Dame af Tårer (Lady of Tears) by Annette Lind
In 2006 the remains of a Danish princess were moved from Roskilde Cathedral in Denmark to be laid to rest in the St. Peter and Paul Church in Russia. This Danish princess arrived again in Russia on September 26, 2006, 140 years after the date she arrived in Russia from Denmark to marry Tsarivich Alexander who would one day become the Czar of Russia. This young princess would become the Empress of Russia and the mother of the last Russian Czar, Nicholas II. Her’s was an amazing and tragic life, earning her the sad title of “Lady of Tears.” Her name was Dagmar, but for most of her life she was Maria Feodorovna. Perhaps you already know her story—if not, it’s a story worth knowing. Princess Dagmar was born in 1847. She was the fourth child born to Prince Christian and Princess Louise of Denmark. Her full name was Marie Sofia Frederikke Dagmar of SchleswigHolstein Sonderburg-Glucksborg. She was known to the Danish people as Dagmar (Bringer of Light). When she was born there was little chance of her father becoming a king. But if you remember from a previous article on King Frederik IX (father of Dronning Margrethe II) because King Frederick VII had no children and basically the Oldenburg lineage had no one in line to be his heir, The Acts of Succession of 1853 named Prince Christian to be the heir to the Danish throne. With the death of King Frederik VII Dagmar’s parents became King Christian IX and Queen Louise of Denmark. Despite being born to parents who would one day rule Denmark, her life was surprisingly modest. She lived in the Yellow Mansion (this building can still be seen in Copenhagen next to Amalienborg Palace. Originally it was built
for a Danish merchant, but King Frederik VII purchased it in 1810 to use as a guest residence. In 1837 he gave it to Prince Christian though at that time there was no thought that Christian would one day become King of Denmark. Dagmar’s family was relatively poor for royalty. The children were educated by their parents, and the three girls in the family sewed their own clothes. Dagmar was one of six children: Frederik, Alexandra, William, Dagmar, Thyra and Waldemar. Shortly after their father Christian IX ascended to the throne, Alexandra married Edward, the Prince of Wales, son of Queen Victoria. She would eventually become Queen of England. Later that same year William was named King of Greece and became known as King George. Dagmar was considered by Queen Victoria as a bride for her son Alfred. Dagmar was also considered as a wife by Prince Umberto of Italy who would become King Umberto I. It was, however, another suitor that eventually caught her eye, Tsarivich Nicholas of Russia. He had first seen Dagmar in a picture of the princess when she was 12 years of age. It is said Nicholas was fascinated with her. In 1864 he visited Denmark to meet Dagmar. They became engaged. It seems the two fell very much in love, but they were never to be married. Nicholas became ill with meningitis in Nice, France. Dagmar and her mother rushed to his side. He died on April 24, 1865. There is a story that on his death bed Nicholas asked his brother, Alexander, to marry Dagmar and make her happy. It is hard to know if the story is true. Alexander was already in love with one of this mother’s maids of honor. However, his father, Czar Alexander II, ordered his son to go to Copenhagen and Dagmar again became engaged to a son of the 9
Danish Sisterhood News, January 2021
