- Women
American film actress of the 1950s whose popularity continues to this day. The most famous films with her participation: “Some Like It Hot” (“Some Like It Hot”), “How to Marry a Millionaire” and “The Misfits”, as well as others. The name Marilyn has long become a common noun in the definition...
Nefertiti, wife of Pharaoh Amenhotep IV (or Akhenaten), who lived at the end of the 15th century BC. The ancient master Thutmes created graceful sculptural portraits of Nefertiti, which are kept in museums in Egypt and Germany. Only in the last century were scientists able to understand when they were able to decipher many...
(1907-2002) Swedish writer. Author of stories for children "Pippi Longstocking" (1945-1952), "The Kid and Carlson Who Lives on the Roof" (1955-1968), "Rasmus the Tramp" (1956), "The Lionheart Brothers" (1979), “Ronya, the Robber’s Daughter” (1981), etc. Remember how the story begins about Malysh and Carlson, who...
Valentina Vladimirovna protects her personal life and her loved ones quite strongly, so it is difficult for biographers and journalists to write about her. Considering that in recent years she has not met with journalists and does not participate in literary works dedicated to her. Apparently this attitude towards...
Prime Minister of Great Britain in 1979-1990. Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. In 1970-1974, Minister of Education and Science. Years will pass, and the image of the “Iron Lady” will take on new colors, the outlines of a legend will appear, and details will disappear. Margaret Thatcher will remain in the history of the 20th century...
The wife of the Bolshevik leader V.I. Lenin. Member of the Union of Struggle for the Liberation of the Working Class since 1898. Editorial secretary of the newspapers "Iskra", "Forward", "Proletary", "Social-Democrat". Participant in the revolutions of 1905-1907 and the October Revolution. Since 1917, member of the board, since 1929, deputy people's commissar of education of the RSFSR.…
(1889-1966) Real name Gorenko. Russian poetess. Author of many poetry collections: “Rosary Beads”, “The Running of Time”; tragic cycle of poems "Requiem" about the victims of repressions of the 1930s. She wrote a lot about Pushkin. One of the Russian wits, having gone through the crucible of wars of the 20th century, Stalin’s camps, jokingly remarked in...(1896-1984) Soviet actress, People's Artist of the USSR (1961). She served in the theater since 1915. In 1949-1955 and since 1963 she played in the theater. Mossovet. Her heroines are Vassa ("Vassa Zheleznova" by M. Gorky), Birdie ("Little Chanterelles" by L. Helman), Lucy Cooper ("Next Silence" ...
(1871-1919) Leader of the German, Polish and international labor movement. One of the organizers of the Spartak Union and the founders of the German Communist Party (1918). During the First World War she took internationalist positions. Her path to politics began in Warsaw, where revolutionary sentiments were especially strong. Poland…
Anne Frank was born on June 12, 1929 in a Jewish family, became famous for her diary of an eyewitness to the Jewish genocide, who died in Bergen-Belsen, one of the Auschwitz death camps. In 1933, when the Nazis came to power in Germany and the oppression of Jews began...
(1917-1984) Prime Minister of India in 1966-1977 and since 1980, Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1984. Daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru. Participant of the national liberation movement. One of the leaders of the Indian National Congress party, and after its split in 1978, the chairman of the party of Gandhi supporters. Killed...
(1647-1717) German artist, naturalist, engraver and publisher. Traveled to Suriname (1699-1701). Discoverer of the world of insects in South America (“Metamorphoses of Surinamese insects”, 1705). The most valuable part of Merian’s publications, collections and watercolors was acquired by Peter I for museums and libraries in Russia. From the 17th century it came down to our contemporaries...
The Scottish queen in 1542 (actually from 1561) - 1567 also laid claim to the English throne. The revolt of the Scottish Calvinist nobility forced her to abdicate and flee to England. By order of the English Queen Elizabeth I, she was imprisoned. Involved in...
(69 BC - 30 BC) The last queen of Egypt from the Ptolemaic dynasty. Smart and educated Cleopatra was the mistress of Julius Caesar, after 41 BC. - his wife. After the defeat in the war with Rome and the entry of the Roman army into Egypt...
Agatha Christie (1890-1976) English writer. The hero of her numerous detective novels and stories is the amateur detective Poirot, who has phenomenal intuition and observation: “Poirot Investigates” (1924), “The Mystery of Fireplaces” (1925), “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” (1926), etc. Author of the plays “Witness” accusations", "Mousetrap", etc. Almost impossible...
Coco Chanel - it was she who freed the 20th century woman from corsets and created a new silhouette, freeing her body. Fashion designer Coco Chanel revolutionized the appearance of women, she became an innovator and trendsetter, her new ideas contradicted the old fashion canons. Being from…
Queen Victoria
"Queen Victoria"
Queen of Great Britain since 1837, last of the Hanoverian dynasty.
It is difficult to find a ruler in history who would have held power longer than Alexandrina Victoria (her first name was given in honor of the Russian emperor - Alexander I). As many as 64 years out of 82 years of life! And even though England of the 19th century was no longer an absolute monarchy, and Victoria did not have the powers of a dictator, even though the state treasury was controlled by prime ministers and bankers, the queen became a symbol of an entire era, which, no less, included almost the entire last century of Great Britain.
Victoria took the throne, covered with clods of dirt, which were “inflicted” on the British royal house by her ancestors, who did not care too much about the reputation of the dynasty. They believed that kings and queens could do anything, and therefore did not deny themselves dubious pleasures. Over the long years of her reign, Victoria was able to discolor many stains, including bloody ones, that adorned the English crown; it completely changed public opinion about the monarchy. From a den that was tolerated only out of habit, fear of change and reverence for high birth, the British dynasty turned, thanks to Victoria, into a stronghold of nepotism, grandfatherly stability and unshakable morality.
