SECRETS OF QUEEN VICTORIA’S COFFIN | What was buried with Queen Victoria? Royal history documentary

WHAT’S IN QUEEN VICTORIA’S COFFIN (apart from her of course)? The death of Queen Victoria occurred on 22 January 1901 at Osborne House. She was 81 years old and was buried in the Royal Mausoleum at Frogmore within Windsor Great Park. Before her coffin was sealed however a large number of items were placed in it with her according to her last wishes, as expressed in a document written in 1897. Some of them were romantic, some were tragic and some of them were downright scandalous. In this royal history documentary from History Calling I take you though what Queen Victoria was buried with, using her own handwritten instructions, plus an eye witness account from Sir James Reid, Victoria’s doctor and one of the people who saw the Queen in her coffin and was responsible for placing many of the items she had requested in there with her. You’ll hear about the references to her long-dead and much missed husband, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the heartbreaking item she wanted interred with her which referenced her daughter, Princess Alice and the items which hinted that she had engaged in a love affair in her later years and perhaps even a secret marriage to John Browne. I’ll also tell you who put Queen Victoria in her coffin and it’s probably not who you might think.
As well as giving you the list of items in Queen Victoria’s coffin, I’ll be discussing her reasons for wanting these items with her, what it says about her religious beliefs and the performative aspect of coffin goods, especially when one is royal.
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SOME SOURCES:
Stewart Richards, Curtain Down at Her Majesty's: The Death of Queen Victoria in the Words of Those Who Were There (2018).
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Tony Rennell, The Last Days of Glory: The Death of Queen Victoria (2001).
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Michaela Reid, Ask Sir James: Sir James Reid, personal physician to Queen Victoria and physician-in-ordinary to three monarchs (1987)
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Christopher Hibbert, Queen Victoria: A Personal History (2001).
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#QueenVictoria #QueenVictoriasCoffin #Royalburials

[@HistoryCalling]

What item(s) in Victoria’s coffin did you find the most interesting? Let me know below and remember that you can also find me in the following places: Website (with FREE DOWNLOAD): www.historycallingofficial.com/ Patreon: www.patreon.com/historycalling Amazon storefront: www.amazon.com/shop/historycalling Instagram: instagram.com/historycalling/

[@WaynesPokeWorld]

@@HistoryCalling What took me by surprise was the sheer weight of coffin. Considering it wasn’t lead lined that’s remarkable! 🤣

[@gracerice2382]

I think it might have been a slightly different form of cognitive dissonance. That she believed that the coffin should hold not her body in memoriam but the coffin should hold who she was as a person in memoriam. That being said Queen Victoria was deeply sentimental to her relationships often romanticizing past their actuality. The list is literal representation of that part of her whether or not she realized that. The dissonance comes in with the fact that most likely these items would not have been able to survive the decomposition of any body. I do wonder if there was somehow a protective mechanism or section for some of the items was secretly built in the coffin. It would explain why no one saw the objects, and why the coffin took so long when the queen’s measurements would have been well known by doctors and staff that sources and tailors her clothes. A monarch and with such a large team and someone as meticulous as Victoria is unlikely to have left that unplanned for. It’s just my theory and still pretty unlikely. It could have been kept a secret at wish of the queen to prevent the objects from ever being removed. But there is no proof or accounts and I think after all this time there would be something.

[@Cheerfultoday]

I’m glad that Queen Victoria found someone to love during her many years after the loss of Prince Albert. Her memento of this man, and her deep feelings towards him are much more interesting than the other items in her coffin.

[@ThrupleQuashimodo]

All of them are facilitating. It seems that she wasn't sure where she was going in the next life, but she was taking Albert for companionship and protection.

[@catherinespencer-mills1928]

Apologies, I found the list of items creepy and excessive. Can you guess, I am not a sentimental person?

[@tessat338]

Yes, we would love to hear the details of Queen Victoria's funeral.

[@HistoryCalling]

I might just do that then :-)

[@mesamies123]

Yes. Please.

[@Mariana-ed2kt]

We would, please!

[@RuthShelton-ou4id]

​@@HistoryCalling Speaking of funerals & graves.... In Ireland in the 1800's a man & wife were deeply in love & had children. Then the wife fell ill. A doctor was called in because the woman was so pale and unresponsive. The doctor had stated she was dead. Of course the kid's were sad but the husband was really heart broken. During the wake at their home two grave robbers saw that she was being buried with expensive jewelry esp. a big diamond ring. That night they dug up her grave & in order to get the ring off her finger they started to cut off her finger... Probably because of the pain ...she sat up !!! The robber's ran away in fright, & the lady crawled out of her grave-- walked the short distance to her family's home and knocked on the door The husband said to his children in the parlor that if he didn't know better he'd sware that it was his wife's way of knocking as he got up to answer the door. The door opens and there's his wife muddy from the grave & holding her bloody hand. It's said that he died right there from shock -- maybe a heart attack. The wife lived on -- When she died she was buried above or next too her beloved husband. I think on the very old & in bad shape headstone -- there was-- "Here lies (her name) who died twice & buried once" Or I think it said something like that. There's a big black slab over the top of their grave. ( Hope you found that a bit interesting)

[@eviesholette]

@@tessat338 here here!

