
Alice
The Story of Princess Alice of Greece, Prince Philip's Extraordinary Mother
Hugo Vickers(Author)
Hodder & Stoughton (Publisher)
Published on 3. July 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
464 pages
978-1-3997-3011-2 (ISBN)
Description
The remarkable, moving story of Prince Philip's mother by eminent biographer Hugo Vickers, updated in this new edition - for fans of Kingmaker and The Lives and Deaths of the Princesses of Hesse
'Gripping. Hugo Vickers has pulled off an extraordinary feat in describing the life - in many ways tragic - of Princess Andrew of Greece. It is not an exaggeration to say that this is a masterpiece.' - A. N. Wilson
'Vickers tells this story with a sure touch and an expertise that only he can command' SUNDAY TIMES
'A sympathetic, piquant and well-defined portrait of a spirited woman' LITERARY REVIEW
'Sympathetic yet free of pathos, Vickers's life celebrates an unusual and fascinating woman' KIRKUS
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Princess Alice, mother of Prince Phillip, was something of a mystery figure even within her own family. Profoundly deaf, she was born at Windsor Castle in the presence of her great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, and brought up in England, Darmstadt, and Malta.
In 1903 she married Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark, and from then on her life was overshadowed by wars, revolutions, enforced periods of exile. Further crisis hit when, at the age of forty-five, she was removed from her family and placed in a sanatorium in Switzerland, where she was pronounced a paranoid schizophrenic. As her stay in the clinic became prolonged, there was a time where it seemed she might never walk free again.
Yet she recovered.
Illuminating and enthralling, eminent biographer Hugo Vickers's account of her life is as tumultuous and extraordinary as the times she lived through.
'Gripping. Hugo Vickers has pulled off an extraordinary feat in describing the life - in many ways tragic - of Princess Andrew of Greece. It is not an exaggeration to say that this is a masterpiece.' - A. N. Wilson
'Vickers tells this story with a sure touch and an expertise that only he can command' SUNDAY TIMES
'A sympathetic, piquant and well-defined portrait of a spirited woman' LITERARY REVIEW
'Sympathetic yet free of pathos, Vickers's life celebrates an unusual and fascinating woman' KIRKUS
--------
Princess Alice, mother of Prince Phillip, was something of a mystery figure even within her own family. Profoundly deaf, she was born at Windsor Castle in the presence of her great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, and brought up in England, Darmstadt, and Malta.
In 1903 she married Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark, and from then on her life was overshadowed by wars, revolutions, enforced periods of exile. Further crisis hit when, at the age of forty-five, she was removed from her family and placed in a sanatorium in Switzerland, where she was pronounced a paranoid schizophrenic. As her stay in the clinic became prolonged, there was a time where it seemed she might never walk free again.
Yet she recovered.
Illuminating and enthralling, eminent biographer Hugo Vickers's account of her life is as tumultuous and extraordinary as the times she lived through.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (UK-trade)
Illustrations
1 plate section of 8pp
Dimensions
Height: 233 mm
Width: 149 mm
Thickness: 36 mm
Weight
578 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-3997-3011-2 (9781399730112)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Hugo Vickers
Alice
The True Story of Princess Alice of Greece, Prince Philip's Extraordinary Mother, by 'the most knowledgeable royal biographer on the planet' - FINANCIAL TIMES
E-Book
07/2025
Hodder & Stoughton
€12.99
Available for download
Person
Hugo Vickers is a writer, lecturer and broadcaster, and an acknowledged expert on the British Royal Family. He has written biographies of the Queen Mother, Cecil Beaton, Vivien Leigh, Princess Andrew of Greece and the Duchess of Windsor. His book The Kiss won the 1996 Stern Silver Pen Award for Non-Fiction. His recent bestsellers have included The Quest For Queen Mary and The Sphinx - the life of Gladys, the Duchess of Marlborough.