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At the age of 13, the then Princess Victoria of Kent, was
given her very first diary by her mother, The Duchess of Kent, who
intended for her to use it to record her thoughts as she embarked
on an educational tour of the country. “This book, Mamma gave me,
that I might write the journal of my journey to Wales in it.” So
began the first of Queen Victoria’s journals.
In her new journal, the future queen described the scene she
encountered when she visited the industrial areas in the
Midlands: “The men woemen [sic], children, country and houses
are all black. But I can not by any description give an idea of its
strange and extraordinary appearance. The country is very desolate
every where; there are coals about, and the grass is quite blasted
and black. I just now see an extraordinary building flaming with
fire.” However, she was delighted with the people’s welcome,
writing: “We have just changed horses at Wolverhampton a large and
dirty town but we were received with great friendliness and
pleasure.”
As a young princess, Victoria’s daily timetable showed that the
she would spend half an hour each morning writing in her
journal, before taking lessons in history, geography, Latin or
general knowledge. As she grew older, Queen Victoria wrote in
her journals frequently, describing important events of her reign,
such as her coronation, her wedding, and her Golden and Diamond
Jubilees. Fondly known as the ‘Grandmother of Europe’, she
frequently corresponded with her vast family, as well as foreign
ministers, ambassadors and heads of State. The Queen also
maintained brief diaries in Hindustani, a language which she learnt
after being proclaimed Empress of India.
Queen Victoria wrote until the final year of her life. Her last
entry was penned on 12th January 1901, just ten days before her
death: “Had a good night and could take some breakfast better. Took
an hour’s drive at half-past two … It was very foggy, but the air
was pleasant.”
What started as a habit in 1832, grew into a passion for writing
which lasted for nearly 70 years, until Queen Victoria’s death at
the age of 81. During that time, The Queen filled over 43,000
pages, spanning across 141 volumes. As per her instructions, her
journals were transcribed by her youngest daughter, Princess
Beatrice, who then destroyed the originals. In 2012, these abridged
versions were made available online to mark the Diamond Jubilee of
Queen Elizabeth II.
Today, only 13 volumes of Queen Victoria’s journals survive. The
collection is stored in the Royal Archives in the Round Tower.
This came into effect in 1912, when Queen Victoria’s grandson
King George V decreed that “All the Royal Archives shall be kept…in
the Round Tower [at Windsor Castle]”. The transfer of records began
two years later, in 1914.
To celebrate the centenary of the records being housed in the Round
Tower, Queen Victoria’s first journal will be among more than
a 100 books and documents from the Royal Archives to be displayed
at Windsor Castle. The exhibition will begin on Saturday, the 17th
of May, and go on until January 25 next year.
photo credit: Kvasir79 via photopin
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Queen Victoria did NOT reign for 83 years. She reigned for 63 years and 216 days. She was 83 years old when she died, I believe. She is the longest reigning British monarch as of now. Queen Elizabeth II will overtake her next year, God willing.
It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if Queen Elizabeth II lived to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee in 2026 at the age of 96.
It’s such a pity that Princess Beatrice felt she had a right to censor her mother’s diaries and throw the originals into the fire. If Queen Victoria hadn’t wanted her words to be read at some future date, she wouldn’t have kept a diary in the first place.
How wonderful it would have been to have a window into the Queen’s thoughts about her family and all the many years of history she lived through during her stellar reign. Whenever someone destroys history like that it always makes me cross.