[@aliceingoryland]

Victoria proved you can take it with you 😂

[@HistoryCalling]

She sure did! :-)

[@Heidi_Bradshaw]

😂😂😂😂😂 good one!

[@csh43166]

😂😂😂

[@lorrainecasey749]

🤣🤣🤣

[@marlisseporras3132]

😂😂😂😂good point

[@PaulWright-kw5cm]

I love history. I'm 58. This Texan has always loved history. Ever since I was a child. I also love this video!

[@kristinethibodeaux619]

Me too! History has always been my favorite subject!

[@laurabailey1054]

This is off topic but since you mentioned Kaiser Wilhelm I will relay this old family story about him. My great grandmother on my father’s side was working as a lady in waiting in Germany when Kaiser W came down the sidewalk with his entourage and demanded my great grandmother move to the road so they could pass. She told them that “an English lady moves for no man” and stood her ground. Kaiser W and his entourage ended up taking to the street themselves to walk around her. We joke in the family that this was the cause of WWI

[@dungeonsanddobbers2683]

Did she, aye?

[@positivepessimist6853]

Since you don't even know the difference between Kaiser Wilhelm I and his grandson Kaiser Wilhelm II, I don't believe a word of what you say. Furthermore, if your great-grandmother was alive in the time of Wilhelm I, how old would that make you? 🙄

[@susanyoung5447]

I like the story whether true or not. It sounds very much like something an English woman would say at such a time.

[@eviesholette]

I can't say I particularly like her as a person, but man do I understand her sentimentality and flair for dramatics. Rest peacefully, Your Majesty.

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, hopefully she's back with Albert now and they're happy. That's what I like to think at least.

[@susieh2100]

Why what was wrong with her as a person? Did you know know her?

[@eviesholette]

@susieh2100 whoa ease up. It's based on years of reading about her. I think her personality could be unpleasant. Of course I didn't know her and I am sure I could be wrong. But I didn't feel like that needed the obvious disclaimer.

[@putalaweamala7191]

Her relationship with John Brown is so intriguing. I don't know how many times he was named, but just Albert was named more time than John Brown. Hmm, this video was very interesting and yes, her approach towards death is curious. Thank you ❤

[@HistoryCalling]

You're welcome 😀

[@BlackStump172]

She sounds as though she had OCD .

[@Kaytee48]

@@HistoryCalling Is there any truth that she secretly married mr brown? i read that the marriage certificate was found many years later and the queen mother told the finder to burn it.

[@saracreaney]

It was fortuitous that she died in Jan. As opposed to July or Aug. Regarding her friendship with Brown. I have watched the film you mentioned. I feel he was the first man who didn't allow her to bully him. Which I think reminded her of Albert in the sense he was a man who stood up to her. Possibly reminded her of Albert. I think they had a wonderful, loving friendship. As such, personal items were given.

[@HistoryCalling]

My thoughts exactly (on all of it).

[@jaynekranc8607]

Great film.

[@garyfrancis6193]

Fortieous?

[@saracreaney]

@garyfrancis6193 my dyslexia is kicking in. Will correct now.

[@leticiagarcia9025]

I didn’t know all the details of Victoria’s afterlife. I think they tried to fulfill her wishes, but they ran into problems. It wouldn’t be unusual for Victoria trying to bury her secrets with her. Every royal has scandals. She did suffer from severe bereavement syndrome. That’s so sad. Thank you for the history lesson.

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, I agree. They do all have things we would consider scandalous nowadays. I suppose that's what makes them endlessly fascinating.

[@freedpeeb]

Queen Victoria was such a mix of character traits, and as such, creates such ambivalence in me. On the one hand she was unbelievably wealthy and pampered, but she was also horribly constrained all her life, either by people, circumstances, or her status. She had a lonely childhood as well as a privileged one, which no doubt left her with trauma as well as entitlement. She really was a bag of contradictions, a silk velvet one no doubt. I feel the same about the things she requested to be buried with her. It is almost farcical, and at the same time, very touching. I wonder if some day many centuries in the future, someone will happen on her coffin and wonder about her and her trove.

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, I think you sum her up very nicely. Sadly most coffins of famous royals do seem to end up being opened up at some point, but it could be hundreds of years from now.

