Prince Francis of Teck, (Francis Joseph Leopold Frederick; 9 January 1870 – 22 October 1910) was the younger brother of the British queen

Mary of Teck Mary of Teck (Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes; 26 May 186724 March 1953) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 6 May 1910 until 20 January 1936 as the wife of King- ...

, wife of

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

Family

Queen Mary with her mother and brothers by Alexander Bassano

Francis Joseph Leopold Frederick, known as "Frank", was born at

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 currently the official L ...

and educated at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: * Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin *Wellington College, Wellington, New ...

Cheltenham College ("Work Conquers All") , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent School Day and Boarding School , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head , head = Nicola Hugget ...

(Stone, 1912, p. xviii) and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infant ...

. His father was Prince Francis, Duke of Teck, the son of Duke Alexander of Württemberg and

Countess Claudine Rhédey von Kis-Rhéde Countess Claudine Susanna Rhédey von Kis-Rhéde (; 21 September 18121 October 1841) was the Hungarian wife of Duke Alexander of Württemberg. Her son, Francis, Duke of Teck, was the father of Mary of Teck, queen consort to George V of the Unit ...

(created the Countess von Hohenstein). His mother was the Duchess of Teck (née

Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge Princess Mary Adelaide Wilhelmina Elizabeth of Cambridge (27 November 1833 – 27 October 1897), later Duchess of Teck, was a member of the British royal family. She was one of the first royals to patronise a wide range of charities. Mary Ade ...

), the youngest daughter of

Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, (Adolphus Frederick; 24 February 1774 – 8 July 1850) was the tenth child and seventh son of the British king George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He held the title of Duke of Cambridge from 18 ...

and a granddaughter of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

. Frank was thus styled "His Serene Highness Prince Francis of Teck".

Education

He was expelled from

Wellington College, Berkshire Wellington College is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) in the village of Crowthorne, Berkshire, England. Wellington is a registered charity and currently educates roughly 1,200 pupils, between the ages of 13 ...

"for throwing his

housemaster {{refimprove, date=September 2018 In British education, a housemaster is a schoolmaster in charge of a boarding house, normally at a boarding school and especially at a public school. The housemaster is responsible for the supervision and care ...

over a hedge to win a bet. All through his life he was an incorrigible gambler. He then went to

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

where he got into more trouble."

Personal life

Francis never married. According to Julia P. Gelardi's ''Born to Rule'', Prince Francis was vigorously pursued by

Maud of Wales Maud of Wales (Maud Charlotte Mary Victoria; 26 November 1869 – 20 November 1938) was the Queen of Norway as the wife of King Haakon VII. The youngest daughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, she was known as P ...

, his sister's sister-in-law. The two exchanged letters, but it soon became clear that Francis was not interested in Maud. She went on to marry her first cousin

Prince Carl of Denmark Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick VI ...

, becoming Queen of Norway in 1905. Francis had an affair with society beauty Ellen Constance, wife of

Francis Needham, 3rd Earl of Kilmorey Francis Charles Needham, 3rd Earl of Kilmorey (2 August 1842 – 28 July 1915), styled Viscount Newry from 1851 to 1880, was an Anglo-Irish peer and Conservative Member of Parliament. Background and education Kilmorey was the eldest son of Fr ...

, to whom he allegedly bequeathed the Cambridge emeralds, part of the Teck family jewels. To recover these family heirlooms, Francis's sister Queen Mary had his will sealed by a court, and subsequently negotiated with Lady Kilmorey to buy back the emeralds, reportedly paying her £10,000 for them. The English actress

Sarah Miles Sarah Miles (born 31 December 1941) is an English actress. She is known for her roles in films '' The Servant'' (1963), '' Blowup'' (1966), ''Ryan's Daughter'' (1970), ''The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing'' (1973), '' White Mischief'' (1987) and '' ...

has claimed to be the great-granddaughter of Prince Francis, through her grandfather, allegedly an illegitimate son of the prince called Francis Remnant, born at

Richmond, Surrey Richmond is a town in south-west London,The London Government Act 1963 (c.33) (as amended) categorises the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames as an Outer London borough. Although it is on both sides of the River Thames, the Boundary Comm ...

, in 1894.Sarah Miles, ''A right royal bastard'' (1993), p. 20: "Clarice... the eldest child of Francis (Frank) Remnant, bastard son of Prince Francis of Teck".

Military career

He attended the

and served in the Lancers and the Royal Rifle Corps before joining the

Royal Dragoons The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons) was a heavy cavalry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1661 as the Tangier Horse. It served for three centuries and was in action during the First and the Second World Wars. It was amalgam ...

in 1890. He rose to the rank of Major, before retiring in 1902. * 1889.01.30 2nd Lieutenant, 9th (Queen's Royal) Lancers * 1889.04.17 transferred to 1st Bn, The King's Royal Rifle Corps * 1890.10.08 transferred to 1st Royal Dragoons * 1891.08.26 Lieutenant, 1st Royal Dragoons * 1894.07.25 Captain, 1st Royal Dragoons * 1896.11.25 Aide de Camp to the General Officer Commanding, Quetta, India * 1897.08.06 attached Egyptian Army * 1897–1898 served in Nile Expedition (Atbara and Khartoum) (rcvd: MID twice, DSO, Medal with clasp) * 1899.01.11 Aide de Camp to the General Officer Commanding, South Eastern District * 1899.07.24 Staff Captain, Remount Establishment, Dublin * 1899.05.29 DAAG, Remount Establishment, South Africa * 1899–1900 served in the South African War in Transvaal operations (rcvd: MID, brevet Major, Queen's Medal with 3 clasps) * 1900.11.29 Brevet Major * 1901.11.16 Major, 1st Dragoons * 1901.11.16 retired and transferred to Reserve of Officers * 1902.09.03 retired from the 1st Dragoons, receiving a gratuity In 1902 he again visited South Africa, and following the end of hostilities returned to England in June that year on board the SS ''Kinfauns Castle''.

Death and legacy

He died suddenly in 1910 at the age of forty, having caught pneumonia at Balmoral. On his early death, shortly before his sister's coronation as queen of the United Kingdom, Francis of Teck's

will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and wi ...

set a legal precedent when it was sealed, to avoid potential scandal. The document remains unpublished, and subsequent royal wills have followed this tradition. He is buried in the

Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore The Royal Burial Ground is a cemetery used by the British royal family. Consecrated on 23 October 1928 by the Bishop of Oxford, it is adjacent to the Royal Mausoleum, which was built in 1862 to house the tomb of Queen Victoria and Prince Alb ...

Orders and decorations

* : Knight Commander of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

, ''8 December 1898''; Knight Grand Cross, ''1 December 1909''''The London Gazette''
issue 28316, p. 9413

Ancestry

References

External links

BBC Radio 4 programme
{{DEFAULTSORT:Teck, Francis Of 1870 births 1910 deaths People from Kensington

Francis Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome * Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) Places *Rural ...

People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army personnel of the Mahdist War 9th Queen's Royal Lancers officers King's Royal Rifle Corps officers 1st The Royal Dragoons officers Burials at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore Royal reburials