South Australian Register (Adelaide, SA : 1839 - 1900), Friday 10 May 1861, page 3


DEATH OF HER ROYAL HIGHNESS THE DUCHESS OF KENT.

We have to announce the death of the Duchess of Kent. The mournful event oc-curred shortly before 10 o'clock on the morn-ing of Saturday. March 16.

During the week Her Royal Highness had been in a weak state of health, her disease (cancer) having made great and fatal progress. On Tuesday, March 12, in consequence of the unfavourable accounts, the Queen and Prince Consort made a visit to Frogmore, and Her Royal Highness the Princess Alice visited her illustrious grandmother on Thursday, March 14. At 6 o'clock on Friday evening, to the consternation of Her Majesty and royal circle, a telegram was received at Buckingham Palace from Dr. Brown, the Duchess of Kent's me-dical attendant, announcing that a decided change for the worst had happened. In consequence of the receipt of that message the royal dinner circle was countermanded, and at 7 o'clock the Queen and Prince Consort, accompanied by Her Royal Highness the Princess Alice, proceeded by special train to Windsor, and immediately visited Her Royal Highness at Frogmore. The Duchess passed an unfavourable night, and at the hour above specified death, which was tranquil in its approach, ensued. The Queen and the Prince Consort were pre-sent at the dissolution. The mournful intel-ligence was received at Buckingham Palace at a quarter past 10, when the Princess Helena and other members of the royal family left town for Windsor. The death at once was telegraphed to the Prince of Wales at Cam-bridge; and the sad intelligence was also trans-mitted by telegraph to the King of the Belgians, at B russels, likewise to the Duke of Saxe Coburg Gotha. The late Victoria Mary Louisa. Duchess of

Kent and Strathern in Great Britain, Countess of Dublin in Ireland, was fourth daughter of His Serene Highness Francis Frederick, late reigning Duke of Saxe Coburg Saalfield. Her Royal Highness was born on the 17th of August, 1786, consequently was in her 75th year. She married first, December 21, 1803, His Serene Highness Prince Enrich Charles of Leiningen, who died July 4, 1814, by whom Her Royal Ilighnesa had issue Charles Frede-rick William, late reigning Prince of Leiningen, K.G, and Princess Anne, married to Prince Hohenlohe Langenburg. Her Royal Highness married secondly, at Coburg, 29th May, 1818, and at Kew, 11th July, 1818, His Royal High-ness the late Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III., who died 23rd January 1820, by whom Her Royal Highness had issue— an only child — our gracious Queen. The Courts of Berlin, Brussels, and Portugal are placed in mourning by this melancholy event. On the forenoon of Saturday (March 16) Sir George Lewis, the Secretary of State for the Home Department, officially announced the demise of Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent to the Lord Mayor, who immediately forwarded a copy of the communication to Dr. Milman, the Dean of St. Paul's, and in a few minutes afterwards the great bell of the cathedral, which is never tolled except on the

