View source for Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester

{{short description|Member of the British royal family (1901–2004)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2014}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Princess Alice
| title        = [[Duchess of Gloucester]] ([[#Titles and styles|more]])
| image        = Alice, Duchess of Gloucester.jpg
| caption      = Alice in 1945
| module       = {{Infobox officeholder
| embed            = yes
| office           = [[Spouse of the governor-general of Australia]]
| term_label       = In office
| term_start       = 30 January 1945
| term_end         = 11 March 1947
| monarch          = [[George VI]]
| governor_general = [[Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester]]
| predecessor      = [[Zara Hore-Ruthven, Countess of Gowrie|The Countess of Gowrie]]
| successor        = Mary, Lady McKell
}}
| birth_name   = Alice Christabel Montagu Douglas Scott
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1901|12|25|df=y}}
| birth_place  = [[Montagu House, Whitehall|Montagu House]], London, England
| death_date   = {{Death date and age|2004|10|29|1901|12|25|df=yes}}
| death_place  = [[Kensington Palace]], London, England
| burial_date  = 5 November 2004
| burial_place = [[Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore]], Windsor, Berkshire, England
| spouse       = {{marriage|[[Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester]]|6 November 1935|10 June 1974|end=died}}
| issue        = {{plainlist|
* [[Prince William of Gloucester]]
* [[Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester]]
}}
| house        = [[Montagu Douglas Scott]]
| house-type   = Noble family
| father       = [[John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch]]
| mother       = Lady Margaret Bridgeman
| signature    = AliceOfGloucester.svg
}}
'''Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester''' (born '''Lady Alice Christabel Montagu Douglas Scott'''; 25 December 1901 – 29 October 2004), was a member of the [[British royal family]]. She was the wife of [[Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester]], the third son of [[George V|King George V]] and [[Mary of Teck|Queen Mary]]. She was the mother of [[Prince William of Gloucester]] and [[Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester]].

The daughter of the [[John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch|7th Duke of Buccleuch]], Scotland's largest landowner, she became by marriage a [[British princess|princess of the United Kingdom]], and a sister-in-law of [[Edward VIII]] and [[George VI]]. She was thus an aunt-by-marriage of [[Elizabeth II]]. Alice was extremely well-travelled, both before and after her marriage. At the time of her death at age 102, she was the [[List of longest-living members of the British royal family|longest-lived member]] of the British royal family.

==Early life==
Lady Alice Christabel Montagu Douglas Scott was born at [[Montagu House, Whitehall]], London, on Christmas Day 1901, the third daughter and fifth child of [[John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch|John Montagu Douglas Scott, Earl of Dalkeith (later Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry)]], and his wife, the former Lady Margaret Alice "Molly" Bridgeman, daughter of the [[George Bridgeman, 4th Earl of Bradford|4th Earl of Bradford]].<ref name="earlylife">{{cite web|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Earlylife.aspx|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester – Childhood and early life|work=The British Monarchy|access-date=18 May 2015|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216150211/http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Earlylife.aspx|archive-date=16 February 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Her brothers [[Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 8th Duke of Buccleuch|Walter]] and [[Lord William Montagu Douglas Scott|William]] and her nephew [[John Scott, 9th Duke of Buccleuch|John]] were all [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] MPs. Her first cousin [[Marian Montagu Douglas Scott|Marian Louisa, Lady Elmhirst]], was the paternal grandmother of [[Sarah Ferguson]], former wife of Alice's great-nephew [[Andrew Mountbatten Windsor]].

Alice was a descendant, in an unbroken male line, of [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] through his eldest but illegitimate son, [[James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth]], himself a major political figure during the years leading up to the [[Glorious Revolution]]. As she was born on Christmas Day, she was given the middle name of Christabel.<ref name="memoirs1983">{{cite book |last1=Duchess of Gloucester |first1=Princess Alice |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aZwgAAAAMAAJ&q=The+Memoirs+of+Princess+Alice,+Duchess+of+Gloucester |title=The Memoirs of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester |date=1983 |publisher=Harper Collins |isbn=9780002166461 |edition=Hardcover |location=London}}</ref>