Our heroine was able, as they say, to change her mind in time and created a completely new idea of the monarchy - the same one that “sits” in our heads to this day. To a modern person, it would seem simply blasphemy to assert that reigning persons carry within themselves the genetic depravity or bloodthirstiness of their ancestors. We believe that in our bustling world the only guarantee of peace and justice is a monarchy untouched by wars, revolutions and “all sorts of avant-gardes.” But humanity owes a lot to this seemingly solid myth of “old lady” Victoria, whose reign entered English art, became famous in literature and is still remembered with some nostalgia. The "Victorian era" is the era of Puritanism, family values, eternal, timeless truths.
Our heroine would never have sat on the British throne if the numerous offspring of the ailing George III had been more prolific. Of the six daughters and six sons of the king, some were childless, and some did not agree to tie the knot at all. Trying to correct the “disastrous” situation for the already fading British dynasty, the last three sons in their advanced years “risked” getting married. In the same year, 1818, they urgently acquired a second half, but only one was lucky - the Duke of Kent, who finally had a daughter.
"Queen Victoria"
It is clear that there was “no time for fat” - no time for a son - and triumphant England was ordered to rejoice over the appearance of the heir to the British crown. True, Victoria herself did not know about such an honor until she was 12 years old. And when the unsuspecting princess was told about her brilliant prospect, she, as befits a well-bred girl, exclaimed: “I will be good!”
Victoria's childhood can be called “royal”, meaning only its origin, but in essence it was rather “monastic”. In England, as we know from the literature of the 19th century, children were not particularly pampered. The situation in Victoria’s family was complicated by the fact that, as soon as her daughter was eight months old, the elderly Duke of Kent, who did not have an exemplary lifestyle and behavior, died, leaving his wife with numerous debts and financial obligations. The future queen was brought up with terrible severity; she was forbidden to sleep separately from her mother, talk with strangers, deviate from the once and for all established regime, or eat inappropriate sweets. Governess Louise Letzen inspired Victoria that she should not cry in public, and often the girl, barely holding back her tears, ran into her room so as not to let her teacher down. Victoria, despite Louise’s severity and isolation, loved her governess and obeyed her in everything. It must be said that Louise instilled in the future queen many practical traits, which were later so useful to her in the intricate palace intrigues. As a companion, the former teacher retained influence on the throne for a long time, until Victoria’s legal husband (as one would expect) removed the overly quick person from the queen.
In short, Victoria was prepared responsibly for her future as ruler. Someone, taking advantage of the applicant’s youth, tried to slip into “grain” positions, enlist her support, deceive her, or please the inexperienced princess. On the eve of the coronation, one of the courtiers literally forcibly handed the girl a pen and paper, demanding her own appointment as secretary. However, despite a serious illness (typhoid), Victoria gave a sharp rebuff to the impudent man. On the day she took the throne, she wrote in her diary that her inexperience in government affairs would not prevent her from being firm in decision-making. For 64 years, she never once betrayed the promise she made to herself.
Victoria was not distinguished by brilliant intellect or encyclopedic knowledge, but she had an enviable ability to cope with what prevented her from fulfilling her destiny - she did not whine, did not reflect, did not plague those around her with unnecessary doubts, but pragmatically chose from numerous pieces of advice the most useful, but from " rubbing shoulders" with individuals who are truly faithful.
"Queen Victoria"
Victoria treated the kingdom as a big house that needed a zealous and calm mistress, “not enough stars from the sky.” “Every day I have so many papers from ministers, and from me to them. I am very pleased with such activities.”
However, the “iron” upbringing did not kill the woman in the queen. Young Victoria anxiously monitors her figure, which tends to be overweight, and hates getting up early and tiring palace etiquette. The first years of her reign were spent in balls and amusements: she seemed to be making up for the time lost behind the boring instructions of Louise Lezen. But what is most striking is that, contrary to the popular belief that dynastic marriages of convenience are rarely successful, our heroine was happy in her family life and rejoiced in mutual love.
The first years of her reign, when men always hovered at the feet of the young queen, wanting to become favorites, Victoria adored the head of the government cabinet, Viscount Melbourne. However, their relationship did not go beyond romantic friendship and meaningful glances. The Queen was too inexperienced in matters of the heart, too chaste, and Melbourne too smart to make life difficult for himself, and he was quite content with the admiration of the young lady and the influence on the Queen, which he used at every opportunity.
This balance of power seemed to suit everyone except the Duchess of Kent, who, by right of her mother, wanted to see herself as her daughter’s first adviser. However, her clumsy intrigue against the cunning Melbourne ended in scandal. The Duchess accused the chief lady of the court, the Viscount's protégé, of being pregnant, which was unthinkable at the British court. During the examination, it turned out that the maid of honor was a virgin, and also seriously ill. She soon died, which gave the courtiers a reason to create a fuss and reproach the royal family for being “heartless.” The Duchess of Kent left the palace in disgrace.
In 1840, Victoria married Prince Albert of the Saxe-Coburg dynasty. The young man had a very attractive appearance, was known as a “walking encyclopedia,” especially in technical disciplines, loved music, painting and excelled in “tennis of the 19th century” - fencing, and even with all these advantages he was not a “womanizer”, a spendthrift, a lazy person and frivolous. Victoria did not wait long for the prince's favor; she herself proposed to him. Perhaps Albert’s consent became for the latter the choice of a successful career and nothing more... However, even the queen’s envious people would be afraid to say that the marriage of the royal couple was unsuccessful.
"Queen Victoria"
There was and still is no formula in the English constitution for determining the husband of a reigning person, but a table was immediately set up for Albert in Victoria’s “office.”
