History UsefulNotes / QueenVictoria

The hemophilia which plagued the royal houses of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was likely the result of a spontaneous mutation in her genome[[note]]such mutations are more common in the offspring of older men, and her father was 50 when she was conceived[[/note]]. It was spread by fact that she had so many children, and how they married, giving her the nickname "Grandmother of Europe" (during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, the king of the United Kingdom, the German emperor, the tsarina of Russia, the queens of Norway, Spain, Greece, and Romania, and the crown princess of Sweden were all her grandchildren). Two of her daughters were confirmed carriers, and one of her sons suffered the disease[[note]]she had four and a 50% chance of passing it on, so only one of them getting it was actually a stroke of luck[[/note]]. This went on to have [[UsefulNotes/RomanovsAndRevolutions major implications]]. Hemophilia has been associated with RoyalInbreeding, but is not actually a result of it -- Victoria's husband Albert being her cousin had nothing to do with it.[[note]]The classic inbreeding fear -- both parents are unknowing carriers of a disease, which then manifests in their children -- is literally impossible with hemophilia. Hemophilia is a sex-linked trait, meaning only women can be carriers for it. Men either outright have the disease themselves, or don't carry it at all.[[/note]]

Victoria was the first monarch to be photographed (the earliest known photo of her dates to c. 1845), and the first to be recorded, though no verifiable audio of her is known to have survived. A popular (and nearly indecipherable) clip circulating the internet which is claimed to be of her speaking in 1888 hasn't actually been ''proven'' to be her speaking.

She married her handsome first cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a small principality in what is now [[UsefulNotes/TheSixteenLandsOfDeutschland Thuringia]], Germany, in 1840 and then ''never stopped breeding''[[labelnote:fun fact]]After having her first child, the queen noted the opinion that newborn babies were ugly, and also disliked breast-feeding. She went on to have eight more; all nine children made it to adulthood.[[/labelnote]] until Albert died of typhoid fever in 1861, only 42, leaving Victoria stricken with grief. She never remarried, and indeed she spent the rest of her reign wearing only mourning colours and only rarely making public appearances and even more rarely living at Buckingham Palace;[[note]]Allegedly, she kept EmptyBedroomGrieving going for the remainder of her life -- ''forty years.''[[/note]] this earned her the not-entirely-complimentary nickname "the Widow of Windsor." As a result, republican sentiment in Britain was at its height, to the extent that some felt the monarchy was going to be abolished sooner or later; fortunately (for the monarchy at any rate), the Prince of Wales, and future Edward VII, "Bertie" had a better understanding of public relations and charmed the socks off the whole country, and partied the socks off the whole upper crust.[[note]]He also ''shagged'' the socks off... anyone female and willing, basically, but the former two seem to have cancelled this latter one out.[[/note]]

* A very attractive young Queen Victoria appears in ''Film/TheGreatestShowman'', and definitely has a sense of humor.

The hemophilia which plagued the royal houses of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was likely the result of a spontaneous mutation in her genome[[note]]such mutations are more common in the offspring of older men, and her father was 50 when she was conceived[[/note]], and most of her descendants marrying into them (a tendency which earned her the nickname "Grandmother of Europe" -- during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, the king of the United Kingdom, the German emperor, the tsarina of Russia, the queens of Norway, Spain, Greece, and Romania, and the crown princess of Sweden were all her grandchildren). It even came to be known as "the royal disease" because of this, and played a part in discouraging interbreeding among royals, which had by that point been common in Europe for several hundred years. (Most of said royals losing their throne in the 20th century played a part as well.) Two of her daughters were confirmed carriers, and one of her sons suffered the disease[[note]]she had four and a 50% chance of passing it on, so only one of them getting it was actually a stroke of luck[[/note]], and the heirs to both the Spanish and, more infamously, the Russian throne were sufferers as well. This would have [[UsefulNotes/RomanovsAndRevolutions major]] implications.

