College professor Arnstein acknowledges the high number of biographies of the longest-reigning British monarch--an understandable situation, given that "more than one hundred years after her death, her personality continues to fascinate." His book is distinguished by its fairness and cogency. Princess Victoria assumed the throne at age 18, when the reputation of the British royal family was at the lowest level imaginable. Her father, the fourth son of George III, died when she was an infant; her mother brought her up in a fashion "both simple and spare," restricting her every movement. But the death of Princess Victoria's uncle William IV in 1837 elevated her to the throne and thus opened up her cloistered existence. Arnstein is particularly insightful in revealing to general readers the good nature and influence of the queen's beloved consort, Prince Albert, and the work she continued to perform behind the scenes during her long years as a reclusive widow. Eminently suitable for any active history collection. Brad Hooper
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"The book is not too long yet is rich in information about Victoria's personal life and about her reign¿"--Sally Weeks, Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette
"His book is distinguished by its fairness and cogency."--Brad Hooper, Booklist
"Provides a well-rounded portrait of the queen while at the same time highlighting relatively little known aspects of her life...This is a sharply observed and excellently written book." --History Today
"Wise, based on extensive research, and blissfully concise, Queen Victoria is richly illuminating on both her political and personal life. For scholars, students, as well as those who enjoy a good read, this is a book to be savored." --Peter Stansky, Stanford University
-- Review
From the Back Cover
In this engaging study, Walter L. Arnstein explores both the private life and the public role of the young princess who inherited Britain's throne as a teenager and who became the octogenarian symbolic head of the largest empire in the history of the world.
Arnstein incorporates the findings of past studies and recent research (including articles of his own based on previously unpublished letters and journals) to shed light on often-neglected aspects of Victoria's life and reign: her concern with gender roles, religion, politics, and Ireland; as well as her involvement with both the controversial domestic issues and the great international conflicts of the era. Wherever the historical evidence allows, Arnstein enables the monarch to speak in her own words, demonstrating that Victoria was not only the queen who became an adjective, but also a highly-quotable, multi-dimensional human being.
Concise, authoritative and attractively illustrated, Queen Victoria provides the economic, social, cultural and political background knowledge to make the life of this fascinating monarch intelligible even to readers unfamiliar with her now distant world.
About the Author
WALTER L. ARNSTEIN is Professor Emeritus of History and Jubilee Professor Emeritus of the Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
