Unlike the Hanoverians of the 18th century who produced plenty of heirs and spares, the monarchy of the early 19th century suffered a succession crisis. George IV’s (1820-30) only daughter, Princess Charlotte, had died after delivering a stillborn son in 1817, plunging the nation into deep mourning and leaving George without a legitimate, direct descendent to take the throne. Responsibility fell on his three younger brothers, none of whom had legitimate heirs either.
Next in line, Frederick, Duke of York, had no children and was separated from his wife, so it was up to the younger brothers, William, Duke of Clarence, and Edward, Duke of Kent, to safeguard the succession by marrying and having legitimate children. Both began the so-called ‘baby-race’ when they were married in a joint ceremony at Kew Palace in 1818 - William to Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen and Edward to Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.
On 24 May 1819 the Duchess of Kent gave birth to Alexandrina Victoria at Kensington Palace. Her father Edward, the Duke of Kent, died just eight months later and as it became increasingly unlikely that her uncles would produce a legitimate heir, it became clear that the crown would eventually pass to this little princess.
Victoria was raised at Kensington Palace by her mother and her mother’s adviser, Sir John Ponsonby Conroy. Her highly-protected childhood was dictated by what was known as the Kensington system – a series of rules that included not being able to sleep or walk down stairs alone. She was also kept away from the rest of the royal family as much as possible; her mother and Sir John apparently wanting to ensure that they had the most influence over the future queen. It was at Kensington Palace at 6am on 20 June 1837 that Victoria was woken to be told her uncle, William IV (1830-37), had died and that she was now queen. The Victorian age had begun.
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