions, stopped would-be suitors from offering for the most of the princesses. As a result, Sophia and all but one of her sisters grew up in their mother's cloistered household, which they frequently referred to as a "Nunnery".
Though she never wed, rumours spread that Sophia became pregnant by Thomas Garth, an equerry
of her father's, and gave birth to an illegitimate son in the summer of 1800. Other gossip declared the child was the product of rape by her elder brother the Duke of Cumberland
, who was deeply unpopular. Historians are divided on the validity of these stories, as some believe she gave birth to Garth's child while others call them tales spread by the Royal Family's political enemies.
The efforts of the Prince Regent
to gain his sisters increased independence were further hastened along with Queen Charlotte's death in 1818. In her last years, Sophia resided in the household of her niece Princess Victoria of Kent (the future Queen Victoria), at Kensington Palace
. There, she fell under the sway of Victoria's comptroller
, Sir John Conroy
, who took advantage of her senility and blindness; rumours also circulated that Sophia was in awe of Conroy because of his ability to deal effectively with the "bullying importunities" of Sophia's supposed illegitimate son. Sophia frequently served as his spy on the Kensington household as well as on her two elder brothers, while Conroy squandered most of her money. The princess died on 27 May 1848 at her residence in Vicarage Place, Kensington Palace.
The Princess Sophia was born at Buckingham House, London
on 3 November 1777, the twelfth child and fifth daughter of her parents. Her father was the reigning British monarch, George III, the eldest son of Frederick, Prince of Wales
and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Her mother was Queen Charlotte (née Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz)
. The young princess was christened on 1 December 1777 in the Great Council Chamber at St James's Palace by Frederick Cornwallis
, The Archbishop of Canterbury
. Her godparents were Prince August of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
(her first cousin once-removed), The Duchess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
(her first cousin twice-removed) and The Duchess of Mecklenburg
(wife of her first cousin once-removed
), all of whom were represented by proxies.
Upon Sophia's birth, King George ensured his daughters and younger sons would have allowances; through a provision of Parliament, Sophia and her elder sisters each were to receive an annual income of £6,000 either upon their marriages or the king's death. The royal household was very rigid and formal, even when only the royal family were together in private. For instance, when the King entered a room, his daughters were expected to stand up, remain silent until addressed, and not leave until given permission. Queen Charlotte made attempts to be economical where possible; the younger princesses wore country-made dresses, which were less expensive, and ate plain food. Sophia's early life was focused on education. Lady Charlotte Finch
served as Sophia's governess, a role she performed for all the royal children. As with the strict education and discipline received by her brothers, Lady Finch through the sub-governesses chosen by Queen Charlotte arranged expert tutors who actually gave the princesses lessons in English, French, music, art, and geography; Sophia and her sisters were also allowed to play sports and boisterous games with their brothers. The queen sought to combine her daughters' entertainments with educational benefits. Sophia and her siblings were brought up with an exposure to theatre, and were entertained with special performances. Princess Sophia's first appearance in public occurred when she accompanied her parents and elder siblings to a commemoration
for George Frideric Handel
, held at Westminster Abbey
on 26 May 1784.
Uncommon for the period, Sophia's father was an involved parent in her early years, and preferred his daughters to his sons. When possible he attended the princesses' birthday parties and other special events, and was kept informed on their progress in the schoolroom. A family friend once remarked, "I never saw more lovely children, nor a more pleasing sight than the King's fondness for them." On the other hand, Queen Charlotte invoked fear in her daughters and, according to royal historian A.W. Purdue, she was not "benignly maternal."