decease of a member of the royal family, was booming the sad intelligence over the metro-polis far and near. Following an ancient usage on such occasions, the Lord Mayor also caused a copy of the letter to be posted in front of ther Mansion House, where, during the re-mainder of the day, thousands of people paused to read it. Her Royal Highness the- Princess Royal (the Princess Frederick William of Prussia) arrived on March. 18 from Berlin, on a visit of condolence to her illustrious parents at Windsor. Their Royal Highneses the -Duchess of Cambridge and the Princess. Mary, accom panied by His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge, left their residence at St. James Palace on March 17, to pay a visit of condo lence to the Queen and Prince Consort at Windsor. The Court Circular of March 16 said:— "About 7 o'clock this evening the Queen, Prince Consort, the Prince of Wales, Princess Alice, and Princess Helena came from Frogmore House to Windsor Castle, where Her Majesty and the royal family will remain. Their Royal Highnesses the Duke of Nemours and Prince Philip of Wurtemburg came to Frogmore in the forenoon, having heard of the Duchess's dangerous illness, and were admitted to the presence of the Queen. THer Majesty's health has not suffered, notwithstanding the heavy affliction with which Her. Majesty has been visited.' The usual notice directing all persons to go into decent mourning ha3 been issued, and the Court mourning is specially described. The remains' of the late Duchess, now temporarily buried in the royal vault of the Chapel Royal of St. George a't Windsor Castle, will after wards .be removed to a mausoleum in the grounds at Frogmore, whither also those of the late Duke of Kent will be carried. - ; ' . tsb'tuxebat. The funeral took place at St. Gsorge's Chapel, Windsor, on the 25th March. The only strangers present were the representatives of the press 'and some members of the deceased Duchess's household. The service and the whole of the scene were deeply impressive. The time occupied was net more than half an hour. The body was removed' in the morning from Frogmore to St. George's Chapel, Wind3or,;where it was received by the Yice Chamberlain of Her Majesty's Household, and there remained under the charge of the officers appointed by the Lord Chamberlain until the hour fixed for the funeral- service. At half past 10 o'clock,- those who had the honour to receive the Queen's command to attend the .' ceremony, but who did not take part in the procession, were admitted to St. George's Chapel. At 11 o'clock the royal ^family and other royal personages assembled in the Chapter-room of St. George's Chapel, from, which they were conducted to their, places in the procession by the Lord Chamberlain. The Dean aud Canons of Wind sor, attended by the choir, received the body at the ante- chapel, and then joined the procession. The remainder of those appointed to take part in the procession, having assembled in Wolsey's Chapel, formed in the following order iu the nave of ~&i.~~ George's Chapel:— The members of the late Duchees's household, and various members of the royal household, together with the representatives of absent royal personages. Baron de Loewenfels represented the Duke of SaxeCoburg, and the ;King of Hanover was represented 'by one of his aides-de-camp. Then followed the choir aud clergy of Windsor ; the coronet of her late Royal Highness, borne by Lord ' James Murray, Equerry to her late Royal Highness ? the Controller in the Lord Cliamberlain'8 department ; the Lord Cham berlain, and the Vice .Chamberlain. Next came the body, and the following ladies acted as supporters of the pall :— Tha Lady Fanny Howard, Lady Augusta Bruce, Lady Susan Leslie Melville, Lady Katherine Vernon Har court, Lady Gardiner, and the Dowager Lady Couper. The body was immediately followed by the Garter King of Arms ; and then came the chief mourner (the Prince Consort), sup ported by tho Prince of Wales and the Prince of Leiningin, and attended by Earl Spencer, Groom ot the Stole to His Royal Highness. The procession closed . in tho following order : —Prince Arthur, the Duke of Cambridge, tha Count do Paris, the Duke de Nemours, the Duke, do Chartres, the Duke d'AlencoD, Duke Philip of Wurtemburg, Prince Edward of Saxe Weimar, Prince Frederick of Schleswig HolsteinAugustenburg, Prince VietorofHohen loho Langenburg. Upon arrival within the choir, the coronet and cushion were placed upon the colliu. The chief mourner sat at the head of the corpse, and the Prince of Wales and the Prince of Leiningen sat on each side of His Royal Highness. The ladies who supported the pall occupied stools on either side of the cotliu. The Lord Chamberlain stood at the foot of the coffin. The other royal personages in the procession were conducted to stalls in the chapel. The attendants on their Royal High nesses were also seated. Tfce rest of the pro cession, having previously advanced towards the centre of the choir, remained there during the ceremony, in the same order in which they entered the chapel. 'The Dead March in Saul' wa3 played while the procession moved up the chapel. The first part of the service and the anthem having been performed, the corpse was lowered into the entrance to the royal vault, and the Dean concluded the burial service, upon which Garter King of Arms proclaimed the style of her late Royal Highness. After which the royal family and otaer royal person ages were conducted out of the chapel, and the others composing tho procession retired. A guard of honour of the Scots Fusilier Guards mounted during the ceremony at the entrance to St, George's Chapel. Every shop in Windsor was closed. In the metropolis the shops, at the time announced for the funeral, were very generally partially closed. The great bell of St. Paul's tolled forth its solemn note, and the usual public signals of mourning wera visible. At Woolwich 30 minute-gun3 were fired per hour, com mencing from the Royal Artillery gun park battery at 4*lfi p.m., followed by the guns of the flag-ship Fisgard, stationed off the dockyard, and the Royal Artillery alternately, until 16 minutes past 6, when the royal standard, hitherto floating half-mast high in the garrison and over the Government offices since the anounccment of Her Royal Highness's death, was hauled down. The battery guns were manned by the 3rd Brigade Royal Artillery, and the Fisgard's guns by the seaman gunners of the ship. The Government regulations for the guidance of officers of the army, the fleet, and the royal marines with reference to the general mourning had been posted throughout the establishments at Wool wich, and were minutely carried out, not only by officers in uniform, but universally also in the civil departments of the State. Minute-guns were also fired from the ships of war at Portsmouth, and the various forts surrounding the arsenal, extending from Cum berland Fort, at the mouth of Langston Har bour, to Fort 'Victoria, near the Needles, at the west end of the Isle of Wight. The time occupied. in the firing was from noon until 6p.m. At Plymouth, minute-guns were fired, com mencing at the citadel to the east, and con tinuing on the line of forts to Mount Wise and Mount Edgecumbe on tho west, after which the firing was taken up by all the ships of war in commission in the port. . All the music lulls and the ordinary Passion Week entertainments were closed.