[@Sarafimm2]

@@HistoryCalling When that happens, they will know, unlike in most other tombs, exactly what went into it and how each item fared with an unembalmed body.

[@hazeljones6931]

Hi, great video! I would love to hear more about Victoria's funeral and some deep dives into her descendants. Thank you for all the hard work.

[@HistoryCalling]

You're welcome and it's on my list now :-)

[@HLStrickland]

@@HistoryCalling Good. I would like to her about all of her descendants. Most of them ruled the world at one time or another.

[@spiritualtruthseeker1947]

I found this to be very moving. Victoria chose her grave goods based on love and loyalty. She had experienced much grief and heartache in her life and took a memoir of all of those closest to her with her.

[@sandyschneider6792]

She caused a lot of grief and heart ache too…

[@texasgirl6000]

Yet, she wanted it surrounded by gold. Talk about being self centered she was apparently the queen of that.

[@AhriOfAstora]

It feels so incredibly cosy to know what they were burried with and that their treasures are intact.

[@SKYSTAR767]

Don’t worry someone will get them all sometime in the future. Remember the Egyptians

[@Lionstar16]

Knowing now that Victoria asked not to be embalmed and was not put into her coffin until two and a half days after she died - thank the Lord she hadn't died in say mid-June. Can you imagine the smell 🤢

[@HistoryCalling]

I know. It would have been horrific. Thank goodness for British winters (not something I say very often!)

[@Lionstar16]

@@HistoryCalling Same here and I'm English :)

[@bastiennietveld7128]

Queen Anna Paulovna Romanov ; queen of the Netherlands, wasn't embalmed and lay 'in state' in the chapel of her house in The Hague. ( At the spot were the ICJ Palace of Peace was later build.) ONE MONTH !!!😮 Queen Sophie ( who hated her mother in law/aunt !) wrote in her diary about that 'stinking rotten corps which makes me throw up'! 😂

[@Lionstar16]

@@bastiennietveld7128 OMG, why on earth was she not embalmed if her body was lying in state for a MONTH?!

[@katanaki3059]

She wanted them to hurry up the scavenger hunt for all these objects. I agree with her about embalming. Get me gone.

[@Shane-Flanagan]

Thank you HC 💛 Victorians and their morbid relationship with death will always be endlessly fascinating

[@juliegoldman411]

Actually the Victorian's attitude toward dealth was more realistic and appropriate than ours today.

[@Shane-Flanagan]

@@juliegoldman411 How so?

[@Shane-Flanagan]

@@juliegoldman411 It was quite morbid though and the whole thing of death photography etc.

[@DanielleReeder-j9g]

Thank you History Calling for another great video!! I was amazed at the number of personal rings she had buried with her! And she mentioned she wore many of them on a daily basis! That sounds uncomfortable!

[@HistoryCalling]

You do have to wonder if she had them enlarged as she got larger?

[@Gladtobemom]

Oddly fascinating. It does seem that she considered J. Brown as a sort of second husband. His mother's wedding ring on the ring finger of her right hand? Of course, as a widow she had the moral right to marry again, sad that she couldn't do so openly if she wished.

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, if she wanted to marry him it is sad that she couldn't. I don't know if she really would have wanted to take it that far though.

[@BlackStump172]

@@HistoryCallingWas her Royal priest close to her , as he may well have performed a secret religious ceremony which would be morally and legally acceptable ? We will not ever know as her daughter burnt many of her papers .

[@joymcguire]

Crikey - she was buried with a lot of stuff!

[@HistoryCalling]

I know. Even if the coffin hadn't been lead, it would have weighed a lot anyway with her plus all of that.

[@daylehudson6810]

How Silly😂

[@margaretasaarenpaa4239]

She didn't want any one else have her most precious things.

[@Lassisvulgaris]

Probanly to comfort her in the afterlife. At least, she wasn't buried with her servants.....

[@nilakc5802]

Maybe she thought that no one else could appreciate these items as she did and did not want them cast aside

[@deborahsimmons2414]

Not even the most precious people she supposedly loved. Screw you, you gave it to me and in MY coffin it goes….so I can continue to enjoy it as I lIVE ON in my afterlife%.

[@duudsuufd]

She was smart. Made sure her precious items, especially the jewels (other things will decay) are not going to people she does not like. Or to children, grandchildren and further on that don't care about her. And she was right, knowing how the British princes and princesses behaved in the last decades.

[@AstariaDayne]

I would watch a video on her final days. I love these secrets of old monarchy videos. Thank you!

[@WaynesPokeWorld]

Just sat down with a lovely cuppa tea. Perfect timing ❤️

[@HistoryCalling]

Tis indeed. Enjoy both :-)

[@FandersonUfo]

as you may have noted Royal corpse stories get my full attention - ty HC

[@HistoryCalling]

As well they should :-)

[@myrahutchins5234]

Mine too. Love your accent! I'm from Georgia. Enough said. 😊

[@philstabler]

Only the English truly know, nobody will ever speak about it as an English person, it’s a serious secret.

