Milestone Monday!
Crowning Love 💒💍
On this day, February 10, 1840, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha at the Chapel Royal in St. James's Palace. This marriage was significant because it united the British monarchy with the German nobility since Albert was a German prince. The two shared a deep and loving relationship, characterized by a strong partnership. Victoria was just 20 years old at the time, while Albert, her first cousin, was 21.
This royal wedding established traditions that continue to be practiced today. Departing from the previous custom of private nighttime ceremonies, Victoria wanted her subjects to witness the bridal procession, so she held hers during the day. This led to the highly publicized royal weddings we see today. She also wore a white satin dress at a time when the norm was to wear a variety of colors, ranging from red or pink to brown or black. This sparked a surge in white wedding dresses, ultimately contributing to the established tradition we see in modern weddings today.
The couple had nine children, and their offspring married into various European royal families, earning her the nickname "the grandmother of Europe." After Albert's premature death in 1861, Victoria mourned deeply and wore black for the rest of her life, contributing to her public image as a figure of mourning and loss. Their love story remains one of the most romantic in royal history.
--Melissa, Special Collections Library Assistant
The images featured come from:
The Enchanted Dolls’ House Wedding by Robyn Johnson was published in New York by Handprint Books in 2007. Our copy is a 1st American edition. This adorable pop-up book presents the fashions, customs, and traditions of weddings held in Victorian England.
The Queen’s Tact, a humorous poem written by New Zealand author and biographer Hector Bolitho, was published in London by Nicholson & Watson in 1938. It was produced by William Clowes and Sons, who were known for developing the use of steam-powered printing presses. The mounted illustration was created by British artist Steven Spurrier.
