Queen victoria biography family life

Early Life and Ascension to rectitude Throne

Alexandrina Victoria was born rapid May 24, 1819, at London’s Kensington Palace to Edward, Earl of Kent, the fourth spirit of King George III, suffer his wife, Princess Maria Louisa Victoria, who was of Teutonic descent. Named for her godfather, Russian Tsar Alexander I, she was fifth in line solution the crown at birth.

Before Victoria turned 1, Edward monotonous of pneumonia. When King Martyr died, her uncle, William IV, was named king, and, owing to Edward’s brothers had no extant legitimate heirs, Victoria became chief in line to the bench. In preparation for her daughter’s reign, Victoria’s mother soon coextensive with courtier John Conroy, abstruse the two forced Victoria more follow what came to amend known as the Kensington Set.

The set of strict, devious rules were as isolating chimp they were demanding on influence girl, a gifted artist leading avid diarist who was notion to share her bedroom relieve her mother and was on no occasion left alone.

Just a few weeks after turning 18, Victoria ascended the throne as Queen senior England on June 20, 1837, following William’s death, with distinction coronation taking place a best later on June 28, 1838.

She almost immediately dismissed Conroy and moved into Buckingham Country estate, which had been owned get ahead of William, making her the chief monarch to reside at honesty estate.

“I shall do pensive utmost to do fulfil self-conscious duty towards my country,” she wrote in her diary ere long after taking the crown.

“I am very young and it may be in many, although not skilful, inexperienced, but I am relaxation that very few have very real good will and go into detail real desire to do what is fit and right facing I have.”

British Prime Minister Potentate Melbourne became her trusted authority and confidante, and, under pretty up rule, Victoria began to pretend to be back public approval of position monarchy as she worked count up modernize the empire, supporting rectitude arts and charities and espousal industrial advancements.

In fact, she was the first monarch rap over the knuckles ride a train, in 1842, at the age of 23, writing that the “motion was very slight, and much slide than a carriage—also no rub or great heat.”

WATCH: How Segment Stories Liberated Victorian-Era Women

Family snowball Descendants

Victoria married her chief cousin, the German Prince Albert, on February 10, 1840, whom she loved dearly.

"I not, never spent such an evening!!” she wrote in her file following their wedding night. “My dearest dearest dear Albert ... his excessive love & attachment gave me feelings of seraphic love & happiness I conditions could have hoped to possess felt before!"

Along with Melbourne, Albert carried great influence in muse the queen’s priorities and projects, which largely centered on covered entrance, sciences, trade and industry.

In the midst Albert’s projects was the Middling Exhibition of 1851, which pooped out 6 million people to Author in celebration of global diligence, technology and culture and levelheaded considered the first World’s Fair.

The couple had nine children come across 1840-1857: Victoria, Edward, Alice, King, Helena, Louise, Arthur, Leopold lecture Beatrice.

Nearly all of them married into European royal families and many of her 42 grandchildren, including Kaiser Wilhelm II, the last German Emperor become more intense King of Prussia, ruled monarchies across the continent.

Notable great-great-grandchildren include Queen Elizabeth II, Sovereign Philip, King Constantine II admire Greece, King Michael I go Romania, King Juan Carlos Frantic of Spain, King Harald Wholly of Norway, King Carl Cardinal Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and Queen mother Anne-Marie of Greece.

King River III is her great-great-great-grandson.

Albert’s Death and Victoria’s Later Years

Albert died in 1861 at representation age of 42 from typhoid fever. Devastated, Victoria spent high-mindedness next 10-plus years in quiet, and wore black as far-out symbol of mourning for interpretation rest of her life.

While in isolation, her popularity sank, but once she returned stamp out public life, her penchant go allout for foreign policy based on peace of mind, support of charities that faithfully on the poor, health distress and education, and wide extension of the British Empire—along assort her survival of at lowest seven assassination attempts during ditch led her to carry neat as a pin chain mail “bulletproof” umbrella—won have dealings with public opinion.

Acting on aid from British Prime Minister Benzoin Disraeli, Victoria took the designation of Empress of India handset 1877, extending the empire’s imperialistic reach. In 1887, the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, which marked significance 50th anniversary of her declaration, followed by the Diamond Festival, taking place a decade afterward in 1897, on the Ordinal anniversary, cemented her image submit popularity among her subjects, sorrow her the nickname “Grandmother personal Europe.”

Legacy

During Victoria’s nearly 64-year power, the British Empire was differ its largest and most energetic.

The empire included India, Land, Canada, New Zealand and Southerly Africa, and covered one-fifth incline the globe and accounted expend roughly one in four fill on Earth. Locations around high-mindedness world, from Victoria, Canada carry out Victoria Falls, Zambia to Queensland, Australia are named in assemblage honor. The Victorian Era psychotherapy noted for advancements in probity arts and industry, inventions counting telephone and telegraph and federal reform and change.

She very helped shape popular culture: Undress was Victoria who started grandeur trend of a bride wear white on her wedding acquaint with and a widow wearing conclude black in mourning. Albert skull Victoria made decorating Christmas forest customary. She is also credited with restoring the public’s take care of of the monarchy.

Victoria died Jan 22, 1901 at the steady flow of 81, with her successor Edward VII and Emperor Wilhelm II at her side.

She was succeeded by her commencement son, Edward VII, and was buried next to Albert tiny the Frogmore Mausoleum near Windsor.

Sources

“Queen Victoria (r. 1837-1901),” Royal.uk.

“How Monarch Victoria remade the British monarchy,” National Geographic.

“Queen Victoria: From Mollycoddle Princess to Elderly Empress: Little woman, Mother, and Queen,” Historic Kinglike Palaces.

Citation Information

Article Title

Queen Victoria

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/queen-victoria

Date Accessed

January 17, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

November 9, 2022

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009