Alexandra was not only the daughter of a future king but also by far the prettiest so had more suitors than the others. All three were considered as potential marriage material for the Prince of Wales and the Prince of Orange as well as a number of other protestant princes.
Marie of the Netherlands was rich but nearly deaf and not particularly pretty. Elisabeth was a good-looking but a bit weird in her behaviour. In the end Marie married Elisabeth's brother and had several children. The prince of Wales was lucky he got to marry Alexandra of Denmark. Had he ended up with Elisabeth or Marie that might have had a bigger impact on the history of not just the people involved and their families but potentially the world. Previous Message
Has she been the only queen in the last 200 years born to a mediatized house? I heard that her husband, Carol I, first traveled to Russia in search of a Romanov grand duchess or princess who might be willing to become his bride. As it was, he had no luck, and therefore had to search elsewhere for a consort.
A princess from a mediatized house was not exactly the most advantageous catch. But Elisabeth was eager and willing (the house of Wied, like Leiningen, Thurn and Taxis, and Cro˙, had some success in contracting dynastic unions with sovereign houses). Plus, she was a Lutheran: her husband had already infuriated the Vatican by promising to raise all prospective children in the Orthodox faith. As such, he could hardly expect a Catholic bride to be willing to make the same sacrifice of a standing in the Church.
Sadly enough, the marriage turned out to be a disaster, personally and dynastically. The couple were totally mismatched, in terms of character and temperament. And it didn't help that they were unable to produce an heir (their only child, a daughter, died at the age of four). Hence, the designation of his nephew Ferdinand as heir ...
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