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The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation
Now the second-longest-reigning monarch after Elizabeth II, Queen Victoria ruled at the height of Britain's power on the world stage and was a symbol of stability at home and abroad. Against this background of pomp and power, she was a passionate woman who led an often turbulent private life. Victoria was just eight months old when her father died and his paternal role was taken by her uncle Leopold of Saxe-Coburg and Sir John Conroy, an ally of her mother. The two of them sought to control Victoria and isolate her from others. This is the story of the Queen of England who had to fight to forge her own way in the world, and who found true romance with Prince Albert only to have happiness snatched from her when he died of typhoid at the age of 42.
194 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 5, 2018
9 people are currently reading
96 people want to read
About the author
Alexander MacDonald
188 books10 followersThere is more than one author by this name on Goodreads.
Alexander MacDonald is a military historian and author
See also:
Alexander MacDonald, Canadian bishop, 1859-1941
Alexander MacDonald, Scottish war poet, 1698–1770
Alexander MacDonald, Scottish antiquary, 1791-1850
Alexander MacDonald, 1878-1939
Alexander MacDonald is a military historian and author
See also:
Alexander MacDonald, Canadian bishop, 1859-1941
Alexander MacDonald, Scottish war poet, 1698–1770
Alexander MacDonald, Scottish antiquary, 1791-1850
Alexander MacDonald, 1878-1939
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 21, 2018
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The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation by Alexander MacDonald is a non-fiction book, about the Queen’s personal relationships before, and during her reign. Mr. Macdonald is a military historian and author.
I really enjoy min-biographies, always have. A biography which happens over a certain period of time, or concentrated on a specific topic. I find them easy to digest than a thousand page behemoth, impossibly trying to encompass the intricate life of an individual.
This is why I chose to read The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation by Alexander MacDonald, the second longest English monarch. Queen Victoria ruled England when she was at the height of her power, a stable world leader, and a powerful player on the world’s stage.
The author writes about the way Queen Victoria conducted her personal relationships before, and during, her reign. Not only did the Queen had to be politically savvy, but also be wary of those who want to control her, or simply get in her good graces.
At some point in this short book, I started to sense the loneliness and isolation Queen Victoria must have felt. I imagine she found it very difficult to trust new people in her life, especially those interested furthering their personal and political fortunes.
I’m not sure I would have been able to differentiate who would I could trust, if at all. It must have been maddening.
Even though this book only focuses on Queen Victoria’s personal life, the author still includes a great amount of detail, and wonderful pictures to accompany the text. A short book about a fascinating subject which very few are privy to – the private life of a reigning Queen.
The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation by Alexander MacDonald is a non-fiction book, about the Queen’s personal relationships before, and during her reign. Mr. Macdonald is a military historian and author.
I really enjoy min-biographies, always have. A biography which happens over a certain period of time, or concentrated on a specific topic. I find them easy to digest than a thousand page behemoth, impossibly trying to encompass the intricate life of an individual.
This is why I chose to read The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation by Alexander MacDonald, the second longest English monarch. Queen Victoria ruled England when she was at the height of her power, a stable world leader, and a powerful player on the world’s stage.
The author writes about the way Queen Victoria conducted her personal relationships before, and during, her reign. Not only did the Queen had to be politically savvy, but also be wary of those who want to control her, or simply get in her good graces.
At some point in this short book, I started to sense the loneliness and isolation Queen Victoria must have felt. I imagine she found it very difficult to trust new people in her life, especially those interested furthering their personal and political fortunes.
I’m not sure I would have been able to differentiate who would I could trust, if at all. It must have been maddening.
Even though this book only focuses on Queen Victoria’s personal life, the author still includes a great amount of detail, and wonderful pictures to accompany the text. A short book about a fascinating subject which very few are privy to – the private life of a reigning Queen.
July 8, 2018
I received an ARC from NetGalley.
