The Last Princess

This “beautifully written . . . disarmingly impressive” biography sheds light on the peculiar life of Queen Victoria's youngest daughter (Daily Telegraph, UK).

Born on April 14th, 1857, Princess Beatrice was the last child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. After her father died when she was four, Beatrice became the queen's source of comfort and consolation, a role which required her complete submission. Her mother's obsessive love was so all-consuming that by her late teens, Beatrice would become her constant companion. 

Although Victoria tried to prevent Beatrice from even thinking of love, her guard slipped when Beatrice met Prince Henry of Battenberg. But even her marriage to the German prince would not take Beatrice away from her mother. While their lifelong closeness gave her proximity to power, yet it cost her own flourishing. In The Last Princess, Matthew Dennison restores her to her proper prominence―as Queen Victoria's second consort.