Queen Victoria

Queen Victoria was the longest reigning monarch of Great Britain, only after the present Queen Elizabeth II, having ruled for 64 years from 1837 to 1901. She was the daughter of Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent. She lost her parents at a very young age. She was fifth in the line of succession and ascended the throne at the age of 18, when her brothers before her died without heirs.

 

Three years after becoming queen, Victoria married Prince Albert of Germany. Their nine children married the children of various nobles and royal families, including Russia, thus dubbing her the “Grandmother of Europe”.

She is associated with what is known to-day as the Queen Victoria Proclamation. This was issued on 01 January 1858, regarding the the Revolt of 1857 in most parts of northern and Deccan India. She received the title “Empress of India” in the year 1876.

Queen Victoria has also been credited with starting the tradition of white weddings and white bridal gowns when she selected a white gown for her wedding to Prince Albert. This was quickly carried on by wealthy brides and continues to this day.

Queen Victoria was a carrier of haemophilia. Haemophilia is a disease that prevents the clotting of blood even in the smallest of wounds. The queen, as a carrier, was not affected, but eventually, her future great-grandson, Alexei, heir to the throne of the Russian Empire, and the youngest son of the last Tsar Nicholas II, was haemophilic. Most often, it is women who carry this disease, so a male affected by it would be as a result of his mother being the carrier. In Alexei’s case, it was his mother, Tsarina Alexandra (granddaughter of Queen Victoria), who was the carrier.

Queen Victoria was so committed to her husband that, when Albert died in 1861, she became very depressed and reclusive, to the point of nearly abandoning her subjects. Nonetheless, she eventually managed to pull through and rule for the next 40 years. She was a such an influence in the British society that the period of reign is referred to as the “Victorian era“. Women and girls looked up to her for a lot of things. An entire set of social mannerisms has been attributed to her by historians to-day.

---

Images from History Extra and Town & Country Magazine. 

Advertisement

Historical Personalities in Short: Mary, Queen of Scots

• Mary, Queen of Scots is one of the most famous queens of Europe. Her story is the most fascinating and controversial in History. She is not to be confused with Mary I, Queen of England, also known as “Bloody Mary”; Mary I was the daughter of Catherine of Aragon and Henry Tudor, the half-sister of Elizabeth I. Mary of Scots is Mary Stuart.
  

  Image By François Clouet – YQExprz3sIBJ8A at Google Cultural Institute maximum zoom level, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22127280

• Mary, the only child of King James V of Scotland and Mary of Guise, was born on 8 December 1542. Her father died shortly after, making her the heir to Scotland’s throne at such a tender age.
• In the year 1548, Mary of Scots was promised to Francis, the Dauphin of France, as a political agreement. She married him in April 1558, at the age of fifteen; he was fourteen at the time of the wedding. Francis, however, died two years later, in December 1560, leaving her with no children. Queen Mary loved Prince Francis so dearly that she had written a poem about him during her mourning. Her relationship with Francis was probably the only one she cherished the most.
• Her mother, Mary of Guise, had been ruling Scotland till Mary came back. When she passed away in 1560, Mary took over as the Queen of Scotland. At this time, Elizabeth I, one of Henry VIII’s daughters, had taken over as Queen of England. Mary and Elizabeth were related through Henry, who was her grand-uncle.
• Mary’s second marriage was to her cousin, Henry Stuart, the Earl of Darnley, in July 1565, with whom she had a son named James VI of Scotland. Henry Stuart was eventually killed under mysterious circumstances in an explosion in February 1567. She was thus relieved of this marriage, since she had grown to fear Henry. Was she the one who orchestrated it?

Source: https://www.historytoday.com/archive/months-past/marriage-mary-queen-scots

• Shortly after, in May 1567, Mary of Scots was forced to marry James Hepburn, Lord of Bothwell, which allowed for a rebellion to rise against her. James was sent into exile and Mary was obliged to abdicate in favour of her son; she was imprisoned in Lochleven Castle, Kinross-shire. Although she managed to escape from here in 1568, she was eventually defeated near Glasgow in the Battle of Langside. She went to England, hoping to seek help from her cousin, Elizabeth I; she certainly did not expect to be imprisoned, instead, for 19 years.
• Tired of captivity, she tried to plan a joint rule with her son, James, but he had already allied himself with Elizabeth, thus breaking her heart and all her hopes. In 1585, he made an official announcement of his allegiance.
• By 1586, Mary was entangled in a ploy to assassinate Queen Elizabeth, which sealed her fate: She was tried for treason and declared guilty. In 1587, she was executed. She was 44 years old at this time and was said to have faced her death courageously, despite being discarded by both her own country and her son.

Sources:

1. Life and deathline of Mary, Queen of Scots
2. Mary, Queen of Scots (r.1542-1567) | The Royal Family 
3. Mary, Queen of Scots – Wikipedia 

Historical Personalities in Short: Queen Victoria

• Queen Victoria (1819-1901) was dubbed the “Grandmother of Europe“. She married Prince Albert of Germany. Their nine children married the children from various nobles and royal families, including
  

  Photograph by Alexander Bassano, 1882. Taken from Wikipedia.

  Russia.

• So far, Queen Victoria was the longest-reigning monarch, having ruled 64 years.
• She was so committed to her husband that, when Albert died, she became very depressed and reclusive, to the point of nearly abandoning her subjects.
• Queen Victoria is also known for starting the tradition of white weddings and white bridal gowns, by selecting a white gown for her wedding to Prince Albert. This was quickly carried on by wealthy brides and continues to this day.
• Queen Victoria was a carrier of Haemophilia, a disease that prevents the clotting of blood even in the smallest of wounds. The queen, as a carrier, was not affected, but eventually, her future great-grandson, the Tsarevitch Alexei, the
  

  Image taken from History Extra, BBC

  little heir to the throne of the Russian empire and the youngest son of the last Tsar Nicholas II, was haemophilic. Most often, it is women who carry this disease unaffected, so a male affected by it would be as a result of his mother being the carrier. In Alexei’s case, it was his mother, Tsarina Alexandra (granddaughter of Queen Victoria), who was the carrier.