Heritage detective Sundeep Braich attended the press preview of Kensington Palace's 2026 exhibition 'The Last Princesses of Punjab', celebrating Princess Sophia Duleep Singh's 150th birthday, mindful that it coincided with her younger half-sister's death centenary.
Sundeep was cited by Smithsonian Magazine for recognising that the exhibition's title was technically inaccurate because Maharaja Duleep Singh had a second family that included Princesses Pauline and Irene Duleep Singh, who were, by simple chronology, the actual last-born princesses of Punjab, despite Queen Victoria's opinions about their legitimacy and belonging.
By September, when Heritage Open Days returns, Sophia's 150th birthday celebrations will have passed, and the time will come to bring Princess Irene Duleep Singh to light as the last-born Duleep Singh and the first of the Duleep Singh princesses to die.
Irene was born in Paris on 25 Oct 1889, the city where her father, the Maharaja, would die less than four years later. Her gravestone in the Cimetière de Monaco records her death as 8 October 1926, making 2026 her centenary year.
This online event completes the centenary journey begun in 2025, remembering Irene and giving her death the dignity she was denied 100 years ago, when her remaining sister and three half-sisters were all named in a probate fight for their dead sister's estate.
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Timings
- Sunday 20 September:
- 1400-1500
Booking information
- Pre-booking requirement:
- Pre-booking preferred
- Booking conditions:
- Book via eventbrite online: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-forgotten-princess-the-centenary-of-irene-duleep-singh-1926-2026-tickets-1998746206709
- Booking contact name:
- Sundeep Braich
- Booking email:
- [email protected]
- Booking website:
- https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-forgotten-princess-the-centenary-of-irene-duleep-singh-1926-2026-tickets-1998746206709
- Booking closes:
- 20 Sep 2026 12:00 AM
Accessibility details
Online access required to Microsoft Teams. Book tickets via Eventbrite. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-forgotten-princess-the-centenary-of-irene-duleep-singh-1926-2026-tickets-1998746206709
Additional information
Pre-booking preferred: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-forgotten-princess-the-centenary-of-irene-duleep-singh-1926-2026-tickets-1998746206709
- Max number of people:
- 100
- Estimated duration:
- 1 hour(s) 0 minute(s)