[@teprakp]

@FandersonUfo, me too.

[@hectorpascal]

Never forget that unlike nowadays, disease and death were constant close companions for ALL Victorian families, and most people fervently believed in the resurrection of the body. As a suppressed highly emotional woman, her sentimental "bling" was very dear to her, so she probably simply wanted to make sure nobody else got it. John Brown gets MORE than an honorable mention in the note - no wonder the potential for scandal still survives to this day. And I find it very touching that her last wish to hold in her hand a photo of him and some of his hair, was finally carried out. Well done Doctor Reid.

[@elisabethhopson5639]

White is used as a funerary colour on the continent. The Queen of Belgium wore white to the funeral of her husband the King a few years ago. Having worn black for decades, I don't see anything wrong wanting to spend eternity in white. It is quite touching to know that her family was so important to her, even though they were pretty difficult to deal with, that she had to take so many memories with her. It is to be noted that she took mementos from other friends, as well as John Brown, who helped her after Albert died. If she did have a relationship with him, then it means she was a human afterall and not just someone fulfilling the role of Queen and Empress. As for grave robbers, the marble on top of Victoria and Albert will weigh many tonnes and won't be easy to shift. They are in a dedicated mausoleum in Frogmore, Windsor, so for the forseeable future they are safe. Frogmore is open to the public only a few days of the year, as there are many graves of members of the royal family there, going back a very long time. Thanks HC, she is a fascinating person and I would love some more on her. 😀

[@anikomattison7568]

Actually it’s not a European thing but the Asians do that.

[@anikomattison7568]

Meaning wearing white when they die

[@wavesofwoodenlegs]

Great video as always! I would love to see a video on Queen Victoria's final days and funeral. Let's hope the people who carried her coffin didn’t get crushed, but then again, as you mentioned prior, there were worst things to happen at a funeral and during the corpse preparation (ie William the Conquerer, Henry I, and Henri VIII).

[@HistoryCalling]

Exactly. I have videos on all those Kings (as I'm sure you know). Yes, I think I probably will look at V's final days and funeral at some stage.

[@wavesofwoodenlegs]

@@HistoryCalling I have watched all those videos, and they are wonderfully disturbing.

[@losingmymind611]

Hi HC, we would love a deep dive into Victoria's death and funeral to round out the trilogy of this and the video about Albert. As always, your royal death/execution and burial (and occasional disinterment and/or desecration) videos are my favorites; pleased to end my holiday with one.

[@HistoryCalling]

Haha, you know it's surprising how many people say those are their favourites :-)

[@flowerchild2657]

@Shane_Flanagan commented above on how fascinating the Victorian era's morbid relationship with death was. Well, it seems that that fascination is not confined to the 19th century since those kind of videos seem to be a favourite of HC viewers 😁

[@marina_m11]

Excellent video, wonderful research thank you! Yes, I’d be interested in a detailed video about Queen Victoria‘s final days, death and funeral.

[@HistoryCalling]

Tis now on my list :-)

[@WaynesPokeWorld]

Well Queen Victoria certainly didn’t do things by halves. Even in death she was extremely ostentatious. Great video ❤

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, that's true. She was over the top right til the end!

[@stevenkaskus6173]

I personally think the way she listed everything along with the dates and circumstances is very telling of who she was under her stern facade, she is a romantic like myself as I too would probably do the same with recalling dates and circumstances.

[@janegardener1662]

Queen Victoria was very sentimental about jewelry! I notice in her list she sometimes uses the royal pronoun "our" and sometimes the personal pronoun "my".

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, it's always seemed quite odd (and sometimes confusing) to me that the monarchs do that. Elizabeth II made a speech once where she said 'we' and she had to clarify that she meant herself and Prince Philip.

[@kelliknackmuhs2546]

Please follow up with Queen Victoria’s final days. She is one of the people from the past I would invite to an eight course meal just to have their company. Anne Boleyn (Henry would just make me angry), Charlotte Brontë and her sisters, and to make the evening complete, Louisa May Alcott. You, of course, are humbly invited if you would enjoy a place at that table. Thank you for what you do!!

[@HistoryCalling]

Thanks Kelli. I might just do that. Yes, a place at that dinner table would be great!

[@davidlancaster8152]

Sounds like she was buried on top of a treasure trove. Wow. Quite a story. Thanks

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, absolutely. It would all be worth a fortune.

[@morganolsen432]

I wonder if she took all of that with her so as not to be alone. Alot of the jewelry had the hair of friends/loved ones (Plus the portraits). I'd honestly do the same. Id want to be put to rest with what was sentimental and important to me.

