 The exact nature of his relationship with Victoria was the subject of great speculation by contemporaries and remains controversial.Brown was born on 8 December 1826 at Crathienaird, Crathie and Braemar Aberdeenshire, to Margaret Leys and John Brown, and went to work as an outdoor servant (in Scots "ghillie" or "gillie") at Balmoral Castle, which Queen Victoria and Prince Albert leased in February 1848, and purchased outright in November 1851.Brown had several younger brothers and a sister, three of whom also entered the royal service.