At first, the prince’s responsibilities were limited: he, as they say, delved into the affairs of the state. “I read and sign the papers, and Albert blots them...” the queen wrote. But gradually her husband’s influence on Victoria became undeniable. Having learned that the queen, without consulting, allocated 15 thousand pounds sterling to the election campaign of one of the parties, Albert instructed his wife that the monarchy should not support any of the political parties. Thanks to her husband, Victoria began to use the railway, thereby provoking a technical upsurge in the country. With the light hand of the prince, market relations spread more and more rapidly in Britain. “You need to make money from everything - no matter in what ways,” the husband taught the queen. England was transforming from an agricultural country into one of the most industrialized countries in Europe.
From his first days in the royal palace, Albert publicly declared that it was his duty to immerse his own self in the personality of his queen wife. In private relationships, in raising children, this did not always work out - the daughter’s first illness caused such panic among the parents that their dispute about treatment methods ended in a major quarrel, after which Albert wrote a message to Victoria in his office, warning that the death of the child would fall on her conscience. However, the prince stood firm to guard the interests of the state, and the queen completely trusted him. Their marriage turned out to be, unlike its vicious ancestors, extremely prolific - Victoria gave birth to nine children in twenty years of marriage, and all this between royal affairs.
Successful domestic and foreign policies, victory in the Crimean War, and the prosperity of the British economy formed a cult of the queen even among the sedate English.
Trouble happened in 1861. Albert suddenly died, and the inconsolable queen secluded herself within four walls for a long time, refusing to take part in public ceremonies. But who saw the tears of the queens? The crowd is merciless towards their idols, as soon as they stumble or throw themselves into the abyss of grief. The position of the poor widow was greatly shaken, but her compatriots buried Victoria early. Such a strong woman could not be broken even by irrevocable loss. Following the basic policy of her deceased husband, she deftly maneuvered in a difficult situation with Prussia. Albert advocated for the unification of Germany, but he could not foresee the development of events under Bismarck, and the queen, who hated the Prussian “figure” in words, was very cunningly able to establish good relations with him.
"Queen Victoria"
It was only thanks to her personal appeal to Bismarck that Paris escaped massive shelling in 1871. In a word, Victoria gradually and brilliantly returned “to big politics.”
The real heyday of her reign came in the mid-1870s, when Conservative leader Benjamin Disraeli came to power. The wise prime minister gave the Suez Canal and India to the English crown. A grateful Victoria persuaded Disraeli to accept the title of earl. During these years, the external side of the monarchy, its public representation, experienced a rebirth. The Queen, along with her many children and grandchildren, willingly showed herself to the people at ceremonies and happily organized festivities. The celebrations on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Victoria's reign turned out to be especially luxurious. There was even an imperial conference in London in honor of Her Majesty with the participation of overseas figures.
In the last years of her life, Victoria’s character deteriorated. Yes, and it’s understandable: more and more often, her relatives and ministers perceived her as an out-of-mind old woman, a grouch and a bore. She believed that those around her were unfair to her, that it was too early to write off her experience from the “ship of modernity,” so Victoria continued to interfere in the affairs of the state, wrote angry and instructive letters to ministers and grumbled about new mores. The usual conflict between “fathers and sons”...
And as always, the older generation finds support in their grandchildren. Discreet and averse to the usual female gossip, Victoria became the confidante of her granddaughter Alice and sympathized with her love for the heir to the Russian crown, Nicholas. Victoria remembered how surprised she was by the oddities of the emperor of a distant wild country - also Nicholas, only the First, who in 1844, during a visit to Great Britain, demanded that straw from the royal stables be laid down for him at night instead of feather beds. But does anyone, when they fall in love, listen to their grandmothers? Victoria, in the end, did everything in her power to ensure that her beloved granddaughter became Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. She was old and experienced, an English queen... Before Alice's wedding, Victoria prophetically remarked: "The condition of Russia is so bad, so rotten that something terrible could happen at any moment." But even this “wise turtle” could not imagine that she had given her beloved granddaughter to the scaffold in a foreign, barbaric country.
Victoria's death after a short illness was sincerely mourned by millions of her subjects. And it’s not surprising - for many of her compatriots, Victoria seemed like an “eternal” ruler; they had never known anyone else in their long lives.
Victoria became a symbol of an entire era, it was under her that Great Britain became an empire that had its lands in India, Africa, Latin America, and it was under her that Britain experienced economic and political takeoff. It is clear that to many, in the hysterical grief of those days, it seemed as if with the death of the queen at the turn of the century the world was collapsing, a catastrophe was coming.
There were, of course, other opinions. They may be a minority, but they are worth mentioning. One of his contemporaries wrote: “Concerning the personality of the queen, they avoid saying everything they think. From what I heard about her, it is clear that in the last years of her life she was a rather banal respectable old lady and resembled many of our widows with limited views, without any understanding of art and literature, loved money, had some ability to understand business and some political abilities, but easily succumbed to flattery and loved her... However, the public began to see in this old lady something like a fetish or an idol..."
But in the end, one can talk endlessly about personality traits and character traits, with the most varied opinions, but the well-being of her country will speak more eloquently about the queen. And Victoria’s children and grandchildren had even more compelling reasons to honor the deceased for her frugality, enterprise, and the wealth that she gave to the reigning British house. Victoria left more than four dozen descendants after her death; almost all the dynasties of Europe were “infiltrated” by her heirs. "Victorianism" is still remembered in England as a heavenly, blessed time. And even if everything was not as serene as it seems now, each state needs “its own Victoria”, like the myth of a “warm”, “cozy” “time”, in which the weather was better, and the women were more beautiful, and the children were not grew up, and old people did not grow old...