Alice spent much of her childhood travelling "between splendid houses":<ref name="Independent-Alice" /> [[Boughton House]] in Northamptonshire, [[Drumlanrig Castle]] in [[Dumfries and Galloway]], and [[Bowhill, Scottish Borders|Bowhill in the Scottish Borders]].<ref name="memoirs1983" /> [[Eildon Hall (Scottish Borders)|Eildon Hall]], in [[Melrose, Scottish Borders]], was more or less home base.<ref name="telegraphobituary">{{cite web|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1475521/Princess-Alice-Duchess-of-Gloucester.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1475521/Princess-Alice-Duchess-of-Gloucester.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|website=Telegraph (UK)|date=November 2004 |access-date=14 December 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Tel-Bio">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1365140/Royal-Family-throws-early-100th-birthday-party-for-princess-who-hated-society-life.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1365140/Royal-Family-throws-early-100th-birthday-party-for-princess-who-hated-society-life.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Royal Family throws early 100th birthday party for princess who hated society life|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|first=Caroline|last=Davies|date=13 December 2001|access-date=30 May 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

An experience of nearly drowning at the age of 14 awoke Alice to a keen sense of making the most of every day.<ref name="memoirs1983" /> Caught in a current in the [[Solway Firth]], she was convinced that she was going to die and she prayed to God, begging for a miracle to save her life in exchange for her devoting herself to public service:

{{blockquote|The next instant my feet touched rocks. I was able to stand up and get my breath back. I had been carried quite a way down the coast—some houses had come and gone on my left—but the rocks proved to be a reef and I was able to scramble through them back to shallow water without further mishap.... In return for my life I had promised to dedicate it to some useful purpose; but there never seemed to be anything that required my help or that I was any use at. So when, through a series of unforeseen circumstances, I one day found myself allotted a life of public duty in the service of my country, a very secret pledge was honoured.<ref name="memoirs1983" /><ref name="Tel-Bio"/>}}

Alice attended the independent [[St James's School|St James's School for Girls]], in [[West Malvern]], Worcestershire, and later travelled to France, [[Kenya]] and India.<ref name="memoirs1983" /> After school in West Malvern, she spent a year in Paris "before returning home to be presented at Court in 1920".<ref name="officialbio">{{cite web|title=HRH Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/family/gloucs.htm|website=The British Monarchy|access-date=5 February 2018|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000301002110/http://www.royal.gov.uk/family/gloucs.htm|archive-date=1 March 2000|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Alice enjoyed skiing, horse-riding and hunting and was also an accomplished watercolourist.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/princess-alice-oldest-ever-royal-dies-7907510.html|title=Princess Alice, oldest ever royal, dies|newspaper=The Independent|first=Severin|last=Carrell|date=30 October 2004|access-date=26 May 2018}}</ref><ref name="BBC-Obituary">{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1673159.stm|title=Obituary: Princess Alice|publisher=BBC|date=30 October 2004|access-date=26 April 2018}}</ref><ref name="Tel-Bio"/> A painting by her, done near [[Archers Post]] in Kenya, is today part of the [[Royal Collection]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Near Archer's Post- North Kenya|url=https://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/search#/1/collection/451571/near-archers-post-north-kenya|website=Royal Collection Trust|access-date=14 December 2017}}</ref> In Kenya, where she stayed for more than a year, from about 1929–1931, she stayed in the area typical of the so-called [[Happy Valley set]] and encountered many of the personalities of said clique, including [[Evelyn Waugh]].<ref name="memoirs1983" /><ref name="Independent-Alice" />

==Marriage==
{{See also|Wedding of Prince Henry and Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott}}
[[File:Bernard Tussaud befejezi Lady Alice Scott és a Gloucesteri herceg viasszobrát – London, 1935.10.16.tif|thumb|Bernard Tussaud finishes the wax figure of Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott and the Duke of Gloucester, 16 October 1935]]
In 1935, Alice returned to the United Kingdom when she learned that her father's health had been deteriorating.<ref name="Tel-Bio"/> In August 1935, Lady Alice became engaged to [[Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester]].<ref name="Memories" /> They were married in a private ceremony, in the Private Chapel, [[Buckingham Palace]], on 6 November of that year.<ref name="Memories">[https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=5rh5AAAAIAAJ&q=HRH+Princess+Alice,+Duchess+of+Gloucester,+Memories+of+Ninety+Years&dq=HRH+Princess+Alice,+Duchess+of+Gloucester,+Memories+of+Ninety+Years&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&redir_esc=y ''HRH Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, Memories of Ninety Years'']. London: Collins & Brown Ltd. 1991, p. 138. ISBN 9781855850484.</ref> A much more elaborate wedding was originally planned for [[Westminster Abbey]]; however, after the Duke of Buccleuch died of cancer on 19 October 1935, and in consideration of the King's own failing health, it was decided that the wedding should be scaled down to a more private setting.<ref name="Memories" />

