An Icon of the British Empire: Queen Victoria

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Queen Victoria's father was King George III, the Duke of Kent. He had given up his role as the Duke of Kent, so he could marry the widow of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg to ensure he had an heir for the succession of the throne. Victoria succeeded her Uncle William IV to the throne when she was 18, in 1838. Two years later, she married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who was her second cousin. Throughout the next 17 years, they had four sons and five daughters. Some accomplishments as queen were the Reform Bill being passed, the Corn Laws repealed, and the ending of slavery. During Victoria's rule, she made a lot of positive changes for Great Britain. There were improvements in science, communications, and a huge cultural expansion. In addition, railways and the London Underground were built. ("Alexandrina Victoria"). Victoria was one of the most esteemed British monarchs because she made great improvements to England, many positive changes to the government, and had the longest reign of any British monarch.
During Victoria's reign, there were many improvements. There were inventions in communications, such as the popular press and telegraph. There were also advances in science, such as Darwin's Theory of Evolution. Albert was a significant help in the improvements of the arts, trade, and growing industries. Under Victoria's reign, England increased to 124 million people and 4 million square miles. It was said that the sun never set on the British Empire. As the population increased, cities such as Leeds, Birmingham, and Manchester continued to grow. Additionally wealth was created by the Industrial Revolution, which was helped by the growth of the middle class. Some other improvements were the building of railways, sewers, power...

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...BC, 2014. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. .
"Victoria, Queen." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. N. pag. Biography in Context. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. .
"Victoria (r. 1837-1901)." The British Monarchy. N.p., 2008/09. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. .
Whitelaw, Nancy. Queen Victoria and the British Empire. Greensboro: Morgan Reynolds, 2005. Print.

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