were being included in more family activities, and at age fourteen, Sophia debuted at court on her father's birthday, 4 June 1792. According to biographer Christopher Hibbert
, in her young adulthood Sophia was a "delightful though moody girl, pretty, delicate and passionate." As within her childhood, Sophia was devoted to her father, though she occasionally found him exasperating. She wrote that "the dear King is all kindness to me, and I cannot say how grateful I feel for it." Prior to 1788, King George had told his daughters that he would take them to Hanover and find them suitable husbands despite misgivings he had, which stemmed from his sisters' own unhappy marriages. He remarked, "I cannot deny that I have never wished to see any of them marry: I am happy in their company, and do not in the least want a separation." However, the King suffered his first bout of madness that year, when Sophia was aged eleven. Sophia remarked of her father's behaviour, "He is all affection and kindness to me, but sometimes an over kindness, if you can understand that, which greatly alarms me." Further lapses into insanity occurred in 1801 and 1804, thus forestalling talk of marriage for his daughters. The question of matrimony was rarely raised; Queen Charlotte feared the subject, something which had always discomforted the King, would push him back into insanity. Furthermore the queen, strained from her husband's illness, wanted the princesses to remain close to her.
As a result, like most of her sisters, Princess Sophia was forced to live her life as a companion of her mother. The princesses were not allowed to mix with anyone outside of the Royal Court, and rarely came into contact with men other than pages, equerries, or attendants. Constantly chaperoned, the girls frequently complained about living in a "Nunnery". For entertainment, the queen read sermons to them and the princesses practiced embroidery. On one occasion Sophia wrote their days were so "deadly dull... I wished myself a kangaroo."
The Princess Royal
was the only daughter who was able to marry while relatively young. The rest of the princesses were not without suitors, but most of the various men's efforts were stopped by Queen Charlotte. Most of the girls longed for families and children of their own, and often asked the Prince of Wales
, to whom they remained close, for help, either in finding spouses, allowing them to marry their loves, or allowing them to live outside of Queen Charlotte's household. A grateful Sophia once jokingly wrote to her brother, saying "I wonder you do not vote for putting us in a sack and drowning us in the Thames." Before George became regent, he had little power to oblige his sisters. His ascension to the regency in 1811 led to Sophia and the other remaining unmarried princesses to receive increases in their allowances, from £10,000 to £13,000. He also supported their desire to venture out into society. Queen Charlotte was outraged at these attempts, and the Prince-Regent had to carefully reconcile the two parties so that his sisters could still enjoy some independence.
, who later became the King of Hanover. The Prince Regent supposedly warned his sisters not to be alone in the same room with the Duke, and Cumberland was deeply unpopular with the British people. It is unclear whether there was truth to these rumours or whether they were circulated by the Duke's numerous political enemies.
Limited in exposure to eligible men, Sophia and several of her sisters became involved with courtiers and equerries
. Sophia entered into a relationship with her father's chief equerry, Major-General Thomas Garth
, a man thirty-three years her senior. He had a large purple birthmark on his face, causing Sophia's sister Mary to refer to him as "the purple light of love" and courtier and diarist Charles Greville to call him a "hideous old devil". Despite this, one lady-in-waiting noted "the princess was so violently in love with him that everyone saw it. She could not contain herself in his presence." Greville wrote about Sophia and her sisters' affairs in a diary entry, "women fall in love with anything - and opportunity and the accidents of the passions are of more importance than any positive merits of mind or of body... [The princesses] were secluded from the world, mixing with few people - their passions boiling over and ready to fall into the hands of the first man whom circumstances enabled to get at them."
Gossip soon spread of the existence of an illegitimate child. Some historians contend that, sometime before August 1800 in Weymouth, Sophia gave birth to a child fathered by Garth. Flora Fraser
believes the rumours that Sophia had a child, but has questioned whether the child was fathered by Garth, or Sophia's brother the Duke of Cumberland. Historians further write that the child, baptised Thomas Garth like his father, was raised by his father in Weymouth, where his mother would visit him occasionally. In 1828, this child apparently tried to blackmail the royal family with certain incriminating documents from his father about his supposed parents' relationship, though this ended in failure.
