Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria

When Queen Victoria was a child, she was treated fairly coldly, and mostly “used” by her mother and a friend of her mother’s, knowing that she would likely be on the throne one day. This backfired on them when Victoria did reach the throne just after her 18th birthday. She married a cousin she loved, and once they were married, he did most of the political work, but he died young. Victoria mourned for the rest of her life for Albert. They had 9 children. Victoria varied on whether or not she got along with various elected Prime Ministers over time. She ruled for decades and she lived to be 81 years old.

I really liked this. The book is not that long, so I’m sure there was plenty left out, but I thought it was very readable and show more almost read like fiction. Despite all her kids, I didn’t have too much trouble following who was who, but maybe the author made sure to remind us? I didn’t notice. I have read a couple of fictional works about her, but this, I think, is the first nonfiction. I liked some of the extras thrown in about things that were happening at various points in time over the course of Victoria’s life, including fashion. show less

A brief biography written in gushy style, with cliches to match, Her Little Majesty-the title is apparently ironic in several senses-is a portrayal of the queen who, at the close of her reign, was "almost as broad as she was long." Erickson (Bloody Mary) has apparently put her book together from other books, with no new documentation and with errors emerging as early as the second page. One discovers there that Victoria was the only living legitimate heir to the throne in her generation, although she had two male cousins of her age, each a Prince George. Erickson also has a tendency to put thoughts-often total irrelevancies-into the heads of her characters: "But of course she could not go to [live in] Australia, for Albert would not show more have gone with her, and she needed Albert desperately." Fictional devices proliferate: "The baby slept on, and her mother, feeling safer than she had in months...." The biography is most striking in undoing the fawning portraiture of artistic flatterers ("Beneath her layers of fat, her lined face and heavy round cheeks") and in exploiting at length costume and fashion over the Victorian decades to exemplify social change. That strategy may also serve to keep some readers turning pages to learn about "lemon bosoms" and "bustle pads." Entire years escape the narrative, but Erickson has a knack for plucking pithy quotes, and the essentials of the queen's life are often deftly set out.

Victoria's childhood was a sad, lonely affair, stifled by her overbearing mother. An affectionate, strong-willed girl, Victoria had to develop inner resources to survive. Inheriting the throne at age 18, she represented a new age to subjects thoroughly tired of her dissolute uncles and Regency excesses. She married her cousin, Albert, and they poured their considerable energies into raising a large family and running England. Following his death, and through the cataclysmic changes of the century, Victoria ruled steadily, personal strength carrying her through crisis after crisis. Her stodgy reputation is explained more as a phenomenon of the age than a true reflection of her complex personality. Given to romance and melodrama, she was also stubborn and hot tempered. Her strong and weak personality traits are sympathetically discussed and the opinions of her contemporaries give balanced views of the queen. The chronicles of the 19th century are nicely presented in a readable format, relating the great events of the age as they affected Victoria. show less

This is a well-done examination of the life and times of Queen Victoria. The author not only follows the life of Queen Victoria, but also summarizes the overall treads that affected the Victorian age from the rigidity of early Victorian morals to the disillusionment of these values at the end of her regime. Primary source materials, as well as extensive secondary materials, were cleverly used to weave a story that I found engrossing and entertaining. Victoria is portrayed as a human being with her strengths and flaws equally balances. My only problem with this book is the lack of a family tree for her immediate family members. I found myself becoming confused with all the players in her life. I recommend this as a good book for anyone show more interested in the life of Queen Victoria. show less

A quick read, this is an easy book to get through but one which doesn't leave you terribly well-informed afterwards. It's the trashy romance approach to biography, the kind that's become very popular in the past few years: full of cliches, of the author imagining what Victoria 'must' have been thinking, it skips over entire years in its narrative—not surprising, given its slim size. Elizabeth Longford's magisterial Victoria RI is far more worth your time.

Carolly always gives a good read. Nice for the layman as well. Easy to get through but with a wealth of information. This was a nice biography of Queen Vic.