Although the day was cold and wet, a crowd estimated to be more than one million people lined the streets from the Palace to the railway station to see the couple off on their honeymoon. She was often referred to as the "Winter Princess" from then on.<ref name="telegraphobituary" />

===Life in the royal family===
[[File:Duke and Duchess of Gloucester with sons.jpg|thumb|The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester with their two sons William (standing) and Richard in Canberra]]
Initially the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester lived at the [[Royal Pavilion, Aldershot|Royal Pavilion]] in [[Aldershot]], where the Duke was taking the Army staff course.<ref name="marriage&family">{{cite web|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Marriageandfamily.aspx|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester – Marriage and family|work=The British Monarchy|access-date=18 May 2015|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216150216/http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Marriageandfamily.aspx|archive-date=16 February 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Following the abdication of [[Edward VIII of the United Kingdom|Edward VIII]] in December 1936, the Duke, who was the first adult in the line of succession and therefore the [[Regency Acts#Regency Act 1937|designated regent]] in case of an early accession of his niece [[Elizabeth II|Princess Elizabeth]], left the army to take on more public duties.

The Duchess suffered two miscarriages,<ref name="Tel-Bio"/> before giving birth to two sons:<ref name="marriage&family"/>

:* [[Prince William of Gloucester]] (18 December 1941 – 28 August 1972)
:* [[Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester]] (born 26 August 1944). He married a Danish commoner, [[Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester|Birgitte van Deurs Henriksen]], on 8 July 1972. The couple later had three children.

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester travelled extensively, undertaking various engagements. The public appearances of the Duchess included launching {{HMS|Gloucester|62|6}} on 19 October 1937.<ref name="HMS Gloucester">{{cite news |date=21 October 1937 |title=Duchess of Gloucester launches a cruiser |url=https://www.britishpathe.com/video/the-duchess-of-gloucester-launches-a-cruiser |work=www.britishpathe.com |publisher=[[British Pathé]] |access-date=21 December 2019}}</ref> During [[World War II]], the Duchess worked with the [[International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|Red Cross]] and the [[Venerable Order of Saint John|Order of St John]].<ref name="BBCfuneral"/><ref name="charities&patronages">{{cite web|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Patronagesactivitiesandinterests.aspx|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester – Charities and patronages|work=The British Monarchy|access-date=18 May 2015|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216150221/http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Patronagesactivitiesandinterests.aspx|archive-date=16 February 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> She became head of the [[Women's Auxiliary Air Force]] (WAAF) in 1939 as Senior Controller, changed to Air Commandant on 12 March 1940,<ref name="Commandant-1940">{{London Gazette|issue=34810 |supp=|page=1472|date=12 March 1940}}</ref> and appointed Air Chief Commandant on 4 March 1943, when she took over as director until August 1944. When the WAAF became the Women's Royal Air Force (WRAF) in 1949, she was appointed an Air Chief Commandant (equivalent to Air vice-marshal) in the new service on 1 February 1949.<ref name="Chief Commandant-1949">{{London Gazette|issue=38684 |supp=y|page=3851|date=9 August 1949}}</ref> She was promoted to [[Air marshal]] on 1 September 1968,<ref name="Air Marshal">{{London Gazette|issue=44671 |supp=y|page=9773|date=6 September 1968}}</ref> and to [[air chief marshal]] in the [[Royal Air Force]] on 23 February 1990.<ref name="Air Chief Marshal">{{London Gazette|issue=52060 |supp=|page=2649|date=26 February 1990}}</ref> She also served as deputy to [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother|Queen Elizabeth]], the consort of [[George VI]], as Commandant-in-Chief of the Nursing Corps.<ref name="charities&patronages"/>
[[File:Air Ministry Second World War Official Collection CH1814.jpg|thumb|right|The Duchess of Gloucester in her WAAF uniform, with Air Marshal [[Sholto Douglas, 1st Baron Douglas of Kirtleside|W. Sholto Douglas]]]] 
From 1945 to 1947, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester lived in [[Canberra]], where the Duke was serving as [[Governor-General of Australia]]. He had visited Australia  a number of times.<ref name="cumming">{{cite web |last1=Cumming |first1=K. |title=Royalty in Australia |url=https://www.naa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-08/research-guide-royalty-and-australian-society.pdf |publisher=National Archives of Australia |access-date=15 June 2023 |date=1998}}</ref><ref name="charities&patronages"/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/01/world/europe/princess-alice-of-britain-102-aunt-of-queen-dies.html|title=Princess Alice of Britain, 102, Aunt of Queen, Dies|newspaper=The New York Times|date=1 November 2004|access-date=26 May 2018}}</ref> In 1969, the Duke and Duchess were invited to their niece Moyra Dawnay's wedding to Timothy de Zoete, grandson of cricketer [[Herman de Zoete]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ward |first1=V. |title=Aristocratic roots of Peter Phillips' NHS nurse girlfriend revealed |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=22 June 2024 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2024/06/22/peter-phillips-nhs-nurse-girlfriend-harriet-sperling-ascot/ |publisher=UK Daily Telegraph |access-date=25 June 2024}}</ref><ref name="cumming"/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Cuneen |first1=C. |title=first Duke of Gloucester (1900–1974) |journal=Australian Dictionary of Biography |date=2024 |url=https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/gloucester-first-duke-of-10313 |access-date=13 June 2023}}</ref>