Conversely, Anthony Camp challenges the belief that Sophia had a child and provides a detailed summary of the available evidence. In his book Royal Babylon: the Alarming History of European Royalty, author Karl Shaw writes of the possibility that the Duke raped his sister, citing evidence from Charles Greville's diaries, as well as other factors. Historian Gillian Gill believes that Sophia secretly gave birth to the child and that this is the reason Sophia never married. Alison Weir
and others, however, write of a possible marriage between Sophia and Garth the same year as the child's birth, but there is no evidence to back this assertion other than the presence of a wedding ring in a portrait of an aged Sophia.
, and Queen Charlotte's death in 1818 allowed Augusta
and Sophia their domestic freedom, though it was too late for them to marry. From her mother Sophia inherited Lower Lodge
at Windsor Great Park
, which she in turn gave to the Prince Regent. The death of Princess Augusta in 1840 resulted in Sophia inheriting Clarence House
and Frogmore
.
After the queen's death, Sophia lived in Kensington Palace
during her final years, next to her niece Princess Victoria of Kent, the future Queen Victoria. As a result, Princess Sophia was one of the few paternal relatives that Victoria saw often. Like her sister-in-law the Duchess of Kent
, Sophia fell under the spell of Victoria's comptroller
Sir John Conroy
and let him manage her money. The princess became a part of the Duchess of Kent's social circle and, in return, Sophia spied for Conroy when he was absent from Kensington Palace. Sophia also reported to Conroy on what she heard at St. James's Palace, as she had privileged access to courtiers as well as to her two elder brothers. Gossipmongers speculated that Conroy's successful ability to deal with the "bullying inopportunities" of Sophia's illegitimate son endeared her to him, while some historians write that Conroy took advantage of Sophia, who in her last years had become "dizzy, easily muddled... mourning her fading looks" and a "confused, nearly blind aunt." Sophia often dined with the household, but the Duchess of Kent despised her. Princess Victoria was aware her aunt was a spy and the two never became close. Sophia's wealth allowed Conroy to live a rich lifestyle, acquiring for himself a house in Kensington for £4000, as well as two other estates for £18,000. Sophia was also responsible for certain members of Victoria's household gaining higher statuses; Victoria's governess Louise Lehzen, for instance, was made a Hanoverian baroness
on the orders of George IV, and Conroy was named a Knight Commander of the Hanoverian Order.
for over ten years, on the morning of 27 May 1848, Princess Sophia became ill at her residence at Vicarage Place, Kensington; she was visited by her sister Mary, sister-in-law Queen Adelaide
, and nephew-in-law Albert, Prince Consort. Sophia's death occurred at 6:30 later that day, when Mary, the Duchesses of Kent and Cambridge
were present. The princess was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery
in London rather than at Windsor Castle
, as she wished to be near her brother, Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex
. After her death, it was discovered that Conroy had squandered most of her money and that the princess had virtually no estate to bequeath. Charles Greville wrote an entry in his diary on 31 May:
, differenced by a label
of three points argent
, the centre point bearing a heart gules
, the outer points each bearing a rose gules.
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
, the twelfth child and fifth daughter of King George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
and Queen Charlotte
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was the Queen consort of the United Kingdom as the wife of King George III...
. Sophia is perhaps best known for the rumours surrounding a supposed illegitimate child to which she gave birth as a young woman.
In her youth, Sophia was closest to her father, who preferred his daughters over his sons; however, she and her sisters lived in fear of their mother. The princesses were well-educated but raised in a rigidly strict household. Though he disliked the idea of matrimony for his daughters, King George had intended to find them suitable husbands when they came of age. However, the King's reoccurring bouts of madness, as well as the Queen's desire to have her daughters live their lives as her companions, stopped would-be suitors from offering for the most of the princesses. As a result, Sophia and all but one of her sisters grew up in their mother's cloistered household, which they frequently referred to as a "Nunnery".