Queen Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria, 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) reigned over [[UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire the largest empire the world has ever seen]]. She was a hugely important figure, causing sweeping changes in the history of many parts of the world, and inspiring her people. She was not simply a [[LieBackAndThinkOfEngland prudish]] [[GrandeDame old woman with no sense of humour]], and in fact [[BeamMeUpScotty probably never said, "We are not amused"]].[[note]][[Website/{{Wikipedia}} That Other Wiki]] even has a photo on her article they note as "Victoria amused", which explains that she likely never said it.[[/note]]

* The film ''Film/{{Dolittle}}'' features a young and attractive Victoria (played by Jessie Buckley) falling severely ill and requiring a cure from the fruit of the [[FantasticFlora Eden Tree]], which Dr. Dolittle has to obtain himself.

* The film ''Film/TheYoungVictoria'' is based on, well... [[YoungFutureFamousPeople a young Victoria]].

->'''Captain Blackadder:''' So your father's German[[note]]it was actually her mother who was German, though being from UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfHanover her father was of German ''ancestry'' as well[[/note]], you're half-German, and you married a German?

The hemophilia which plagued the royal houses of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was likely the result of a spontaneous mutation in her genome[[note]]such mutations are more common in the offspring of older men, and her father was 50 when she was conceived[[/note]], and most of her descendants marrying into them (a tendency which earned her the nickname "Grandmother of Europe" -- during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI the King-Emperor of Britain, the German Emperor, the Tsarina of Russia, the Queens of Norway, Spain, Greece, and Romania, and the Crown Princess of Sweden were all her grandchildren). It even came to be known as "the royal disease" because of this, and played a part in discouraging interbreeding among royals, which had by that point been common in Europe for several hundred years. (Most of said royals losing their throne in the 20th century played a part as well.) Two of her daughters were confirmed carriers, and one of her sons suffered the disease[[note]]she had four and a 50% chance of passing it on, so only one of them getting it was actually a stroke of luck[[/note]], and the heirs to both the Spanish and, more infamously, the Russian throne were sufferers as well. This would have [[UsefulNotes/RomanovsAndRevolutions major]] implications.

Thanks to Victoria's above status as the Grandmother of Europe, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI features a rather unusual familial aspect; of the superpowers involved, two (the British Empire and the German Empire) were led by her grandchildren King George V and Kaiser Wilhelm II, while Russia was led by Tsar Nicholas II, who was married to her granddaughter. All three were also cousins; George and Wilhelm were first cousins, while George and Nicholas were third cousins. Further adding to the slightly convoluted network of connections is the fact that all three leaders were equally descended from George II of the United Kingdom, one of Victoria's own ancestors, thus making the three ''fifth cousins'' of each other!

Queen Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria, 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) reigned over [[UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire the largest empire the world has ever seen]]. She was a hugely important figure, causing sweeping changes in the history of many parts of the world, and inspiring her people. She was not simply a [[LieBackAndThinkOfEngland prudish]] [[GrandeDame old woman with no sense of humour]], and in fact [[BeamMeUpScotty probably never said, "We are not amused"]].[[note]][[Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} That Other Wiki]] even has a photo on her article they note as "Victoria amused", which explains that she likely never said it.[[/note]]

Thanks to Victoria's above status as the Grandmother of Europe, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI features a rather unusual familial aspect; of the superpowers involved, three (the British Empire, the German Empire and the Russian Empire) were led by three of her grandchildren (King George V, Kaiser Wilhelm II and Tsar Nicholas II), all of whom were
cousins; George and Wilhelm were first cousins, while George and Nicholas were third cousins. Further adding to the slightly convoluted network of connections is the fact that all three leaders were equally descended from George II, one of Victoria's own ancestors, thus making the three ''fifth cousins'' of each other!