The Duchess of Gloucester served as [[Colonel-in-Chief]] or deputy Colonel-in-Chief of a dozen regiments in the [[British Army]], including the [[King's Own Scottish Borderers]], the [[Northamptonshire Regiment]], the [[2nd East Anglian Regiment]] (Duchess of Gloucester's Own Royal Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire), [[the Royal Anglian Regiment]], the [[Royal Hussars]], and the [[Royal Irish Rangers]] (27th Inniskilling); also, the [[Royal Corps of Transport]].<ref name="military-appointments">{{cite web|url=http://www.regiments.org/biography/royals/1901aliG.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070816152352/http://www.regiments.org/biography/royals/1901aliG.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 August 2007|title=H.R.H. Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester|publisher=Regiments.org|access-date=30 May 2018}}</ref> She was Patron of the [[Girls' Public Day School Trust|Girls' Day School Trust]] and from 1940 until her death Patron of [[Queen Margaret University|Queen Margaret College]] in Edinburgh.<ref name="charities&patronages"/>

In 1965, while returning from [[Death and state funeral of Winston Churchill|Winston Churchill's funeral]] in their vehicle, the Duke suffered a stroke, which resulted in a car crash, with the Duke being thrown out of the car and the Duchess "suffering facial injuries".<ref name="Independent-Alice">{{cite web|last1=Vickers|first1=Hugo|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/princess-alice-duchess-of-gloucester-31357.html|website=The Independent (UK)|date=November 2004|access-date=14 December 2017}}</ref><ref name="Tel-Bio"/> On the occasion she wrote: "I was sitting beside him to grab the wheel or put my foot on the brake if he fell asleep and lost control, but on that occasion I must have dozed off myself. Apparently the Rolls swerved off the road (and) ended upside down in a field of cabbages. Prince Henry had luckily been thrown through the open door...into (stinging) nettles and brambles".<ref name="memoirs1983" />

In 1972, the Duchess's elder son, [[Prince William of Gloucester|Prince William]], was killed in a plane crash while participating in an amateur air show race.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1972-08-28 |title=1972: Prince William killed in plane crash |language=en-GB |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/28/newsid_2536000/2536275.stm |access-date=2022-02-28}}</ref> Her husband was in such poor health at the time of their son's death that the Duchess hesitated whether to tell him, later admitting in her memoirs that she did not but that he may have learned of William's death from television coverage.<ref name="memoirs1983" /> The Duke of Gloucester died on 10 June 1974 at the age of 74.<ref>{{Cite ODNB |title=Henry, Prince, first duke of Gloucester (1900–1974) |url=https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-31220 |access-date=2022-02-28 |year = 2004|language=en |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/31220|isbn = 978-0-19-861412-8}}</ref>

