On 29 May 1818, her mother remarried to Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, the fourth son of King George III. The following year, when the duchess's pregnancy was reaching full term, the household moved so that the new potential heir to the British throne could be born in Britain.[1][2]
Feodora enjoyed a very close relationship with her younger half-sister Victoria, who too was devoted to her, although Victoria resented the fact that Feodora was one of only a few other children with whom she was allowed regular interaction.[3][4] Despite their closeness, Feodora was eager to leave their residence at Kensington Palace permanently, as her "only happy time was driving out" with Victoria and her governess Baroness Louise Lehzen, when she could "speak and look as she liked".[3]
Feodora maintained a lifelong correspondence with her half-sister Victoria and was granted an allowance of £300 (equivalent to £33,458 in 2023) whenever she could visit Britain.[6] She was a member of the royal party at Victoria's coronation in 1838.[7]
Sculpture on the tomb of Princess Feodora of Leiningen.
"Can I write it? My own darling, only sister, my dear excellent, noble Feodore is no more! She is at rest & in peace since 2 this morning. What a fearful loss! Darling precious sister, whom I hoped so to go & see! The kind Empress Augusta telegraphed the news to me in a most feeling manner, & I got the telegram just after I came back from Abergeldie, where I had gone to see the preparations for Bertie's welcome. This was to have been & is still a day of rejoicing for all the good Balmoral people, on account of dear Bertie's first return after his illness, & I am here in sorrow & grief, unable to join in the welcome. God's will be done, but the loss to me is too dreadful! I stand so alone now, no near & dear one nearer my own age, or older, to whom I could look up to, left! All, all gone! How good & wise, beloved Feodore was, so devoted to me, so truly pious & religious. She is gone to that world she was so fit for & entered it, just sleeping away. What a blessed end! but what a loss to those who are left! She was my last near relative on an equality with me, the last link with my childhood & youth."
In Victoria Series 3 (2019), Feodora is played by Kate Fleetwood. In the programme, Feodora is portrayed as a scheming, jealous sister who has fled Langenburg and refuses to return to her home, which is not historically accurate.
Pakula, Hannah (1997). An Uncommon Woman: The Empress Frederick, Daughter of Queen Victoria, Wife of the Crown Prince of Prussia, Mother of Kaiser Wilhelm. New York: Simon and Schuster Inc. ISBN0-684-84216-5.
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