35 Facts About Louise Lehzen

Johanna Clara Louise Lehzen, known as Baroness Louise Lehzen, was the governess and later companion to Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.

Five years later, Louise Lehzen was appointed governess to his only child, Princess Alexandrina Victoria.

Louise Lehzen was strongly protective of Victoria, and encouraged the princess to be strong, informed, and independent from the Duchess and Conroy's influence, causing friction within the household.

Attempts to remove the governess were unsuccessful, as Louise Lehzen had the support of Victoria's royal uncles.

When Victoria became queen in 1837, Louise Lehzen served as a sort of unofficial private secretary, enjoying apartments adjacent to Victoria.

Albert and Louise Lehzen detested each other, and after an illness of the Princess Royal in 1841, Louise Lehzen was dismissed.

Louise Lehzen spent her final years in Hanover on a generous pension, dying in 1870.

Louise Lehzen was a major influence on Victoria's character, in particular giving her the strength of will to survive her troubled childhood and life as a young queen.

Louise Lehzen served as governess to the family's three daughters, and earned positive references.

Louise Lehzen and the entire household were moved to England in 1817 so that the new Duchess of Kent's child might be born there, strengthening the child's claim to the throne.

The Duchess and her comptroller, John Conroy made the appointment not only because Louise Lehzen was German, but because they believed she was unlikely to operate independently of their wishes.

Louise Lehzen encouraged the princess to distrust her mother and her mother's friends, and to maintain her independence.

King George IV expressed doubt that Louise Lehzen was the proper candidate to prepare Victoria.

The wish of the Duchess and Conroy to keep Victoria dependent on their will was circumvented by Louise Lehzen, who wanted her charge to become a strong, informed woman.

Louise Lehzen aided a weakened Victoria in her refusal to sign a document prepared for her by Conroy and the Duchess that would guarantee him a position when she became queen.

The education Victoria received from Louise Lehzen was rudimentary but solid.

Davys was put in charge of the "solid department of her studies", while Louise Lehzen concentrated on the "more ornamental departments", such as dancing.

Louise Lehzen was strict, but rewarded the princess when she was obedient.

When Victoria ascended the throne in 1837, Louise Lehzen enjoyed a prominent position at the coronation, and remained at court.

At this point, it seems that Louise Lehzen had totally replaced Victoria's mother both in terms of influence and affection; Louise Lehzen's apartments adjoined the queen's, while the Duchess of Kent was installed in a suite of rooms far removed from Victoria.

When Victoria's first child, the Princess Royal, was born, Victoria trusted Louise Lehzen to make the arrangements for the nursery.

Louise Lehzen placed it in the care of various staff as well as Sir James Clark, despite Albert's objections that the physician was wholly unsuited to the post, having already discredited himself during the affair of Lady Flora Hastings a year previously.

Louise Lehzen made a final attempt to defend Lehzen, describing her as a selflessly loyal woman who deserved to remain close to her former charge.

Louise Lehzen accepted the fiction of ill health, and agreed to depart.

Louise Lehzen departed on 30 September 1842, leaving a note rather than speaking directly with Victoria, believing that this would be less painful.

The queen was initially unaccustomed to Louise Lehzen's absence, having spent almost her whole life up to that point in the presence of the former governess.

Louise Lehzen was foolish enough to contest his influence, and not to conform herself to the change in her position.

When Louise Lehzen was dismissed from the court she returned to her native Germany, living in Buckeburg.

Louise Lehzen covered the walls of her house with portraits of the queen.

Louise Lehzen continued to regard Victoria with affection, and the queen wrote regularly to her former governess, weekly at first and later monthly at Louise Lehzen's request.

The Baroness Louise Lehzen died in Buckeburg on 9 September 1870, where she is buried in Jetenburger cemetery.

Louise Lehzen was criticised for her influence with the queen, particularly from those who disliked German influences at court.

One in particular, published as the Warning Letter to Baroness Louise Lehzen, declared that a "certain foreign lady pulled the wires of a diabolical conspiracy of which Lady Flora was to be the first victim," a reference to the Flora Hastings affair.

The historian K D Reynolds adds that Lehzen was a major influence on Victoria's character and moral development, in particular giving the queen the strength of will to survive her troubled childhood and young queenship.

Baroness Louise Lehzen has been portrayed numerous times in film and television.