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Queen Victoria was more German than British: Queen Victoria was born on 24 May 1819 at Kensington Palace, London, to a German father, Edward, Duke of Kent who was the son of George III of German ancestry and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz who was born in , and mother was a German princess, Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.
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She became queen at just 18: Queen Victoria ascended the throne at just 18, on June 20, 1837, after the death of her uncle William IV.
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She was a great animal lover: Queen Victoria was very fond of animals, especially dogs. She owned a large number of pets.
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She gave her name to the Victorian era: The reign of Victoria was one of the most important periods in British history, characterized by great industrial, commercial and colonial development. That period has been called the Victorian era in her honour, although for all intents and purposes the Queen had rather limited powers even then.
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She married her cousin Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in 1840, after a short courtship. The marriage was happy and produced nine children.
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Victoria grieved greatly at the death of her husband, Albert, in 1861, and remained in mourning for the rest of her life. Her pain was so great that she withdrew from public life for many years.
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She was very interested in photography: Queen Victoria was a great lover of photography and, during her life, she commissioned many photos of herself and her family. She was also the first queen to be photographed.
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She was able to speak many languages: Queen Victoria was very talented in foreign languages and was fluent in English, French, German and Italian. She also knew the Latin and Ancient Greek and Hindustani.
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She had a long life and reigned for many years: Victoria reigned for 63 years and 7 months, making her the longest reigning British monarch in history up to that point, bested by Queen Elizabeth II who reigned for 70 years. She died on January 22, 1901, aged 81.
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Had a great impact on the image of the British monarchy: Queen Victoria had a great impact on the public perception of the British monarchy. Her image of her as queen-mother, devoted wife and mother of nine helped transform the monarchy’s image from that of a distant and authoritarian government to that of a royal family closer to the people.
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