Queen Victoria seems to be everywhere now, undoubtedly because of the Masterpiece drama "Victoria". This novel, is a very simple overview of the monarch's "private" life. I say "private" because there really aren't any details or anecdotes in this volume that haven't been disclosed elsewhere, in fact, if you watch Victoria, you'll recognize quite a few events in this book. If you are a history buff looking for more details, this is not the book for you. When I say that the author glazes over details, I'm not kidding. Victoria gave birth to 9 children and all 9 of these pregnancies fit on maybe 2 pages of this book. What we do know is that Victoria loved Albert greatly and mourned him the rest of her life. She also hated being pregnant and was not fond of children, which makes me wonder if she would have reigned in the present day, when attitudes about birth control are so different, how many children would she have had? The book also mentions how hard she was on her children, and honestly was a bit of a bully, calling them ugly and stupid, and dishing out corporal punishment.
If you are looking for a starter book on Queen Victoria, this is a good place to get your feet wet. She did reign for over 60 years, and after her death her daughter "edited" the Queen's journals and burned many of her private papers in an attempt to rid them of anything untoward or negative about Victoria and Albert.
The one thing that I've always found difficult is keeping track of her children and grandchildren and who they marry, and how basically most of the European royal families were and are connected. A family tree to refer to would have been helpful.
I received the kindle version, and I hope it goes through another editing. There were quite a few typos that started to get distracting.
Overall I enjoyed the book, it was easy to read, and I would recommend this for someone as a starter book on Queen Victoria.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
Queen Victoria seems to be everywhere now, undoubtedly because of the Masterpiece drama "Victoria". This novel, is a very simple overview of the monarch's "private" life. I say "private" because there really aren't any details or anecdotes in this volume that haven't been disclosed elsewhere, in fact, if you watch Victoria, you'll recognize quite a few events in this book. If you are a history buff looking for more details, this is not the book for you. When I say that the author glazes over details, I'm not kidding. Victoria gave birth to 9 children and all 9 of these pregnancies fit on maybe 2 pages of this book. What we do know is that Victoria loved Albert greatly and mourned him the rest of her life. She also hated being pregnant and was not fond of children, which makes me wonder if she would have reigned in the present day, when attitudes about birth control are so different, how many children would she have had? The book also mentions how hard she was on her children, and honestly was a bit of a bully, calling them ugly and stupid, and dishing out corporal punishment.
If you are looking for a starter book on Queen Victoria, this is a good place to get your feet wet. She did reign for over 60 years, and after her death her daughter "edited" the Queen's journals and burned many of her private papers in an attempt to rid them of anything untoward or negative about Victoria and Albert.
The one thing that I've always found difficult is keeping track of her children and grandchildren and who they marry, and how basically most of the European royal families were and are connected. A family tree to refer to would have been helpful.
I received the kindle version, and I hope it goes through another editing. There were quite a few typos that started to get distracting.
Overall I enjoyed the book, it was easy to read, and I would recommend this for someone as a starter book on Queen Victoria.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
July 9, 2018
As a lover of history I really did enjoy this book. Yes there wasn’t anything that I did not already know however the book was written in a lovely way. This book would be a good read as a history aid.
I would recommend this book to anyone who loves history, wants to learn more about Queen VIctoria. It’s written is a way that’s easy to understand and what I mean by that is that it’s not in old English speech
I would recommend this book to anyone who loves history, wants to learn more about Queen VIctoria. It’s written is a way that’s easy to understand and what I mean by that is that it’s not in old English speech
December 19, 2018
Queen Victoria is one of England’s most famous monarchs. She helped bring England into the modern age. While there has been much written about her, this biography sheds light into her private life. The Private Life of Victoria focuses on how the queen balances her role as a wife and a mother while struggling to rule an empire.
