PEDIATRICS Vol. 64 No. 2 August 1979, pp. 241
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PRINCESS ELIZABETH, SECOND DAUGHTER OF KING CHARLES I, AND RICKETS

T. E. C. Jr MD

In 1856 the coffin of Princess Elizabeth (1635-1650) was discovered during the demolition of old St. Thomas's Church at Newport, Isle of Wight, England.

Mr. Ernest P. Wilkins, MRCS, examined the remains of the Princess and noted:1

The bones of the upper arm were slightly curved outwards—more particularly the right humerous—while those of the forearm were somewhat twisted and considerably curved outwards. The spinal column, retaining the relative position of the vertebrae during life, presented an extremely curved condition constituting the double lateral or S curvature of pathologists, which must have caused considerable projection of the right shoulder-blade and its attendant deformity ....

The condyles of the lower extremities were very large in relative proportion. The femur or thigh bone of the left side was curved forwards and inwards, that of the right side was more distorted than any other long bone. It was very much curved forwards and inwards. This bone was much flattened, its greatest diameter being from before, obliquely outwards and backwards; the concavity of the curve was somewhat filled in, and the bone thus strengthened by additional osseous deposit in accordance with the natural reparative tendency of Nature's laws. The bones of the leg, the tibia and fibula, were much curved outwards.

The bones of the skeleton indicate the great deformity which existed during life—there was evidently considerable "growing out" of the right shoulder-blade and corresponding flattening of the left side of the back. The lower extremities were contorted and of unequal length, the knees were what is termed "knocked"; below the knees the legs were bowed, the heels thrown outwards and the toes inverted.