Princess Thyra of Denmark (Thyra Amalie Caroline Charlotte Anna; 29 September 1853 – 26 February 1933) was the youngest daughter and fifth child of

Christian IX of Denmark Christian IX (8 April 181829 January 1906) was King of Denmark from 1863 until his death in 1906. From 1863 to 1864, he was concurrently Duke of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg. A younger son of Frederick William, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein- ...

and

Louise of Hesse-Kassel da, Louise Wilhelmine Frederikke Caroline Auguste Julie , succession = Queen consort of Denmark , image = Louise of Hesse-Kassel.jpg , reign = 15 November 1863 – 29 September 1898 , spouse = , issue = , house = ...

. In 1878, she married Ernest Augustus, the exiled heir to the

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover (german: Königreich Hannover) was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Ha ...

. As the Kingdom of Hanover had been annexed by

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

in 1866, she spent most of her life in exile with her husband in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. Thyra was the sister of King

Frederik VIII of Denmark Frederick VIII ( da, Christian Frederik Vilhelm Carl; 3 June 1843 – 14 May 1912) was King of Denmark from 29 January 1906 until his death in 1912. The eldest son of King Christian IX, nicknamed the ''Father-in-law of Europe'', Frederic ...

, Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, King

George I of Greece George I ( Greek: Γεώργιος Α΄, ''Geórgios I''; 24 December 1845 – 18 March 1913) was King of Greece from 30 March 1863 until his assassination in 1913. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen, and seemed destined for ...

, Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia and

Prince Valdemar of Denmark Prince Valdemar of Denmark (27 October 1858 – 14 January 1939) was a member of the Danish royal family. He was the third son and youngest child of Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse-Kassel. He had a lifelong naval career. Early l ...

Birth and family

Thyra was born on 29 September 1853 at the Yellow Palace, an 18th-century town house at 18

Amaliegade Amaliegade is a street in central Copenhagen, Denmark, which makes up the longer of the two axes on which the Rococo district Frederiksstaden is centred. Amaliegade extends from Sankt Annæ Plads to Esplanaden, passing through the central plaza ...

, immediately adjacent to the

Amalienborg Amalienborg () is the official residence for the Danish royal family, and is located in Copenhagen, Denmark. Queen Magrethe ll lives here in winter and autumn. It consists of four identical classical palace façades with rococo interiors aroun ...

Palace complex in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

.. pp. 69–70. She was the third daughter and fifth child of Prince Christian and Princess Louise of Denmark. As a child, she shared a bedroom with her elder sisters, Alexandra and Dagmar, and was taught how to sew and knit her own clothes and socks. Her family had been relatively obscure but happy until her father, Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, was chosen with the consent of the

great power A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power in ...

s to succeed his childless distant cousin, Frederick VII, to the Danish throne. Just two months before Thyra's birth, the new Act of Succession had been passed and Prince Christian given the title of Prince of Denmark.

Early life

Princess Louise and Princess Thyra of Denmark

In 1863, when Thyra was 10 years old, King Frederick VII died, and her father succeeded to the throne of Denmark as King Christian IX. Earlier the same year, her brother Vilhelm had been elected King of Greece, and her sister Alexandra had married Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. In 1866, her other sister Dagmar married the Tsarevich of Russia,

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. Princess Thyra was

confirmed In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...

on 27 May 1870 by the

Bishop of Zealand The Diocese of Zealand (Danish: ''Sjællands Stift'') was a protestant diocese in Denmark that existed from 1537 to 1922. The diocese had been formed in 1537 following the Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein, Reformation of Denmark, and wa ...

, Hans Lassen Martensen in the chapel of Christiansborg Palace in

. In 1871, at 18 years of age, Thyra fell in love with Vilhelm Frimann Marcher, a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the cavalry, which resulted in a pregnancy.Bramsen, Bo. ''Huset Glücksborg i 150 år, 1825 6. juli-1975.'' Copenhagen: Forum, 1975 To avoid scandal, Thyra fled to Greece to be with her brother,

. When her father Christian IX learned that Thyra was "unwell", from the Greek media, he rushed to Greece to be with her. When Thyra gave birth in Athens, the baby was immediately given up for adoption to avoid scandal. The Danish press was told Thyra had been taken ill with jaundice. Thyra was an attractive and gentle young woman, with dark hair and dark blue eyes, and Queen Louise wanted her youngest daughter to make a good marriage as her elder daughters had. Thyra's first suitor was King

William III of the Netherlands William III (Dutch: ''Willem Alexander Paul Frederik Lodewijk''; English: ''William Alexander Paul Frederick Louis''; 19 February 1817 – 23 November 1890) was King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1849 until his death in ...

, but as he was thirty-six years older than she was, she rejected him.

Marriage

During a family visit to Germany in 1878, Louisa and Alexandra left, saying that they were going to attend an optician consultation. However, they were actually arranging a meeting between Thyra and Ernest Augustus of Hanover, Crown Prince of Hanover, 3rd Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale. Ernest Augustus was the eldest child and only son of the exiled King George V of Hanover and his wife, Princess

Marie of Saxe-Altenburg Marie of Saxe-Altenburg (Alexandrina Mary Wilhelmina Catherine Charlotte Theresa Henrietta Louise Pauline Elizabeth Frederica Georgina; german: Alexandrine Marie Wilhelmine Katharine Charlotte Theresia Henriette Luise Pauline Elisabeth Frieder ...

. Thyra wrote in her journal that she was "very excited" to meet the Crown Prince. Ernest Augustus had been born as a Crown Prince of Hanover, but in 1866 his father had been deprived of his throne, when the

was annexed by

after siding with

in the Austro-Prussian War. Ernest Augustus had Schloss Cumberland in Gmunden, Austria, built in 1882 as exile seat. Despite this, Thyra wrote that she believed Ernest Augustus would one day ascend the Hanoverian throne. Upon meeting, Thyra's hand was immediately kissed by Ernest Augustus, while Alexandra peeked from around the corner. After some time, Thyra proposed to Ernest Augustus. While Thyra's family was excited,

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

stated that her engagement was "completely without foundation" after failing to marry off one of her own sons to Thyra. In December 1878, Thyra married Ernest Augustus at the Chapel Royal of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen.

Later life

Her husband died on 14 November 1923. Thyra survived him by nine years and died in Gmunden,

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, an ...

, on 26 February 1933.

Issue

Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover and Princess Thyra of Denmark with family

The Duke and Duchess of Cumberland and Teviotdale had six children:

Ancestry

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * *

External links

Princess Thyra
at the website of the Royal Danish Collection at

Amalienborg Palace Amalienborg () is the official residence for the Danish royal family, and is located in Copenhagen, Denmark. Queen Magrethe ll lives here in winter and autumn. It consists of four identical classical palace façades with rococo interiors arou ...

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Thyra Of Denmark, Princess 1853 births 1933 deaths Wives of British princes Cumberland and Teviotdale Crown princesses Danish princesses House of Glücksburg (Denmark) House of Hanover Hanoverian princesses by marriage Burials at the Schloss Cumberland Mausoleum Daughters of kings Children of Christian IX of Denmark Mothers of monarchs German people of Danish descent Danish people of German descent British people of German descent British people of Danish descent