Victoria wanted every male British monarch after her to have a double-barrelled regnal name of "Albert [Something]", starting with her son, whom she expected would be known as "Albert Edward". However, "Bertie" decided that he would better honour his father's name if he left it to stand alone, and took the name "Edward VII". Now there is an opposite tradition: Any monarch with the given name "Albert" would ''not'' use that name, out of respect for the Prince Consort's singular position--as shown by George VI, whose given name was Albert and who was known publicly as Prince Albert, Duke of York, and privately as Bertie, until he took the throne (at which point his family still called him "Bertie"). However, there is a low-key tradition where each monarch/heir apparent who has a second son gives that son "Albert" as one of his names (if not necessarily his primary given name). [[note]]To wit: George V's second son was the aforementioned George VI, full Christian name Albert Frederick Arthur George; Elizabeth II's second son is Andrew Albert Christian Edward (Prince Andrew); and Prince Charles's second son is Henry Charles Albert David (Prince Harry). Prince William, however, bucked the tradition by naming his second son Louis Arthur Charles. However, Prince William being young and apparently quite fertile, he may yet give the name to a later son if he has one.[[/note]]

Her reign was equally momentous, occupying nearly the entire period of the Industrial Revolution, from 1837 to 1901, and being the longest in British history until 9 September 2015, when her great-great-granddaughter [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Elizabeth II]] surpassed her.

* She appears for a few minutes, played by a quietly warmhearted Beryl Mercer, in the 1939 version of ''Literature/ALittlePrincess'' with Creator/ShirleyTemple.

* Victoria and Albert naturally appear in the 1975 [[Creator/{{ITV}} ATV]] miniseries Series/Edward the Seventh (also called ''Edward the King''). Victoria, played by Annette Crosbie in a BAFTA-winning role, appears in 10 of 13 episodes and the first focuses largely on her (the title character being unborn, a baby, or small child for most of it).

* Victoria and Albert naturally appear in the 1975 [[Creator/{{ITV}} ATV]] miniseries ''Edward the Seventh'' (also called ''Edward the King''). Victoria, played by Annette Crosbie in a BAFTA-winning role, appears in 10 of 13 episodes and the first focuses largely on her (the title character being unborn, a baby, or small child for most of it).

Though she never stopped mourning for Prince Albert, she did to some extent move on eventually. Though her children and the upper class of Britain largely wished she ''hadn't'', because her close friendship (widely speculated to also be romantic) with her Scottish servant John Brown was widely seen as scandalous. Not only was he a commoner, he was seen as almost a barbarian for his complete lack of concern for their difference in social class. Victoria on the other hand seemed to find this refreshing. There were even rumors that she secretly married him, though most historians discount this.[[note]]Some conclude that if Victoria ''had'' remarried, even to someone so "inappropriate", she would've been headstrong enough not keep it secret.[[/note]] When Brown died in 1883 (at only 56), Victoria proceeded to scandalize the upper class again because her new favorite servant was Mohammed Abdul Karim, an Indian Muslim who taught Victoria the Hindustani language[[note]]today known as Hindi-Urdu[[/note]] after she was given the rank Empress of India and wished to be able to speak with her new subjects. While there was absolutely no hint of romance or of bad behavior by Karim, the simple fact that he was [[ValuesDissonance not white and not Christian]] meant that he was seen as an even more inappropriate friend for the Queen.

The hemophilia which plagued the royal houses of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the result of a spontaneous mutation in her genome[[note]]such mutations are more common in the offspring of older men, and her father was 50 when she was conceived[[/note]], and most of her descendants marrying into them (a tendency which earned her the nickname "Grandmother of Europe" -- during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI the King-Emperor of Britain, the German Emperor, the Tsarina of Russia, the Queens of Norway, Spain, Greece, and Romania, and the Crown Princess of Sweden were all her grandchildren). It even came to be known as "the royal disease" because of this, and played a part in discouraging interbreeding among royals, which had by that point been common in Europe for several hundred years. (Most of said royals losing their throne in the 20th century played a part as well.) Two of her daughters were confirmed carriers, and one of her sons suffered the disease[[note]]she had four and a 50% chance of passing it on, so only one of them getting it was actually a stroke of luck[[/note]], and the heirs to both the Spanish and, more infamously, the Russian throne were sufferers as well. This would have [[UsefulNotes/RomanovsAndRevolutions major]] implications.

