| Prince Christian Victor | |
|---|---|
| Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein | |
| Full name | |
| Christian Victor Albert Ludwig Ernst Anton | |
| House | House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg |
| Father | Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein |
| Mother | Princess Helena of the United Kingdom |
| Born | 14 April 1867 Windsor Castle, Berkshire |
| Died | 29 October 1900 (aged 33) Pretoria, South Africa |
| Burial | 1 November 1900 Pretoria, South Africa |
| Occupation | British Army officer |
Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein GCB GCVO DSO KStJ (Christian Victor Albert Ludwig Ernst Anton; 14 April 1867 – 29 October 1900) was a member of the British Royal Family. He was the eldest son of Princess Helena, third daughter of Queen Victoria.
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Prince Christian was born on 14 April 1867, at Windsor Castle. His father was Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, the third son of Christian, Duke of Augustenborg and Countess Louise of Danneskjold-Samsøe. His mother was The Princess Helena, the fifth child and third daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. His parents resided in the United Kingdom, at Cumberland Lodge, and the Prince was considered a member of the British Royal Family. Under letters patent of 1866, he was styled His Highness Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein.
The Prince, who was educated at Wellington College, Magdalen College, Oxford and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, was commissioned in the 60th King's Royal Rifles in 1888 and served later in the 4th King's Royal Rifle Corps. He served at Hazara 1891, Mirzanai 1891, Ashanti 1895 and Nile 1898.
| Styles of Prince Christian Victor |
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| Reference style | His Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Highness |
| Alternative style | Sir |
"Christle", as the Prince was known in the family, was the first member of the Royal Family to attend school instead of being educated by a tutor at home. That he studied at Wellington College made Queen Victoria very happy, as Prince Albert had helped to establish the institution many years before. At Wellington he played for the college First Eleven in 1883 and was captain of the cricket team in 1885. He was also captain of the cricket team while at Magdalen College and at Sandhurst, and made a single first-class appearance, for I Zingari against Gentlemen of England in 1887, scoring 35 and 0. He remains the only member of the British royal family to play cricket at such a high level.[1]
"Christle" became a British Army officer in the 60th King's Royal Rifles in 1888. He fought under Lord Kitchener in 1898 when the British troops defeated the Dervishes at Omdurman near Khartoum and recovered the Sudan. He participated also in the Ashanti Expedition to Ghana. In 1900 he served in the Boer War under Lord Roberts.
In October of that year, while in Pretoria, he came down with malaria, and died of enteric fever, on 29 October, aged 33, after receiving the Holy Communion in the presence of Lord Roberts and Prince Francis of Teck. He was interred in the Pretoria cemetery on 1 November 1900. During his funeral, a Boer woman commented: "They are burying their Prince in British soil; the English intend to remain in this land". His grave is marked with a granite cross and a cast iron railing.
Prince Christian Victor was the favourite grandson of Queen Victoria. In 1897 he planted a cedar in Winchester "in commemoration of the 60th year of the reign of her majesty Queen Victoria".
Prince Christian Victor has a dedicated monument (who served with distinction under General Sir Redvers Buller) It also serves as a monument to the fallen officers, NCO's and Soldiers of the Devonshire, Somerset and Gloucestershire Regiment who lost their lives in the Boer War. The Monument is located on Plymouth Hoe in Plymouth Outside the entrance of the Royal Citadel.
It was a gift to the City from Alfred Mosely who was a merchant in South Africa but chose Plymouth as the location for the memorial because of family ties with Devon. He had been responsible for setting up a field hospital at Natal during the campaign and it was there that Prince Christian Victor had died of injuries sustained during the War.[2]
There is also a statue of the Prince outside Windsor castle (Berkshire, England) erected by his friends. The accompanying plaque displays a list of his campaign and war medals.
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