The royal implemented a strict system for her daughter (Image: Getty)
is remembered for many reasons – her longevity, her nine children and the fact that she spent 40 years in mourning. However, her earliest days were very different from the years that followed. Before she came to the throne at the age of 18 in 1837, Princess Victoria was restricted by a number of rules which were implemented by her mother, Victoria, Duchess of Kent, and her harsh Comptroller, Sir John Conroy at their residence, .
The Duchess, who died over 160 years ago on 16 March, 1861, had lived an interesting life and worked hard to secure her young daughter’s future as Queen. However, her methods were very unpopular, both with the future Queen Victoria and her brother-in-law, King William IV.
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Victoria, Duchess of Kent was Queen Victoria’s mother (Image: Getty)
The rules were known as ‘the Kensington System’ and they forbade the young princess from reading popular books, spending any time alone without her tutor or governesses or walking down the stairs without holding an adult’s hand.
The restrictive system was aimed at making the young Princess Victoria weak and dependent on The Duchess and Sir John Conroy – and therefore less likely to side with her relatives in Europe and in the House of Hanover.
Their efforts were ultimately in vain as Victoria refused to sign a regency order and succeeded to the throne just under a month after she turned 18 following the death of her uncle, King William IV.
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Queen Victoria spent her earliest days at Kensington Palace (Image: Getty)
The Duchess was born on 17 August, 1786 in Coburg, Germany as Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and was first married to Emich Carl, 2nd Prince of Leiningen. She had two children in her first marriage, Karl, Prince of Leiningen and Princess Feodora of Leiningen, but was left widowed in 1814.
After the death of King George III’s granddaughter, Princess Charlotte, his son Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn proposed to Princess Victoria and they married in 1818. After welcoming Victoria the following year, the Duchess was again left widowed when Prince Edward died in 1820.
When Victoria become heir to the throne following King William IV’s accession in 1830, it was hoped that the Duchess would become sole regent if Victoria succeeded before she turned 18.
Despite their plans, the Duchess and Sir John were incredibly unpopular within the Royal Family – particularly with The King. As well as refusing to allow Princess Victoria to attend her uncle’s coronation and restricting his access to her, she caused further offence by taking rooms in Kensington Palace that the King had reserved for himself.
Queen Victoria succeeded her uncle, William IV, at the age of 18 in 1837 (Image: Getty)
The feud came to a head at the King’s final birthday dinner in August 1836 when he stood up in front of his guests, which included the Duchess and Princess Victoria, and said he hoped he would live for nine more months so that Victoria would turn 18 and the Duchess would not be able to act as regent.
He said: “I trust to God that my life may be spared for nine months longer … I should then have the satisfaction of leaving the exercise of the Royal authority to the personal authority of that young lady, heiress presumptive to the Crown, and not in the hands of a person now near me, who is surrounded by evil advisers and is herself incompetent to act with propriety in the situation in which she would be placed.”
The relationship between Queen Victoria and her mother eased following the birth of her and Prince Albert’s first child and Sir John Conroy’s exile. After spending the rest of her life as a devoted mother and grandmother, she passed away at the age of 74 on 16 March, 1861 and is buried in a huge Mausoleum in Frogmore, near to Windsor Castle.