[@HistoryCalling]

Maybe. I imagine it gave her comfort in life to feel that she'd still have control even in death and wouldn't (as you say) be alone.

[@Popincourt-or4cf]

Very nice job. I spent 30 years as an historian of culture and religion, and very much appreciate the combination of precise attention to sources, good scholarship, and accessibility without exaggeration or histrionics. It is rather a shame that such lucid exposition coupled with careful analysis has somewhat fallen out of favour in the profession. I am glad you have found a good venue for this kind of work. You are reaching a much, much larger audience than I could ever have dreamed of! (On a side note, your voice reminds me of the Ontario village where I spent some of my childhood surrounded by the descendants of Ulstermen and -women, who spoke in much the same way).

[@nbryant8991]

Queen Victoria was a bit odd. And being buried with items from John Brown has me wondering. That feels like more than friendship.

[@alanholck7995]

Friends with benefits

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you very much for the donation.Yes, it does seem like more than a friendship, doesn't it? You can see how she got the nickname Mrs Brown.

[@perniciouspete4986]

". . . the downright scandalous"? Yea!

[@HistoryCalling]

Oh yeah! Prepare yourself :-)

[@Septembersrain1984]

Always so informative and yet it is also exceptionally entertaining. You balance it out so well. You’re one of my favorite channels!

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you so much for the very kind donation. I'm delighted you're enjoying the channel's content. Much more to come! :-)

[@michellewinkler3985]

Wow if she was that demanding in life and had lists upon lists for her burial, imagine what life would have been like while she was alive!

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, she had her children and servants run ragged sometimes, even when her children lived in other countries.

[@michellewinkler3985]

@@HistoryCalling Read quite a bit about her. Appears if she were not the queen she might have been placed in an asylum, but that never happened.

[@voyaristika5673]

For as much as I've read on Victoria's death and the events surrounding it this is the first I've heard of the contents of her coffin. It seems like this should be common knowledge and even have some sayings and expressions after it like, "Her purse carries more than the queen's coffin," or "That closet has more stuff crammed in it than Victoria's shell." My goodness! But it does sound like something Queen Victoria would request, and she had some dedicated people around her. THANK YOU for this rarely reported piece of historical trivia. I love these snippets of data that remind us how human and individual the great figures of history were.

[@ikarus_incarnate]

What a thoroughly captivating insight into the last wishes of one of England's most recognisable monarchs. Not only Queen, but Empress! Your recounting of her dying wishes and the subject matter aside, your narrative made this whole viewing a joy! I can't wait now to go and check out Albert's story.... thank you so much for sharing.

[@Lemonfroggy]

Hello! I love your videos, and my favourite time period is Victorian. Please make more videos, I owe you my history exam scores and my love for the topic ❤

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you so much and I'm delighted I was able to help you with your exams. If this one does well I'll come back to Victoria again. :-)

[@carlylewis7088]

A video on Queen Victoria’s death & funeral would be welcome. Great video as always

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you. I might just do one :-)

[@Catbooks]

It is interesting how deeply sentimental she was, wanting to surround herself in death with tokens of the people she most loved and loved her in life. As though she were surrounding her physical remains with love, for eternity.

[@ittybittykittymama7582]

I was really touched by her devotion to John Brown, even at her death. It is obvious that she loved him deeply, but was not allowed to openly show it, because of her position as Queen. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie "Mrs. Brown," as I am a descendant of Her Majesty. I am currently something like nine hundredth in line for the throne!

[@kitwhite2640]

I absolutely believe it would take more (maybe not 10) people than you think to lift a dead body. Having had to move several as an EMT, you dont realize how much a conscious person being moved helps in the moving of them even if you are completely moving them versus moving a dead body that is limp.

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, I'm sure it must be quite the workout actually. You probably never need a gym membership in that line of work now that I think about it.

[@karensayer3089]

​@@HistoryCallingNurse have been moving on patients for years.. After 58 yrs of nursing career.I now have a typical nurses back.Yep !there is syndrome. Today nurses have mechanical aides. Not just arms and back.

[@chrisberry9017]

Oh my goodness! An incredible psychological insight! I’m just so grateful to be a ‘commoner’. My Father, born in 1898, recalled that the London streets were strewn with straw in order to muffle the sound of the horses’ hooves while the funeral was taking place.

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, I don't think, on balance, that I'd want to be royal either. It's just such an unnatural way to live, stuck in a fishbowl like that.

