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How Historically Accurate is season 1 of Victoria

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<i>This article contains spoilers.</i>__NOTOC__[[File:Victoria.jpeg|thumbnail|left|Victoria, Season 1]]<i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LXM0RDM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B01LXM0RDM&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=5a0ed5123c161a2ddedaa36e15a9a0b2 Victoria]</i> Season 1 looks at the early reign of Queen Victoria (1819-1901) who ruled at a time when there were many social and technical changes in British society during the 19th century. Her long rule also saw the United Kingdom become a major global power, where the phrase "the empire on which the sun never sets" accurately described the expanse of United Kingdom's global empire. The first season looks at her accession to the role as queen, her marriage to Albert, and her struggles to assert her authority as many saw her as a child or lacked the reason to be an effective monarch.
<i>Victoria</i> ==Key Events==Season 1 looks at begins with the early reign death of Queen King William, who was Victoria (1819-1901) who ruled at a time when there were many social and technical changes in British society during the 19th century's uncle. Her long rule also saw As the United Kingdom become a major global powerking did not have any legitimate children through his marriage, where the phrase "the empire on which the sun never sets" was used succession passed down to describe the fact that the United Kingdom's empire stretched to many parts of the globeVictoria. The first season looks few episodes focused on Victoria's inexperience, her sometimes naivety, as she was only 18 years old at her accession to the role as time she became queenin 1837. Key events focused on her mother (Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld) and John Conroy, her marriage to Albertmother's secretary and friend. Rumors, as suggested by the show, had it they were possible lovers, but this was unclear. In both reality and the series, Conroy and her struggles to assert her authority Victoria's mother caused difficulties for Victoria, where Conroy was portrayed as many saw her controlling and he even was shown as attempting to rule in a child or lacked the reason to be an effective monarchregency.[[File:VictoriaDronning victoria.jpeg|thumbnail|left|Figure 1. Coronation of Victoria.]]However, his attempts at a regency likely did not happen, although he did try to have greater influence in court. One early controversy was Victoriahaving accused Lady Flora, a lady-in-waiting close to Conroy, of being pregnant, Season which would have been scandalous as she was unwed. However, after physical examination by a doctor, it was determined that Lady Flora had a terminal liver tumor, causing Victoria embarrassment and public anger at falsely accusing Lady Flora. This made Victoria look insensitive and loose popularity given how she treated the dying Lady Flora. There is truth Victoria's sheltered life, as Victoria was brought up in a system called the Kensington system, which greatly controlled who Victoria could talk to and interact with. The system was intended to have greater control of her. This also made her have few true friends and Victoria did describe that she had a melancholy childhood (Figure 1]]).<ref>For more on Victoria's early reign, see: Williams, K. (2009) OCLC: 276647568. <i>Becoming queen.</i> London, Arrow.</ref>
==Key Events==Season 1 begins with the death of King William, who was As Victoria's uncle. As the king did not have any legitimate children through his marriage, the succession passed down struggled to Victoria. The first few episodes focused on Victoria's inexperience, her sometimes naivety, as she was only 18 years old at break free from the time she became queen in 1837. Key events focused on her mother (Victoria grips of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld) and John Conroy, and to some extent her mother's secretary and friend. Rumors, as suggested by the showshe forms a close relationship with Lord Melbourne, had it they were possible loversor William Lamb, but this who was unclear. In both reality and the series, Conroy and Victoria's mother caused difficulties for Victoria, where Conroy was portrayed as controlling and he even was shown as attempting to rule in a regency. However, his attempts Prime Minister at a regency likely did not happen, although he did try to have greater influence in courtthe time. One early controversy was Victoria having accused Lady Flora, He became a lady-in-waiting close to Conroy, confidant of being pregnantVictoria, which would have been scandalous as she was unwedaccurate. However, after physical examination by The series also indicates a doctorvery close relationship formed between them, it was determined that Lady Flora which is also likely ture. It even suggests Victoria had a terminal liver tumorromantic interest in Lord Melbourne, causing Victoria embarrassment and public anger at falsely accusing Lady Flora. This made Victoria look insensitive and loose popularity given how where she treated eventually proposes to him (the dying Lady Floraqueen had to propose in order to get married). There is truth Victoria's sheltered lifeThis marriage proposal was unlikely to have occurred, as Victoria Lord Melbourne was brought up in a system called 58 years old at the Kensington system, which greatly controlled who time that Victoria could talk came to power and interact with. The system was intended to have greater control of her. This also made her have few true friends and Victoria did describe , given the fact that she had a melancholy childhood (Figure 1).<ref>For more on Victoria's early reignnever knew her father, see: Williams, K. (2009) OCLC: 276647568. <i>Becoming queen.</i> London, Arrowlikely treated Melbourne as a surrogate father figure.</ref>
As Victoria struggled to break free from the grips of Conroy, and to some extent her mother, she forms a close relationship with Lord Melbourne, or William Lamb, who was the Prime Minister at the time. He became a close confidant of Victoria, which was accurate. The series also indicates a very close relationship formed between them, which is also likely ture. It even suggests Victoria had a romantic interest in Lord Melbourne, where she eventually proposes to him (the queen had to propose in order to get married). This marriage proposal was unlikely to have occurred, as Lord Melbourne was 58 years old at the time that Victoria came to power and, given the fact that Victoria never knew her father, likely treated Melbourne as a surrogate father figure. The show focuses on political rivalries that were occurring at the time in the late 1830s between the Tories and Whigs, the two primary parties. There was even a crisis, the so-called Bedchamber crisis, where the Tory leader Robert Peel was to be given the Prim Minister role. However, he insisted that Queen Victoria remove some of her ladies of the bedchamber, as they had husbands who were Whig politicians, suggesting to Peel that Victoria was too heavily biased toward the Whigs. However, as these were Victoria's friends, she refused, causing a crisis since Peel would have normally taken the role of Prime Minister as his party now controlled parliament. Eventually, Melbourne was again asserted as Prime Minister, where the events depicted are mostly accurate in the series.<ref>For more on early controversies in Victoria's reign, see: Rappaport, H. (2003) <i>Queen Victoria: a biographical companion.</i> ABC-CLIO biographical companions. Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO.</ref>
As Victoria struggled to gain and show her authority, the series then introduces how she met and was introduced to Albert after a series of other potential suitors. In reality, she had already known Albert prior to her ascension and had already indicated her some romantic interest in him. As the show depicts, she was very struck by him, although the series depicts that his stiff personality at times was off putting to her. It also shows Albert as protective of Victoria and jealous of Melbourne, although this probably was not the case. However, with the rise of Albert at court, the influence of Melbourne did diminish on Victoria. This is more to do with the fact that as Albert became her husband he played also a greater role in government and fulfilled roles Melbourne would have done earlier on. Victoria formally proposed to Albert on October 15, 1839, with the wedding taking place on the 10th of February 1840.<ref>For more on Prince Albert, see: James, R.R. (1984) <i>Prince Albert: a biography.</i> 1st American ed. New York, Knopf : Distributed by Random House.</ref>
Although Victoria was sometimes called the grandmother of Europe due to the many monarchs that derived from her line and that married into various European households, she, in fact, hated childbirth and having to go through the process of having children (she had nine children). This worry about childbirth was shown in the series, where she brings up her fear of death in the process as this occurred to some other royal women in her line. Some of Victoria's diary entries did, in fact, suggest her worry and fears of childbirth.<ref>For more on Victoria's children and their birth, see: Van der Kiste, J. (2009) <i>Queen Victoria’s children.</i> 2nd ed. Stroud, History Press.</ref>  Meanwhile, there were social tensions in the United Kingdom, as widespread poverty in the country and social unrest in places created tensions. Edward Oxford did try to assassinate the young Queen as she rode in her carriage with Albert near Buckingham palace, which had just become the official palace. This did occur and Oxford, as the show depicts, was committed to an insane asylum after the attempt, with the queen showing some indignation that he was not executed for his acts. The series indicates her uncle, who was now King of Hanover but also was the potential successor to Victoria until she gave birth to a child, did suggest that she may be assassinated, which possibly implicated him in a plot. However, no such evidence of this was found, in the series, and most likely there was never any serious suspicion of her uncle.<ref>For more on social discord and assassination attempts on Victoria, see: Murphy, P.T. (2013) OCLC: 859559768. <i>Shooting Victoria: madness, mayhem, and the rebirth of the British monarchy.</i></ref> In fact, any plot could have caused war against Hanover, which would have deterred him.
[[File:Dronning victoria.jpeg|thumbnail|Figure 1. Coronation of Victoria.]]<dh-ad/>
==Main Characters==
 
