Princess Louise

A carte-de-visite portrait of Princess Louise (1848-1929), Queen Victoria’s fourth daughter, seen here seated at a spinning wheel. The same studio also produced a carte showing Queen Victoria seated at a spinning wheel, and I suspect that this photograph was taken on the same occasion. I’ve seen a Woodburytype of the Queen’s portrait which bore the additional information that the spinning wheel was ‘made and presented by Mr James McCreery of Belfast, Ireland’.

Born at Buckingham Palace in 1848, Louise was a lively, intelligent and talented child who grew into the loveliest of Queen Victoria’s daughters. In 1871 she married
John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne, eldest son of the Duke of Campbell. From 1878 to 1883, Lorne was Governor-General of Canada. As a link between and dominion, Louise was a disaster - she hated colonial society and constantly invented excuses to absent herself. Lorne, however, performed creditably.

He died at Kent House on the Isle of Wight in 1914. Louise died at Kensington Palace on 3 December 1939 at the age of 91.

Photographed by Hills and Saunders of Eton and Oxford.