Lord Leopold Arthur Louis Mountbatten (21 May 1889 – 23 April 1922) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer and a descendant of the Hessian princely

Battenberg family The Battenberg family is a non-dynastic cadet branch of the House of Hesse-Darmstadt, which ruled the Grand Duchy of Hesse until 1918. The first member was Julia Hauke, Countess Julia von Hauke, whose brother-in-law Louis III, Grand Duke of Hess ...

and the

British royal family The British royal family comprises Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considere ...

. A grandson of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

, he was known as Prince Leopold of Battenberg from his birth until 1917, when the British royal family relinquished their German titles during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and the Battenberg family changed their name to Mountbatten.

Early life

Prince Leopold was born on 21 May 1889. His father was Prince Henry of Battenberg, the son of

Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine (Alexander Ludwig Georg Friedrich Emil; 15 July 1823 – 15 December 1888), was the third son and fourth child of Louis II, Grand Duke of Hesse, and Wilhelmine of Baden. He was a brother of Tsarina Mar ...

and

Julia, Princess of Battenberg Julia, Princess of Battenberg, previously Countess Julia von Hauke and Countess of Battenberg (born Julia Therese Salomea Hauke; – 19 September 1895), was the wife of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine, the third son of Louis II, Grand Duk ...

. His mother was

Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom Princess Beatrice (Beatrice Mary Victoria Feodore; 14 April 1857 – 26 October 1944), later Princess Henry of Battenberg, was the fifth daughter and youngest child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Beatrice was also the last of Queen ...

, the fifth daughter and the youngest child of

and

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Alb ...

. As he was the product of a

morganatic marriage Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spou ...

, Prince Henry of Battenberg took his style of ''Prince of Battenberg'' from his mother, Julia von Hauke, who was created Princess of Battenberg in her own right. As such, Leopold was styled as ''His Serene Highness'' Prince Leopold of Battenberg from birth. In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, he was styled ''His Highness'' Prince Leopold of Battenberg under a royal warrant passed by Queen Victoria in 1886. He was baptised at

St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle St George's Chapel, formally titled The King's Free Chapel of the College of St George, Windsor Castle, at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is a Royal peculiar, Royal Peculia ...

on 29 June 1889. His godparents were

Leopold II of Belgium Leopold II (9 April 1835 – 17 December 1909) was the second king of the Belgians from 1865 to 1909, and the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908. Born in Brussels as the second but eldest-surviving son of King Leo ...

(his first cousin twice removed, represented by the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, his maternal uncle), the

Duke of Connaught and Strathearn Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom that was granted on 24 May 1874 by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to her third son, Prince Arthur. At the same time, he was al ...

(his maternal uncle, represented by Prince Albert of Schleswig-Holstein, his first cousin),

Prince Louis of Battenberg Louis Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven (24 May 185411 September 1921), formerly Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg, was a British naval officer and German prince related by marriage to the British royal family. Although ...

(his paternal uncle, represented by the Marquess of Lorne, his maternal uncle), the Marchioness of Lorne (his maternal aunt), the Duchess of Albany (his maternal aunt) and Princess Marie of Erbach-Schönberg (his paternal aunt). His father died of malaria in 1896. Leopold was a

haemophilia Haemophilia (British English), or hemophilia (American English) (), is a mostly inherited genetic disorder that impairs the body's ability to make blood clots, a process needed to stop bleeding. This results in people bleeding for a long ...

c, a condition he inherited through his mother. His namesake maternal uncle,

Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany (Leopold George Duncan Albert; 7 April 185328 March 1884) was the eighth child and youngest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Leopold was later created Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and Baron Arklow. He ...

, had died from the same condition.

Military career

Leopold was commissioned a lieutenant (supernumerary) on 16 October 1909 in the 8th Battalion of the

Isle of Wight Rifles The 1st Isle of Wight Rifle Volunteers, later the 8th (Isle of Wight, 'Princess Beatrice's Own') Battalion, Hampshire Regiment, but known informally as the 'Isle of Wight Rifles', was an auxiliary unit of the British Army formed to defend the Isl ...

, a

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry in ...

unit. On 19 October 1912, he received a regular army commission in The King's Royal Rifle Corps. During service in the First World War, he was promoted to temporary lieutenant on 15 November 1914, to lieutenant on 30 April 1915 and finally to captain on 14 September 1916. On 7 April 1918, he was placed on the half-pay list "on account of ill-health contracted on active service." From 23 July of that year until the following 6 January, he served as an extra aide-de-camp on the staff of the War Office. He resigned his commission on 14 April 1920; at the special request of his cousin, George V, he was granted the honorary rank of major.

Relinquishment of titles

During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, anti-German feeling in the United Kingdom led Leopold's

first cousin A cousin is a relative who is the child of a parent's sibling; this is more specifically referred to as a first cousin. A parent of a first cousin is an aunt or uncle. More generally, in the lineal kinship, kinship system used in the English-s ...

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

to change the name of the royal house from the Germanic

House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha ( ; ) is a European royal house of German origin. It takes its name from its oldest domain, the Ernestine duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and its members later sat on the thrones of Belgium, Bulgaria, Portugal ...

to the more English-sounding

House of Windsor The House of Windsor is the reigning house of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. The house's name was inspired by the historic Windsor Castle estate. The house was founded on 17 July 1917, when King George V changed the na ...

. The King also renounced all his Germanic titles for himself and all members of the British royal family who were British citizens. In response to this, Leopold renounced his title, through a royal warrant from the King, dated 14 July 1917, of a Prince of Battenberg and the style

His Highness Highness (abbreviation HH, oral address Your Highness) is a formal style (manner of address), style used to address (in grammatical person, second person) or refer to (in grammatical person, third person) certain members of a reigning or formerly ...

and became Sir Leopold Mountbatten, by virtue of his being a Knight Grand Cross of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

. Under a further warrant in September 1917 he was granted the style and precedence of the younger son of a

marquess A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wid ...

, and became Lord Leopold Mountbatten.

Death

Lord Leopold died on , during a hip operation.Leopold Arthur Louis Mountbatten profile
rodovid.org; retrieved 5 June 2010. After being initially interred in the Royal Vault at

, he was buried in the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore. A memorial tablet to him and his brother Maurice is in

Winchester Cathedral The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...

. His will was sealed in London after his death in 1922. His estate was valued at £4,049 (or £160,600 in 2022 when adjusted for inflation).

Honours

*KCVO:

Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

, ''19 June 1911'' *GCVO:

Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the ...

, ''1 January 1915'' Foreign *: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III, ''27 May 1906''

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mountbatten, Leopold 1889 births 1922 deaths Burials in Berkshire 19th-century British people 20th-century British people Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge Leopold British Army personnel of World War I British people of German descent Burials at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Princes in the German Empire Haemophilia in European royalty People with haemophilia British royalty and nobility with disabilities King's Royal Rifle Corps officers Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Leopold Military personnel from Windsor, Berkshire Younger sons of marquesses Royal reburials