Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh together with his new wife, the Duchess of Edinburgh (formerly the Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna of Russia) arriving at Windsor train station in March 1874 following his marriage which took place in the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in January. Queen Victoria, who did not attend the ceremony, is shown greeting her new daughter-in-law together with other members of the Royal family. The union was unpopular with the Queen, largely because memories of the Crimean War instinctively left her opposed to a union with the Imperial Russian family.