|
Queen Victoria |
Victoria was born at Kensington Palace, London, on the 24th of May, 1819. She was the only daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III. Her father died shortly after her birth and she became heir to the throne because the three uncles who were ahead of her in succession - George IV, Frederick Duke of York, and William IV - had no legitimate children. Upon William IV's death in 1837, she became Queen at the tender age of 18.
Three years into her reign she married Prince Albert who she truly loved. From 1840 to 1857 she bore him nine children while doubling the size of the British Empire. Albert and Victoria took an active interest in the explosion of technology that was being brought forth in the era of industrialization and were mindful to meld the new sciences with the British way of life. In 1962 Prince Albert saved the life of his wife and Queen by leaping in front of an assassin’s shotgun blast. The prince was mortally wounded but lingered in the hospital for more than a week before Victoria decided to have his body placed in suspended animation. The chamber was a new and untested science but Victoria was desperate to hold onto her beloved Albert.
Victoria was deeply attached to her husband and she sank into depression after his internment in the cryogenic sleep. She had lost a devoted husband and her principal trusted adviser in affairs of state. For many years she grieved setting long hours beside the frozen capsule. He lived a life of private solitude but she never neglected British affairs. The empire’s holding had doubled again making the adage “The sun never sets on the British Empire” literally true. By 1880 the Queen had resumed her public life and returned her energies to the social, economic and technological growth of Britain.
Victoria was 70 years old at the commencement of the Selenite Wars. Britain had been first to develop tactics to defeat the hoards of insectoid foes that invaded her lands. She was quick to use captured technology against her assailants both in combat and support. As soon as Selenite medical technology had been captured Victoria started to make use of new methods to keep her self in top ruling form.
When Selenite healing devices were discovered The Queen insisted that she be one of the first to take advantage of the technology. In 1894 at the Queen's 75th Birthday celebration a Selenite assassin took a shot at the Queen but only succeeded in destroying the Queens left leg. Victoria immediately ordered her scientists to replace the leg with the best technology available and two weeks later astounded the world when she made an appearance to Be- Knight a group of Lunar War Heroes with her steam powered limb. As the years went by many different parts of the Queen's anatomy were replaced with the newest medical marvels but she staunchly refuses to have any technology assist her heart. "My heart is the heart of England. It will endure as long as God wills, as will the Empire."
During the age of exploration Victoria turned her attention to London. London, being the center of British Power had always been the largest metropolis on Earth. The Queen started a reformation both architectural and social that had a great impact on the Empire. Her reforms not only completely rebuilt the city of London in a style named after her self but now London had all the benefits of modern technology. Victoria's social reforms finally established true gender equality without adversely effecting British tradition. Women did not sacrifice femininity to gain equal opportunity. The class system was preserved but a new method of social progression was added allowing the most able and ambitious of the lower classes to rise and the worst elements of the aristocracy to fall. This competitive class system, adopted from an American meritocratic model, was the refining Furnace that produced the purest and strongest nation the world had ever known
Queen Victoria's rule has out lasted any previous ruler in Earth's history having lived 183 years and having ruled 165 of them. Victoria is now the very living model of what modern technology can provide. Eighty percent of her body has been replaced with the latest hardware but her mind is sharp and her dedication to Britain is steadfast. The majority of her subjects have never known a time when Queen Victoria has not been reigning. The idea of losing her became a scarcely possible thought. Although there are many strong anti- British factions hiding within the commonwealth Victoria commands the loyalty, pride, admiration and even love of her people as well as the respect and fear of allies and enemies alike.