| Princess Alice (center) with Queen Elizabeth II (left) and the late Princess Margaret (right). | |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Princess Alice, aunt of Queen Elizabeth II and the oldest member of the British royal family, has died aged 102, Buckingham Palace said Saturday.
In a statement, the palace said Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, died quietly in her sleep at Kensington Palace with her immediate family around her.
The statement said Queen Elizabeth II was "greatly saddened" by the news.
"After the Princess's marriage to Henry, Duke of Gloucester, in 1935, Princess Alice supported the work of King George VI and then The Queen over many years throughout war and peace, and despite the tragedy of the early death of her son, Prince William.
"The Queen remembers with gratitude Princess Alice's service to the monarchy, and to the country."
The princess and her husband had two sons -- William, who died in a flying accident in 1972, and Richard, the current Duke of Gloucester. The princess's husband died in 1974.
Princess Alice was the second member of the royal family to reach her centenary, after the Queen Mother Elizabeth, who died in March 2002 at the age of 101.