Though she never wed, rumours spread that Sophia became pregnant by Thomas Garth, an equerry
Equerry
An equerry , and related to the French word "écuyer" ) is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attendant, usually upon a Sovereign, a member of a Royal Family, or a national...
of her father's, and gave birth to an illegitimate son in the summer of 1800. Other gossip declared the child was the product of rape by her elder brother the Duke of Cumberland
Ernest Augustus I of Hanover
Ernest Augustus I was King of Hanover from 20 June 1837 until his death. He was the fifth son and eighth child of George III, who reigned in both the United Kingdom and Hanover...
, who was deeply unpopular. Historians are divided on the validity of these stories, as some believe she gave birth to Garth's child while others call them tales spread by the Royal Family's political enemies.
The efforts of the Prince Regent
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
to gain his sisters increased independence were further hastened along with Queen Charlotte's death in 1818. In her last years, Sophia resided in the household of her niece Princess Victoria of Kent (the future Queen Victoria), at Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace is a royal residence set in Kensington Gardens in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. It has been a residence of the British Royal Family since the 17th century and is the official London residence of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the Duke and...
. There, she fell under the sway of Victoria's comptroller
Comptroller
A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization.In British government, the Comptroller General or Comptroller and Auditor General is in most countries the external auditor of the budget execution of the...
, Sir John Conroy
John Conroy
Sir John Conroy, 1st Baronet KH was a British army officer who became the chief attendant of the Duke of Kent and the Duchess of Kent who were the parents of Queen Victoria. When the Duke died, he became comptroller of the duchess' household and was rumoured to be her lover...
, who took advantage of her senility and blindness; rumours also circulated that Sophia was in awe of Conroy because of his ability to deal effectively with the "bullying importunities" of Sophia's supposed illegitimate son. Sophia frequently served as his spy on the Kensington household as well as on her two elder brothers, while Conroy squandered most of her money. The princess died on 27 May 1848 at her residence in Vicarage Place, Kensington Palace.
Early life
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 3 November 1777, the twelfth child and fifth daughter of her parents. Her father was the reigning British monarch, George III, the eldest son of Frederick, Prince of Wales
Frederick, Prince of Wales
Frederick, Prince of Wales was a member of the House of Hanover and therefore of the Hanoverian and later British Royal Family, the eldest son of George II and father of George III, as well as the great-grandfather of Queen Victoria...
and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Her mother was Queen Charlotte (née Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz)
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was the Queen consort of the United Kingdom as the wife of King George III...
. The young princess was christened on 1 December 1777 in the Great Council Chamber at St James's Palace by Frederick Cornwallis
Frederick Cornwallis
Frederick Cornwallis was Archbishop of Canterbury, and the twin brother of Edward Cornwallis.Cornwallis was born in London, England, the seventh son of Charles Cornwallis, 4th Baron Cornwallis. He was educated at Eton College and graduated from Christ's College, Cambridge...
, The Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
. Her godparents were Prince August of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
Prince August of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
Prince August of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg was a German prince of the Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg line of the Ernestine Wettins and a patron of the arts during the Age of Enlightenment.-Life:...
(her first cousin once-removed), The Duchess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
Princess Philippine Charlotte of Prussia
Princess Philippine Charlotte of Prussia was a daughter of Frederick William I of Prussia and Sophia Dorothea of Hanover.-Family:...
(her first cousin twice-removed) and The Duchess of Mecklenburg
Duchess Louise Frederica of Württemberg
Duchess Louise Frederica of Württemberg was a Duchess consort of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. She was the daughter of Frederick Louis, Hereditary Prince of Württemberg and Margravine Henriette Marie of Brandenburg-Schwedt. She married Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg in 2 March 1746. She had no...
(wife of her first cousin once-removed
Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg
Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg[-Schwerin], called the Pious was Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1756 to his death.-Early life:Frederick was born at Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, son of Christian Ludwig II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin , and his wife, Duchess...
), all of whom were represented by proxies.
