Victoria Life
Victoria Alexandrina, only daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, fourth
son of George III. Born at Kensington, May 24, 1819. Became Queen,
June 20, 1837.
Married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Consort, born
August 26, 1819, died December 14, 1861.
Died January 22, 1901, after a reign of sixty-three years.
Summary of Chief Ev
1838. Commencement of the Chartist Movement.
1840. PENNY POSTAGE ESTABLISHED mainly through the efforts of
Rowland Hill.
War with China.
1841. Sir Robert Peel appointed Premier.
1842. War with Afghanistan. Peace with China. The Chinese cede Hong
Kong.
1843. Agitation in Ireland for the Repeal of the Union.
Arrest of Daniel O'Connell.
1845. War with the Sikhs.
Failure of potato crop in Ireland, which resulted in a famine
in the following winter.
1846. Repeal of the Corn Laws.
Lord John Russell appointed Premier.
1848. Revolution in France. Prince Louis Napoleon becomes President
of the Republic.
Chartist Agitation in London.
1849. Annexation of the Punjab.
1850. Death of Sir Robert Peel.
1851. THE GREAT EXHIBITION.
1852. Death of the Duke of Wellington.
Louis Napoleon elected Emperor of France.
1853. Turkey declares war against Russia.
1854. Great Britain and France declare war against Russia.
THE CRIMEAN WAR.
Invasion of the Crimea. The Battle of the Alma (Sept. 20).
Siege of Sebastopol. Battle of Balaclava and Charge of the
Light Brigade (Oct. 25).
Battle of Inkerman (Nov. 5).
1855. Lord Palmerston appointed Premier.
Death of the Emperor Nicholas of Russia.
Fall of Sebastopol (Sept.).
1856. Peace concluded with Russia by the Treaty of Paris.
1857. THE INDIAN MUTINY.
The massacre at Cawnpore (July). Capture of Delhi (Sept.).
Sir Colin Campbell relieves Lucknow (Nov.).
1858. Suppression of the Mutiny.
Abolition of the East India Company. The possessions and
powers of the Company transferred to the Crown. The
Queen's Proclamation to India issued by Lord Canning,
first Viceroy.
1859. Establishment of the Volunteer Army.
Fenianism in Ireland. Trial of O'Donovan Rossa.
1860. Second Chinese War and occupation of Pekin.
1861. THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR.
Repeal of the duty on paper.
1862. The second Great Exhibition.
1865. Death of Lord Palmerston. Lord Russell appointed Premier.
1866. THE ATLANTIC CABLE LAID. Lord Derby appointed Premier.
The war between Austria and Prussia.
1867. THE SECOND REFORM BILL passed. It largely extended the suffrage
in English boroughs.
1868. Disraeli appointed Premier.
1869. Suez Canal opened.
1870. THE ELEMENTARY EDUCATION ACT passed, which compelled the
attendance of children at efficient schools.
The Franco-German War.
Halfpenny postcards first came into use.
1871. Establishment of the German Empire.
TREATY OF WASHINGTON, which settled by arbitration the Alabama
claims.
1872. The Ballot Act passed to secure secret voting at elections.
1874. Disraeli appointed Premier for the second time.
1875. Purchase of shares in the Suez Canal.
1876. Disraeli becomes Earl of Beaconsfield.
THE QUEEN PROCLAIMED EMPRESS OF INDIA.
1878. Congress of Berlin to settle the Eastern Question.
Great Britain was represented by Lords Salisbury and
Beaconsfield.
Second Afghan War.
1879. War in Zululand.
1880. Rising of the Boers in the Transvaal.
1881. Defeat of the British at Majuba Hill. Peace concluded in March.
Death of Lord Beaconsfield.
1882. OCCUPATION OF EGYPT. Bombardment of Alexandria and the Battle
of Tel-el-Kebir.
1883. War in the Soudan. Defeat of Hicks Pasha.
1885. Fall of Khartoum and death of General Gordon.
Redistribution Bill.
Number of Members of Parliament increased from 658 to 670.
The Revised Version of the Bible.
1886. Annexation of Upper Burmah.
1887. JUBILEE CELEBRATION.
1888. Death of the Emperor William I. of Germany, and of his son
Frederick III. Succession of William II.
The Local Government Act, by which England and Wales was
divided into counties and county boroughs for purposes of
local government.
1889. Charter granted to British South African Co.
1896. The Jameson Raid.
1897. The 'Diamond' Jubilee.
1898. Death of Gladstone.
War in Soudan. Battle of Omdurman.
1899. South African War.
More
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Stress And Strain
Forward, forward let us range, Let the great world spin for ever down the ringing grooves of change. TENNYSON The greatest Revolutions are not always those which are accompanied by riot and bloodshed. Engl... Strife
"Two men I honour, and no third. First, the toilworn Craftsman that with earth-made Implement laboriously conquers the Earth, and makes her man's. . . . A second man I honour, and still more highly: Him who is seen toiling for the spiritually indi... The Accession
On the day after that on which Princess Victoria celebrated her majority. Baron Stockmar arrived at Kensington. He came from the King of the Belgians to assist King Leopold's niece in what was likely to be the great crisis of her life. During Baro... The Betrothal
The Queen's remaining unmarried was becoming the source of innumerable disturbing rumours and private intrigues for the bestowal of her hand. To show the extent to which the public discussed the question in every light, a serious publication like ... The Children Of England
"From the folding of its robe, it brought two children; wretched, abject, frightful, hideous, miserable. . . . They were a boy and a girl. Yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling, wolfish; but prostrate, too, in their humility. . . . 'They are Man's,' sa... The Closing Years
One autumn day in 1896 vast numbers of telegrams were sent to Queen Victoria, not only from the English colonies, but from almost all the countries of the world. They were full of congratulations on the length of her reign; for now she had been on... The Coming Of The Prince
The coronation ceremonies in Westminster Abbey were, indeed, magnificent, but it must not be supposed that England was satisfied with no further celebration of so joyful an event. Throughout the realm there were for several days fairs, balls, and ... The Condemnation Of The English Duel
On the 1st of July, 1843, duelling received its death-blow in England by a fatal duel--so unnatural and so painful in its consequences that it served the purpose of calling public attention to the offence--long tolerated, even advocated in some qu... The Coronation
The coronation was fixed for June 28, 1838 a little more than a year from the accession. The, Queen had been slightly troubled at the thought of some of the antiquated forms of that grand and complicated ceremony--for instance, the homage of th... The Coronation
When the young Queen awoke on the morning after her accession, she must have fancied for a moment that she had dreamed all the events of the previous day. She had gone to bed expecting a quiet morning of study; she had been aroused to hear that sh... The Emperor And Empress Of France Visit Windsor
The Queen's kind heart was really pained by the sudden death of the Czar, her sometime friend and "brother"--whose visit to Windsor was brought by the startling event vividly to her mind--yet she turned from his august shade to welcome one of his li... The End
The evening had been golden; but, after all, the day was to close in cloud and tempest. Imperial needs, imperial ambitions, involved the country in the South African War. There were checks, reverses, bloody disasters; for a moment the nation was s... The First Christening The Season Of 1841
The Queen was able to open Parliament in person at the end of January. The first christening in the royal household had been fixed to take place on the 10th of February, the first anniversary of the Queen's wedding-day, which was thus a double g... The First Months Of Marriage
In this mere sketch of the great life of the Queen of England, I can give little space to the political questions and events of her reign, important and momentous as some of them were, even for other lands and other people than the English. For a ... The Great Exhibition
The idea of a "great exhibition of the Works and Industries of all Nations" was Prince Albert's. The scheme when first proposed in 1849 was coldly received in this country. It was intended, to use the Prince's own words, "To give us a true test an... The Indian Mutiny
Exactly one hundred years after Clive had laid the foundation of our empire in India by the victory of Plassey, events occurred in that country which completely cast into the shade the tragic incident of the 'Black Hole' of Calcutta. During the ce... The Jubilee Season
With the exception of Prince Alfred, the Queen's children had married according to the German proverb, "The oldest must leave the house first." The next in age was Prince Arthur, or the Duke of Connaught. He married in 1879 Princess Louise of Prus... The Last Day Of Victoria's Real Girlhood
It seems to me that the momentous day just described was the last of Victoria's real girlhood; that premature womanhood was thrust upon her with all the power, grandeur, and state of a Queen Regnant. I wonder if, weary and nervously exhausted as s... The Little Folk
In the midst of all the royalties that were present at the wedding of the Prince of Wales were the two great novelists of the realm, Thackeray and Dickens; but Tennyson, the Poet Laureate, was not there. Again "someone had blundered," and his invi... The Maiden Queen
When the great event of the coronation was over the Queen was left to fulfil the heavy demands of business and the concluding gaieties of the season. It comes upon us with a little pathetic shock, to think of one whom we have long known chiefly in... The Marriage
The 10th of February rose dark and foggy, with a lowering sky discharging at frequent intervals heavy showers. But to many a loyal heart far beyond the sound of Bow bells the date brought a thrill of glad consciousness which was quite independent ... The Prince Of Wales' Trip To America
In May, Prince Albert ran over to Germany to visit his old home, and his new son, and his darling daughter, whom he found well and happy. In one of his letters to the Queen from Gotha, he says: "I enclose a forget-me- not from grandmama's grave." ... The Princess Opens The Victoria Park At Bath
