VICTORIA, queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, empress of India (1819-1901), only child of Edward, duke of Kent, fourth son of King George III., and of Princess Victoria Mary Louisa of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (widow of Prince Emich Karl of Leiningen, by whom she already had two children), was born at Kensington Palace on May 24, 1819. The circum stances leading up to her birth were somewhat peculiar. In 1817 Princess Charlotte, the daughter of the Prince Regent, had died in childbirth, and her death removed the only legitimate offspring of the 13 sons and daughters of George III. In order to remedy this defect three of the sons, the dukes of Clarence, Kent and Cambridge, all of them well advanced in middle life, married in 1818. The two children of the duke of Clarence died in infancy: the duke of Cambridge had a son, also duke of Cam bridge (1819-19o4), Victoria's only first cousin, and for nearly years commander-in-chief of the British army; but since the duke of Cambridge was younger than the duke of Kent, Victoria, christened Alexandrina Victoria, became heir to the throne.
Victoria never knew her father, for he died when she was eight months old, but his place was filled, in so far as any man could fill it, by her mother's brother, the admirable and sagacious Leopold (179o-1865). Leopold had been the husband of Princess Charlotte, and thus prospective prince consort of England. He continued to reside in the country, at Claremont, until, in 1831, he was accepted as the first king of the Belgians. The widowed mother trusted him as her best adviser, and he was responsible for the general character of the princess's education. After his removal to Belgium Victoria and Leopold carried on a close and affectionate correspondence throughout the 34 remaining years of their joint lives. After her accession (1837) the niece tactfully eluded and quickly terminated the uncle's attempts to control British policy behind the backs of the British cabinet. None the less, though she could not accept him as an extra-constitutional adviser, Victoria found, in correspondence with her uncle, a delightful outlet for her private and unofficial feelings ; only to him, for example, could she speak of Palmerston and Russell as "those two dreadful old men." On his death she recorded in her Journal that he had been "ever as a father" to her.
The young princess's home was Kensington Palace, though she stayed at times with her uncle at Claremont, and frequently travelled on the Continent with her mother. Her half-sister
Feodore was her nursery companion, and remained her friend until her death in 1872. When Victoria was five an admirable governess was found for her in the person of Fraiilein (after wards the Baroness) Lehzen, a native of Coburg. Louise Lehzen won the whole-hearted devotion of the princess and was the principal personal influence in her life down to her accession, at the age of 18, quite eclipsing the influence of her mother, the duchess of Kent. Victoria's relations with her mother (who lived until 1861) may be described as correct, and usually friendly, but no more. Hers is an elusive, pathetic figure. Her influence was of a negative character, yet not for that reason unimportant. She felt an intense aversion towards her brothers in-law, George IV. and the duke of Clarence, subsequently William IV., and the feeling was fully reciprocated. Thus the little princess grew up in almost complete isolation from the surviving members of her father's family, and her accession was, as it were, the beginning of a new dynasty. With a Coburg mother, a Coburg guardian-uncle, a Coburg governess (and sub sequently a Coburg husband), she always thought of herself as a member of the House of Coburg rather than the House of Hanover, a feeling which expressed itself in her disapproval of the name "George," when chosen for the grandson who was to be George V.
Victoria's upbringing and education could easily be criticized by modern standards. Until she became queen she never slept a night away from her mother's room, and she was not allowed to converse with any grown-up person, friend, tutor, or servant, without the duchess of Kent or Lehzen being present. Most will agree, however, that the education, whatever its intrinsic merits, had excellent results. Leopold considered that his niece should be kept as long as possible from a knowledge of her position; so Victoria was 12 years old before a carefully arranged history lesson revealed to her that she was to be queen. When she realized the destiny in store for her, her first words were "I will be good." Very shortly afterwards she began the detailed and highly characteristic Journal which was continued throughout her life. Selections from it, down to 1885, are included in the volumes of the Queen's Letters.