Upon Sophia's birth, King George ensured his daughters and younger sons would have allowances; through a provision of Parliament, Sophia and her elder sisters each were to receive an annual income of £6,000 either upon their marriages or the king's death. The royal household was very rigid and formal, even when only the royal family were together in private. For instance, when the King entered a room, his daughters were expected to stand up, remain silent until addressed, and not leave until given permission. Queen Charlotte made attempts to be economical where possible; the younger princesses wore country-made dresses, which were less expensive, and ate plain food. Sophia's early life was focused on education. Lady Charlotte Finch
Lady Charlotte Finch
Lady Charlotte Finch was governess of the children of George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, King and Queen of Great Britain and Ireland. She was the daughter of Thomas Fermor, 1st Earl of Pomfret, and Henrietta Louisa Jeffreys. Charlotte, on 9 August 1746, married the Hon. William...
served as Sophia's governess, a role she performed for all the royal children. As with the strict education and discipline received by her brothers, Lady Finch through the sub-governesses chosen by Queen Charlotte arranged expert tutors who actually gave the princesses lessons in English, French, music, art, and geography; Sophia and her sisters were also allowed to play sports and boisterous games with their brothers. The queen sought to combine her daughters' entertainments with educational benefits. Sophia and her siblings were brought up with an exposure to theatre, and were entertained with special performances. Princess Sophia's first appearance in public occurred when she accompanied her parents and elder siblings to a commemoration
Handel Commemoration
The Handel festival or ‘Commemoration’ took place in Westminster Abbey in 1784, to commemorate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the death of George Frideric Handel in 1759....
for George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
, held at Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
on 26 May 1784.
Uncommon for the period, Sophia's father was an involved parent in her early years, and preferred his daughters to his sons. When possible he attended the princesses' birthday parties and other special events, and was kept informed on their progress in the schoolroom. A family friend once remarked, "I never saw more lovely children, nor a more pleasing sight than the King's fondness for them." On the other hand, Queen Charlotte invoked fear in her daughters and, according to royal historian A.W. Purdue, she was not "benignly maternal."
Adulthood
By 1792 Sophia and her sister MaryPrincess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh
The Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh was a member of the British Royal Family, the eleventh child and fourth daughter of George III....
were being included in more family activities, and at age fourteen, Sophia debuted at court on her father's birthday, 4 June 1792. According to biographer Christopher Hibbert
Christopher Hibbert
Christopher Hibbert, MC, FRSL, FRGS was an English writer, historian and biographer. He has been called "a pearl of biographers" and "probably the most widely-read popular historian of our time and undoubtedly one of the most prolific"...
, in her young adulthood Sophia was a "delightful though moody girl, pretty, delicate and passionate." As within her childhood, Sophia was devoted to her father, though she occasionally found him exasperating. She wrote that "the dear King is all kindness to me, and I cannot say how grateful I feel for it." Prior to 1788, King George had told his daughters that he would take them to Hanover and find them suitable husbands despite misgivings he had, which stemmed from his sisters' own unhappy marriages. He remarked, "I cannot deny that I have never wished to see any of them marry: I am happy in their company, and do not in the least want a separation." However, the King suffered his first bout of madness that year, when Sophia was aged eleven. Sophia remarked of her father's behaviour, "He is all affection and kindness to me, but sometimes an over kindness, if you can understand that, which greatly alarms me." Further lapses into insanity occurred in 1801 and 1804, thus forestalling talk of marriage for his daughters. The question of matrimony was rarely raised; Queen Charlotte feared the subject, something which had always discomforted the King, would push him back into insanity. Furthermore the queen, strained from her husband's illness, wanted the princesses to remain close to her.
As a result, like most of her sisters, Princess Sophia was forced to live her life as a companion of her mother. The princesses were not allowed to mix with anyone outside of the Royal Court, and rarely came into contact with men other than pages, equerries, or attendants. Constantly chaperoned, the girls frequently complained about living in a "Nunnery". For entertainment, the queen read sermons to them and the princesses practiced embroidery. On one occasion Sophia wrote their days were so "deadly dull... I wished myself a kangaroo."