She married her handsome cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a small principality in what is now [[UsefulNotes/TheSixteenLandsOfDeutschland Thuringia]], Germany, in 1840 and then ''never stopped breeding''[[labelnote:fun fact]]After having her first child, the queen noted the opinion that newborn babies were ugly, and also disliked breast-feeding. She went on to have eight more; all nine children made it to adulthood.[[/labelnote]] until Albert died of typhoid fever in 1861, only 42, leaving Victoria stricken with grief. She never remarried, and indeed she spent the rest of her reign wearing only mourning colours and only rarely making public appearances and even more rarely living at Buckingham Palace;[[note]]Allegedly, she kept EmptyBedroomGrieving going for the remainder of her life -- ''forty years.''[[/note]] this earned her the not-entirely-complimentary nickname "the Widow of Windsor." As a result, republican sentiment in Britain was at its height, to the extent that some felt the monarchy was going to be abolished sooner or later; fortunately (for the monarchy at any rate), the Prince of Wales, and future Edward VII, "Bertie" had a better understanding of public relations and charmed the socks off the whole country, and partied the socks off the whole upper crust.[[note]]He also ''shagged'' the socks off... anyone female and willing, basically, but the former two seem to have cancelled this latter one out.[[/note]]

Victoria wanted every male British monarch after her to have a double-barrelled regnal name of "Albert [Something]", starting with her son, whom she expected would be known as "Albert Edward". However, "Bertie" decided that he would better honour his father's name if he left it to stand alone, and took the name "Edward VII". Now there is an opposite tradition: Any monarch with the given name "Albert" would ''not'' use that name, out of respect for the Prince Consort's singular position--as shown by George VI, whose given name was Albert and who was known publicly as Prince Albert, Duke of York, and privately as Bertie, until he took the throne (at which point his family still called him "Bertie"). However, there is a low-key tradition where each monarch/heir apparent who has a second son gives that son "Albert" as one of his names (if not necessarily his primary given name). [[note]]To wit: George V's second son was the aforementioned George VI, full Christian name Albert Frederick Arthur George; Elizabeth II's second son is Andrew Albert Christian Edward (Prince Andrew); and Prince Charles' second son is Henry Charles Albert David (Prince Harry). Prince William, however, bucked the tradition by naming his second son Louis Arthur Charles. However, Prince William being young and apparently quite fertile, he may yet give the name to a later son if he has one.[[/note]]

She married her handsome cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a small principality in what is now [[UsefulNotes/TheSixteenLandsOfDeutschland Thuringia]], Germany, in 1840 and then ''never stopped breeding''[[labelnote:fun fact]]After having her first child, the queen noted the opinion that newborn babies were ugly, and also disliked breast-feeding. She went on to have eight more; all nine children made it to adulthood.[[/labelnote]] until Albert died of typhoid fever in 1861, only 42, leaving Victoria stricken with grief. She never remarried, and indeed she spent the rest of her reign wearing only mourning colours and only rarely making public appearances and even more rarely living at Buckingham Palace; this earned her the not-entirely-complimentary nickname "the Widow of Windsor." As a result, republican sentiment in Britain was at its height, to the extent that some felt the monarchy was going to be abolished sooner or later; fortunately (for the monarchy at any rate), the Prince of Wales, and future Edward VII, "Bertie" had a better understanding of public relations and charmed the socks off the whole country, and partied the socks off the whole upper crust.[[note]]He also ''shagged'' the socks off... anyone female and willing, basically, but the former two seem to have cancelled this latter one out.[[/note]]

** Incidentally, in real life Victoria really was an obsessive [[{{Diary}} journal writer]], even by the standards of the times. Her daily journals cover a 69-year period and total 121 volumes (that would mean that Victoria wrote about two thousand words a day--i.e., roughly the daily output of a professional author). She even published some of her diaries during her lifetime; ''Leaves From a Journal of a Life in the Highlands,'' which was about the royal family's visits to their private Scottish estate of Balmoral, was extremely popular in its day. She was also a diligent correspondent and some books of her letters, such as those exchanged with her eldest daughter after she married the Crown Prince of Prussia, have been published as well.

** The "Wacky Queen" sketch features Queen Victoria acting out silly hijinks from a turn-of-the-century silent film comedy, like [[GardenHoseSquirtSurprise squirting William Gladstone with a garden hose]].

