Basic Info:
Alexandrina Victoria
Queen of the United Kingdom
"Empress of India"
Born- May 20, 1819
Died- January 22, 1901
Spouse- Albert, Prince Consort
Father- Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathern, Earl of Dublin
Mother- Victoria Saxe-Saalfield-Coburg, duchess of Kent
Children- Edward VII, Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, Victoria Princess Royal, Princess Louise Duchess of Argyll, Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom, Prince Arthur Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, Prince Leopoldo Duke of Albany, Alfred Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and Princess Helena of the United Kingdom

Early Life:
Victoria was born in Kensington Palace on  May 20, 1819. Her father died shortly after her birth and she was raised by a single mother.

She became heir to the throne because her uncles had no surviving heirs, leaving her next in line.

As a child, she was very creative and intelligent. She showed a passion for painting and drawing, and was well educated by a governess. She also very fond of writing and kept a journal throughout her life.

She learned of her future as queen when she was only ten years old. To me, this seems like it would be a daunting task, but Victoria's governess reported that the idea didn't seem to startle the girl at all.

To prevent the young girl from being controlled, the duchess of Kent's advisor, Sir John Conroy isolated her from the deceased duke's family. He wanted her to follow in his lead, giving him power over the throne.

However, when Victoria became queen in 1837, she didn't allow herself to be isolated or controlled. She was cautious and ruled alone.

Becoming Queen:
After the death of William IV (son of George III), the next In like for the throne was the young Victoria. She impressed the Privy Council with her grace and maturity.

All seemed well, but there was the small problem of her being a female. Because of something called the Salic Law and because the house of Hanover participated in it, she could not ascend to the throne. This led to the separation of the Hanover from the crowns of England.

Victoria moved into Buckingham Palace. She sent her mother off to a house somewhere and Conroy was sent away as well. The only person she kept close to her was her governess, Louise Lehman. The two of them were close friends. She also had a romantic affair with the Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne. This position gave him an immense influence on the queen.

She enjoyed her independence and newfound freedom. People noted how she had a very good personality and loved to participate in court. They said she showed little interest in nature and liked to stay up late into the night and sleep well into the day.

It is believed that she became a firm member of the Whig party because of Lord Melbourne's influence in her life. Her membership in this party caused a couple of problems during her reign.

The First Crises:
A woman named Lady Flora Hastings (a maid of honor and a Tories) was suspected of being pregnant. Victoria forced her to be examined by a doctor, and it was learned that the woman wasn't pregnant after all. Word spread about Victoria's mistake and it got worse when the woman later died of a disease that the doctor hadn't picked up.

The second crisis was known as "the bedchamber crisis." It all began in May of 1839, when Lord Melbourne resigned his position of Prime Minister of Great Britain. This all happened because the Whig Patty lost the election by a few votes. Sir Robert Peel stepped up next to take Melbourne's place in the government.

The reason it was given the name, "bedchamber crisis" was because of the twenty year old queen's relationship with Melbourne (her affections towards him were considered by most to be rather... improper. AKA, romantic).

Many of her majesty's ladies in waiting were the wives, sisters, or daughters of Whig politicians. But Peel was a member of the Tories party and he demanded that Victoria find new ladies in waiting for her court. This angered the queen since she was attached to her ladies, and Peel ended up turning down the role of Prime Minister.

A couple of other people were offered the position, but they turned it down as well.

Lord Melbourne became Prime Minister once again, and the Whigs were restored to power.

Marriage to Albert:
Victoria married Albert not only because of politics, but reports say that the two were very fond of each other. They got along well and had many children. Albert was good looking and charming and she proposed to him on October 15, 1839. They married the following year, on February 10.

The wedding made quite the political statement. Very few Tories received invitations to the event, leaving them outraged. It only angered them more when Victoria requested that Albert be given rank and priority second only to herself.

She responded rather violently to their outrage, but her passion of politics faded over the years.

While at first, she was adamant that Albert should have no influence or participate in the government, she eventually gave in and allowed him to be more and more involved. Partially because of all her pregnancies.

Albert's influence caused a shift in her political views. She no longer ruled by herself and relied heavily upon Albert for many things.

The two of them had nine children together and at the time of her death, she had 37 great-grandchildren.

Victoria was known for her temper and depression, especially during her pregnancies. She stated that se hated being pregnant.