The Princess Royal
Charlotte, Princess Royal
The Princess Charlotte, Princess Royal was a member of the British Royal Family, the eldest daughter of George III. She was later the Queen Consort of Frederick of Württemberg...
was the only daughter who was able to marry while relatively young. The rest of the princesses were not without suitors, but most of the various men's efforts were stopped by Queen Charlotte. Most of the girls longed for families and children of their own, and often asked the Prince of Wales
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
, to whom they remained close, for help, either in finding spouses, allowing them to marry their loves, or allowing them to live outside of Queen Charlotte's household. A grateful Sophia once jokingly wrote to her brother, saying "I wonder you do not vote for putting us in a sack and drowning us in the Thames." Before George became regent, he had little power to oblige his sisters. His ascension to the regency in 1811 led to Sophia and the other remaining unmarried princesses to receive increases in their allowances, from £10,000 to £13,000. He also supported their desire to venture out into society. Queen Charlotte was outraged at these attempts, and the Prince-Regent had to carefully reconcile the two parties so that his sisters could still enjoy some independence.
Illegitimate child
During Sophia's lifetime, there were various rumours about her alleged incestuous relationship with her brother, Ernest Augustus, Duke of CumberlandErnest Augustus I of Hanover
Ernest Augustus I was King of Hanover from 20 June 1837 until his death. He was the fifth son and eighth child of George III, who reigned in both the United Kingdom and Hanover...
, who later became the King of Hanover. The Prince Regent supposedly warned his sisters not to be alone in the same room with the Duke, and Cumberland was deeply unpopular with the British people. It is unclear whether there was truth to these rumours or whether they were circulated by the Duke's numerous political enemies.
Limited in exposure to eligible men, Sophia and several of her sisters became involved with courtiers and equerries
Equerry
An equerry , and related to the French word "écuyer" ) is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attendant, usually upon a Sovereign, a member of a Royal Family, or a national...
. Sophia entered into a relationship with her father's chief equerry, Major-General Thomas Garth
Thomas Garth (General)
General Thomas Garth was a British Army officer and chief equerry to King George III of the United Kingdom.He was the son of John Garth MP, and Rebecca, daughter of John Brompton and grand-daughter of Sir Richard Raynsford, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench.He is believed to have been the...
, a man thirty-three years her senior. He had a large purple birthmark on his face, causing Sophia's sister Mary to refer to him as "the purple light of love" and courtier and diarist Charles Greville to call him a "hideous old devil". Despite this, one lady-in-waiting noted "the princess was so violently in love with him that everyone saw it. She could not contain herself in his presence." Greville wrote about Sophia and her sisters' affairs in a diary entry, "women fall in love with anything - and opportunity and the accidents of the passions are of more importance than any positive merits of mind or of body... [The princesses] were secluded from the world, mixing with few people - their passions boiling over and ready to fall into the hands of the first man whom circumstances enabled to get at them."
Gossip soon spread of the existence of an illegitimate child. Some historians contend that, sometime before August 1800 in Weymouth, Sophia gave birth to a child fathered by Garth. Flora Fraser
Flora Fraser (writer)
Flora Fraser Soros is an English writer of historical biographies.-Family:She is the daughter of historian and historical biographer Lady Antonia Fraser and the late Sir Hugh Fraser, a British Conservative politician. Her stepfather was the playwright Harold Pinter, the 2005 Nobel Laureate in...
believes the rumours that Sophia had a child, but has questioned whether the child was fathered by Garth, or Sophia's brother the Duke of Cumberland. Historians further write that the child, baptised Thomas Garth like his father, was raised by his father in Weymouth, where his mother would visit him occasionally. In 1828, this child apparently tried to blackmail the royal family with certain incriminating documents from his father about his supposed parents' relationship, though this ended in failure.