==== Residences ==== 
In 1937 the couple received a London [[grace and favour]] residence at [[York House, St James's Palace]],<ref name="officialbio" /> which had been the London home of Prince Henry's older brother [[Edward VIII]] prior to his abdication. In 1938, Henry and Alice purchased [[Barnwell Manor]] in Northamptonshire.<ref name="marriage&family"/> The purchase price for the Barnwell Estate (which included four tenanted farms) was £37,500; in her memoirs, Princess Alice describes this amount as "the greater part of the money left to Prince Henry by the King."<ref name="AliceGloucester1991p145">Alice, Duchess of Gloucester. *Memories of Ninety Years.* London: Collins & Brown, 1991, p. 145. OCLC 1245534119. Retrieved 12 Nov 2025 from https://archive.org/details/memoriesofninety0000alic</ref> However, records of financial negotiations resulting from the [[Abdication of Edward VIII]] state that Prince Henry received a legacy of £750,000 from his father's private fortune.<ref>{{cite book |last=Warwick |first=Christopher |title=George and Marina: Duke and Duchess of Kent |publisher=Allen Lane |year=2020 |location=E-book |quote=Location 2491}}</ref><ref name="BedellSmith2023p84">{{cite book |last=Bedell Smith |first=Sally |title=George VI and Elizabeth: The Marriage That Shaped the Monarchy |publisher=Random House |year=2023 |isbn=978-0241638231 |page=84}}</ref><ref name="Ziegler1992p214">{{cite book |last=Ziegler |first=Philip |title=King Edward VIII |publisher=Random House Value Publishing |year=1992 |isbn=978-0517095157 |page=214 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780517095157/page/214/mode/2up |access-date=6 August 2025 |url-access=registration |via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

Following the death of her sister-in-law [[Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark|Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent]] in 1968, it was announced in November 1969 that the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester would relocate from their home at [[York House, St James's Palace]] to Apartment 1, [[Kensington Palace]]. Justification for the Gloucesters' relocation was provided by a Palace spokesperson, who was quoted in contemporary newspapers as stating "York House is a large and unwieldy house for present-day use. The apartment at Kensington Palace is much more compact, modernised and easier to run."<ref>{{cite news |title=New Home for Duke of Gloucester |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=1 November 1969 |page=11 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-telegraph-new-home-for-duke-of/175383923/ |access-date=27 June 2025}}</ref> Alice and Henry's recently married younger son [[Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester|Prince Richard of Gloucester]] also used the Apartment from 1972.<ref name="Telegraph2019">{{cite news |last=Ward |first=Victoria |title=Duke and Duchess of Gloucester sell items from private collection after downsizing move |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2019/12/10/duke-duchess-gloucester-sell-items-personal-collection-moving/ |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=10 December 2019 |access-date=27 June 2025}}</ref> Apartment 1, Kensington Palace would remain Alice's London home for the final thirty-five years of her life.<ref name="Quinn230">{{cite book |last=Quinn |first=Tom |title=Kensington Palace: An Intimate Memoir from Queen Mary to Meghan Markle |publisher=Biteback Publishing |date=2021 |edition=Kindle |page=230 |isbn=978-1785905919}}</ref>

==Later life==
In 1975, Alice was the first woman to be appointed a [[Knight Grand Cross|Dame Grand Cross]] of the [[Order of the Bath]].<ref name=OrderoftheBath /> In 1981, she first published her memoirs under the title ''The Memoirs of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester.'' In 1991, she released a revised edition as ''Memories of Ninety Years''.<ref name = ODNB>{{cite ODNB|title = Alice, Princess, duchess of Gloucester (1901–2004)|last = Ziegler|first = Philip|date = 2008|doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/94331}}</ref>

In 1994, after the Gloucesters had to give up [[Barnwell Manor]] for financial reasons, Alice moved from Barnwell to [[Kensington Palace]], where she lived with the current Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.<ref name="Tel-Bio2">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1475448/Princess-Alice-the-oldest-ever-royal-dies-at-102.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1475448/Princess-Alice-the-oldest-ever-royal-dies-at-102.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Princess Alice, the oldest ever royal, dies at 102|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|first=Andrew|last=Alderson|date=31 October 2004|access-date=25 May 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> She officially retired from public duties at the age of 98.<ref name="BBC-Obituary"/> In 1999, the Duke issued a press release announcing that due to physical frailty, his mother would no longer carry out public engagements outside the environs of Kensington Palace. In July 2000, the Duke said in another statement that his mother had become "increasingly forgetful".<ref name="Tel-Bio2"/>

In December 2001, the royal family held a ceremony to acknowledge Alice's 100th birthday.<ref name="death">{{cite web|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Lateryearsanddeath.aspx|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester – Later years and death|work=The British Monarchy|access-date=18 May 2015|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150428205437/http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Lateryearsanddeath.aspx|archivedate=28 April 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> This was her last public appearance (as well as the last public appearance of [[Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon|Princess Margaret]], the Queen's younger sister, who died on 9&nbsp;February 2002).<ref name="death" /> On the death of [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother]] at age 101 in March 2002, Alice became the oldest living member of the [[British royal family]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3968675.stm|title=Queen's tribute to Princess Alice|work=BBC News|date=30 October 2004|access-date= 27 December 2011}}</ref> On 21 August 2003, Alice surpassed the Queen Mother's record as the oldest person in the history of the British royal family by reaching the age of 101 years and 238 days.<ref name="death" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3967215.stm|title=Princess Alice dies aged 102|publisher=BBC|date=30 October 2004|access-date=26 May 2018}}</ref> On 20 September 2003, at the age of 101 years and 269 days, she was certified by [[Guinness World Records]] as the world's longest-lived royal of all time, surpassing [[Leonilla Bariatinskaya|Leonilla, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn]].<ref name="publication">{{cite web|url=https://guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/oldest-royal/|title=Oldest royal|publisher=Guinness World Records|access-date=16 May 2020}}</ref>

