Queen Victoria had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. The United Kingdom was already an established constitutional monarchy, in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, Victoria attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments; publicly, she became a national icon who was identified with strict standards of personal morality. Victoria married her first cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together and earning her the sobriquet "the grandmother of Europe". After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and
Prince Christoph of Hesse the sister of the future Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. They had five children: Prince Christoph of Hesse Christoph Ernst August of Hesse (Frankfurt, 14 May 1901 – Apennine Mountains near Forlì, 7 October 1943) was the fifth son of Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse and Princess Margaret of Prussia. He was a German SS officer killed in a plane crash during World War II. He was a brother-in-law of Prince Philip, the consort of Queen Elizabeth II. Born in Frankfurt, Prince Christoph was a great-grandson of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha through their eldest daughter