Julia Baird (2)

This biography of Queen Victoria is hefty, but given the length of her rule, it feels just right. The book covers her tightly-supervised childhood, her ascension to the throne at age 18, her marriage to Albert, births of 9 children, and more personal details far too numerous to mention. It also delves into her relationships with her various prime ministers, some more successful than others, starting with Lord Melbourne, and featuring Robert Peel, Benjamin Disraeli and William Gladstone. show more After her husband died at age 42, she developed close relationships with two men, John Brown and Abdul Karim, much to the concern of her family. Beyond the factual account of her life, I learned a couple other things that were interesting. First, I was surprised that she had such an active role in government policy, pushing forth various programs, or in some cases, various prime ministers. Also, and more troubling, this appears to be a woman that suffered her entire life from depression and general neediness. This, of course, came to the fore after the births of her children (Post-partum depression) and the early death of her husband. Given the era in which she lived, none of this was diagnosed, nor was it treated. So I found that much of her life seemed far more unproductive than if she was a mentally healthy individual. In addition, her neediness for a strong authoritative male figure in her life caused her to form perhaps unwise close relationships with Brown and Karim. The author does cite the accomplishments of her reign, and there were many, but I left the book feeling that for a long period of time England had a compromised sovereign.

In any case, this book was well-researched and certainly well written. As long as it was, I never felt that I had hit a dull passage. This was a fascinating account of a fascinating, if troubled, individual, who happened to reign, for a time, a quarter of the world's population. show less

Frankly, I picked this up after seeing two years of the T.V. series about her life. Of course, the series strayed significantly from her real life, which is unfortunate. Victoria, about whom I really knew nothing of substance, was a remarkable person/British monarch. Despite not being the nearly perfect, albeit tempestuous, person depicted in the television series, she was amazing in so many other ways. Possibly we have no stomach for heroines with noticeable and sometimes unsightly warts, show more but the real Victoria did not need excessive burnishing to make her story noteworthy, compelling, and attractive. She had many faults, but we gain nothing, and actually lose a true appreciation for all that she did, by erasing them from history. I now must find some other bios of Victoria to get some different perspectives on one of the most renowned British heads of state, male or female. show less

Queen Victoria gave her name to an age, but I'd not really considered her life as a whole until this biography. Spanning almost the entire nineteenth century (Victoria was born in 1819 and passed away in 1901), Victoria's life provides an interesting prism through which to gain insight into Europe from the end of the Napoleonic war to beginning of World War I. Indeed, Victoria's many children and family relationships played a role in creating the circumstances which led to the first world show more war. Victoria as a person was also intriguing - a woman both of her time and one who challenged it as well, as only a woman ruling during a patriarchal age can. This is an excellent biography for those hoping to understand Victoria and her era better. show less

A balanced biography, blending the personal and public sides of Queen Victoria in an insightful and interesting way. Particularly useful, the book’s front matter helped its reader by including Victoria’s Family Tree, illustrated maps of the changing European landscape during Victoria’s reign, plus a cast of characters (of which there are many). The introduction by the author sets up the bio’s theme perfectly, disclosing that some parts of Victoria’s diaries, parts destroyed (burned show more and thought gone) when edited in 1943 by Victoria’s youngest daughter, Beatrice, had been--unbeknownst to the 86 years-old Beatrice— photographed and secreted away in the Royal Archives. By whom, still remains unknown. Other editors, Arthur Benson and Lord Esher, likewise, practiced a form of “historical censorship” while culling Queen Victoria’s correspondence. Putting aside those intriguing details, what makes this such a praiseworthy book is its skillful presentation of Victoria’s private life, from cradle to grave, and how her public reign of the United Kingdom merges with 19th Century history.

After viewing three seasons of Victoria of Masterpiece Theater on PBS, I felt I wanted to know more. This well-researched account examines Victoria’s relationships, with her mother, her beloved prince/ husband, Albert, her feelings about motherhood and her children, while she was also dealing with the affairs of state, plus her -- sometimes prickly-- relationships with her prime ministers. Also explored, her over-powering grief after Albert’s death and Victoria’s late-in-life friendship with John Brown, revealing her burial wishes along with a few prior unknowns. Julia Baird, whose background is journalism, adroitly summarizes historical events and places them within the context of Queen Victoria’s life. It’s a piece of craftsmanship that helps boost the book’s pacing. So, even though I’ve admittedly only read one biography on Queen Victoria, this is the one I’m glad I decided on. I highly recommend. show less