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Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II are the two longest-reigning monarchs in British history, with a combined reign of more than 125 years. The BBC provides facts and figures from the lives of the two queens, through which you can see how the monarchy has changed over the years.
Early years
Queen Victoria belonged to the German Hanoverian dynasty, ascended the throne at age 18 and ruled the United Kingdom for 23,226 days - 63 years, 7 months and 2 days.
Elizabeth II is the successor of the German Saxe-Coburg-Gotha dynasty, which during the First World War was renamed the Windsor dynasty for patriotic reasons. Elizabeth ascended to the throne at the age of 25, and on September 9, 2015, her reign will exceed the record length of Queen Victoria's reign.
Personal data
Victoria was very short (1 meter 50 centimeters) and became very plump with age, as can be judged by the ones regularly put up for auction: the waist circumference of her underwear fluctuated at different times from 94 to 113 cm.
Elizabeth's height is 1 meter 60 centimeters, and her clothing size is kept secret by the royal tailors.
Marriage and children
Queen Victoria married Prince Albert, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha on February 10, 1840, at the age of 21. They were married for 21 years; Prince Albert died in December 1861. Queen Victoria had nine children, four of whom became reigning monarchs or married into reigning monarchs.
Elizabeth II married the grandson of the Greek King George I, Philip Mountbatten (who on the eve of the marriage received the titles Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Marionette and Baron Greenwich) on November 20, 1947, also at the age of 21. Elizabeth became the first British monarch to celebrate her Diamond Jubilee - she has now been married to Prince Philip for almost 68 years. The Queen has four children - three sons and a daughter. 
Coronation
At Victoria's coronation in London in 1837, a crowd of at least 400,000 people gathered from her subjects and foreign guests.
In 1953, thanks to the first ever live television broadcast, 27 million people in the UK watched and another 11 million listened to the report on radio. 
United Kingdom population
During the reign of Queen Victoria, the population of the kingdom doubled: from 16 million people in 1837 to 32.5 million people in 1901.
In 1952, when King George VIII died and the throne passed to Elizabeth, the population of Great Britain was 50 million. As of July 2014 (), the country has a population of 64.6 million people.
The Rise and Fall of the Empire
Under Queen Elizabeth, Great Britain became an empire that occupied a quarter of the globe, and the total number of subjects of the crown was almost 400 million people.
Under Elizabeth II, the United Kingdom lost its last colonies (1997 - Hong Kong). Now she heads the Commonwealth of Nations, which includes 53 countries - former colonies and dominions of the British Empire. The Commonwealth is voluntary, and some countries have left it over the years and sometimes returned, in accordance with the political situation.
International affairs
Queen Victoria left Great Britain only once: in 1849, she paid an official visit to Ireland.
Queen Elizabeth II made official visits to 116 countries, and the total length of her foreign trips exceeded 70,000 kilometers (for comparison, the length of the Equator is 40,075 kilometers).
Welfare
The British Parliament presented Queen Victoria with £385,000 on the occasion of her accession to the throne. Subsequently, the queen used this money to buy the Scottish castle Balmoral and build the Osborne House palace on the Isle of Wight.
Queen Elizabeth II's estate is valued at £340 million.
Prime Ministers
During the reign of Queen Victoria, Great Britain had 10 prime ministers. William Gladstone held this post four times.
Under Elizabeth II, there were 12 prime ministers. The first of them was Winston Churchill, and Margaret Thatcher held the post of head of government for the longest time (eleven years). 
Money
During the reign of Queen Victoria, the United Kingdom mint minted 2.5 billion coins.
During the reign of Elizabeth II, the Royal Mint minted over 68 billion coins - 8.1 billion before the reform of the monetary system and 60.3 billion coins after the transition to the decimal system of payments. 
Streets
In the United Kingdom, 153 streets are named after Queen Victoria and 237 streets are named after Queen Elizabeth II.
Victoria (24.5.1819, London, ‒ 22.1.1901, Osborne), Queen of Great Britain since 1837. The last representative of the Hanoverian dynasty. In 1876 she was proclaimed Empress of India. The beginning of V.’s reign coincided with the establishment of a world... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
- (addition to the article Victoria and her reign) Empress of India; in 1897, all of England solemnly celebrated the 60th anniversary of her reign; mind. 22 Jan 1901 She was succeeded by her son Edward VII. See Jeafreson, V. queen and empress (L., ... ...
Empress of India; in 1897, all of England solemnly celebrated the 60th anniversary of her reign; mind. 22 Jan 1901 She was succeeded by her son Edward VII. See Jeafreson, V. queen and empress (L., 1893); Barnett Smith, Life of her Majesty Queen V. (L... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron
This term has other meanings, see Victoria. Victoria Victoria Alexandra Olga Mary ... Wikipedia
Victoria Victoria Queen of Great Britain and Empress of India ... Wikipedia
VICTORIA (full name Alexandrina Victoria) (May 19, 1819, London January 22, 1901, Osborne), Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (from 1837), Empress of India (from 1876), daughter of the Duke of Kent, fourth son of the King... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
Elizabeth II Elizabeth II ... Wikipedia
Below is a list of the monarchs of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, that is, the states that existed or exist in the British Isles, namely: Kingdom of England (871 1707, including Wales after its ... ... Wikipedia
Wikipedia has articles about other people named Anna. Anna Anne ... Wikipedia
Books
- , Dacey Goodwin. The exciting and dramatic story of Queen Victoria as you never knew her This June morning in 1837 turned out to be a special one for Alexandrina Victoria. A short, frail girl...
- Victoria. A Romance of a Young Queen, Goodwin Dacey. The exciting and dramatic story of Queen Victoria - as you never knew her... This June morning in 1837 turned out to be special for Alexandrina Victoria. A short, frail girl...
