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Birth
On May 24, 1819, Alexandrina Victoria was born in Kensington Palace in London, England. Her mother, Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeldhad, traveled from Germany to England, so her daughter could be born on British soil, making her eligible for the British Crown. Her father, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, died eight months after she was born, so her mother had the most impact on her life. -
Birth Cont.
Victoria would later go on to be one of the most influential monarchs in England's history.
Sources:(Queen Victoria)(Bernard 10-13)(Victoria, Queen) -
Coronation
At Westminster Abbey, eighteen year old Victoria was crowned queen of England and Ireland by Sir George Hayter on June 28, 1838. She became the ruling monarch when her three uncles, who were ahead of her in the line for the throne, had no legitimate heirs. It became apparent that she was the rightful heir when one of her uncles and successor to King George III died. -
Coronation Cont.
This marked the first day out of her many sixty-four year reign. Her reign would be later known as the Victorian Era where great economical, technological, and cultural growth occurred. She would bring immense power and wealth to her nation.
Sources:(Queen Victoria)(Society) -
Wedding
Victoria married her cousin, Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, on Febuary 10, 1840 in in the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace. They would eventually have nine children together.
Victoria's love for Albert effected her rule as Queen. "... [He] was responsible for installing the strict sense of propriety, good manners, and dignity that has come to be associated with the Victorian Era" (Bernard 48). He also started The Great Exhibition.
Sources:(Bernard 48)(Queen Victoria's Wedding)(Grant 39) -
Irish Potato Famine
The Irish Potato Famine began in 1845 and ended in 1852. The Irish farming system had always been dependent on potatoes. After a poor harvest and a rapid spreading fungus that destroyed three crops led to a four year blight. About 1.5 million people died from starvation and disease, and about 1.5 million people emigrated. The British response to the famine was inadequate, and Queen Victoria barely put any thought in the matter. -
Irish Potato Famine Cont.
This increased the ever growing tension between the two countries. They already had religious differences, Protestant England and Catholic Ireland.The British looked down on the Irish and the Irish wanted independence.
Source: (Bernard 50-52) -
Edgar Allan Poe Publishes "The Raven"
On January 29, 1845 Edgar Allan Poe published the "Raven" in the New York's The Evening Mirror Newspaper. It's about an unknown narrator who hears a tapping late at night. He opens his door and window to see where the noise was coming from. A raven flies through the window and only speaks one word, "Nevermore."
The "Raven" is one of the most recognizable and famous poems from the United States. It has effected American literature and helped develop the horror genre.
Source: (Edgar A.Poe) -
California Gold Rush
James Marshall found gold on his land at Sutter’s Mill in Coloma on January 24, 1848. The news spread and people from Oregon, Hawaii, and Latin America were the first to arrive in the late 1800s. The rest of the US and other parts of the world arrived in 1849.
Since it brought over 300,000 people to California, it was the largest mass migration in American history. It also sped up the admission of California as a state because it was made official in 1850.
Source:(California Gold Rush) -
Industrial Revolution
Scientific advances and technological advances led to growth in agriculture and industrial production, economic expansion and living conditions changes. Since there was uneven distribution of wealth, only a portion of the population was allowed to get rich. Whereas the poor were forced to live in terrible conditions. Life changing machines and inventions were created such as railways, bridges and the telegraph. -
Industrial Revolution Cont.
The Industrial Revolution caused rural lands to become industrialized and urbanized following the advances in agriculture, shipping, and industry. A middle class slowly emerged in industrial cities.
Source: (The Industrial Revolution and The Changing Face of Britain) -
The Great Exhibition
Prince Albert's vision was to have nations from all around the world display their new technology and wonders at a fair. On May 1, 1851, the Great Exhibition opened at the Crystal Palace where 100,000 objects were presented. Some examples include hydraulic presses, steam-hammers, printing machines, and textile machines. Six million people had been recorded of attending. -
The Great Exhibition Cont.
The Great Exhibition was the first international exhibition of manufactured products. It was influential in the development of art and design education, international trade and relations, and tourism.
Source:(The Great Exhibition) -
Crimean War
The Crimean War was by Britain, France, Turkey, and Sardinia against Russia. Britain, France, and Russia were competing for lands in the Middle East, but mostly in Turkey. Control of the Holy Lands cause tension between Orthodox Russia and Catholic France. Rioting in Bethlehem led to orthodox monks dying while fighting with French Monks. Tsar Nicholas I blamed the Turks and mobilized an army against them. France and Britain were concerned about Russian Expansion and joined the fight. -
Crimean War Cont.
