3. An Embroidered Cloak Made by Her Daughter For Prince Albert
Princess Alice, Victoria and Albert’s third child, and second daughter was particularly special to the queen. She had a close relationship with her father and nursed him throughout his illness, up until his death. When Queen Victoria went into her period of intense mourning, Alice served as her personal secretary and carried out many of her royal duties.
Princess Alice developed an interest in nursing, and during the Austro-Prussian War, she spent much of her time in the direct care of soldiers who were sick or wounded. During an outbreak of diphtheria, Alice fell ill until she succumbed to the disease at the age of 35. She was the first of Queen Victoria’s nine children to die, leaving behind a daughter who would become the last Czarina of Russia.
A memento of particular importance to the queen was a cloak that Alice embroidered for her father. He had worn it proudly for years, and the queen had held onto it affectionately after the deaths of these two family members. The cloak was part of the ensemble that she was buried with, possibly expressing the hope that the queen would be reunited with both of her lost loved ones. Whatever the exact reason, her choice is characteristic of both her interest in the occult and preoccupations with death and preserving the memories of loved ones.