==Death==
On the evening of 29 October 2004, Alice died in her sleep from heart failure at [[Kensington Palace]], at the age of 102 years and 309 days.<ref name = ODNB/><ref name="death"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/10/30/alice.obit/|title=Oldest British royal dies at 102|publisher=BBC|date=30 October 2004|access-date=26 May 2018}}</ref> Following her death, the [[Union Jack]] flew at half-mast at Buckingham Palace.<ref name="Tel-Bio2"/> Her funeral was held on 5 November 2004 at [[St George's Chapel, Windsor]], and she was interred next to her husband, Henry, and her elder son, William, in the [[Royal Burial Ground]] at [[Frogmore]].<ref name="BBCfuneral">{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3984911.stm|title=Final Royal farewell to princess|publisher=BBC|access-date=18 May 2015|date=5 November 2004}}</ref><ref name="Royalfuneral">{{cite web|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/LatestNewsandDiary/Pressreleases/2004/ArrangementsforthefuneralofPrincessAlice.aspx|title=Arrangements for the funeral of Princess Alice|publisher=Royal Household|access-date=18 May 2015|date=1 November 2004}}</ref> The funeral was attended by Elizabeth II and other members of the British royal family.<ref name="BBCfuneral"/> A memorial service was held at [[St Clement Danes]] on 2 February 2005, which was attended by her son and his family and representatives of organisations Alice was involved in;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2005/02/03/princessalicememoria/|title=Gloucester sisters attend Princess Alice memorial|publisher=Hello!|access-date=18 May 2015|date=3 February 2005}}</ref> the service was co-ordinated by the Royal Air Force in respect of Alice's role as Commandant-in-Chief WRAF.

Contrary to royal tradition, Alice's will was not sealed after her death. Her estate was valued at {{Inflation|UK|569,849|2004|fmt=eq|orig=yes|cursign=£}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/07/the-royal-clan-whos-who-what-do-they-do-and-how-much-money-do-they-get|title=The royal clan: who's who, what do they do and how much money do they get?|work=The Guardian|date=7 April 2023|accessdate=8 April 2023}}</ref>

==Legacy==
[[Hugo Vickers]] called Alice "a very private person who was not widely known to the general public" despite being the third-[[United Kingdom order of precedence|highest-ranking]] lady in the royal family at the time of her marriage.

It was well known she disliked large parties. [[Peter Townsend (RAF officer)|Peter Townsend]] said of her: "She possessed classic, serene good looks and sincerity shone from her mild face. But she was painfully shy, so that conversation with her was sometimes halting and unrewarding, for you felt that she had so much more to say, but could not bring herself to say it."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/21st-december-1991/39/a-very-private-person|title=A very private person|publisher=The Spectator|date=21 December 1991|website=spectator.co.uk}}</ref> Alice herself wrote in her autobiography: "I was very shy and rather plump, ... I made a miserable debut at a dance at Windsor for [[Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood|Princess Mary]]'s birthday, uncomfortably squeezed into a white satin frock."<ref name="Tel-Bio"/>

Although generally a woman of few and soft-spoken words, Princess Alice was known for her dry humour.<ref name="Independent-Alice" /> Soon after her marriage, when the couple moved to [[York House, St. James's Palace|York House]], they were warned that the drawing-room floor would not stand the weight of more than twenty people. "So we made a party list," recalled the Duchess many years later, "of the twenty-one people whom we disliked most."<ref name="aronson2014">{{cite book |last1=Aronson |first1=Theo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0tNkQgAACAAJ&q=The+Royal+Family+at+War |title=The Royal Family at War |date=2014 |publisher=Thistle Publishing |isbn=978-1910198032 |location=London |page=110}}</ref>