Conversely, Anthony Camp challenges the belief that Sophia had a child and provides a detailed summary of the available evidence. In his book Royal Babylon: the Alarming History of European Royalty, author Karl Shaw writes of the possibility that the Duke raped his sister, citing evidence from Charles Greville's diaries, as well as other factors. Historian Gillian Gill believes that Sophia secretly gave birth to the child and that this is the reason Sophia never married. Alison Weir
Alison Weir
Alison Weir is a British writer of history books, and latterly historical novels, mostly in the form of biographies about British royalty.-Personal life:...
and others, however, write of a possible marriage between Sophia and Garth the same year as the child's birth, but there is no evidence to back this assertion other than the presence of a wedding ring in a portrait of an aged Sophia.
Later life
Sophia was a favourite of her niece, Princess Charlotte of Wales, as the young princess liked her gentle character and had a certain fascination for the gossip surrounding Sophia's past. Charlotte detested her other aunts, and once wrote, "I can hardly believe [Sophia] belongs to them- so wholly different is she in thoughts, opinions, matters. Her nobleness and rectitude of mind renders her no favourite here. The constant scenes of intrigue, of tracasseries, she can but ill support." The Prince Regent's efforts to help his sisters led to the marriages of Mary and ElizabethPrincess Elizabeth of the United Kingdom
The Princess Elizabeth was a member of the British Royal Family, the seventh child and third daughter of King George III and Queen Charlotte...
, and Queen Charlotte's death in 1818 allowed Augusta
Princess Augusta Sophia of the United Kingdom
The Princess Augusta Sophia was a member of the British Royal Family, second daughter of George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. She was a Princess of the United Kingdom and a Princess of Hanover....
and Sophia their domestic freedom, though it was too late for them to marry. From her mother Sophia inherited Lower Lodge
Royal Lodge
The Royal Lodge is a house in the civil parish of Old Windsor, located in Windsor Great Park, half a mile north of Cumberland Lodge and south of Windsor Castle. It was the Windsor residence of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother from 1952 until her death there in 2002. Since 2004 it has been the...
at Windsor Great Park
Windsor Great Park
Windsor Great Park is a large deer park of , to the south of the town of Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. The park was, for many centuries, the private hunting ground of Windsor Castle and dates primarily from the mid-13th century...
, which she in turn gave to the Prince Regent. The death of Princess Augusta in 1840 resulted in Sophia inheriting Clarence House
Clarence House
Clarence House is a royal home in London, situated on The Mall, in the City of Westminster. It is attached to St. James's Palace and shares the palace's garden. For nearly 50 years, from 1953 to 2002, it was home to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, but is since then the official residence of The...
and Frogmore
Frogmore
The Frogmore Estate or Gardens comprise of private gardens within the grounds of the Home Park, adjoining Windsor Castle, in the English county of Berkshire. The name derives from the preponderance of frogs which have always lived in this low-lying and marshy area.It is the location of Frogmore...
.
After the queen's death, Sophia lived in Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace is a royal residence set in Kensington Gardens in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. It has been a residence of the British Royal Family since the 17th century and is the official London residence of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the Duke and...
during her final years, next to her niece Princess Victoria of Kent, the future Queen Victoria. As a result, Princess Sophia was one of the few paternal relatives that Victoria saw often. Like her sister-in-law the Duchess of Kent
Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was the mother of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.-Early life:...
, Sophia fell under the spell of Victoria's comptroller
Comptroller
A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization.In British government, the Comptroller General or Comptroller and Auditor General is in most countries the external auditor of the budget execution of the...