With their naval supremacy they defeated the Russians. The War is known for "the Charge of the Light Brigade" written by Alfred, Lord Tennyson and Florence Nightingale.
The war crippled Russia and showed the strength and power Britain wielded. It also showed the importance of sea power in a global conflict, and had an influence on the American Civil War.
Source:(Archives) -
Sepoy Rebellion of 1857
The Sepoy Rebellion began when the British changed to a different weapon, Patter 1853 Enfield rifle, which used greased paper cartridges. There was a rumor that said the cartridges were made out of beef and pork fat. It offended the Hindu and the Muslim because the pig and cow were sacred to them. They revolted against the British and wanted independence. Some British civilians joined the revolt because their land was confiscated or they joined to protest against heavy land taxes. -
Sepoy Rebellion of 1857 Cont.
Indians entered because the East India Company forbade certain religions of theirs to be practiced.
The rebellion proved unsuccessful when it ended in June 1858. The Government of India Act of 1858 dissolved British East India Company, and the British government took control of India that was under the company's control. Queen Victoria became Empress of India.The British took a firmer control and the Sepoy didn't gain independence until ninety years later.
Source:(Szczepanski) -
North China Famine
The North China Famine was the most lethal famine-drought imperial China has ever experienced up until 1958. The Yellow River had a drought in 1876 and it worsened when there was little rainfall the following year. Since the Taiping, Nian, and Muslim Rebellions and many other causes occurred, the country wasn't prepared to prevent the drought from producing a famine. When it stabilized in 1879, 9.5 to 13 million people died from starvation and famine related diseases. -
North China Famine Cont.
This famine was all but forgotten once the Great Leap Famine of 1958 occurred, in which about 30 million people died, because China wanted to downplay their inability to feed their people.
Source:(Contents) -
First Successful Phone Call
Alexander Graham Bell, an expert in sound and public speaking, invented the telephone, the photophone, metal detector, and many more inventions. On March, 10 1876, he and his assistant, Thomas Watson had the first successful phone call. Bell said these famous words,"Mr. Watson, come here – I want to see you."
Graham's impact on the world allowed for faster communication and has become an important facet of our society with the use of cell phones.
Source: (Alfred) -
European Expansion & Empress of India
By the end of the nineteenth century, one quarter of the world's population were Queen Victoria's subjects. She controlled eighteen territories and many smaller ones including, Canada, Australia, India, some parts of Africa, Hong Kong, and Singapore. They brought England immense wealth and were valued at approximately 878 million pounds in 1900. Queen Victoria became Empress of India on January 1, 1877, at the Delhi Durbar, when her prime minister, Benjamin Disraeli, advised her to do so. -
European Expansion & Empress of India Cont.
Victoria's expansion led to many viewing England as the most powerful nation in the world. Her territories were so extensive that people described it as "the empire on which the sun never sets" because at least one part of the empire had daylight.
Source:(Bernard 18) -
The Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower began construction on January 28, 1887 for the 1889 World's Fair. Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, a bridge builder, architect, and metals expert, didn't have full credit for the tower. Maurice Koechlin, a structural engineer who works for Eiffel was the one who came up with the concept. The tower was only supposed to be temporary, but city officials decided to keep it as a radiotelegraph station. -
The Eiffel Tower Cont.
The Eiffel Tower is an architectural wonder that has become a symbol of France and the industrial age. It attracts more visitors than any other tourist attraction in the world.
Source: (Eiffel Tower) -
Marie Curie Radium Discovery
Pierre Curie and Marie Curie both isolated element #84, polonium, and element #88, radium, on December 21, 1898. Marie created a method for separating radium from its radioactive residues, allowing a closer study of its radioactive properties.
With their discovery their was a rapid and uncontrollable use of radium in all field of life and medicine. This resulted in many fatal complications including some she experienced. Today, radiotherapy is essential in oncology.
Source:(Long) -
Death
On January 22, 1901, eighty-one year old Victoria died in the Osborne House, in East Cowes, England. Her successor, Edward VII, and her eldest grandson, Emperor Wilhelm II, were both at her bedside when she passed away.
She had the second longest reign of any monarch in British history. This was the end of a woman who defined an era. All the things she accomplished in her lifetime, her legacy, far exceeds her life span.
Source: (Queen Victoria)