[@kathrynriggs2489]

Oh interesting! I neverthought to ask my grandparents about her passing -

[@lyndanickerson1373]

Thank you for the video

[@HistoryCalling]

You're welcome. Hope you found that long list of stuff in the coffin interesting :-)

[@lyndanickerson1373]

@@HistoryCalling I found it interesting that she wanted John Browns Mother's ring I thought you gave your mother's ring was an engagement ring! Hair, Photo and handkerchief, like you said it gives John the same status as Albert.

[@cemitchell6496]

Queen Victoria wanting to pass soon after Albert reminds me of "Keeping Up Appearances". Where Hyacinth said that she and Richard would be an entity in the afterlife!

[@HistoryCalling]

How terrifying for Richard! :-)

[@franvernon-free719]

😄😄😄​@@HistoryCalling

[@Momof4kidsand3dogs]

I would love to get your input on Queen Victoria’s relationship with her servant Abdul. And what the movie got right and what the movie got wrong as well

[@rachelclark7782]

I’ve always been fascinated with Queen Victoria and like her lost my husband at a young age, we were 23. I’m a very sentimental person and without realizing it have done many of the same things she has trying to keep my husband’s memory alive for our child.

[@TheCombatWombat0]

The items she chose speak to a long, well lived life full of family, friends and countless blessings. It's so refreshing to see a royal live a mostly happy life with so much love. 😢😊❤

[@williamdelong8727]

Yes I would like a video on queen Victorias final day and funeral

[@nuthinmuffins5073]

I do love her sentimentality and how much she seems to have loved so many friends, family, and of course, husband (or husbands?). It’s always been, however, difficult for me to reconcile her romantic love for her husband with the fact they were cousins. The incestuous nature of royalty is one of the most bizarre aspects of human civilization. Aside from that, I also relate to her fascination with death rituals. Yes, please, more of these kinds of detailed videos, about stuff that doesn’t get covered by everyone all the time, including her funeral and death, that would be appreciated. I know the info is out there, but I get so annoyed by history videos go for attracting a larger audience by leaving details out that serious history enthusiasts love. It’s great to pull unlikely viewers in, but some of us have a greater attention span!

[@edithengel2284]

Cousin marriage is not incest. Incest is a sexual relationship with in the nuclear family. If not repeated in a family, first cousin marriage does not significantly add to the chance of genetic issues. Many marriages in the past were between cousins because it was not easy to travel from one place to another, and to conserve property--and this was in the population at large, not just royalty, and not particularly bizarre. Obviously, as time went on and certain royal families continued to marry cousins, even nieces, there were definitely issues of pedigree collapse, but that was due to repeated marriage with close relatives, not simply single marriages with first cousins.

[@mjgbabydragonlet]

This was excellent.

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you 😀

[@johnoryjr4269]

This is my first of your videos and I really enjoyed it. You really garnered a great amount of information, in that "rabbit-hole" you found yourself in! Well done. I look forward to seeing all of your works. Thank you.

[@spicencens7725]

Fascinating! Another great episode! Well done! I've always been intrigued by hair locks of the deceased, woven intricately into amazing designs & placed into mourning jewelry. (I made sure to get a lock of mom's hair, not woven but stored neatly in a tiny urn.)

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, the things old fashioned jewellery makes could do with hair were incredible. Mourning jewellery is actually quite an interesting topic all on its own actually.

[@spicencens7725]

@@HistoryCalling Yes! It is very interesting!

[@Knards]

Thank you! Love these types of stories

[@HistoryCalling]

You're welcome. I've got a whole playlist of them if you want to take a rummage :-)

[@Knards]

@@HistoryCalling I have watched a lot of your vids, and really enjoy them. But I do need to take a prowl though them again

[@dieJansky]

i'm sure she got a lot of comfort from that hand

[@laraeverdeen3544]

Yes please for a video on Queen Victoria’s funeral/death. I love the content you do HC, been listening to you for ages and I even go back rewatch some of my favourite topics.

[@HistoryCalling]

Thanks Lara. If only I could get everyone to do that! :-)

[@franvernon-free719]

I've seen the movie you referred to "Mrs Brown". A brilliant film, which i think portrays the relationship between them very accurately. Thoroughly recommend.

[@areiaaphrodite]

Victoria's coffin was a whole time capsule 👀

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, absolutely :-)

[@trevorcoles1162]

Wow, what a fascinating piece of history, I bet the logistics of moving a half a ton and making it look very ceremonial was a feat.

[@edithengel2284]

How did they even get it out of her bedroom?

[@BMW7series251]

Another most interesting video. I'm so pleased l found this YT channel a few months ago. Thank you and best regards, John. (UK).

[@HistoryCalling]

Thanks John. Glad you found my little corner of the internet :-)

[@BMW7series251]

@@HistoryCalling As a great lover of history, your channel is one of the best. Thank you, John.

[@LisafromNOLA]

So interesting! Thanks, as always, for a fascinating vid!

