Princess Louise was Queen Victoria’s sixth child and her most independent daughter. Born in 1848, her long and eventful life spanned almost a century of violently changing social and political history. She died on the outbreak of World War II.
She was a talented artist and sculptor who attended art school at a time when such a thing was unheard of for a young royal woman.
She was a protofeminist who smoked, had a genuine impulse to help others, and possessed both a sharp tongue and a sense of humour.
She was also the first daughter of a sovereign to marry a commoner, the Marquis of Lorne, and live in Canada when he became Governor General in 1878-1883. His appointment allowed her to travel extensively there and in the American Wild West.
UK Publication: Harper Collins 1998