** Incidentally, in real life Victoria really was an obsessive [[{{Diary}} journal writer]], even by the standards of the times. Her daily journals cover a 69-year period and total 121 volumes (that would mean that Victoria wrote about two thousand words a day--i.e., roughly the daily output of a professional author). She even published some of her diaries during her lifetime; ''Leaves From a Journal of a Life in the Highlands,'' which was about the royal family's visits to their private Scottish estate of Balmoral, was extremely popular in its day. She was also a diligent correspondent and some books of her letters, such as those exchanged with her eldest daughter after she married the Crown Prince of Prussia, have been published in books as well.

* The film ''Film/TheYoungVictoria'', which is based on, well... [[YoungFutureFamousPeople a young Victoria]].
* The film ''Film/{{Dolittle}}'' features a young and attractive Victoria(played by Jessie Buckley) falling severely ill and requiring a cure from the fruit of the [[FantasticFlora Eden Tree]], which Dr. Dolittle has to obtain himself.

* One of ''Literature/TheRoyalDiaries'' books is "written" by Queen Victoria when she is in her late preteens/early teens, around the time of William IV's accession. (In fact, the [[WhamEpisode wham entry]] for her is when she realizes she's his successor.)
** Incidentally, in real life Victoria really was an obsessive [[{{Diary}} journal writer]], even by the standards of the times. Her daily journals cover a 69 year period and totals 121 volumes (that would mean that Victoria wrote about two thousand words a day--i.e., roughly the daily output of a professional author). She also published some of her diaries during her lifetime; ''Leaves From a Journal of a Life in the Highlands'' was extremely popular in its day.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Guest-starred in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E2ToothAndClaw "Tooth and Claw"]], played by Pauline Collins, depicted as courteous, stern, fairly good-humoured, and downright formidable. She reveals that after previous assassination attempts, she has taken to carrying a loaded revolver. The leader of the evil {{Warrior Monk}}s sneers at her when she draws on him, referring to her as "woman." Her response? [[PreMortemOneLiner "The proper form of address is 'your majesty'."]] A running gag in the episode is Rose and the Doctor doing a SideBet in getting her to say "We are not amused." At the end of the episode, it gains a darker twist, as she knights them... and promptly has "Sir Doctor of TARDIS" and "Dame Rose of the Powell Estate" banished, primarily for treating the whole thing like some sort of game, harshly rebuking them for their glib behaviour while people were dying horribly all around them. In direct response to the events of the episode, she founds the Series/{{Torchwood}} Institute. A later episode, [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E9EmpressOfMars "Empress of Mars"]], includes a [[CallBack portrait]] of the version of Victoria seen in this episode.

* ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'s Christmas Carol'' has a short, chubby, highly-sexed, Victoria and a doofus Albert (played by Creator/MiriamMargolyes and Creator/JimBroadbent, respectively) singing Christmas carols, exchanging gifts and just in general being a HappilyMarried couple celebrating Christmas.

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedSyndicate:'' Appears at the end and the post-game, sending the Fryes on a few missions, until Evie says that the Assassins cannot condone the Empire, and asks her (''[[RefugeInAudacity to her face no less]]'') if she might give up her imperial desires. The game also notes her dislike of Gladstone.

** She appears on "This Is Your Life" in [[AudioPlay/HorribleHistories the audio-book series]] and reunites with her royal subjects, her dead husband from a video call and the Grim Reaper. Throughout, she is portrayed as the grumpy stereotype that everyone associates her with, and her catchphrase being "We are '''not''' amused".
** She had her own book dedicated to her in the original book series and her own episode in season 6 of the TV series. Both take pains to point out various facts about her beyond the stereotype, such as her actually being a very sensual woman despite the stereotypical prudery of the age[[note]]the series episode points out she scandalized her husband by presenting him with erotic artwork as gifts[[/note]]. Both also claim she did say "We are not amused", but only once in her life, and the story differs between the two versions[[note]]the book claims she said it when an unlucky official showed off his "humorous impersonation of Queen Victoria", which amounted to draping a white handerchief over his head and puffing out his cheeks, whilst the episode claims she said it in regards a very boring opera that she attended[[/note]].
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** The "Wacky Queen" sketch features Queen Victoria acting out silly hijinks from a turn-of-the-century silent film comedy, like squirting William Gladstone with a garden hose.