Sir John Conroy
John Conroy
Sir John Conroy, 1st Baronet KH was a British army officer who became the chief attendant of the Duke of Kent and the Duchess of Kent who were the parents of Queen Victoria. When the Duke died, he became comptroller of the duchess' household and was rumoured to be her lover...
and let him manage her money. The princess became a part of the Duchess of Kent's social circle and, in return, Sophia spied for Conroy when he was absent from Kensington Palace. Sophia also reported to Conroy on what she heard at St. James's Palace, as she had privileged access to courtiers as well as to her two elder brothers. Gossipmongers speculated that Conroy's successful ability to deal with the "bullying inopportunities" of Sophia's illegitimate son endeared her to him, while some historians write that Conroy took advantage of Sophia, who in her last years had become "dizzy, easily muddled... mourning her fading looks" and a "confused, nearly blind aunt." Sophia often dined with the household, but the Duchess of Kent despised her. Princess Victoria was aware her aunt was a spy and the two never became close. Sophia's wealth allowed Conroy to live a rich lifestyle, acquiring for himself a house in Kensington for £4000, as well as two other estates for £18,000. Sophia was also responsible for certain members of Victoria's household gaining higher statuses; Victoria's governess Louise Lehzen, for instance, was made a Hanoverian baroness
Baroness
Baroness is the female equivalent of the nobility title Baron.Baroness or The Baroness may also refer to:* Baroness , a metal band from Savannah, Georgia* Baroness , a fictional villain in the G.I...
on the orders of George IV, and Conroy was named a Knight Commander of the Hanoverian Order.
Death
After having been blindBlindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
for over ten years, on the morning of 27 May 1848, Princess Sophia became ill at her residence at Vicarage Place, Kensington; she was visited by her sister Mary, sister-in-law Queen Adelaide
Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen
Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and of Hanover as spouse of William IV of the United Kingdom. Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia, is named after her.-Early life:Adelaide was born on 13 August 1792 at Meiningen, Thuringia, Germany...
, and nephew-in-law Albert, Prince Consort. Sophia's death occurred at 6:30 later that day, when Mary, the Duchesses of Kent and Cambridge
Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel
Princess and Landgravine Augusta of Hesse-Kassel was the consort of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, the tenth-born child, and seventh son, of George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz...
were present. The princess was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in Kensal Green, in the west of London, England. It was immortalised in the lines of G. K. Chesterton's poem The Rolling English Road from his book The Flying Inn: "For there is good news yet to hear and fine things to be seen; Before we go to Paradise by way of...
in London rather than at Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
, as she wished to be near her brother, Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex
Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex
The Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex , was the sixth son of George III of the United Kingdom and his consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He was the only surviving son of George III who did not pursue an army or naval career.- Early life :His Royal Highness The Prince Augustus...
. After her death, it was discovered that Conroy had squandered most of her money and that the princess had virtually no estate to bequeath. Charles Greville wrote an entry in his diary on 31 May:
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles and styles
- 2 November 1777 – 27 May 1848: Her Royal Highness The Princess Sophia
Arms
As of 1789, as a daughter of the sovereign, Sophia had use of the arms of the kingdomRoyal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
The Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom is the official coat of arms of the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. These arms are used by the Queen in her official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom, and are officially known as her Arms of Dominion...
, differenced by a label
Label (heraldry)
In heraldry, a label is a charge resembling the strap crossing the horse’s chest from which pendants are hung. It is usually a mark of difference, but has sometimes been borne simply as a charge in its own right....
of three points argent
Argent
In heraldry, argent is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures, called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it...
, the centre point bearing a heart gules
Gules
In heraldry, gules is the tincture with the colour red, and belongs to the class of dark tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of vertical lines or else marked with gu. as an abbreviation....
, the outer points each bearing a rose gules.
Ancestors
See also
- British Royal FamilyBritish Royal FamilyThe British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
- Descendants of George III and Queen CharlotteDescendants of George III and Queen CharlotteHere a list of children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of King George III of the United Kingdom and his queen, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Their children include King George IV of the United Kingdom, King William IV of the United Kingdom and King Ernest Augustus I of Hanover. Their...
External links
- Princess Sophia's grave at Find-A-Grave