However, the couple never lost their passion for each other. She even stated that "Without him everything loses its interest."

Being Queen:
With Prince Albert's help, they were finally able to convince Peel to become Prime Minister when Melbourne stepped down from the position.

An assassination attempt on the queen was made in 1842, putting everyone under a lot of stress.

Lehzen, the governess, finally left the palace and headed to Germany in 1842. Albert finally had Victoria's loyalty pretty much all to himself. He was pretty much her secretary and advisor. She trusted him with everything.

Albert had a house built on the Isle of Wright, and the Balmoral Castle in Scotland. The couple visited the houses frequently and they both loved being on the island and out in the highlands of Scotland.

By going out and being closer to the people, they almost adapted to a life more like the common people of their country. They were more involved in the lives of the common people, however they still focused more on their houses and trade with foreign countries. (Which sucked because Ireland was in the middle of a famine and needed their help and support).

The Great Exhibition:
Albert had been working hard on organizing an international trade show that would symbolize the Victorian Age as a whole. This exhibition was to be held at the Crystal Palace (glass building in Hyde Park).

The Great Exhibition was a place for all the inventors of the century to display their marvelous creations and technological advancements. (Kinda reminds me of the Stark Expo).

Victoria was very proud of her husband's work in putting this together.

Death of Prince Albert:
Prince Albert passed away on December 14, 1861, ending what is referred to as the 'Albertine Monarchy.' His influence on Queen Victoria was over.

For years he'd influenced her political views and habits, changing the way she worked in business and trade.

After his death, she sank into a long period of depression. She mourned for a long time and often disappeared to their vacation homes of Osborne and Balmoral. She shrank away from her queenly duties and the public eye. She blamed her son for her husband's death. Prince Albert had gotten sick when he visited their son in Cambridge. She made sure I let her son know how much she blames him, and the rift that formed between them, stayed.

The people of Great Britain were patient for a while, as their queen had just lost her husband, but they still needed their queen.

She refused to participate in ceremonial duties, but took her place back in politics.

Needing someone else's help, Victoria turned to Benjamin Disraeli. He was fostering and helped her to restore the confidence that had been lost after her husband's death. She allowed him into her life, much to the dismay of a few that politicians.

She and Disraeli got along well and she trusted his advice on politics and foreign affairs. At one point he helped to stop her from entering the Russo-Turkish war in 1877.

She had a very important role in negotiating the third parliamentary Reform Act between the two political parties in 1884.

This new act limited her role in government, and she was reluctant to accept that. She attempted to form an anti-Radical coalition against a politician, and her main opponent, Gladstone. However, her attempt failed.

End of Victoria's Rule:
Throughout the years of 1899-1902, Britain was a part of the South African War. This was a large part of her last years as queen. It forced her to be more active in the public, since she had to go to a lot of ceremonies and visit her soldiers.

She fell ill and died shortly afterward. She was buried beside Albert at Frogmore, near Windsor.

Legacy:
She is known for her long and fairly successful rule as queen. She had a good impression on the middle class f her kingdom, and even the poorer class in some cases.

She was the living embodiment of woman's suffrage. She was a woman who ruled in her own right and served as an inspiration to woman all around the world, even today.

Her incredibly long reign made her a legend, even when her political power was weekend by parliament.

She was also greatly known for her romance with her husband. Every night after Albert's death, his clothes were laid out on the bed, and every morning fresh water was filled into the basin in his chambers. She slept with a photograph of him every night.

Historians disagree on her role in politics. Was she a good queen, or was she a woman being controlled by more powerful men?

No matter he answer to that, she will always be remembered for her dignitary and honesty.

Cool Facts:
• the 'Victorian Era' is named after her
• she was the last of the house of Hanover
• she was only five feet tall
• she proposed to her husband (who was also her first cousin. Gross.) They met when she was sixteen and she liked him so much that she later proposed
• she was the first known carrier of Hemophilia (which was also called the "Royal Disease")
• she was nearly assassinated at least 6 times during her reign
• her 63 year and 7 month reign was the longest of any female ruler in history, until Elizabeth II (the current queen) surpassed that in 2015

Movies, Shows, etc:
There's many, many nonfiction books about her if you want to learn more.

There's a television show starring Jenna Coleman, called Victoria.
There's also a movie called The Young Victoria, starring Emily Blunt.