Albert, PRINCE CONSORT, was born at Schloss Rosenau, near Coburg, August 26, 1819, the younger son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, by his first marriage with Louisa, daughter of the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. After a careful domestic education, the Prince, along with his elder brother, studied at Brussels and Bonn (1836-38), where, in addition to the sciences connected with state-craft, he devoted himself with ardour to natural history and chemistry, and displayed great taste for the fine arts, especially painting and music. Gifted with a handsome figure, he attained expertness in all knightly exercises; whilst by Baron Stockmar, his mentor, he was imbued with a real interest in European politics. This gallant Prince it was that the young Queen of Great Britain selected as her partner for life. They met first in 1836, and fell in love like ordinary mortals, though the marriage had long been projected by King Leopold and Baron Stockmar. It was celebrated in London on the 10th of February 1840, when Prince Albert received the title of Royal Highness, was naturalised as a subject of Great Britain, and obtained the rank of Field-marsh. As the union proved in the highest degree a happy one, the Prince was loaded with honours and distinctions both by the Queen and the nation. The title of Consort of Her Most Gracious Majesty was formally conferred in 1842, and that of Prince Consort in 1857. Notwithstanding his high and favoured position, he abstained, with rare prudence and tact, from undue meddling with state affairs, and thus escaped the jealousy and detraction of parties. When the Whig ministry of 1840 proposed for him the income of £50,000, as Consort of Queen Victoria, the Tories, in conjunction with the Radicals, succeeded in limiting the sum to £30,000. This appears to have been the only instance of any manifestation of party feeling with reference to the Prince. On the other hand, he opened for himself an influential sphere of action, in the encouragement and promotion of science and art, appearing as the patron of many useful associations and public undertakings; and he completely succeeded in living down the insular jealousy of the foreigner, which was at times rather strongly manifested against him when his exceptionally upright and straightforward character had not yet become fully known to the English people. The Exhibition of 1851 owed much to his strong interest. As regards Continental politics, his ruling idea—anticipating history by many years—was that Prussia should be supreme in Germany. Balmoral (q.v.) was bought by him for the Highland home of the royal house. Young in years, but worn out by a life of manifold activity, he died of typhoid fever at Windsor Castle, towards the midnight of Saturday, 14th December 1861; and sorrow for his death darkened the life of his sorrowing widow, and for the rest of her days profoundly modified Queen Victoria's attitude towards public life.
See his Life by Sir Theodore Martin (5 vols. 1874-80), and Count Vitzthum's Reminiscences (Eng. trans. 1887). For the rest see the article VICTORIA, and books there cited.