Princess Victoria Mary of Teck,

Queen Mary of the United Kindom

Her Serene Highness Princess Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes of Teck was born on May 26th 1867 to the parents Prince Francis the Duke of Teck and Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge. Victoria Mary's paternal grandparents were Duke Alexander of Wurttemburg and Countess Claudine Rhedey von Kis-Rhede and her maternal grandparents were Prince Adolphus the Duke of Cambridge and Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel. Her maternal great grandparents were King George III and Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom through her grandfather Prince Adolphus, the Duke of Cambridge.

She was known as Victoria Mary, Mary, Victoria 'May' or simply 'May' because of the month she was born in. 

Victoria Mary was the eldest and only daughter of four children in the Teck family. Her younger brothers were Prince Adolphus the Marquess of Cambridge, Prince Francis of Teck, and Prince Alexander the Earl of Athlone. During a period of time, the Teck's were heavily in debt.

In 1891 Victoria Mary was engaged to her second cousin Prince Albert the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, the eldest son of Prince Edward and Princess Alexandra of Wales (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom). Queen Victoria was very fond of Princess Victoria Mary and thought that she would be a suitable match for Prince Albert. Six weeks after the engagement, Prince Albert died after a influenza pandemic swept through Great Britain. The news that Albert died devastated the Princess, and the rest of the British Royal Family. During the period of mourning, Mary became close to the next heir to the throne, who was Prince Albert's brother, Prince George the Duke of York. Queen Victoria still felt that Mary was a suitable match for the new heir to the throne and in May of 1893 George proposed and Mary accepted it. On July 6th 1893 the couple wed at St. James Palace in London. Princess Mary had then became the Duchess of York.

In June 23rd 1894 the Duchess gave birth to her first child Prince Edward, and her second child Prince Albert, who was commonly known as George VI when he succeeded as the throne, was born on December 14th 1895. On April 25th 1897 Mary gave birth to her first and only daughter Princess Victoria, who was commonly know as Princess Mary. Prince Henry and Prince George were born on March 31st 1900 and December 20th 1902. Mary's last child was Prince John who was born on July 12 1905. 

In 1901 after Queen Victoria's death, Mary's father and mother in law became Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. At that time, Mary and George became the Duke and Duchess of York and Cornwall, and the Prince and Princess of Wales. In 1910, after Edward VII had died, George became King of the United Kingdom and Victoria Mary became his Queen Consort. When George asked her to drop one of her first names, she chose Mary over Victoria, to avoid confusion with George's grandmother, Queen Victoria. The couple became King George V and Queen Consort Mary of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor and Empress of India. George and Mary ruled under the house of  the german name Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, that came from George's grandfather, Prince Consort Albert of the United Kingdom, German Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, but when the first world war came around, George changed the name to Windsor, which sounded more british. 

On January 18th 1919, George and Mary's youngest child, Prince John had died at the young age of 13. He had suffered from epilepsy and had been hidden from the public world throughout most of his life. The photo down below from left to right is Princess Mary, Prince John and Queen Mary.

The King and Queen's daughter, Princess Mary, married Henry, Viscount Lascelles in 1922. The couple became the Earl and Countess of Harewood in 1929. Their marriage gave George and Mary their first grandchild, The Honourable George Lascelles (later Viscount Lascelles and Earl of Harewood) in 1923 and The Honourable Gerald Lascelles in 1924. In 1932, Princess Mary received the title of Princess Royal, a title given to the eldest or only daughter of a sovereign of the United Kingdom. There can be only one Princess Royal at a time, so Mary could not have this title before 1931, because her paternal aunt, Princess Louise the Duchess of Fife had owned it until her death. 

In 1923, George and Mary's second son, Prince Albert the Duke of York married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. The couple had Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret of York in 1926 and 1930, the King and Queen's first granddaughters.

In 1934, George and Mary's fourth son, Prince George, married Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark. Prince George became the Duke of Kent, Earl of St Andrews and Baron Downpatrick. The couple had three children, Prince Edward of Kent, Princess Alexandra of Kent, and Prince Michael of Kent in 1935, 1936, and 1942.

In 1935, George and Mary's third son, married Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott and the couple became the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester. The Duke and Duchess had two sons, Prince William and Richard of Gloucester in 1941 and 1944. 

In 1935, King George and Queen Mary celebrated their Silver Jubilee after 25 years on the throne. It was celebrated throughout Great Britain and was a joyous occasion. 

King George had suffered from health problems since the 1920's from his heavy smoking. In 1936, it is said that the King's physician, Lord Dawson of Penn, had given his majesty a lethal injection of morphine and cocaine. The King had finally died on the evening of January 20th 1936. Mary was grief stricken by the news that her husband had passed away, and her eldest son, the new King Edward VIII was now the new ruler of the United Kingdom. Edward only reigned for 11 months, before he abdicated to marry an american divorcee, Wallis Simpson. The church of England did not allow divorcees to marry again, and Wallis would not be accepted as Queen Consort. Edward chose his love over his duty, and on June 3rd 1937, the couple wed in France. The couple never bore any children. Edward took his old title as prince, and the couple took the name of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. This was one of Mary's biggest disappointments. 

Mary's second son, Prince Albert the Duke of York had become King and his wife Lady Elizabeth the Duchess of York had become Queen Consort in late 1936 after Edward's abdication. Queen Mary had broken tradition, and attended her own son's coronation.

The Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret with Queen Mary in the picture below. 
Her Majesty had interests in raising her two granddaughters and brought them on various excursions around London.

In 1947, Her Majesty attended the Royal wedding of her eldest granddaughter, Princess Elizabeth, who was marrying Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark. The young couple were made the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. Queen Mary is on the far right of the picture below.

Queen Mary had lived to see all her grandchildren, but only lived to see a few of her great grandchildren. Her first great grandchild was Prince Charles of Edinburgh, who was Princess Elizabeth the Duchess of Edinburgh's son. Her second great grandchild was Princess Anne of Edinburgh, who was born to Princess Elizabeth also. The last great grandchild Mary lived to see was her daughter, Mary, the Princess Royal's eldest son, George, Earl of Harewood's son, Viscount David Lascelles, who is now the Earl of Harewood.
 In the photo below, Mary is pictured in the far left, with her son King George VI above, and Prince Philip beside him, Princess Elizabeth holding Princess Anne in the middle and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother holding Prince Charles on the far right. 

In February of 1952, Queen Mary's second son, King George VI had died. This was devastating news to the entire Royal Family. Queen Mary's granddaughter, Princess Elizabeth had now become Queen Elizabeth II.
In the photo below are the three queens from left to right: Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Mary, and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother at King George VI's funeral. 

Queen Mary herself died on March 24th 1953 of lung cancer. Her Majesty was at the age of 85. She did not live to see her granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, but she let it be known that, in case of death, for the coronation to proceed as planned.

Queen Mary's legacy still lives on today. She was a young princess, who became a Queen. Her life was full of ups and downs, but she truly was a Queen of passion for her country and family. God save the Queen.

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