Queen Victoria Reign: 1837-1901, Dates, Events and Records
Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 to 22 January 1901: how she came to the throne, the key dates and events, her ten prime ministers, and how long the reign lasted.
Last updated September 2026
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Queen Victoria's reign lasted from 1837 to 1901, the second longest in British history. It saw the growth of railways and cities. The British Empire reached its widest spread.
Power moved step by step from the Crown to elected government. This page gives the dates and the main events in order. It also shows the records the reign set.
TL;DR: Victoria became queen on 20 June 1837, aged 18. She reigned until her death on 22 January 1901. She married Prince Albert in 1840. She mourned him for 40 years after 1861. She became Empress of India in 1876. Her reign of about 63 years and seven months was the longest until Elizabeth II passed it in 2015.
Queen Victoria's reign at a glance
| Field | Record | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Born | 24 May 1819, Kensington Palace | Reviewed |
| Accession | 20 June 1837, on the death of William IV | Reviewed |
| Coronation | 28 June 1838, Westminster Abbey | Reviewed |
| Married | Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, 10 February 1840 | Reviewed |
| Empress of India | Title taken in 1876; proclaimed at Delhi on 1 January 1877 | Reviewed |
| Died | 22 January 1901, Osborne House, Isle of Wight | Reviewed |
| Length of reign | About 63 years, 7 months | Reviewed |
| Succeeded by | Her son, Edward VII | Reviewed |
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How Queen Victoria's reign began
Victoria was not expected to be queen when she was born. Her father, Edward, Duke of Kent, was the fourth son of George III. He died in January 1820, when she was a baby. But George III's elder sons left no surviving legitimate children, so the line reached her.
Her uncle William IV died early on 20 June 1837. Victoria had turned 18 less than a month earlier, so she reigned in her own right with no regent. Her first prime minister, Lord Melbourne, became a close adviser.
The split with Hanover
Crown of Hanover passes away from Britain, 1837.
Status: Reviewed.
Note: From 1714, the British monarch had also ruled Hanover. Hanover did not allow a woman to inherit while a male heir existed. So when Victoria took the British throne, Hanover's crown went to her uncle Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland. The union of the two crowns ended.
Sources: Britannica, "House of Hanover"; The Royal Family, "The Hanoverians".
Key events of the Queen Victoria reign
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1837 | Victoria becomes queen at 18 |
| 1838 | Coronation at Westminster Abbey |
| 1840 | Marriage to Prince Albert; first child born |
| 1851 | The Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace, led by Albert |
| 1854-1856 | Crimean War; the Victoria Cross is created in 1856 |
| 1857-1858 | Uprising in India; the Crown takes over rule from the East India Company |
| 1861 | Prince Albert dies on 14 December |
| 1867 | Second Reform Act widens the vote |
| 1876 | Victoria takes the title Empress of India |
| 1887 | Golden Jubilee, 50 years on the throne |
| 1897 | Diamond Jubilee, 60 years on the throne |
| 1899 | The Second Boer War begins in South Africa |
| 1901 | Victoria dies at Osborne House on 22 January |
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Albert and the long mourning
Prince Albert shaped the first half of the reign. He took a close interest in government, science and design. He led the planning of the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Royal Family website notes that its profits helped found the museums at South Kensington.
Albert died at Windsor on 14 December 1861, aged 42. Victoria was devastated. She withdrew from public life for years and wore black for the rest of her life. Her absence made her unpopular for a time, and a republican movement grew in the late 1860s and early 1870s.
The Crown in the Victorian age
Over the reign, real power moved from the monarch to ministers and Parliament. Victoria still had strong views and made them known, often through letters. She liked Benjamin Disraeli and disliked William Gladstone. Ten prime ministers held office during her reign, from Melbourne to Salisbury.
| Prime minister | First took office under Victoria |
|---|---|
| Viscount Melbourne | In office at her accession, 1837 |
| Sir Robert Peel | 1841 |
| Lord John Russell | 1846 |
| Earl of Derby | 1852 |
| Earl of Aberdeen | 1852 |
| Viscount Palmerston | 1855 |
| Benjamin Disraeli | 1868 |
| William Gladstone | 1868 |
| Marquess of Salisbury | 1885 |
| Earl of Rosebery | 1894 |
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The empire grew fastest in the last decades of her reign. By 1901 it covered large parts of Africa and Asia as well as Canada, Australia and India. The wider story is on the empire of Great Britain page.
The end of the reign
Victoria died at Osborne House on 22 January 1901, aged 81. Her son became Edward VII, the first monarch of the house of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For her nine children and their royal marriages, see Queen Victoria family tree.
To read more, try our guide to the best books about the royal family. It picks eight. They cover every era from 1066 to Elizabeth II.
Verdict: the Queen Victoria reign in numbers
The Queen Victoria reign lasted about 63 years and seven months, from 20 June 1837 to 22 January 1901. It passed George III's record in 1896. It stayed the longest British reign until Elizabeth II passed it on 9 September 2015.
The dates are consistent across the Royal Family website, Britannica and Parliament's regnal-year records. To compare her with the other ruling queens, see queens of England. For every monarch since 1066, see the England royal family hub.
Sources checked for this page
- The Royal Family, "Victoria (r. 1837-1901)"
- Britannica, "Victoria, queen of the United Kingdom"
- UK Parliament, regnal years: Victoria
- Historic Royal Palaces, "Queen Victoria"
- Royal Collection Trust, "Queen Victoria" school resource
- The Royal Family, "The Hanoverians"
Questions people also ask
How long was Queen Victoria's reign?
About 63 years and seven months, from 20 June 1837 to 22 January 1901.
How old was Victoria when she became queen?
Eighteen. She turned 18 on 24 May 1837, less than a month before her uncle William IV died.
Who broke Queen Victoria's record?
Elizabeth II, whose reign passed Victoria's on 9 September 2015. Elizabeth reigned for 70 years in total.
Why did Victoria not become queen of Hanover?
Hanover barred women from the throne while a male heir existed. Its crown went to her uncle Ernest Augustus, ending the union of the British and Hanoverian crowns that began in 1714.