The Queen Mother's five brothers were in the army and her sister Lady Rose became a nurse in London, while Glamis Castle was transformed into a hospital. Lady Elizabeth performed many tasks for the convalescent soldiers, such as taking photographs of them to be sent to their homes, knitting, and sewing khaki shirts. Many of these soldiers came from Australia and New Zealand and, many years later when visiting these countries, she would recognise an "old boy" in the crowd. In the summer of 1915 her brother, Captain Fergus Bowes-Lyon, was killed in war action He was the only member of the British Royal family to be killed in World War 1 - Fergus, an officer in the Black Watch, was killed in action at the Battle of Loos in 1915. Another brother, Michael, was reported as missing in action in May 1917 but was subsequently found to have been taken prisoner after being wounded. He spent the rest of the war as a POW. In Memory of Captain The Hon. FERGUS BOWES-LYON 8th Bn., Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) who died age 26 on 27 September 1915 Son of 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, of Glamis Castle, Forfarshire; husband of Lady Christian Bowes-Lyon (now Lady Christian Martin). Educated at Eton. Previously served with 2nd Bn. in India. (Queen Mother's brother). Remembered with honour LOOS MEMORIAL The Queen Mother laid her bouquet on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Westminster Abbey on her wedding day in remembrance of her brother.
Geneva ...... In the tracing archive, filled with thousands of faded yellow cards listing prisoners over the decades, Prince Charles also looked at files relating to Michael Bowes-Lyon. He examined a list of detainees with Bowes-Lyon’s name at the bottom. "I must say, I’m thrilled," he said. Although Bowes-Lyon was located by the Red Cross, his relatives’ first indication that he was alive came when he cashed a Coutts Bank cheque in a prison camp.
He wasn't a member of the British Royal family! He never knew that his sister would become Queen; she was 15 when he was killed and 23 when she married the Duke of York. I'm trying to think who the last member of the British Royal Family to be killed in action was - I think it must have been Richard III, killed at Bosworth in 1485. Prince George, Duke of Kent, was killed on active service, in the crash of a Sunderland flying-boat in 1942 (trying to pick up Rudolf Hess, according to the conspiracy theories. Pulling rank to take over the controls, is a more likely explanation).
Here's a Prince Adrian !! In Memory of Lieutenant Prince MAURICE VICTOR DONALD BATTENBERG K C V O, Mentioned in Despatches 1st Bn., King's Royal Rifle Corps who died age 23 on 27 October 1914 Youngest son of Prince Henry and Princess Beatrice of Battenberg and grandson of Victoria, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India. Remembered with honour YPRES TOWN CEMETERY Prince Maurice of Battenberg, KCVO, (Maurice Victor Donald; 3 October 1891 – 27 October 1914) was a descendant of the British Royal Family, a grandson of Queen Victoria and her youngest grandchild. He was known as Prince Maurice of Battenberg throughout his life, as he died before the British Royal Family relinquished their Germanic titles during World War I. Prince Maurice was born on 3 October 1891. He was given the name Maurice after his father Prince Henry of Battenberg, Victor after his grandmother the Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and Donald in honour of Scotland, as he was born at Balmoral Castle. His father was Prince Henry of Battenberg, the son of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine and Julie Therese née Countess of Hauke. His mother was Princess Henry of Battenberg (née The Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom), the fifth daughter and the youngest child of Queen Victoria and Albert, Prince Consort. As his father was the product of a morganatic marriage, 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, Maurice was styled as His Serene Highness Prince Maurice of Battenberg from birth. In the United Kingdom, he was styled His Highness Prince Maurice of Battenberg under a Royal Warrant passed by Queen Victoria in 1886. The youngest of his four siblings, Maurice most resembled his father, who died when the Prince was only four, the same age his mother was when her own father died. He was his mother's favorite, and out of his brothers, he most closely resembled his father. He was educated at Lockers Park Prep School in Hertfordshire. His elder sister Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, married Alfonso XIII of Spain and was Queen Consort of Spain between 1906 and 1931. Maurice attended the prestigious Wellington College and was a member of the Benson house. The young prince served in World War I as a lieutenant in the King's Royal Rifle Corps, and was killed in service in the Ypres Salient in 1914. He is buried in Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?GRid=6137142&page=gr
Ok, a rather more honourable figure than Richard III I imagine! As a grandson of Queen Victoria, this would have been the equivalent of Prince Harry being KIA today - but with rather more siblings and cousins, not nearly as close in line to the throne as he is!
