Figure 1.--Princess Mary is pictured here with his two older brothers. She wears a long smock with a Peter Pan collar. I believe the boys when younger also wore smocks, but I do not have any photographs of them in smocks. |
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Mary Windsor was the Princess Royal who received the title of the Countess of Harewood, the only girl in a family of five brothers. She was the little girl in smocks and dresses that appeared in the family photograpgs with her more famous brothers, usually dressed in sailor suits. She herself often wore sailor dresses to fit in with her sailor-suited brothers. Her father was a strong believer in sailor suitsd for children. While her father was very strict wth her brothers, he often tolerated behavior on her part that would have been dealt with severely if the boys had done. As a teenage girl and young woman, however, he was very strict concerning how she dresses and who she met. She became the Vicountess
Lascelles and had two sons, although I do not know a great deal about them, other than that they were very smartly dressed as children.
Pincess Mary had the two best know parents in the World--King George V and Queen Mary. Jing George presided over the greatest empire in the world. They didn't make hradlines like modern royals. They stood for respectibility and stability. And of course the newspapers were much more contrained than modern newspapers. Even so few British monarchs either before or after have better stood up for respectability and family values. In this the King George was quite differeht than his father which is perhaps one reason that he focuded so stringly on respectability. And the Queen saw her role as supporting her husband and this included his ideas about raising the children.
Mary's mother is often criticised for being cold and indifferent to her children. This is an harsh assessment, but she clearly was not affectionate with her children. There were times, especially when her husband was not present that she played a more maternal role. We have little information at this time concerning Princess Mary's relationship with her mother.
Her father, who also was not expected to be king, was a harsh disciplinarian who because of his naval background was fanatically punctual. He was particularly severe with his two oldest sons, David (Edward VIII) and Albert. Some have even used the term cruel. Many assessments of his father unfairly assess him in modern
terms and not in comparison to other turn of the century fathers. Even so, he does seem to have been unduly harsh and always formal with the children. He treated his only daughter differently.
George V and Queen Mary had 6 children, 5 boys and a girl.
They were presented as the model British family. Certainly
they did not have the problems the modern English press likes
to report with the current royals. They did, of course, have
their problems with Edward--eventually resulting in the
greatest modern crisis in the monarch. Edward became
famous for renouncing the throne to mary a divorced
American. His brother Albert who had never been raised to
be king, not only inherited the crown, but the great task of
leading Britain through the trials of World War II.
Princess Victoria Alexandria Alice Mary was born in the Diamond
Jubilee year of 1987. She was always known by her last name, May.
She was the only daughter of George V and Queen Mary in a family
of brothers. She was named after her mother, Queen Mary.
Princess Mary was probably the brightest of all the Windsor children. Her oldest brother, David, said that it was a pity that she did not suceed to the throne as "she was much clever than me."
Princess Mary and her older brothers, David and Albert, were born into rather startlingly different circustance. More children were to come, but these three older children grew up in the nursery together and were very close to each other. Their great grandmother Queen Victioria was still alived and continued to live in an evironment of mourning and gloom. This could not have been more drasticalyy different than the world of their grand parents the Prince and Princess of Wales who lived in a world of lights and spcial elegance. Both, but especially the Princess of Wales loved to spoil and dote on the children. Than their was their own parents, Prince George and Princess Mary. Their father believed in a rather plain life and insisted on strict discipline for the children.
Princess Mary's father King Goeorge V thought sailor suits was one of the few appropriate garments for boys. (The other was kilts.) He insisted that they be dressed in
either sailor suits or kilts. I am not sure if he took a similar interest in his daughter's clothes. She often appeared in smocks, sailor dresses, and plain dresses. Princess Mary is the little girl often seen marching in a smock with her sailor suited brothers. She also wore sailor suits outfits herself, sailor dresses.
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I know little about Princess Mary, but hope to acquire some information on her and her childhood experiences. We know that her father was very strict on her brothers. I'm not sure what her relatonship was with her parents or her brothers. Her father was a strong believer in sailor suitsd for children. While her father was very strict wth her brothers, he often tolerated behavior on her part that would have been dealt with severely if the boys had done. As a teenage girl and young woman, however, he was very strict concerning how she dresses and who she met.
We have no information on Princess Mary's education at this time. Her lder brothers wre not sent to school until they began Cadet training. I am not sure about Mary. Certainly she had tutors. weather she attended school I do not yet know.
Princess Mary mairred Henry George Charles Lascelles on February 28, 1922. Mary at the time was the Princess Royal and her husband was rather older than she was. I have no other information yet on Princess Mary's mairrage.
Princess Mary and the Earl of Harewood had two sons, George and Gerald. George Vicount Lascelles was Princess Mary's eldest son. He was born in 1923. I have no information on his childhood. George was educated at Ludgrove School, Eton College and King's College, Cambridge. After completing his education, he was commissioned into the Grenadier Guards. Gerald was born in 1924. He was Princess Mary's youngesr son. He was created The Honourable Gerald Lascelles. Gerald was born at Goldsborough Hall, near Knaresborough in North Yorkshire. The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of York were his godparents. We do not know much about his childhood. As he and his brother were close in age, they were often dressed alike. We do not yet have much information on their childhood. Both boys served in the military during Woirkd War II. George was taken prisoner in Ilaly. After this, Gerald was not posted overseas. We know a good deal about their adult lives.
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