Queen Victoria

Victoria was born at Kensington Palace on the 24th May 1819, the only daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, who died when she was eight months old. She ascended the throne at the age of eighteen on the 20th June 1837, upon the death of William IV.

In February 1840 she married Prince Albert and had nine children, most of whom were married into other Royal families of Europe.

Edward VII married Alexandra, daughter of Christian IX of Denmark. Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh, married Marie of Russia. Arthur, the Duke of Connaught, married Louise Margaret of Prussia. Leopold, the Duke of Albany, married Helen of Waldeck-Pyrmont. Victoria, the Princess Royal, married the German Emperor Friedrich III. Alice married Ludwig IV. Helena married Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. Louise married the 9th Duke of Argyll, and Beatrice married Henry of Battenberg.

Reign of Queen Victoria

Queen Victoria lived through the glory years of the British Empire, and at the height of our industrial expansion. At one stage we ruled over a quarter of the Earth’s surface.

Her reign saw the first steady rise in newspaper coverage of the Royal Family, helped by the introduction of photography. This made her extremely popular with the nation, but coincided with a decline in the sovereign’s powers. Laws were passed that took away what little she could still do, and it was under Victoria that our modern image of the constitutional monarchy was formed.

She also suffered numerous assassination attempts: the first in 1840; another three in 1842; one in 1849; another in 1850 (during which she was bruised with a cane); one more in 1872, and the last in 1882.

Great Exhibition (1851)

One of the highlights of Victoria’s reign was the Great Exhibition of 1851. This was the brainchild of Prince Albert, who envisioned an event to celebrate the glories of the Empire.

It was held in a specially commissioned ‘Crystal Palace’ at the northern-edge of Hyde Park. It housed 13,000 exhibits and attracted over 6 million visitors.

Profits from the event totalled £186,000, and funded some of London’s finest museums. The Royal Albert Hall was also built with the proceeds, as was the area south side of Kensington Gardens (now known as the Albertopolis).

Later life

When her beloved Albert died in December 1861, Victoria sank into a deep depression and took to wearing black at public gatherings. She rarely appeared in public, and was criticised in the press. She even failed to open Parliament, preferring to stay at her house in the Scotland Highlands.

After gentle proddings from her family and the PM Benjamin Disraeli, she slowly assumed her public duties and her popularity increased.

She died on the Isle of Wight on the 22nd January 1901, after a reign lasting sixty-three years, seven months, and two days – the longest reign in British history.

• Historical pictures

Historical pictures

^{A young Queen Victoria, c.1842Queen Victoria, c.1887}

Queen Victoria – Related articles…

Queen Victoria Memorial
The Queen Victoria Memorial stands at the end of The Mall – opposite Buckingham Palace.