<u>Victoria</u>: The queen is shown as inexperienced and young, hasty to make judgments (such as her falsely accusing Lady Flora of a pregnancy). However, she emerged as more determined and cunning, particularly with Lord Melbourne's guidance and began to be more assertive, with wiser decisions made that showed her thinking more complexly. There is truth to the fact that Victoria did gradually make decisions that reflected her growing experience, where she did regret some of her earlier experiences early in her reign in her writings.<ref>For more on Victoria's personality, see: Rappaport, H. (2003) <i>Queen Victoria: a biographical companion.</i> ABC-CLIO biographical companions. Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO.</ref>
==Victorian Culture==
 Victorian culture is often portrayed as emphasizing a sense of moral duty and responsibility. The show begins to depict this in the early years of Victoria, where she shows disgust with her father and male German relatives who seemed to mostly have mistresses often with their wives' knowledge. Victoria even is shown as confronting Albert asking if he intended to have a mistress. The Victorian age was known as a period of rapid industrialization and technical change. This is shown in the early episodes as Albert rides a train near Windsor Castle. The series depicts locomotives as novel, but they had already been developed by the reign of Victoria and were beginning to spread in places. Nevertheless, the use of locomotives spread far and fast during the reign of Victoria along with other technologies and sciences such as photography, the telegraph, anaesthetics, and anaestheticstheory of evolution.<ref>For more on the Victorian era and Victorian culture, see: Moran, M. (2006) OCLC: ocm71239257. Victorian literature and culture. Introductions to British literature and culture. London ; New York, Continuum.</ref>
==Summary==
 
<i>Victoria</i> is a colorful series that mixes a lot of historical detail with fictional characters and events. It tries to humanize one of the most influential reigns of a monarch that had impact not only in the United Kingdom, but by extension the globe given the influence of the British Empire at the time. The show does a masterful job in weaving the complex personalities of the characters as they are shaped by and shape event that occurred early in the reign of Victoria, as she struggled to assert her authority and married Prince Albert.
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==References==
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==References=={{Contributors}}[[Category:British History]] [[Category:English History]] [[Category:Historically Accurate]] [[Category:Medieval History]]

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