24 June 1819 at Kensington Palace Archbishop of Canterbury Charles Manners-Sutton held a baptism ceremony for the baby, who was exactly one month old. The girl was given two names - Victoria in honor of her mother, and Alexandrina in honor of her godfather, who became a Russian Emperor Alexander I.
The Napoleonic Wars had recently died down in Europe, and the English royal family was full of gratitude to the Russian ruler for his help in the fight against the French emperor.
The period of good relations will not last long, and Alexandra’s goddaughter, having taken the throne, will try not to remember her middle name. The British Empire and Russia will continue to alternate between brief periods of warming up and years of violent conflict.
Conception of national significance
Victoria Alexandrina was born due to state necessity. God knows what was going on in the royal family of Britain at the beginning of the 19th century. The formal monarch was George III, however, since 1811 he was incapacitated due to severe mental illness.
George III fathered a dozen children, but his only legitimate granddaughter was Charlotte of Wales. On November 6, 1817, the 21-year-old princess died after an unsuccessful birth, during which the child did not survive.
The shadow of a dynastic crisis loomed large over the empire. The sons of George III were no longer young, but from their older brother George, who served as regent under their crazy father, they received a categorical order to immediately acquire wives and give birth to an heir.
In pursuance of this order George III's fourth son, Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent, in 1818 married daughter of Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Franz Victoria.
The groom was 51 years old, the bride almost 32. Moreover, Victoria was a widow with two children. But these little things didn’t matter - she could give birth to a child, and everything else didn’t matter.
On May 24, 1819, Victoria gave birth to a girl. To the joy of the parents, according to the doctors, the child was absolutely healthy. Yes, it was not a boy, but in the current situation there was no choice
The last hope of the empire
At the time of Alexandrina's birth, Victoria was fifth in line to the throne. But eight months later she became the fourth - her father, Prince Edward, died of pneumonia.
She was 10 years old when, after the death of one Victoria's uncle George IV and the accession of another uncle, William IV, she became heir to the throne.
Uncle William ascended the throne at the age of 65 - before him, no English king had ascended to the throne so late. He lived happily for many years with actress Dorothy Jordan, who gave birth to 10 healthy children. But the actress could not be the mother of the heir to the throne, and therefore, in his old age, Wilhelm married Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen. The couple had two girls, but they did not survive. The only heir was her niece Victoria.
Queen Victoria at four years old. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
Uncle Wilhelm, talking with the courtiers, promised to live until Victoria came of age, so that her niece would somehow have time to prepare for the role of queen. He kept his promise - Wilhelm died a month after Victoria turned 18.
Mother was terribly worried about Victoria, about her health and morality. In order to protect her child from vice, Victoria Sr. loaded her daughter with classes with teachers and isolated her from secular entertainment. She did not have a separate bedroom, she was not allowed to cry in public and talk to strangers. Subsequently, the mother’s “hedgehog gloves”, the so-called “Kensington System”, will influence Victoria’s attitude towards the moral standards of society as a whole.
"Therefore, I am the queen"
Even in her youth, Victoria discovered her talent as a writer. Its development was facilitated by the fact that the girl kept a diary for many years. On June 20, 1837, she wrote in it: “At 6 o’clock I was woken up by Mama, who told me that the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham were here and wanted to see me. I got out of bed and went into my living room (in just my robe) and alone and saw them. Lord Conyngham then told me that my poor uncle the King was no longer with us, and left at 12 minutes past 3 this morning, therefore I am the Queen.”
Victoria receives news that she has become queen from Lord Conyngham (left) and the Archbishop of Canterbury. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
On the first day, in documents the young queen was called Alexandrina Victoria, but, at her request, later they began to call her simply Queen Victoria.
Victoria's coronation took place on June 28, 1838, and she became the first monarch to choose Buckingham Palace as her residence.
The laws ordered the young queen to find a husband with whom she could produce offspring. By becoming a husband, he did not become a king. However, Victoria was not enthusiastic about the prospect of marriage. In conversations with those close to her, she admitted that she was very tired of her mother’s care, but considered marriage a “shocking alternative.”
Russian-English novel
In the spring of 1839, a Russian delegation led by Tsarevich Alexander.
The handsome man in a perfectly fitting Russian military uniform was 21 years old, Victoria turned 20. After the ball in honor of the Russian Tsarevich Alexander's adjutant Colonel Yurievich wrote in his diary: “The day after the ball, the heir spoke only about the queen... and I am sure that she also found pleasure in his company.”
A couple of days later, Yuryevich writes: “The Tsarevich admitted to me that he is in love with the queen, and is convinced that she fully shares his feelings...”
Yes, the goddaughter of Alexander I, who was brought up in strictness and spoke with longing about marriage, fell in love with the Russian heir to the throne.
Both the British and the Russians were horrified - it was a real disaster. Russia could lose an heir who could simply turn into the husband of the Queen of England. But if the Russians, at least theoretically, had someone to replace Alexander, then in Victoria’s Britain there was no alternative.
But one of the Russians or British probably had a crazy thought: what if Alexander and Victoria united the two crowns, then... Yes, such a “then” never occurred to any science fiction writer.
In fact, everything turned out to be more prosaic. The young people were reminded that duty is higher than personal feelings, they were allowed to say goodbye, and then they were taken away from each other.
Albert
Soon Victoria was offered a more suitable, from a political point of view, candidate for groom - a 20-year-old Albert Franz August Emmanuel of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who was her cousin.
Victoria had seen Albert before, and now she unleashed all her unspent girlish feelings on him.
Five days later, Victoria asked Albert to marry her. “I will be happy to spend my life next to you,” replied the young man.
