Duchess Sophie Almost Died Giving Birth to Lady Louise Windsor

She experienced an "acute placental abruption."

Lady Louise Windsor is celebrating her 21st birthday today—and for the occasion, the Daily Mail shared a scary story about her mom, Duchess Sophie, and the complications she faced as she gave birth. Louise is the daughter of Sophie and Prince Edward, making her Queen Elizabeth's granddaughter and 16th in line to the throne.

While the Duchess of Edinburgh's pregnancy was very normal for the most part, she experienced "crippling abdominal pains" on November 8, 2003. She was admitted to Frimley Hospital near her home in Surrey, England, and doctors explained that she was experiencing an "acute placental abruption." Marie Claire notes that the condition is extremely dangerous and can be "fatal for both mother and baby due to extreme blood loss."

The Daily Mail reports that Sophie "was reportedly just 15 minutes away from dying in the emergency room" and lost "nine pints of blood through internal bleeding."

Louise arrived via an emergency C-section and later suffered from a rare eye condition called esotropia. She's had three separate surgeries to treat it, which initially caused her eyes to look in different directions. As she was born premature, Louise was rushed to a hospital in London and Sophie was "sedated, alone, and distressed at being apart from her baby." Prince Edward was in Mauritius at the time and wasn't able to return to England until the next day.

Queen Elizabeth paid a secret visit to Sophie at the time, which was "unheard of," per Marie Claire. Years after the incident, Sophie would open Frimley Hospital's neonatal unit, saying, "The service you can provide can literally make the difference between life and death. I can attest to that."