The Queen Mother said of Princess Alice after her son's death in an air crash in 1972: "The tragic accident was a great shock to all the family, but I feel desperately for his dear little mother. She has the courage of a lion, and has suffered so many cruel blows in the past few years...".<ref>Vickers, p. 406</ref> Alice herself later admitted that following her son's death "I was completely stunned and have never quite been the same since".<ref name="Tel-Bio2"/>

==Titles, styles, honours and arms==
[[File:Coat of Arms of Alice, Duchess of Gloucester.svg|thumb|220px|right|Coat of arms of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester]]

===Titles and styles===
*25 December 1901 – 5 November 1935: Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott
*6 November 1935 – 10 June 1974: ''Her Royal Highness'' The Duchess of Gloucester
*10 June 1974 – 29 October 2004: ''Her Royal Highness'' Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester

On 10 June 1974, Prince Henry died, and was succeeded as Duke of Gloucester by their second son, [[Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester|Prince Richard]] (the couple's elder son, Prince William, had been killed in an aeroplane crash in 1972). As a widow, she requested permission from her niece Queen Elizabeth II to use the title and style ''HRH'' Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, instead of adopting ''HRH'' The Dowager Duchess of Gloucester or HRH Princess Henry. Queen Elizabeth II allowed her aunt to adopt this title, in part to avoid confusion with her daughter-in-law, the [[Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester|new Duchess of Gloucester]] (formerly Birgitte van Deurs Henriksen).<ref name="marriage&family"/>

===Honours===
====British honours====
*'''GCStJ''': [[Venerable Order of Saint John|Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St. John]], ''22 December 1936''<ref name="OrderofSaintJohn">{{London Gazette |issue=34356 |date=1 January 1937 |page=2 }}</ref>
*'''CI''': [[Order of the Crown of India|Companion of the Crown of India]], ''9 June 1937''<ref name="OrderoftheCrownofIndia">{{London Gazette |issue=34406 |date=8 June 1937 |page=3729 |supp=y}}</ref>
*'''GBE''': [[Order of the British Empire|Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire]], ''11 May 1937''<ref name="OrderoftheBritishEmpire">{{London Gazette |issue=34396 |date=11 May 1937 |page=3074 }}</ref> 
*'''GCVO''': [[Royal Victorian Order|Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order]], ''1 January 1948''<ref name="honours&appointments">{{cite web|url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Honoursandappointments.aspx|title=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester – Honours and appointments|work=The British Monarchy|access-date=18 May 2015|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216145906/http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/Honoursandappointments.aspx|archive-date=16 February 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
*'''GCB''': [[Order of the Bath|Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath]], ''2 April 1975''<ref name="OrderoftheBath">{{London Gazette |issue=46540 |date=11 April 1975 |page=4689 }}</ref>
*[[Royal Family Order of George V]], ''1935''<ref name="hugo">{{cite book|last1=Vickers|first1=Hugo|title=Royal Orders|year=1994|publisher=Boxtree|isbn=9781852835101|pages=147}}</ref>
*[[Royal Family Order of George VI]], ''1937''<ref name=":0">{{cite book|last1=Patterson|first1=Stephen|title=Royal Insignia: British and Foreign Orders of Chivalry from the Royal Collection|date=1996|publisher=Merrell Holberton|location=London|isbn=9781858940250|page=144|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xKdxAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Family+Order%22|access-date=24 January 2015}}</ref>
*[[Royal Family Order of Elizabeth II]], ''1952''<ref name="hugo" />

====Military appointments====
;UK
* [[Colonel-in-Chief]], the [[King's Own Scottish Borderers]]<ref name="military-appointments"/><ref name="1937-appointments">{{London Gazette |issue=15387 |date=14 May 1937 |page=395 |nolink=yes |city=e}}</ref>
* Colonel-in-Chief, the [[Northamptonshire Regiment]]<ref name="military-appointments"/><ref name="1937-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, the [[2nd East Anglian Regiment]] (Duchess of Gloucester's Own Royal Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, the [[Royal Hussars]] (until 1992)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, the [[Royal Irish Rangers]] (27th Inniskilling) (until 1989)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, the [[Royal Corps of Transport]]<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Deputy Colonel-in-Chief, [[the Royal Anglian Regiment]]<ref name="military-appointments"/><ref>{{London Gazette |issue=43422 |date=28 August 1964 |page=7419 |supp=y |nolink=yes}}</ref>
* Deputy Colonel-in-Chief, the [[King's Royal Hussars]]<ref name="military-appointments"/><ref>{{London Gazette|issue=52834|page=2581|supp=y|date=13 February 1992}}</ref>
* Deputy Commandant-in-Chief, the Nursing Corps<ref name="charities&patronages"/>
* Lady Sponsor, {{HMS|Gloucester|62|6}}<ref name="HMS Gloucester"/>