Victoria and Albert's wedding. Painting by George Hayter. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
On February 10, 1840, they became husband and wife. Victoria wrote in her diary: “I have never, never spent such an evening!!! My dear, dear, dear Albert... his great love and affection gave me a feeling of heavenly love and happiness that I never hoped to feel before! He pulled me into his arms and we kissed each other over and over again! His beauty, his sweetness and gentleness - how can I ever be truly grateful for such a Husband! ... It was the happiest day of my life!”
Albert truly became the love of Victoria’s life. She was disgusted by the state of pregnancy, did not have warm feelings for newborns, but, nevertheless, over the next seventeen years she bore her husband nine children.
Victoria's family in 1846 by Franz Xaver Winterhalter. From left to right: Prince Alfred and the Prince of Wales; the Queen and Prince Albert; Princesses Alice, Elena and Victoria. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
“We women are not cut out to rule.”
Albert had never shown such ardor. But he was a reliable friend, adviser, assistant. Possessing encyclopedic knowledge, he was always ready to tell his wife the necessary information.
Albert devoted a lot of time to philanthropy, caring for the life of the people, and education. He organized the construction of new schools, contributed to the development of all kinds of technical innovations and involved his wife in them. Victoria was afraid to use the railway, but her husband overcame her prejudice.
Looking at her husband, Victoria wrote in her diary: “We women are not created for rule, if we were honest with ourselves, we would refuse men’s occupations... Every day I am more and more convinced that women should not take assume the rule of the Kingdom."
Albert, Victoria and their nine children, 1857. From left to right: Alice, Arthur, Albert, Edward, Leopold, Louise, Victoria with Beatrice, Alfred, Victoria and Helen. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
With Albert, Victoria could afford to be just a weak woman. She survived several assassination attempts, and Albert, who was nearby, shielded her from the bullets. And even though the attackers were neutralized before they hit the target, her husband’s readiness for self-sacrifice made Victoria love him even more.
In 1861, Victoria's mother died, and Albert, trying to alleviate his wife's suffering, took on her responsibilities as best he could. At the same time, he was busy preparing for an art and industrial exhibition and dealing with the behavior of his eldest son, who had an affair with an actress. By December, his health condition had worsened, and doctors diagnosed him with typhoid fever. Albert died on December 14, 1861.
Portrait of Queen Victoria by Henrietta Ward. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
Victoria's grief had no end. From that day on, she always wore black and rarely appeared in public. She was nicknamed "The Widow of Windsor", or simply "The Widow".
She built a luxurious mausoleum for her husband, erected monuments in his honor throughout the country, and tried to continue his endeavors by opening new schools, museums and hospitals. The famous Albert Hall concert hall in London is also named after Victoria's husband.
The glitter and suffocation of the Victorian era
The reign of Queen Victoria was the heyday of the power of the British Empire. The queen's rights were limited, and parliament played the main role in governing the state, but Victoria, to the best of her ability, supported everything that contributed to strengthening the power of the empire.
She was not afraid of bloody wars; she willingly pitted countries against each other if it was beneficial to England. Drowning the rebellious Irish in blood or shooting the leaders of the Indian uprising from cannon - Victoria blessed such actions without even flinching.
The external beauty of the “Victorian era” was mesmerizing - the behavior of ladies and gentlemen of that time is considered exemplary.
But it is good to admire the norms of Victorian morality from the outside. The restrictions absorbed by Victoria in childhood were introduced into English society with her light hand, and led to amazing results.
By 1870, up to 40 percent of British women remained unmarried. All sorts of moral and ethical restrictions led to the fact that finding a suitable groom was an almost impossible task.
It was unacceptable for a lady to show feelings in public - it was believed that this was the lot of women, as they say today, with low social responsibility. Marriage to a person on a different rung of the social ladder was considered an insult to the norms of public morality.
Courtship was turned into some kind of bureaucratic ritual that could last for years.
Those who were lucky enough to become spouses were not let go by public morality. Not only were expressions of affection forbidden, but even communication in public had to be strictly formal, using the words “Mr.” and “Mrs.” Pregnant women were ordered to isolate themselves at home, because the public appearance of a lady with a belly was also considered bad manners.
A widower’s father was not supposed to live with his unmarried daughter—this was also considered a violation of moral standards.
British doctors could treat men with peace of mind, but with women problems again began. How, tell me, could a doctor make a competent diagnosis if he did not have the right to properly examine the patient? There was no question of the lady undressing in his presence.
Medical prejudices were defeated at the cost of human lives - an endless series of women's deaths forced the British to gradually lift the taboo.
The flip side of Victorian morality was the violent flourishing of seedy places - brothels, dens for opium smokers, where the English, stupefied by public morality, as they say, had a blast. Arthur Conan Doyle did not invent Sherlock Holmes' addiction to cocaine, but took it from the life of the twilight period of the Victorian era.
Parade for "Granny Europe"
After the end of the East India Campaign in 1876, Queen Victoria became Empress of India. Another unofficial title was the title “grandmother of Europe.” Her children became related to almost all the ruling royal families of the Old World, and gave birth to grandchildren who, a few decades later, would commit a bloody massacre called the First World War.
In September 1896, Victoria surpassed her grandfather George III as the longest reigning monarch in the history of England, Scotland and Great Britain.
Queen Victoria at 80, by Heinrich von Angeli. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org
The following year, 1897, celebrated both this record and the “Diamond Jubilee” of the Queen’s reign (60 years), turning the celebrations into a festival of the British Empire.
In London, the Queen was greeted by the heads of all the dominions; regiments from all corners of the colossal British Empire, which was experiencing its heyday under the “Widow of Windsor,” took part in the parade.
The Queen accepted congratulations while sitting in a carriage, and the British looked at her with adoration. Two or even three generations of citizens of the empire knew no other life than life under the rule of Queen Victoria.
