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Tuesday 18 October 2011

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert



This is a sad love story because the majority of of this love story is spent through death. It is short but inexplicably interesting and poignant.

Victoria was a cheerful and vibrant young woman who suddenly found herself as Queen of England after her Uncle, King William IV, died in 1837. She was the closest heir. In 1840, she married her cousin, Prince Albert. At first the country was not found of Prince Albert, only because he was German. But he proved to be a loyal subject and faithful to England. Victoria loved him immensely and came to depend on him for political and diplomatic advice.

In 1861 Prince Albert died and Victoria was utterly devastated. She would not show her face in public again for three full years. People began to doubt her and assassination attempts were made on her life. She finally did come out of hiding but absolutely refused to wear anything but black to show her mourning for her late husband. And for forty years, until her death in 1901, she wore nothing but black and mourned him until her own death. Her long state of mourning earned her the nickname, "The Widow of Windsor". Victoria asked for two items to be in her own coffin. In one hand was placed one of Albert's dressing gowns while in the other was a lock of Albert's hair.

Unfortunately for her, she had the longest reign in England's history, and she mourned through most of it. She truly loved her Prince and could not let his memory go.

Besides being known as the Widow of Windsor, the time in which she reigned was truly a remarkable period in the life of England. England was going through the industrial revolution and the period became known as the Victorian Era.