Queen Victoria

Recently, I have been watching the series on Queen Victoria on a Sunday evening ( and series 2 is now out 9pm ITV) and I have found it incredibly interesting.  I've done quite a bit of reading on this Queen and thought I knew "a lot" but the series is bringing out a character I have never seen in the books.

This beautiful young woman came to the throne at 18 years of age, after a very sheltered childhood, and yet Victoria seemed to have a deep understanding of people and her country. The series portrays a very strong woman who, at times, was very unsure of herself and what or where she should go.
Victoria learnt very quickly who to rely on, who to ask advice from and who to trust, and all of this made her a very wise Queen.
It always amazes me the fact that Victoria had 9 living children but didn't actually "like" being pregnant and having babies. Mind you, back in those days there was no painkiller to help the mother and the doctors, although they did their best, did not have the knowledge that our doctors have today, so this is quite understandable.

Victoria adored her husband Albert, almost worshiping him, but her strong character was always there as she rarely let the Prince help her with Royal duties, letters, signing, etc.
The Prince Albert loved his children but was very strict with them. The lessons he set out for his sons almost followed a military regime and Albert was particularly unforgiving with his eldest son.
But from my reading, I think the children had a happy childhood and were allowed to use their imaginations in their little worlds.

I will be coming back to this beautiful Queen another time, but for now, I highly recommend the series "Queen Victoria" as it shows the 'human' side of this very Unique Queen.