[@HistoryCalling]

Thanks Lisa. You're welcome. Yes, it's certainly an oddly long, detailed collection of items!

[@mariaevans5793]

Excellent narrator, you are just right !!!!😊

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you so much 😀

[@DarthDread-oh2ne]

Fun fact 2:Fyodor Ivanovich or Fyodor I was Tsar of all Russia from 1584 until his death in 1598. His wife was Tsaritsa consort of all Russia by marriage to Fyodor 1. As her husband died Childless, she was the de facto ruler of Russia until she retired to Novodevichy Convent nine days later. She remained the nominal ruler of Russia until her brother Boris was elected tsar on 3 march 1598. Irina corresponded with Queen Elizabeth I of England.

[@HistoryCalling]

The Russian royals are very interesting. There's no denying it.

[@DarthDread-oh2ne]

She’s the Margaret Of Anju of Russia.

[@missyme2673]

What a fascinating insight! Thank you, HC! I knew about the plaster cast and rumours about John Brown's photo, but I had no idea that it was actually true! And not just his photo but all the other deeply personal items belonging to him. That speaks volumes about how she felt about him.. I'm also shocked by the sheer amount of jewellery and trinkets that she was buried with and her instructions to keep half of them hidden from her family. Just when you think you know all about her, thanks to the copious diaries that she kept, documenting practically every day of her life, you then discover all the secrets that she literally took to her grave. I was also surprised by the amount of personal trinkets belonging to her children she wanted to be buried with. I get a sense of macabre about it all. Maybe it's just me, and that was all considered normal during the victorian times.. I'm also very surprised to learn that she wasn't embalmed. I'd love to know why! Thank you for this detailed account. It was a fascinating insight into the great queen! 😊

[@Moebian73]

For the love of Albert had for Victoria & vise versa to what's in his lady's coffin, love it. :) I think we all would love the sad details of her downward spiral to her rejoining Albert on the other side.

[@HistoryCalling]

Hopefully they're back together now and happy again :-)

[@Moebian73]

@@HistoryCalling Hopefully! :) Elizabeth II & Prince Phillip too. Etc. Etc.

[@marilynwhite8763]

Watched “Mrs Brown” x 2. Well done.

[@chesterplemany]

I wonder if there are any intentions on opening the tomb in the future? Like St. Edward's coffin contents, I'd imagine that some of her buried treasure one day might become highly visible and sacred relics of the British public.

[@HistoryCalling]

I doubt it, as long as there is a British royal family. They wouldn't want to set the precedent.

[@ericalbany]

Unless there is some structurak failure of the building I see no reason for the tomb to ever be opened. There is no mystery to be solved.

[@Belovelyava]

The recreation was awesome!

[@Raven6794]

The go to channel for the details of all the best royal funerals and burials. At least Victoria wasn’t as badly treated in death as some who have appeared on this channel. She really did remain devoted to her long predeceased husband right to the end. I had always understood that Victoria wasn’t that enamoured about her mother. Deathbed forgiveness.

[@HistoryCalling]

Why thank you :-) I try my best :-)

[@andrealynch2]

Hello from down the road in Monaghan ☺️ She sure loved her jewelry, and locks of people's hair, didn't she?! 😅

[@HistoryCalling]

Hi there! Hope you're having better weather over in that direction :-) Yes, jewellery and bits of (sometimes) dead people were a big deal for her. :-)

[@wellallrightthen]

Such a well done presentation! And VO is especially pleasant to listen to. Thanks so much

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you 😀

[@stevenkaskus6173]

Thank you for a most complete and interesting history, I studied French for 3 years in highschool and part of it was we had to study the French revolution, I'm just surprised one person you didn't mention was the one person that was called the master of the revolution Robespierre who in the end was guillotined himself.

[@elbaestridge6503]

Thank you for this video , and even though I'm an American, ( and even though we had our 1776 😊), I love your history, and that's why I subscribed to your channel. Keep uploading.

[@HistoryCalling]

You're welcome. Will do 😀

[@Nunofurdambiznez]

Would most DEFINITELY like a deep dive into her last days and death, please!

[@leighhamrick]

Of course I immediately clicked away to the video about Queen Caroline and oh my god, poor, poor woman. My thoughts have kept returning to what she endured in the days since I watched it.

[@donnicholas7552]

Wow! I was unaware of all the stuff in her coffin. Very interesting!

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you 😀

[@emb74]

I was lucky enough to be visiting England on the one day a year that you could see this sarcophagus. It is so moving. Victoria’s image was made when she was younger and her head is slightly tilted toward Prince Albert. It’s beautiful.

[@queenoflammersland8562]

Cognitive dissonance is a perfect summary of Victoria’s personality.

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you. I think so too a lot of the time.

