Queen Victoria

Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she had the additional title of Empress of India.

Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, the fourth son of King George III. Both the Duke of Kent and King George III died in 1820, and Victoria was raised under close supervision by her German-born mother Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. She inherited the throne aged 18, after her father's three elder brothers had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. The United Kingdom was already an established constitutional monarchy, in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, Victoria attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments; publicly, she became a national icon who was identified with strict standards of personal morality.

Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together and earning her the sobriquet "the grandmother of Europe". After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, republicanism temporarily gained strength, but in the latter half of her reign her popularity recovered. Her Golden and Diamond Jubilees were times of public celebration.

Queen Victoria (disambiguation)

Queen Victoria was Queen regnant of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1837 to 1901.

Queen Victoria may also refer to:

People

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See also

MS Queen Victoria

MS Queen Victoria (QV) is a cruise ship operated by the Cunard Line, and is named after the late British monarch, Queen Victoria.

Queen Victoria is the running mate to Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth. Until November 2008, she also operated alongside Queen Elizabeth 2. Queen Victoria is of the same basic design as other Vista-class cruise ships, though slightly longer and more in keeping with Cunard's interior style. At 90,000 GT, she is the smallest of Cunard's ships in operation.

QV's facilities include seven restaurants, thirteen bars, three swimming pools, a ballroom, and a theatre.

Characteristics and naming

In a departure from other Cunard Queens, Queen Victoria does not carry mail and thus will not carry the Royal Mail Ship (RMS) status. Also unlike many previous Cunard Queens, Queen Victoria is not a true ocean liner as she does not have the heavy plating throughout the hull nor the propulsion system of a dedicated transatlantic liner. However the bow was constructed with heavier plating to cope with the transatlantic run, and the ship has a high freeboard. The recently completed Queen Mary 2 had cost approximately $300,000 US per berth, nearly double that of many contemporary cruise ships, so Cunard made the economical decision to base Queen Victoria on a converted Vista-class cruise ship, and the Queen Elizabeth retains the same design with some small modifications. Nonetheless, Ian McNaught, who was Queen Victoria's captain in 2009, has asserted that the ship is a liner based on her classic decor.Queen Victoria is nonetheless named after the 19th century monarch of Britain's vast Empire, Queen Victoria.

Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria

The Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated on 20 June 1887. Victoria marked the fiftieth anniversary of her accession on 20 June 1887. It was celebrated with a banquet to which 50 European kings and princes were invited.

History

On 20 June 1887 she had breakfast outdoors under the trees at Frogmore, where Prince Albert had been buried. She then travelled by train from Windsor Castle to Paddington then to Buckingham Palace for a royal banquet that evening. Fifty foreign kings and princes, along with the governing heads of Britain's overseas colonies and dominions, attended. She wrote in her diary:

The following day, she participated in a procession in an open landau through London to Westminster Abbey escorted by Colonial Indian cavalry.

On her return to the Palace, she went to her balcony and was cheered by the crowd. In the ballroom she distributed brooches made for the Jubilee to her family. In the evening, she put on a gown embroidered with silver roses, thistles and shamrocks and attended a banquet. Afterwards she received a procession of diplomats and Indian princes. She was then wheeled in her chair to sit and watch fireworks in the palace garden.

Golden jubilee

A golden jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.

In Thailand

The golden jubilee is a royal ceremony to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the accession of the king. The Thai word is kanchanaphisek (กาญจนาภิเษก). The first Golden Jubilee of Thailand was the celebration of King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

The celebration

King Rama IX celebrated his golden jubilee on 9 June 1996, having acceded to the throne in 1946 which makes him Thailand's longest-reigning monarch and the longest-living monarch today.

The largest faceted diamond in the world, known as the Golden Jubilee Diamond, was purchased as a gift for the King on the 50th anniversary of his coronation by Thai businessmen. Currently, the diamond is located in the Royal Thai Palace as part of the crown jewels.

In 1996, Banharn Silpa-archa, the Prime Minister, and the Thai people celebrated the King with a large celebration, lasting several days.

The symbol of the golden jubilee

The symbol of the golden jubilee of King Bhumibol Adulyadej was designed by Wiyada Charoensuk, who won the contest for the design.

Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II

The Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II was the international celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II to the thrones of seven countries, upon the death of her father, King George VI, on 6 February 1952, and was intended by the Queen to be both a commemoration of her 50 years as monarch and an opportunity for her to officially and personally thank her people for their loyalty. Despite the deaths of her sister, Princess Margaret, and mother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, in February and March 2002 respectively, and predictions in the media that the anniversary would be a non-event, the jubilee was marked with large-scale and popular events throughout London in June of the same year, bookended by events throughout the Commonwealth realms. Elizabeth attended all of the official celebrations as scheduled, along with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh; over twelve months, the royal couple journeyed more than 40,000 miles (64,000 km) to the Caribbean, Australia, New Zealand, then around the United Kingdom, and wrapped up the jubilee year in Canada. Numerous landmarks, parks, buildings, and the like, were also named in honour of the golden jubilee and commemorative medals, stamps, and other symbols were issued.

Chasselas

Chasselas or Chasselas blanc is a wine grape variety grown in Switzerland, France, Germany, Portugal, Hungary, Romania and New Zealand. Chasselas is mostly vinified to be a full, dry and fruity white wine. It is also suitable as a table grape, grown widely for this purpose in Turkey.

History

Theories of its origin vary. Pierre Galet believes it is a native Swiss variety.

In 1940, Chasselas was crossed with Silvaner to produce the white grape variety Nobling.

Wine regions

Widely grown in the cantons of Switzerland where it has several regional synonym names, the main one being Fendant in the Valais canton. It is considered an ideal pairing for raclette or fondue. Chasselas is also known as Perlan in the Mandement district of Geneva. In 2009, it was Switzerland's second most grown grape variety at 4,013 hectares (9,920 acres).

In Germany with 1,123 hectares (2,770 acres), it is almost exclusively grown in the wine region of Baden under the name Gutedel.

In France it is mostly grown in the Loire region where it is converted into a blend with Sauvignon blanc called "Pouilly-sur-Loire". California and Australian growers know this variety under the alias names of Chasselas Dore or Golden Chasselas.