This biography spends a part of the book discussing her childhood. While her mother and Sir John Conroy sought to control Victoria, Victoria found solace in her tutor whom she looked up to as a mother. The Private Life of Victoria also discusses her loving marriage to Albert and his role as Prince Consort. In many ways, Prince Albert acted as the true ruler of Britain. This was apparent when Queen Victoria was in childbirth, he would do the actual ruling. The author also discusses her friendships with John Brown and Abdul Karim. While Mr. Macdonald does not go into much detail about them, it is clear that John Brown had a place in the queen’s heart because she was buried with his ring. Mr. Macdonald explains that the reason he does not go into much detail into Victoria’s relationship with John Brown was that her daughter, Beatrice, edited her diaries. He also speculates that Beatrice may have deleted some of her mother’s passages about her intimacy with Mr. Brown.
Overall, this was a short and comprehensive biography of Queen Victoria. The Private Life of Victoria does not discuss the politics of the Victorian era or her role as queen. Instead, it focuses solely on her private life. Therefore, as someone who has read many biographies on Queen Victoria, I found this to be a very pleasant and refreshing read. I was not bogged down with heavy details on politics that is often prevalent in biographies, and instead focused on the queen’s personal relationships, loves, and infatuations. While there is no new information on Victoria, The Private Life of Victoria is an excellent biography for those who want to read more about her personal life.
(Note: I read an ARC copy of this book in courtesy of Netgalley.)
This biography spends a part of the book discussing her childhood. While her mother and Sir John Conroy sought to control Victoria, Victoria found solace in her tutor whom she looked up to as a mother. The Private Life of Victoria also discusses her loving marriage to Albert and his role as Prince Consort. In many ways, Prince Albert acted as the true ruler of Britain. This was apparent when Queen Victoria was in childbirth, he would do the actual ruling. The author also discusses her friendships with John Brown and Abdul Karim. While Mr. Macdonald does not go into much detail about them, it is clear that John Brown had a place in the queen’s heart because she was buried with his ring. Mr. Macdonald explains that the reason he does not go into much detail into Victoria’s relationship with John Brown was that her daughter, Beatrice, edited her diaries. He also speculates that Beatrice may have deleted some of her mother’s passages about her intimacy with Mr. Brown.
Overall, this was a short and comprehensive biography of Queen Victoria. The Private Life of Victoria does not discuss the politics of the Victorian era or her role as queen. Instead, it focuses solely on her private life. Therefore, as someone who has read many biographies on Queen Victoria, I found this to be a very pleasant and refreshing read. I was not bogged down with heavy details on politics that is often prevalent in biographies, and instead focused on the queen’s personal relationships, loves, and infatuations. While there is no new information on Victoria, The Private Life of Victoria is an excellent biography for those who want to read more about her personal life.
(Note: I read an ARC copy of this book in courtesy of Netgalley.)
January 3, 2024
The autobiography book of Queen Victoria. Victoria wasnt destined to be a Queen at first. It is her cousin (Princess Charlotte) who was destined to be a queen one day. But the sudden death of Princess Charlotte shocked the monarchy as George III only have Victoria left as his grandchild (eventhough George III has more than 8 childrens on their own but only 2 of his childrens that have a legitimate child on their own, which is Victoria and Princess Charlotte). The book told the summarization on how Victoria was educated since her childhood by "Kensington system" to prepare her to be a queen. And this caused Victoria never touch the grass with the outside world even a lone children on her own. The book also retell the history of strained relation between Victoria, her mom, Lady Flora Hastings and Sir John Conroy, one of the most trusted secretary of her mom. It also tells the unique friendship between Lord Melbourne and John Brown with Victoria. The love story of Victoria with Prince Albert and a sumarrization every childrens of this pair.
This book will definitely open your knowledge about Queen Victoria. The language of the book also easy to be understood by everyone. The author explains the "miserable" life of Queen Victoria near to her death. I think Alexander is sucess to make a quick biography of Queen Victoria that make the readers know about the life of this European Continent Queen (as all of her childrens marrying off the heir to the thrones in every Europe countries). If you like to know more about the history of Queen Victoria but didnt know where should start, this book could be an answer for you as it has only have 175 pages for e-book version.
