Victoria, in full Alexandrina Victoria 1819-1901
Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and (from 1876) Empress of India

Victoria was born in Kensington Palace, London, the only child of Edward, Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III, and Victoria Maria Louisa of Saxe-Coburg, sister of Leopold I of Belgium. Her father died when she was still a baby, and her mother passed into the political ambit of Sir John Conroy, who saw her as a future regent. Victoria became queen at the age of 18 on the death of her uncle, William IV, in 1837, and was crowned at Westminster on 28 June 1838.

Victoria quickly developed a grasp of constitutional principles and of the extent of her own prerogative, in which she had been so carefully instructed in the many letters she received from her uncle Leopold; he remained her constant correspondent. As a girl she had been almost constantly in the company of older people, instilling in her a precocious maturity and firmness of will that were now rapidly demonstrated. In particular, she excluded Conroy from court and avoided the influence of her mother. In her early formative years, Lord Melbourne was both her Prime Minister and her trusted friend and mentor. During the rest of her reign she was generally well disposed to the more conservative Melbourne and Disraeli, and less so to the more radical Peel, Palmerston and Gladstone.

When Melbourne's government fell in 1839, she invited Peel to form a government, but exercised her prerogative by setting aside the precedent which required her to dismiss the current ladies of the bedchamber. As a result, Peel resigned and the Melbourne administration was prolonged until 1841, greatly to the queen's satisfaction.

On reaching marriageable age the queen decided on Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, with whom she was genuinely in love, and they were married in 1840 despite some public resistance to the choice of a 'pauper prince'. The marriage was happy and harmonious, and Albert's morals were uncharacteristically beyond reproach. Four sons and five daughters were born: of these the first, Victoria, the Princess Royal, married Frederick III of Germany, and Albert Edward afterwards became king as Edward VII. Their other children also formed important dynastic links by their marriages.

Victoria was strongly influenced by Albert, and worked closely with him; after his death in 1861 the stricken queen went into seclusion, which caused her temporary unpopularity. However Disraeli, as Prime Minister from 1864, rekindled her interest in the Empire, and repaid her confidence and affection by consolidating and extending her influence, acquiring for Great Britain a controlling interest in the Suez Canal, by having Victoria proclaimed Empress of India (1876), and by annexing the Transvaal in 1877. These events, and the celebratory golden (1887) and diamond (1897) jubilees, restored her again to her subjects' favour.

Her experience, shrewdness and innate political flair brought powerful influence to bear on the conduct of foreign affairs, as did the response to the country's policy made by her many relatives in the European royal houses. In the long term, the queen's judgement of men and events was rarely to be faulted. The royal couple visited the Scottish Highlands frequently, and Balmoral Castle was rebuilt to Albert's design. Victoria continued to grieve for Albert until her death. She died at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, and was buried at Windsor.

Bibliography: Victoria's Letters, despite a long-winded style, attest to her industry and dedication. She published Leaves from the Journal of our Life in the Highlands (1869) and More Leaves (1884). See also C Hibbert, Queen Victoria in her Letters and Journals (1985) and J Richardson, Victoria and Albert (1977).