;Commonwealth
* Colonel-in-Chief, [[Australian Women's Army Service]]<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, [[Royal Australian Corps of Transport]]<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, Royal New Zealand Army Service Corps (until 1979)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Colonel-in-Chief, [[Royal New Zealand Corps of Transport]]<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Honorary Colonel, Australian Army Nursing Service Reserve (until 1947)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Commandant-in-Chief, [[Women's Royal Australian Naval Service]] (until 1947)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Commandant-in-Chief, [[Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force]] (until 1947)<ref name="military-appointments"/>
* Commandant-in-Chief, [[Australian Women's Land Army]]<ref name="military-appointments"/>

====Military ranks====
* 1939: Head and Senior Controller, the [[Women's Auxiliary Air Force]] (WAAF)
* 1940: Air Commandant, the Women's Auxiliary Air Force<ref name="Commandant-1940"/>
* 1943: Air Chief Commandant, the Women's Auxiliary Air Force
* 1949–1994: Air Chief Commandant (equivalent to Air Vice-Marshal), the [[Women's Royal Air Force]] (WRAF)<ref name="Chief Commandant-1949"/>
** 1994: Air Chief Commandant, Women, Royal Air Force<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=53631 |supp=y|page=5098|date=31 March 1994}}</ref>
* 1968: Air Marshal, the Women's Royal Air Force<ref name="Air Marshal"/>
* 1990: Air Chief Marshal, the [[Royal Air Force]]<ref name="Air Chief Marshal"/>

==Ancestry==
{{ahnentafel
|collapsed=yes |align=center
|boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc;
|boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9;
|boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc;
|boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc;
|1= 1. '''Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester'''
|2= 2. [[John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch]]
|3= 3. [[Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch|Lady Margaret Bridgeman]]
|4= 4. [[William Montagu Douglas Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch]]
|5= 5. [[Louisa Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch|Lady Louisa Hamilton]]
|6= 6. [[George Bridgeman, 4th Earl of Bradford]]
|7= 7. [[Ida Bridgeman, Countess of Bradford|Lady Ida Lumley]]
|8= 8. [[Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch]]
|9= 9. [[Charlotte Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch|Lady Charlotte Thynne]]
|10= 10. [[James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn]]
|11= 11. [[Louisa Hamilton, Duchess of Abercorn|Lady Louisa Russell]]
|12= 12. [[Orlando Bridgeman, 3rd Earl of Bradford]]
|13= 13. The Honourable Selina Forester
|14= 14. [[Richard Lumley, 9th Earl of Scarbrough]]
|15= 15. Frederica Mary Adeliza Drummond
}}

==Publications==
*Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, ''The Memoirs of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester'' (London: Collins, 1983), {{ISBN|0-00-216646-1}}.
*Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, ''Memories of Ninety Years'' (London: Collins & Brown Ltd, 1991), {{ISBN|1-85585-048-6}}.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
*{{Citation|last=Vickers|first=Hugo|author-link=Hugo Vickers|title=Elizabeth, The Queen Mother|publisher=Arrow Books/Random House|year=2006|isbn=978-0-09-947662-7}}
*{{Citation|last=Duchess of Gloucester|first=Princess Alice|author-link=Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester|title=The Memoirs of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester|publisher=Collins|year=1983|isbn=0-00-216646-1}}
*{{Citation|last=Aronson|first=Theo|author-link=Theo Aronson|title=The Royal Family at War|publisher=Thistle Publishing|year=2014|isbn=978-1910198032}}
*Ronald Allison and Sarah Riddell, eds., ''The Royal Encyclopedia'' (London: Macmillan, 1991), {{ISBN|0-333-53810-2}}.
*Marlene A. Eilers, ''Queen Victoria's Descendants'' (New York: Atlantic International Publishing, 1987), {{ISBN|91-630-5964-9}}.

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090216125251/http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessAlice/LifeofHRHPrincessAlice.aspx Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester] Official website of the British monarchy (archived)
*{{YouTube|_mX0fULvZqQ|A video of HRH Princess Alice launching a ship at Devonport, UK}}
*{{NPG name}}
*{{IMDb name|1773269}}

{{British princesses by marriage}}
{{Duchesses of Gloucester}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alice, Duchess of Gloucester}}
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