Queen Victoria
Victoria was Queen of Great Britain for 64 years, from 1837 to 1901.
Hers was the longest reign of any monarch in British history.
We call British people of that time Victorians.
When Victoria was 20, she married her German cousin, Prince Albert,
who was the same age. Albert became Victoria's chief advisor in affairs of state.
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Victoria and Albert had four sons and five daughters and were very happily married until
Albert's death in 1861. Victoria was heartbroken at Albert's death and refused to go out in
public for ten years. Victoria spent a great deal of her time in Scotland,
at Balmoral Castle, a castle she had built to Albert's designs.
On 22 June 1897 people were given a special Bank Holiday to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
People from all over the British Empire marched in a procession through London to give thanks for
her 60 years on the throne.
Britain in 1837
When Victoria became Queen, Britain was mainly an agricultural nation, and most of its food was home grown. In the industrial towns, men, women and children worked in cotton and woollen mills and factories. They worked from six o'clock in the morning to six or seven at night. They had no holidays, except Sundays.
If people wanted to travel they went by horse and cart or in a horse drawn carriage.
Private railways were only just beginning.
Britain by the 1890s
During Queen Victoria's reign millions of people moved from the countryside into towns. People became better educated and healthier. Scientists made discoveries, such as how to prevent diseases spreading.
People were very proud of their Empire overseas and thousands of Britons, particularly from
Ireland and Scotland, emigrated to Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Railways were
widely used by the 1890s by rich and poor alike.
Victorians Prime Ministers
The queen or king is the Head of State and the Prime Minister is the head of the government.
The Liberal politician William Gladstone was Prime Minister four times during Victoria's reign. Gladstone started Post Office Savings Banks, so that workers could save a few pennies or shillings regularly. Gladstone supported the movement to get rid of the Act of Union (1801) which joined Ireland to Britain. He unsuccessfully tried to introduce Home Rule for Ireland in 1886 and 1893. The Queen preferred the Conservative politician Benjamin Disraeli who was Prime Minister twice during her lifetime. Disraeli supported the Reform Act in 1867, which said that any man who lived at the same address for a year could vote at election time. Before this Act generally only rich men were allowed to vote. The Reform Act doubled the number of voters but women were still not allowed to vote. Disraeli was in favour of the Empire, and he persuaded Parliament to give the title `Empress of India' to Victoria. On behalf of the Government he bought shares in the Suez Canal for Britain, so that British ships could sail safely and quickly to India and East Africa.
The British Empire
At the beginning of Victoria's reign, Great Britain governed parts of India, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and had colonies in many other countries. A colony is a place ruled by immigrants from another nation. All the British colonies formed the British Empire.
The Empire grew throughout Victoria's reign and incorporated countries from the Far East and
Africa. By 1901 it included countries, such as Kenya (British East Africa) and Northern Nigeria.
Cecil Rhodes, Prime Minister of Cape Colony in South Africa, wanted the British to rule Africa from
Cairo to Cape Town. He once said, `I would annex the planets if I could!'.
By 1901 nearly a quarter of all the people in the world were under British rule.
Settling in to new lands
The population of Britain expanded rapidly in the 19th century and towns such as London,
Birmingham, Newcastle and Glasgow were overcrowded. Thousands of people left Britain for Australia,
New Zealand or Canada. One reason people from Scotland and Ireland emigrated was to avoid starvation.
The Empire brings wealth
In every colony British engineers built ports and native workmen built railways with tracks and
engines imported from Britain. British farmers arrived in the colonies to farm the land,
and they sent their produce by rail to the ports. British ships carried these goods to Britain.
In return, the colonies imported goods from Britain such as clothes and blankets.
Teaching the British way of life
Throughout the Empire, British people built hospitals and British doctors and nurses
went out to heal the sick. They trained local women to help in the wards. Missionaries travelled
throughout the Empire teaching Christianity. They taught people to read, write, and speak English.
These people were told to forget their own customs and religions. Today, people realise that forcing
others to forget their culture was very destructive. But the Victorians believed that they were
passing on the benefits of European civilisation to people whom they considered to be
less fortunate.
Hong Kong
The island of Hong Kong was a part of China which became a British colony in 1841. On this bare, rocky island, successful merchants built beautiful houses. Their warehouses were full of tea and silk from China, and the drug opium from India. Goods were sent to British ports in sailing ships called clippers. In 1898 Britain agreed to give Hong Kong back to the Chinese after 99 years, so it will become part of China again in 1997.
In October 1854 the British army fought the Russian army at a place called Balaclava during
the Crimean War (1854-1856). The nights were very cold, and the soldiers wore woollen caps on
their heads and over their ears to keep warm. They called these caps balaclavas.
Extract “Britain Through The Ages”, written by Margaret Sharman. London:Evan Brothers Limited, 1995.
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