When she was eleven years old, the Princess opened the Victoria Park at Bath. She began the opening business thus early, and has kept it up pretty diligently for fifty years--parks, expositions, colleges, exchanges, law courts, bridges, docks, art... The Proroguing Of Parliament The Visit To Guildhall And The Coronation
Buckingham Palace had been a seat of the Duke of Buckingham's, which was bought by George II., and in the next reign was settled on Queen Charlotte instead of Somerset House, and called the "Queen's House." It was rebuilt by George IV. but not occ... The Queen And The Children
There had been only one drawback to the Queen's happiness during the Jubilee rejoicings, and that was the poor health of her favorite son-in-law, the Crown Prince of Germany. In the procession he had looked superbly well and strong, but his throat... The Queen As An Artist And Author
The Prince-Consort, as we have seen, was accomplished in music and painting, and knew much about many subjects. The Queen is not only an author, but an artist, and takes a great interest in art. To an exhibition under the auspices of the Royal Ang... The Queen In Mourning
Henceforth the great Queen was 'written widow,' and while striving nobly in her loneliness to fulfil those public functions, in which she had hitherto been so faithfully companioned, she shrank at first from courtly pageantry and from the gay whir... The Queen In Sorrow
It had certainly become clear to all her Ministers that Victoria was no mere figurehead, for while she yielded if their judgment was against her, yet she never failed to have an opinion and a reason for her opinion. In 1861, the fact that both she... The Queen's First Visit To Scotland
The Queen had never been abroad. It was still well-nigh an unconstitutional step for a sovereign of England to claim the privilege, enjoyed by so many English subjects, of a foreign tour, let it be ever so short. However, this year the proposal of... The Queen's First Visit To Scotland
This year of 1842 was not all joy and festivity. It was the year of the massacres of the British forces in Cabul; there was financial distress in England, which a charitable masked ball at Buckingham Palace did not wholly relieve; and in May occur... The Queen's Sympathy During The Illness Of President Garfield
On the 7th of March, 1863, all London and nearly all England went mad over the coming of the Princess Alexandra, from Denmark, to wed the Prince of Wales. Lord Ronald Gower, a son of the beautiful Duchess of Sutherland, gives in his "Reminiscences... The Queen's Trip To Ostend Drayton Chatsworth And Belvoir
"Ce n'est que le premier pas qui coute." In the course of another week the Queen took a second trip to the Continent, sailing to Ostend to pay the most natural visit in the world--the only thing singular about it was that it had been so long delay... The Royal Young People
Many people had thought that the Russians hoped to get control of India. If they had succeeded in doing so, the Queen would have been saved the sorrow that came to her from a revolt of her Indian troops which was known as the Sepoy Mutiny. The com... The Schooldays Of A Princess
Nothing could be more simple than the order of the Princess' day at Kensington. Breakfast was at eight, and it was eaten out of doors whenever the weather was good. The Princess sat in a tiny rosewood chair beside her mother, and the little girl's... The Sovereignty Of England And Hanover Severed Forever
Ever since the accession to the throne of Great Britain of the House of Brunswick, the Kings of England had also been Kings of Hanover. To carry on the two branches of the royal business simultaneously must have been a little difficult, at least p... The Twilight Life After
"There is no one near me to call me 'Victoria' now!" is said to have been the desolate cry of the Queen, when, on waking from that first sleep, the cruel morning light, smote upon her with a full consciousness of her bereavement, and a new sense o... Victoria Life
Victoria Alexandrina, only daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III. Born at Kensington, May 24, 1819. Became Queen, June 20, 1837. Married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Consort, born August 26, 1819, died Dec... Victoria The Great
The keynote of Queen Victoria's life was simplicity. She was a great ruler, and at the same time a simple-minded, sympathetic woman, the true mother of her people. She seemed by some natural instinct to understand their joys and their sorrows, and... Victoria's Early Education
Queen Victoria tells little of her childhood, but speaks of it as rather "dull." It seems, however, to have never been empty or idle. All her moments were golden--for study, or for work, or healthful exercise and play. She was taught, and perhaps ... Victoria's First Christmas At Windsor Castle As Queen
On Lord Mayor's Day, the Queen went in state to dine with her brother- monarch, the King of "Great London Town." It was a memorable, magnificent occasion. The Queen was attended by all the great ladies and gentlemen of her Court, and followed by a... Victoria's First Meeting With Prince Albert
In May, 1836, the Princess saw, for the first time, her cousins, Ernest and Albert, of Saxe-Coburg. These brothers, one eighteen and the other seventeen, are described as charming young fellows, well-bred and carefully educated, with high aims, go... Victorian Era
1838. The Chartist Movement. The Chartists demanded (1) Annual Parliaments; (2) Manhood Suffrage; (3) Vote by ballot; (4) Equal electoral districts; (5) Abolition of the property qualification for members of Parliament; (6) Payment for members of ... Widowhood
I The death of the Prince Consort was the central turning-point in the history of Queen Victoria. She herself felt that her true life had ceased with her husband's, and that the remainder of her days upon earth was of a twilight nature--an epilo... Youth
In the month of August, 1831, the Princess went with her mother to profit by the soft, sweet breezes of the Isle of Wight. The Duchess and her daughter occupied Norris Castle for three months, and the ladies of the family were often on the shore w...