Okla-homey
1/22/2006, 09:46 AM
January 22, 1901, Her Majesty Queen Victoria dies
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/373/zzzzwinterh5ny.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
The death of Queen Victoria on January 22, 1901, ends an era in which most of her British subjects know no other monarch. Her 63-year reign, the longest in British history, saw the growth of an empire on which the sun never set. Victoria restored dignity to the English monarchy and ensured its survival as a ceremonial political institution.
Born in 1819, she came to the throne after the death of her uncle, King William IV, in 1837. As a young woman ascending to the throne, her future husband described her "as one whose extreme obstinacy was constantly at war with her good nature." Her first prime minister, Lord Melbourne 9for whom the city in Austalia is named), became her close friend and adviser, and she succeeded in blocking his replacement by Tory leader Sir Robert Peel in 1839.
Two years later, however, an election resulted in a Tory majority in the House of Commons, and Victoria was compelled to accept Peel as prime minister. Never again would she interfere so directly in the politics of democratic Britain.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/7405/zzzzqueenvictoria51yp.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Victoria the bride
In 1839, her first cousin Albert, a German prince, came to visit the English court at Windsor, and Victoria proposed to him five days after his arrival. Prince Albert accepted, and in February 1840 they were married. He soon became the dominant influence in her life and served as her private secretary.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/645/zzzzzfam18592hx.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
The Royal Family in 1859
Among Prince Albert's greatest achievements as royal consort was his organization of the Great Exhibition of 1851, the first world's fair, in the Crystal Palace in London. He also steered her support away from the Whigs to the conservative Tories; she later was a vocal supporter of Benjamin Disraeli, leader of the Conservative Party. he also persuaded his wife to discourage British support for the Confederacy during our Civil War because he disdained the institution of slavery.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/6545/zzzzz93id.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Victoria and Albert
Victoria and Albert built royal residences at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight and at Balmoral Castle in Scotland and became increasingly detached from London. They had nine children, including Victoria, later the empress of Germany, and the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII.
In 1861, Albert died, and Victoria's grief was such that she did not appear in public for three years. She never entirely got over the loss, and until the end of her life wore black, had her maids nightly lay out Albert's clothes for the next day and in the morning replace the water in the basin in his room.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/1254/zzzzjbtg608neck5hg.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Perhaps interestingly, "chain and toggle" necklaces like this one were made popular by Queen Victora herself. After her husband Prince Albert died, the Queen wore his pocket watch chain as a necklace as a token of her undying love for him. Women wear similar necklaces to this day.
Disraeli coaxed her out of seclusion, and she was impressed by his efforts to strengthen and expand the British Empire. In 1876, he had her made "Empress of India," a title which pleased her and made her a symbol of imperial unity.
During the last few decades of her life, her popularity, which had suffered during her long public absence, increased greatly. She never embraced the social and technological advances of the 19th century but accepted the changes and worked hard to fulfill her ceremonial duties as head of state.
When she died, she had 37 surviving great-grandchildren, and their marriages with other monarchies gave her the name the "grandmother of Europe."
http://img82.imageshack.us/img82/5989/zzzzzvictoriabritain1819l8ka.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Princess Beatrice of Coburg [granddaughter of Victoria, youngest child of Duke Alfred],Princess Feodora von Sachsen-Meiningen [great-granddaughter of Victoria, daughter of Bernhard III, Herzog von Sachsen-Meiningen and of Viktoria, the Kaiser’s – Wilhelm II – sister]
Second row:
Wilhelm II, Kaiser of Germany [grandson of Victoria, son of Vicky] Queen Victoria Empress [Kaiserin] Friedrich [Dowager Empress, wife of Friedrich III, the late German Emperor – Vicky, eldest child of Victoria and mother of the Kaiser]
Third row:
Prince Alfred of Coburg [grandson of Victoria, eldest child of Duke Alfred of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha – he shot himself, in Italy, on February 6th , 1899], Tsarevitch Nikolaî [Aleksandrovitch Romanov, the future Nikolaî II], Princess Alix [daughter of Princess Alice, Grand Duchess Ludwig von Hessen und bei Rhein, third child of Victoria] Princess Ludwig von Battenberg, Princess Heinrich of Prussia, Grand Duchess Vladimir [Marie, born Duchess (Herzogin) von Mecklenburg-Schwerin, wife of Grand Duke Vladimir Aleksandrovitch, son of Tsar Aleksandr II] Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha [Grand Duchess Marie Aleksandrovna, also daughter of Aleksandr II, wife of the fourth child of Victoria, Prince Alfred, the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]
Fourth row:
Albert, the Prince of Wales [second child of Victoria, the future King Edward VII], Princess Heinrich von Battenberg [Princess Beatrice, ninth and last child of Victoria], Princess Philipp von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha [Princess Louise-Marie, eldest child of King Léopold II of the Belgians (he was a first cousin of Queen Victoria) married in 1875 to Prince Philipp von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha], Princess Ferdinand of Roumania [Princess Mary, granddaughter of Victoria, daughter of Duke Alfred, married to Prince Ferdinand von Hohenzollern, who would be King of Roumania from 1914 to 1927], Princess Marie Louise [von Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, granddaughter of Victoria daughter of Princess Helena, fifth child of Victoria. Author of the book], Duchess of Connaught [Princess Luise of Prussia, granddaughter of Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia, fifth child of Friedrich Wilhelm III, King of Prussia from 1797 to 1840, daughter-in-law of Victoria, married to Prince Arthur, the Duke of Connaught
Fifth row:
Prince Ludwig von Battenberg [husband of Princess Victoria Alberta von Hessen und bei Rhein (another sister of Alix), maternal grandparents of Prince Philip Mountbatten, the Duke of Edinburgh.], Prince Heinrich von Battenberg [husband of Princess Beatrice and brother of Prince Ludwig], Grand Duke Sergej [Alesandrovitch, son of Tsar Aleksandr II and uncle of the Tsarevitch Nikolaî], Prince Ferdinand of Roumania [at that time, Crown Prince of Roumania since 1889, son of King Carol I, Prince von Hohenzollern, and King as of October 10th, 1914, when King Carol I died],Grand Duke Vladimir [Aleksandrovitch, brother of Grand Duke Sergej] , Duke of Connaught [Prince Arthur, seventh child of Victoria]
Last row:
Grand Duke Pavel [Aleksandrovitch, another brother of Grand Duke Sergej], Prince Philipp von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha [husband of Princess Louise-Marie from Belgium] Count Mensdorff, Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg, Grand Duchess Sergej [Princess Ella von Hessen und bei Rhein (another sister of Alix) married to Grand Duke Sergej Aleksandrovitch], Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha [Prince Alfred, fourth child of Victoria –he died of cancer of the throat on July 30th,1900 – with no male heirs, his title went to Charles Edward, son of his younger brother Leopold (who had died in 1884 in consequence of hemophilia) eighth child of Victoria, as the seventh, Arthur, renounced the right of sucession, for himself and his son, on June 24th, 1899]
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/2794/zzzzzqvicfuneral016zw.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
HM Queen Victoria's funeral procession
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/373/zzzzwinterh5ny.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
The death of Queen Victoria on January 22, 1901, ends an era in which most of her British subjects know no other monarch. Her 63-year reign, the longest in British history, saw the growth of an empire on which the sun never set. Victoria restored dignity to the English monarchy and ensured its survival as a ceremonial political institution.
Born in 1819, she came to the throne after the death of her uncle, King William IV, in 1837. As a young woman ascending to the throne, her future husband described her "as one whose extreme obstinacy was constantly at war with her good nature." Her first prime minister, Lord Melbourne 9for whom the city in Austalia is named), became her close friend and adviser, and she succeeded in blocking his replacement by Tory leader Sir Robert Peel in 1839.
Two years later, however, an election resulted in a Tory majority in the House of Commons, and Victoria was compelled to accept Peel as prime minister. Never again would she interfere so directly in the politics of democratic Britain.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/7405/zzzzqueenvictoria51yp.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Victoria the bride
In 1839, her first cousin Albert, a German prince, came to visit the English court at Windsor, and Victoria proposed to him five days after his arrival. Prince Albert accepted, and in February 1840 they were married. He soon became the dominant influence in her life and served as her private secretary.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/645/zzzzzfam18592hx.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
The Royal Family in 1859
Among Prince Albert's greatest achievements as royal consort was his organization of the Great Exhibition of 1851, the first world's fair, in the Crystal Palace in London. He also steered her support away from the Whigs to the conservative Tories; she later was a vocal supporter of Benjamin Disraeli, leader of the Conservative Party. he also persuaded his wife to discourage British support for the Confederacy during our Civil War because he disdained the institution of slavery.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/6545/zzzzz93id.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Victoria and Albert
Victoria and Albert built royal residences at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight and at Balmoral Castle in Scotland and became increasingly detached from London. They had nine children, including Victoria, later the empress of Germany, and the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII.
In 1861, Albert died, and Victoria's grief was such that she did not appear in public for three years. She never entirely got over the loss, and until the end of her life wore black, had her maids nightly lay out Albert's clothes for the next day and in the morning replace the water in the basin in his room.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/1254/zzzzjbtg608neck5hg.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Perhaps interestingly, "chain and toggle" necklaces like this one were made popular by Queen Victora herself. After her husband Prince Albert died, the Queen wore his pocket watch chain as a necklace as a token of her undying love for him. Women wear similar necklaces to this day.
Disraeli coaxed her out of seclusion, and she was impressed by his efforts to strengthen and expand the British Empire. In 1876, he had her made "Empress of India," a title which pleased her and made her a symbol of imperial unity.
During the last few decades of her life, her popularity, which had suffered during her long public absence, increased greatly. She never embraced the social and technological advances of the 19th century but accepted the changes and worked hard to fulfill her ceremonial duties as head of state.
When she died, she had 37 surviving great-grandchildren, and their marriages with other monarchies gave her the name the "grandmother of Europe."
http://img82.imageshack.us/img82/5989/zzzzzvictoriabritain1819l8ka.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Princess Beatrice of Coburg [granddaughter of Victoria, youngest child of Duke Alfred],Princess Feodora von Sachsen-Meiningen [great-granddaughter of Victoria, daughter of Bernhard III, Herzog von Sachsen-Meiningen and of Viktoria, the Kaiser’s – Wilhelm II – sister]
Second row:
Wilhelm II, Kaiser of Germany [grandson of Victoria, son of Vicky] Queen Victoria Empress [Kaiserin] Friedrich [Dowager Empress, wife of Friedrich III, the late German Emperor – Vicky, eldest child of Victoria and mother of the Kaiser]
Third row:
Prince Alfred of Coburg [grandson of Victoria, eldest child of Duke Alfred of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha – he shot himself, in Italy, on February 6th , 1899], Tsarevitch Nikolaî [Aleksandrovitch Romanov, the future Nikolaî II], Princess Alix [daughter of Princess Alice, Grand Duchess Ludwig von Hessen und bei Rhein, third child of Victoria] Princess Ludwig von Battenberg, Princess Heinrich of Prussia, Grand Duchess Vladimir [Marie, born Duchess (Herzogin) von Mecklenburg-Schwerin, wife of Grand Duke Vladimir Aleksandrovitch, son of Tsar Aleksandr II] Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha [Grand Duchess Marie Aleksandrovna, also daughter of Aleksandr II, wife of the fourth child of Victoria, Prince Alfred, the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]
Fourth row:
Albert, the Prince of Wales [second child of Victoria, the future King Edward VII], Princess Heinrich von Battenberg [Princess Beatrice, ninth and last child of Victoria], Princess Philipp von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha [Princess Louise-Marie, eldest child of King Léopold II of the Belgians (he was a first cousin of Queen Victoria) married in 1875 to Prince Philipp von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha], Princess Ferdinand of Roumania [Princess Mary, granddaughter of Victoria, daughter of Duke Alfred, married to Prince Ferdinand von Hohenzollern, who would be King of Roumania from 1914 to 1927], Princess Marie Louise [von Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, granddaughter of Victoria daughter of Princess Helena, fifth child of Victoria. Author of the book], Duchess of Connaught [Princess Luise of Prussia, granddaughter of Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia, fifth child of Friedrich Wilhelm III, King of Prussia from 1797 to 1840, daughter-in-law of Victoria, married to Prince Arthur, the Duke of Connaught
Fifth row:
Prince Ludwig von Battenberg [husband of Princess Victoria Alberta von Hessen und bei Rhein (another sister of Alix), maternal grandparents of Prince Philip Mountbatten, the Duke of Edinburgh.], Prince Heinrich von Battenberg [husband of Princess Beatrice and brother of Prince Ludwig], Grand Duke Sergej [Alesandrovitch, son of Tsar Aleksandr II and uncle of the Tsarevitch Nikolaî], Prince Ferdinand of Roumania [at that time, Crown Prince of Roumania since 1889, son of King Carol I, Prince von Hohenzollern, and King as of October 10th, 1914, when King Carol I died],Grand Duke Vladimir [Aleksandrovitch, brother of Grand Duke Sergej] , Duke of Connaught [Prince Arthur, seventh child of Victoria]
Last row:
Grand Duke Pavel [Aleksandrovitch, another brother of Grand Duke Sergej], Prince Philipp von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha [husband of Princess Louise-Marie from Belgium] Count Mensdorff, Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg, Grand Duchess Sergej [Princess Ella von Hessen und bei Rhein (another sister of Alix) married to Grand Duke Sergej Aleksandrovitch], Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha [Prince Alfred, fourth child of Victoria –he died of cancer of the throat on July 30th,1900 – with no male heirs, his title went to Charles Edward, son of his younger brother Leopold (who had died in 1884 in consequence of hemophilia) eighth child of Victoria, as the seventh, Arthur, renounced the right of sucession, for himself and his son, on June 24th, 1899]
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/2794/zzzzzqvicfuneral016zw.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
HM Queen Victoria's funeral procession