This book will definitely open your knowledge about Queen Victoria. The language of the book also easy to be understood by everyone. The author explains the "miserable" life of Queen Victoria near to her death. I think Alexander is sucess to make a quick biography of Queen Victoria that make the readers know about the life of this European Continent Queen (as all of her childrens marrying off the heir to the thrones in every Europe countries). If you like to know more about the history of Queen Victoria but didnt know where should start, this book could be an answer for you as it has only have 175 pages for e-book version.
July 28, 2018
3,5 stars*
(I received an e-arc of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review)
The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation, is a nonfiction book centered around queen Victoria.
I found the book to be rather interesting, since I did not know a lot about queen Victoria before reading it, which made this book perfect for me. However, if you already know a lot about her I’m not sure if you would learn anything new from reading this book.
I like how this book gave an overview of her life before and during her reign instead of only focusing on the period where she was queen. I also liked that there were little quotes included from het personal diaries and that there were a few pictures included.
Sometimes things could get a little confusing, though, because there are a lot of different persons and names in the book. A list of persons or a family tree of some sort would be helpful for this.
Overall, I enjoyed learning more about queen Victoria, and I certainly learned some new things but if you already know a lot about this topic I think this book would be too brief for you.
I would rate this book 3,5 out of 5 stars.
(I received an e-arc of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review)
The Private Life of Victoria: Queen, Empress, Mother of the Nation, is a nonfiction book centered around queen Victoria.
I found the book to be rather interesting, since I did not know a lot about queen Victoria before reading it, which made this book perfect for me. However, if you already know a lot about her I’m not sure if you would learn anything new from reading this book.
I like how this book gave an overview of her life before and during her reign instead of only focusing on the period where she was queen. I also liked that there were little quotes included from het personal diaries and that there were a few pictures included.
Sometimes things could get a little confusing, though, because there are a lot of different persons and names in the book. A list of persons or a family tree of some sort would be helpful for this.
Overall, I enjoyed learning more about queen Victoria, and I certainly learned some new things but if you already know a lot about this topic I think this book would be too brief for you.
I would rate this book 3,5 out of 5 stars.
July 28, 2018
A clear and concise life of Queen Victoria told in her own words and the words of her contemporaries. Would not recommend to anyone looking for an in-depth biography, but a very good brief overview. Highly enjoyable hearing Victoria's thoughts on her life and times!
August 31, 2018
#ThePrivateLifeOfVictoria #NetGalley
An exhaustive biography of Queen Victoria. The book describes facts before her birth and the heritage left by her after her death. The book can be added to any history or political sciences library.
An exhaustive biography of Queen Victoria. The book describes facts before her birth and the heritage left by her after her death. The book can be added to any history or political sciences library.
August 31, 2018
#ThePrivateLifeOfVictoria #NetGalley
An exhaustive biography of Queen Victoria. The book describes facts before her birth and the heritage left by her after her death. The book can be added to any history or political sciences library.
An exhaustive biography of Queen Victoria. The book describes facts before her birth and the heritage left by her after her death. The book can be added to any history or political sciences library.
July 4, 2020
A solid 3.5
It was a quick read. I’m glad it wasn’t a drawn out 800 page biography but there were quite a few spelling errors that bothered me. It was factual and I that it drew from her personal letters & diaries (as well as others letters)
It was a quick read. I’m glad it wasn’t a drawn out 800 page biography but there were quite a few spelling errors that bothered me. It was factual and I that it drew from her personal letters & diaries (as well as others letters)
May 1, 2024
Omg I love this book I picked this book up at the library because I was trying to find a book that was based on queen Victoria and this one was perfect.it missed quite a lot but we don’t know a lot about her private life because her daughter destroyed most of her diaries
January 9, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. I read it right after reading Victoria by Daisy Goodwin, and this book gave me what the other did not, an ending.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews