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Beatrice was born at Buckingham Palace.

She was the fifth daughter and youngest of the nine children of the reigning British monarch, Queen Victoria, and her husband, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha ( later The Prince Consort ).

The birth caused controversy when it was announced that Victoria would seek relief from the pains of delivery through the use of chloroform administered by Doctor John Snow.

Chloroform was considered dangerous to mother and child and was frowned upon by the Church of England and the medical authorities.

Victoria was undeterred and used " that blessed chloroform " for her last pregnancy.

A fortnight later, Victoria reported in her journal, " I was amply rewarded and forgot all I had gone through when I heard dearest Albert say ' It's a fine child, and a girl!

' " Albert and Victoria chose the names Beatrice Mary Victoria Feodore: Mary after Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester, the last surviving child of King George III of the United Kingdom ; Victoria after the Queen ; and Feodore after the Queen's older half-sister.

She was christened in the private chapel at Buckingham Palace on 16 June 1857.

Her godparents were her maternal grandmother, the Duchess of Kent ; her eldest sister, the Princess Royal ; and the Princess Royal's fiancé, Prince Frederick of Prussia.