Happy Victoria Day
Queen Victoria (r. 1837-1901)
"The 24th of May is the Queen's birthday. If you don't give us a holiday we will all run away."
As a child I used to chant the above couplet. With English grandparents and a mother interested in British history, our family acknowledged this special day to honour Queen Victoria and the current Queen, Queen Elizabeth.
Queen Victoria was a remarkable woman during the time of British industrialization and Empire building. She ruled for 64 years, the longest of any British monarch. If our current queen remains healthy she may come to rule even longer.
Queen Elizabeth II has ruled during the final years of the British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations around the World. Britain now is comng to terms with being part of Europe within the European Union rather than a nation island Empire.
Queen Victoria married her first cousin Alfred, the Prince Consort. Together they had nine children who virtually all married into the nobility of Europe from Russia to Spain.
Her reign was a remarkable period in history, worth reading about and studying.
Royalty.nu - British Royal History - Queen Victoria and Her Family
Perhaps, the greatest contribution of Queen Victoria was her establishment of the idea of "constitutional monarchy", where nobility rules by influence, service and example. This tradition is carried on with our current Queen.
So have a cup of tea and raise it to Monarchy, "God Save the Queen, Long May She Reign."
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