Princess Maud and her mysterious ring

 

Princess Maud of Fife, the Countess of Southesk,  had the reputation of being one of the shyest members of the Royal Family, and was rarely seen in public. She encountered a peculiar incident when one day,  the reticent princess received a mysterious ring, which may (or may not) have saved her life.

Maud was born at East Sheen Lodge in Surrey, on April 3, 1893 to Princess Louise of Wales, the first daughter and third child of the then-Prince and Princess of Wales (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra), and Alexander Duff, 1st Duke ofFife . Her older sister, Alexandra, was born in 1891.

In 1905, King Edward VII created Princess Louise as the Princess Royal of the United Kingdom, the highest dignity that could be bestowed upon the princess of the blood. As a female-line granddaughter of the British monarch, Alexandra was not entitled to the title of "Princess", nor to the style of Her Royal Highness.  At the same time of Princess Louise’s proclamation as Princess Royal, the King likewise declared that his two granddaughters would be styled as princesses, with the style and attribute of "Highness" and with precedence immediately after all members of the royal family bearing the style of "Royal Highness".  From that point, Princess Alexandra and Princess Maud held her title and rank, not from her ducal father, but from the decree issued by will of the sovereign (her grandfather).

While travelling with her parents and sister in 1911 Maud and her family narrowly escaped death when the liner Delhi was wrecked off Cape Spartel off the coast of Morocco. The Royal party was taken off in a boat, but it capsized in the surf and members of the party had to be carried ashore.  The Duke of Fife contracted pleurisy as an aftermath and died at Assuan, Egypt, on January 29, 1912. Earlier in the voyage Lady Southesk was given a ring by a woman whom she did not know. The stranger said: "Nothing will harm you while you wear this ring.” Struck by the coincidence, Lady Southesk continued to wear the  ring.

Princess Maud of Fife (first from left) with her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Fife, and sister Princess Alexandra, c1902. Taken by W. & D. Downey. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Princess Maud, left, with her mother, Princess Louise, and sister Princess Alexandra. Image from Wikimedia Commons. 

Princess Maud, c1910. Image from Wikimedia Commons. 

Princess Maud, c1910s. 

Princess Maud in an undated photograph. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Wedding portrait of Lord and Lady Carnegie, c1923. Image from Lafayette archive, V&A Museum via Wikimedia Commons

On November 13, 1923, Maud married Charles, Lord Carnegie (September 23, 1893–February 16, 1992) at the Royal Military Chapel, Wellington Barracks, London. Lord Carnegie was the eldest son of Charles Noel Carnegie, 10th Earl of Southesk and inherited the title of Earl of Southesk on his father's death on November 10, 1941. When she married Lord Carnegie, heir to the Earldom of Southesk in 1923, Lady Southesk dropped the title of princess, reverting to the usual designation of a duke's daughter. Maud and her husband operated a model farm from Elsick House, in Kincardineshire, Scotland. They had one child, James (September 23, 1929 - June 22, 2015).

James Carnegie, 3rd Duke of Fife, in front of Elsick House. Photograph by Allan Warren, 1984. Image from Wikimedia Commons

Princess Maud inherited her mother’s shyness and while she consistently appeared at the Court of St. James's together with the other members of the British Royal Family, she did not undertake official or public duties. She was nevertheless a staunch supporter of the Girl Guides movement and even served as the County Commissioner in Angus and Aberdeenshire and a member of the Executive Committee in Scotland. In 1937, she was bestowed the Silver Fish Award, the highest honour  bestowed to an adult Girl Guide. In 1943, though, during the absence of George VI who went to Africa, Maud served as a Counsellor of State. Princess Maud died in a London nursing home on  December 14, 1945 after a bout of acute bronchitis. On the death of Princess Arthur in 1959, Maud’s son, James, inherited the dukedom of Fife.