Meeting Albert

            Queen Victoria was a writer. She started keeping a journal at age 13 and continued throughout her entire life. She also corresponded through letters with many people, most frequently her Uncle Leopold, King of the Belgiums. I picked up a book from the library called Queen Victoria in Her Letters and Journals: A Selection by Christopher Hibbert. In it I found journal entries and letters from when Queen Victoria first met Albert. Here are some excerpts:

            Journal: 18 May 1836 “Albert, who is just as tall as Ernest [Albert’s brother] but stouter, is extremely handsome; his hair is about the same colour as mine; his eyes are large and blue, and he has a beautiful nose and a very sweet mouth with fine teeth; but the charm of his countenance is his expression, which is most delightful; c’est a la fois full of goodness and sweetness, and very clever and intelligent…”  

            Letter to King Leopold: 7 June 1836 “I must thank you, my beloved Uncle, for the prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me, in the person of dear Albert. Allow me, then, my dearest Uncle, to tell you how delighted I am with him, and how much I like him in every way. He possesses every quality that could be desired to render me perfectly happy. He is so sensible, so kind, and so good, and so amiable too. He has, besides, the most pleasing and delightful exterior and appearance you can possibly see.”

            Victoria’s Uncle Leopold and Albert’s father wished Victoria and Albert to marry but Victoria felt no obligation to grant this wish or even marry at all unless she herself desired it. She states this in this next letter to King Leopold:

            15 July 1839 “…Though all the reports of Albert are most favourable, and though I have little doubt I shall like him, still one can never answer beforehand for feelings, and I may not have the feeling for him which is requisite to ensure happiness. I may like him as a friend, and as a cousin, and as a brother, but not more; and should this be the case (which is not likely), I am very anxious that it should be understood that I am not guilty of any breach of promise, for I never gave any. I am sure you will understand my anxiety, for I should otherwise, were this not completely understood, be in a very painful position. As it is, I am rather nervous about the visit [of her cousins Ernest and Albert], for the subject I allude to is not an agreeable one to me.”

            Victoria was a very strong-willed and independent person. She was used to getting her own way and doing what she wanted. She thought that marrying would take this ability away from her and restrict what she did which is why she thought of marriage as a very disagreeable thing. But meeting Albert changed her mind. She proposed to him on October 15^th, 1839 (the monarch must propose in these situations) and they were married within the year.  Here is a link describing the wedding: http://womenshistory.about.com/library/etext/bl_eminent_victoria_l.htm 

Sources About Victoria

           The majority of my sources for the I-Search essay I found on Wilson Web. These included two articles from History Today. The other source I found through Google News.

            My first source was an article from the Lewiston Evening Journal, printed on Dec 30^th, 1890 entitled “Doll From Queen Victoria”. It’s about Olmstead Ferris, the inventor of popcorn, and how he introduced himself and popcorn to Queen Victoria. He was instructed in the manners of court and how to address the Queen but when the time came for them to meet he walked up to her and offered his hand to her which pleased the Queen greatly. After the interview Ferris asked for a token to bring back to the States for his daughter and Victoria gave him a doll. Here is the full article: http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=IdEoAAAAIBAJ&sjid=A2sFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2658,4559580&dq=queen+victoria&hl=en

            Another source I found was an article called “Dear John” by Bendor Grosvenor, printed in History Today. The whole article is about Victoria’s servant John Brown and the relationship between them. There has always been speculation about whether or not Victoria and Brown were romantically involved. The idea that they were is supported by a letter sent by Victoria to Lord Cranbrook that Grosvenor quotes and discusses in his article. He says that the attitude towards Brown’s death that Victoria takes is very like to that of the death of her husband Albert and that it is also contradicts what is written in her diary which Victoria requested be edited by her daughter Beatrice after her death.

            This last source is about the “The Bedchamber Crisis”. The article is “Queen Victoria and the Palace Martyr” by Kate Williams and it was also printed in History Today. “The Bedchamber Crisis” happened very early on in Victoria’s reign which explains why it was a massive affair. Not only was Victoria inexperienced but she was also not yet established with the people as a monarch. Victoria, greatly influenced by her friend and advisor, Lord Melbourne gave the positions of ladies-in-waiting to the wives of Lord Melbourne’s Whig friends. This was just fine until the Tories were about to take over Parliament. Their leader Robert Peel requested that some of the Queen’s ladies be replaced by Tory supporters but she refused. Peel, not wishing to have a split between the monarchy and Parliament allowed Lord Melbourne to keep his position in Parliament. This combined with the Lady Flora Hastings scandal, where the royal household believed Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent’s lady-in-waiting, who was from a prominent Tory family, to be pregnant with the child of Sir John Conroy, the Duchess’s personal advisor. Lady Flora denied these claims, eventually falling ill, and dying. It was later discovered that the disease that killed her caused her liver to swell, making her look pregnant. All of these proceedings made Victoria very unpopular with the public, who criticized her saying that she had killed Lady Flora. She only regained her people’s good favor when she married Prince Albert.        

Why Queen Victoria?

            Ever since I was a little kid I was fascinated by history. First it was the Revolutionary War, then the French Revolution. In recent years I’ve discovered the Victorian Era. The culture, customs, writers, and people of this era I find endlessly interesting. But I didn’t really know anything about the person that this era was named after, Queen Victoria. Of course I’d heard of her. In school there were really only three English monarchs that anyone talked about: Elizabeth I, Henry VIII, and Victoria. But for some reason Victoria was the one that was always overshadowed.

            I really became intrigued by Queen Victoria when I watched the movie The Young Victoria starring Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend. Being a lover of historical movies, I was completely drawn into the story of Victoria’s journey to power and most importantly her relationship with Prince Albert. All I know about her is based on that movie. She became queen of England at age 18 and is the longest reigning English monarch to date. She married her cousin Prince Albert and they had nine children before Albert died. But is this information and the portrayal of her in the movie accurate? I don’t know. So this is the big question I want to answer while researching her: What was the real Victoria like? Hopefully I’ll find an answer.

What Am I Interested In?

            When I heard that I'm supposed to write a research paper called an I-Search essay my first reaction was "Great a ton of research that's going to take up a lot of time..." and so on. This was followed closely by my second thought which was "What am I going to write about?" I had no clue. What kind of topic can I find that won’t be overly difficult to research but yet interesting to me at the same time? I came up with a few ideas.
            I am fascinated by history, absolutely fascinated. Not enough to pick up a gigantic history book for light reading but I do enjoy it. I’m one of those people who see a historical movie and then immediately become intrigued and slightly obsessed with whatever it was about. So as I sat thinking about what I could research I immediately thought of all the historical movies I’d seen and The Young Victoria sprang into my mind. I absolutely love this movie and it made me want to know more about Queen Victoria and her relationship with Prince Albert in particular.
            Another topic idea I came up with was Italy. I love Italy, always have. If I do end up researching Italy I’ll have to narrow it down to something more specific but it would be a topic that would both interest me and be easier to research.
            These are only a few ideas but hopefully I come up with one that I can’t wait to get started on!