Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa

Victoria was the eldest child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. She was created Princess Royal in 1841 and received a liberal education from her father. She married Prince Frederick of Prussia in 1858 and became the mother of eight children, including Wilhelm II, who succeeded his father as German Emperor in 1888. Victoria shared her husband's progressive views and hoped to transform Prussia and Germany into a constitutional monarchy based on the British model. However, she faced opposition from the conservative Prussian court and the chancellor Otto von Bismarck, who distrusted her English influence. Victoria was empress for only a few months, as Frederick died of laryngeal cancer in June 1888. After his death, she was known as Empress Frederick and settled in Kronberg im Taunus, where she built Friedrichshof, a castle named in honour of her late husband. She remained politically active and tried to influence her son Wilhelm, who had more autocratic tendencies than his parents. She also devoted herself to charitable causes, especially those related to women's education and health. She died of breast cancer in August 1901, less than seven months after her mother Queen Victoria. She was buried next to her husband in the Friedenskirche in Potsdam. Victoria was a remarkable woman who left a lasting legacy in Germany and Britain. She was admired for her intelligence, culture, and compassion by many of her contemporaries.