"Bury Me in White"
But she herself understood that along with the 19th century, her time was running out. My health was failing more and more often. She carefully prepared instructions for her funeral, ordering that she be placed in a coffin in a white dress. In this form, she wanted to be reunited with her beloved Albert.
During Albert's lifetime, they developed a tradition of celebrating Christmas in the specially built Osborne House palace on the Isle of Wight. In 1900, despite feeling unwell, she did not change her habit. At the beginning of January 1901, the Queen's condition deteriorated significantly. She lost track of time and did not recognize those around her well. It became clear that her days were numbered. On January 22, 1901, at about half past five in the evening, Queen Victoria died.
On February 2, 1901, the official funeral ceremony took place, and on February 4, her coffin was placed in the Frogmore Mausoleum in Windsor Great Park, next to Albert.
Queen Victoria's reign lasted 63 years, seven months and two days, a record surpassed by her great-great-granddaughter Elizabeth II, who has been on the throne for more than 65 years.
Queen Victoria (born 24 May 1819 - died 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 to 1901. Empress of India from 1 May 1876 (House of Hanover).
Victorian era
Queen Victoria was in power for 64 of her 82 years, and in this she has no equal. It was she, Victoria, who gave her name to the “Victorian era” - the era of economic development and the formation of civil society, the era of Puritanism, family values and eternal, timeless truths. During Victoria's reign, Britain experienced an unprecedented economic and political rise. The Victorian era saw the flowering of architecture, fashion, literature, painting and music.
1851 - the first International Industrial Exhibition was held in London, later the Engineering Museum and the Science Museum were created. At this time, photography (the Queen adored photography), music boxes, toys, and postcards were invented and widely spread. At the same time, urban everyday civilization developed: street lighting, sidewalks, water supply and sewerage, metro. The Empress made her first trip by rail in 1842, after which this type of transport became traditional for the British.
Upbringing. Ascension to the throne
Victoria learned that she had the honor of being the heir to the British throne only at the age of 12. She would never have seen the royal crown if the numerous offspring of George III had been richer in heirs. However, the daughters and sons of the monarch were either childless or did not marry at all, having illegitimate children. Despite the fact that in 1818, three sons of George III immediately got married and tried to have offspring, only one of them was “lucky” - Duke Edward of Kent, who had a daughter, Victoria, the future Queen of England.
The little princess was brought up with great severity: she was never left unattended, and she was forbidden to communicate with her peers. Over time, the supervision of her mother, the German princess Victoria-Marie-Louise, and her favorite John Conroy (Victoria's elderly father died 8 months after her birth) became increasingly burdensome for the heiress. Having become queen, she alienated this couple from her throne. In addition to her mother, Victoria was raised by the strict governess Louise Letzen, whom the girl listened to in everything and loved very much, despite her stern character. For a long time, the former teacher retained her influence on the throne, until Victoria’s legal husband Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha removed her from the young queen.
Queen Victoria. Childhood. Youth
Prince Albert and Queen Victoria
The first time Prince Albert, who was Victoria's cousin, came to England on a visit was in 1839. For the 19-year-old queen, his appearance at court was like a lightning strike. Victoria, touchingly and girlishly, fell in love with the attractive Albert. The son of Duke Ernest of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was not only handsome, but also had many other advantages: he passionately loved music and painting, was an excellent fencer, and was distinguished by enviable erudition. Moreover, the prince was not a frivolous reveler, a lazy person or a spendthrift. He instantly ousted the 58-year-old Prime Minister, Lord W. Melbourne, her indispensable mentor in the first year of her reign, from the heart of the young queen.
In this youthful, impressive socialite and successful politician, Victoria saw a good friend and was a little in love with him. In her diary she wrote: “I am glad that Lord Melbourne is near me, because he is such an honest, kind-hearted, good man, and he is my friend - I know it.” However, with the appearance of a young cousin, the Prime Minister ceased to occupy Victoria's thoughts. She did not wait for Prince Albert’s favor and explained herself to him. “I told him,” the queen wrote in her diary, “that I would be happy if he agreed to do as I wanted (marry me); we hugged, and he was so kind, so gentle... Oh! How I adore and love him..."
Wedding
1840, February 10 - in compliance with all the traditions and rules of centuries-old British etiquette, a magnificent wedding ceremony of Victoria and Albert took place. The married couple lived together for 21 years and had 9 children. Throughout their entire life together, Victoria adored her husband, rejoicing in family happiness and mutual love: “My husband is an angel, and I adore him. His kindness and love for me is so touching. It’s enough for me to see his bright face and look into his beloved eyes - and my heart overflows with love...” Despite the fact that evil tongues predicted failure for this union, claiming that Albert married only out of cold calculation, the royal marriage turned out to be ideal, serving as a model for all nation. Representatives of the bourgeoisie looked with approval at the couple's zeal in serving England.
Prince Albert and Queen Victoria
Governing body. Foreign and domestic policy
Over the long years of her reign, Queen Victoria managed to completely change the usual public opinion about the monarchy. Her ancestors, who believed that kings and queens were allowed everything, did not care much about the reputation of the British dynasty. The family tradition of the English royal house was terrifying: suffice it to say that Victoria became the 57th granddaughter of George III, but the first legitimate one. Thanks to her, the royal dynasty turned from a den into a stronghold of nepotism, stability and unshakable morality, creating a completely new image of the royal family.
Victoria treated her power like a caring mistress of a large house, in which not a single detail was left without her attention. She was not distinguished by brilliant intellect or encyclopedic knowledge, but with enviable skill she fulfilled her destiny - from all decisions she chose the only correct one, and from many pieces of advice she chose the most useful one. All this contributed to the prosperity of Great Britain, which, precisely under Victoria, became a powerful empire with its lands in India, Africa, and Latin America.
