Queen Victoria (1819 - 1901)


Queen Victoria remains a remarkable figure in history not only as the longest reigning British monarch but as figurehead of a vast empire and inspiration for a highly complex culture.

She was born the only child of Edward Duke of Kent and Victoria Maria Louisa of Saxe-Coburg on 24th May 1819. She succeeded her uncle, William IV, in 1837 aged 18 and her reign dominated the rest of the century. In 1840, Victoria married her first cousin Albert of Saxe-Coburg Gotha. For the next 20 years they lived in close harmony and had a family of nine children, many of whom married into European monarchy.

On her accession morale was low and the monarchy unpopular, but Victoria won the nation's hearts with her modesty and practicality. She made it clear that she wished to be politically informed and so she was fostered by the Whig Prime Minister Lord Melbourne. Aged 58 and a widower who had lost his only daughter, Melbourne viewed Victoria as his own and encouraged in her a conservative approach to ruling Britain. In fact, Melbourne was so concerned for her well-being that he advised against reading Charles Dickens because, he alleged, the books were full of 'unpleasant subjects'.

In 1840, Melbourne's influence was replaced by that of Albert's. The German Prince never really won the favour of the British public and only after 17 years was he given recognition with the title of Prince Consort. Despite his reputation, Victoria did everything in collaboration with her husband and it was during his lifetime that she was most active as a ruler. Albert's interests in the arts and sciences inspired the celebratory Great Exhibition of 1851 hosted at Crystal Palace. The proceeds enabled the foundation of Britain's greatest public museums including the V&A. These institutions fuelled a national pride that reflected the Queen's personal ethics and vision. Victoria never fully recovered from Albert's loss - he died of typhoid in 1861 - and she remained in mourning for the rest of her life.

Among the great achievements of her reign was the implementation of institutional reform, such as the move (in the 1840s and 1850s) to a more constitutional monarchy above party faction. Most notable, however, has to be the expansion of the empire, which doubled in size, taking in India, Australia, Canada and parts of Africa and the South Pacific.

Conflict was not a feature of Victorian overseas policy, although in her time the Queen and Parliament faced an Irish uprising, the Boer Wars and an Indian rebellion. Continental war was limited to the Crimean, which began in 1853. Danger, however, was never far away: seven attempts were made on Victoria's life between 1840 and 1882. Her stoic attitude towards these attacks greatly strengthened her popularity.

Although she retired to the Isle of Wight after the death of her beloved husband and tended to remain hidden from the public eye, she emerged to celebrate the Golden and Diamond Jubilees and even made a royal visit to France - the first since 1431. Having witnessed a revolution in British government and the growth of the world's largest empire she died on 22nd January 1901. Her influence remains unforgettable long after this date.