Autobiography of Miss Cornelia Knight, Lady Companion to the Princess Charlotte of Wales, Volume 2 (of 2)with Extracts from Her Journals and Anecdote Books

This memoir offers an unprecedented window into the short, tragic life of Princess Charlotte of Wales, the beloved heir to the British throne whose death in childbirth in 1817 plunged the nation into mourning. Cornelia Knight, her lady companion, witnessed firsthand the political pressures surrounding Charlotte's marriage negotiations, the royal household's rigid hierarchies, and the tender friendship between mistress and companion. Knight details her abrupt dismissal from Charlotte's service in 1814 alongside all the princess's other attendants, a cruel act ordered by the Prince Regent. Yet the memoir's emotional core lies in Knight's later reunion with Charlotte, by then happily married to Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, brief happiness before tragedy intervened. Compiled from Knight's journals and a late-life memoir, this volume also preserves her 'anecdote book,' vivid snapshots of the European court circles she moved through for decades. It is a testament to a remarkable woman who navigated the treacherous waters of royal service while maintaining her wit, her learning, and her affection for a princess who deserved a longer life.