Helena Gleichen (1873–1947)

Lady Helena Gleichen was the youngest child of Prince Victor of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, a half-nephew of Queen Victoria, and his morganatic wife Laura Seymour, who was granted the title Gräfin von Gleichen. Her brother, Lord Edward Gleichen wrote several books, and her sister Lady Feodora Gleichen was a sculptor. During World War I, Lady Helena gave up her German titles and headed the 4th Radiographic British Red Cross Unit stationed in Italy, one of the first mobile X-ray units set up to treat the wounded. For her work, she later received the Italian Bronze Medal of Military Valour and was invested as a Dame of Grace of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem; she received the OBE in 1920. Lady Helena became a famous painter of landscapes, flowers, and animals, working from her father's former studio in St. James's Palace. The family home, a rambling estate called Hellens Manor, at Much Marcle in Herefordshire, was used during World War II by the Tate for the safe storage of art works. Her memoir, Contacts and Contrasts, was published in 1940.