Successful domestic and foreign policies, victory in the Crimean War, and the economic rise of England formed the cult of the queen among the British. Not being a democrat, she was still able to become a truly “people's monarch.” It is no coincidence that her last prime minister, Lord Salisbury, said that “Victoria, in an incomprehensible way, always knew exactly what the people wanted and thought.” The Queen owes her successful management of the state to a large extent to her husband, who was her irreplaceable adviser and best friend.
Widowhood
Albert, naturally endowed with intelligence and will, helped his wife in every possible way in solving state problems. Although at first his duties were very limited, he gradually gained access to all government papers. With his light hand, market relations developed more and more rapidly in England. Very efficient, Albert worked tirelessly, but his life was very short.
At the beginning of December 1861, the “dear angel,” as his wife Victoria called him, fell ill with typhoid fever and died. At 42, Queen Victoria became a widow. Having a hard time experiencing the death of her loved one, she closed herself within four walls for a long time, refusing to participate in public ceremonies. Her position was greatly shaken, many condemned the poor widow: after all, she is a queen and must fulfill her duty, no matter what the cost.
No matter how inconsolable Victoria’s grief was, after some time she was able to take up government affairs again. True, the queen’s former energy never returned, and many events in the domestic and international life of those years passed her by. Queen Victoria managed to deftly maneuver in difficult political situations, and gradually she returned to “big politics.”
Queen Victoria's Family - 1846
Rise of Reign
The real heyday of her reign occurred in the mid-1870s, when the leader of the Conservative Party, Benjamin Disraeli, came to power. This man, who first became the head of the Conservatives back in 1868, occupied a special place in the fate of Victoria. The 64-year-old prime minister captivated the queen with his respectful remarks about the late Albert. Disraeli saw in Victoria not only an empress, but also a suffering woman. He became the person thanks to whom Victoria was able to recover after the death of her husband and end her seclusion.
Disraeli informed her of everything that was happening in the cabinet, and she, in turn, provided him with “the desired aura of special proximity to the throne.” At the beginning of his second premiership (1874–1880), he was able to achieve British control of the Suez Canal and presented this fortunate acquisition to the Queen as a personal gift. With his direct assistance, a parliamentary bill was also passed to confer the title of Empress of India on Queen Victoria. Disraeli, who could not be proud of his noble origin, received from her the title of earl as a token of gratitude.
Mysterious connection
Besides him, there were other men who sought the special favor of the empress and who played a significant role in her life. The queen's relationship with her servant and confidant, Scotsman John Brown, as well as her entire personal life during her widowhood, are shrouded in mystery. It was rumored at court that Brown could enter the queen's bedroom without knocking and remain there for many hours. The possibility was not excluded that Victoria and her servant were connected not only by a love relationship, but also by secret marriage. There were also those who explained what was happening by saying that Brown was a medium and with his help the Empress communicated with the spirit of Prince Albert. When John died of erysipelas, Victoria commissioned a statue of a Scotsman in national costume in his memory.
In 1887 and 1897 In England, magnificent celebrations took place on the occasion of the Queen's golden and diamond jubilee - the 50th and 60th anniversary of her reign.
Assassination attempts
Victoria's authority as a constitutional monarch in the country grew steadily, although her real power became less and less. The subjects still revered their queen, and attempts on her life caused even greater outbursts of popular love.
The first of them happened in 1840, then Prince Albert was able to save the empress from a gunshot, the second - in 1872, this time the queen was saved thanks to her servant John Brown. Queen Victoria was subsequently shot four more times, with the final attempt in March 1882 being particularly dangerous. But then, at Windsor railway station, a boy, a student at Eton College, managed to hit a criminal aiming a pistol at the empress with an umbrella.
last years of life
Queen Victoria was getting old, at the age of 70 she began to go blind from cataracts, and because of her bad legs it was difficult for her to move independently. But the empress still continued to reign in the world that always belonged undividedly to her - in her family. All her children, except her daughter Louise, had heirs. Not without Victoria’s participation, many of her grandchildren became related to representatives of the royal houses of Europe, including Russia (she gave her beloved granddaughter Alice in marriage to the heir to the Russian crown, Nicholas, and she became the last Russian Empress Alexandra Fedorovna). No wonder Victoria was called the grandmother of European monarchs.
In the last years of her life, the empress continued to be involved in state affairs, although her strength was already running out. Overcoming her infirmities, she traveled around the country, speaking to the troops who took part in the Boer War. But in 1900, Victoria's health deteriorated; she could no longer read papers without assistance. Added to her physical suffering were mental ones caused by the news of the death of her son Alfred and the incurable illness of her daughter Vikki. “Again and again, blows of fate and unforeseen losses make me cry,” she wrote in her diary.
Death of Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria died after a short illness on January 22, 1901. Her death was not unexpected for the people, but nevertheless, it seemed to millions of subjects as if the death of the queen at the turn of the century entailed a world catastrophe. This is not surprising, because for many Englishmen Victoria was the “eternal” queen - they did not know anyone else in their long life. “It seemed as if the column that held up the firmament had collapsed,” the British poet R. Bridge wrote about those days. According to the will, Victoria was buried according to military rites. At the bottom of her coffin lay an alabaster cast of Prince Albert's hand and his quilted robe, next to them was a photograph of John Brown's servant and a lock of his hair. Queen Victoria carried away the secrets of her personal life into oblivion...
In the memory of her people, this empress forever remained a monarch, whose reign became one of the brightest pages in the history of England. Queen Victoria rightfully belongs to those few rulers who were not only loved and appreciated by her contemporaries, but also whom historians have never denied respect.