[@matthewdonovan1240]

Absolutely fascinating and revealing. Thank you for creating this and sharing it. It makes you wonder what other monarchs wanted buried with them.

[@HistoryCalling]

Now there's an interesting question. I don't any of the ones who have been exhumed have ever been found with this much stuff though.

[@matthewdonovan1240]

@@HistoryCalling Probably the only ones to be buried with as much stuff, or more, are the very early monarchs from the days before the Normans. Just look at the Sutton Hoo ship burial for one. Those Saxons didn't want to leave anything behind. At least Victoria didn't take her servants and staff with her, unlike the Egyptian pharaohs did.

[@aleksstosich]

Beautiful video - thanks for reading her list in full. It was interesting and even touching.

[@joannabaparileszczynska]

She was really sentimental but being buried with precious jewelry is ridiculous. You won’t have you for it , better to gift it. And her obsession with Albert was to much, she would have benefited from therapy if it was available back then. Too bad mental health was not taken seriously when she lived

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, it does seem like a heck of a waste, doesn't it? She's lucky she's not susceptible to tomb robbers (at least not so far). Yes, that poor lady needed a boatload of therapy.

[@joshuakampamba9061]

Sleep dearie sleep ❤ Lots of love from Zambia 🇿🇲

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you 😀

[@redemptivepete]

Interesting. I found your insights on the performative and control aspects of Victoria's personality and role especially profound.

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you. Yes, people don't often think about 'performance' in particular, but it can account for a lot.

[@thoughtsofelizabeth]

I'm a little late on viewing. As usual, very good. The visuals were fantastc. I also noticed in my where's waldo of my searching for your watermark that some images have two! Are there other folks who enjoy looking for the watermarks?

[@carolinegreenwell9086]

yes I notice them too

[@HistoryCalling]

That might have been an oversight on my part. Sometimes even I can't find one of them and end up adding another. At others (if I think the image could be cropped and one side of it nicked), I deliberately add a another one in.

[@barbarakosloski9260]

Lovely documentary. Thank you. ❤

[@stephencarrillo5905]

👏👏☕Just got back from walking the fur babies, having a cup of decaf joe and settling in for a second viewing of this thoroughly entertaining video. Interesting how Victoria was so focused on her death. I read somewhere that JFK's favorite poem was Alan Seeger's "I Have a Rendezvous with Death". Another great entry, HC. Good woman yourself! 🙏🏼

[@HistoryCalling]

Yes, she was quite preoccupied with it. I suppose she was looking forward to getting back to Albert. Enjoy the coffee and the video. Give the fur babies a pat on the head from me. :-)

[@morriganwitch]

I thought it was the zenith of Victoriana . She lived and died the age xxx

[@HistoryCalling]

It was indeed.

[@trudilm3864]

It's of no surprise. Her husband died when she was just 42. While she was surrounded with the best objects money could buy every moment of her life, few of them actually belonged to her. She carefully separated out her personal jewels from those belonging to the Crown Estate. Arguably, she did the right thing. For 40 years, her jewels were all she had. Her children's lives were healthier and she was right not to bog them down with sad memories.

[@susandiannesmith191]

Very touching ! As some of my family got their wishes of what they wanted. I plan on pictures of my family and special items that Grandma's don't want but I find special in my travels

[@lfgifu296]

oooh a Victoria streak (of sorts :) I like a good coffin video (this wasn’t supposed to sound so morbid💀), they usually have these hidden meanings which are so good to learn about! Thanks :)

[@HistoryCalling]

A little bit more on Victoria to come in a few weeks as well. It's nice to have finally found a topic to do with her that people will actually watch as well. Her coronation video and Albert's death didn't do the numbers I'd hoped for.

[@chrisbanks6659]

I'm sorry, I can't get Bruce Forsyth out of my head and the conveyor belt on Generation Game. Y'know, Cuddly Toy, Teasmaid, Crockery etc etc. The title brought that on 😄. Anyways - something I didn't know about, so it will be an interesting watch a bit later on. Thanks, as ever young lady. 🤗

[@HistoryCalling]

Ah well, there are worse people to have stuck in your head than old Brucie. :-)

[@bobroberts6155]

Why do these videos refer to ‘secrets’, if these things were indeed secret the video could not be made.

[@OrangeTabbyCat]

Clickait

[@yef122]

Really interesting video (as usual!) 😀

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you 😀

[@robinpinkham9398]

Very Fascinating ❤

[@HistoryCalling]

Thank you 😀

[@marlisseporras3132]

i know that is nearly impossible, but it would be interesting to see if something (of the things) remains

[@user-vb3yb9kp9o]

Thsnk u … I love history

[@kasie680]

6:01 why does Albert look like he has no pants on?? 😂😂😂 just garters 😂😂