The Victorian era derives its name from the reigning monarch at that time, Queen Victoria, and spanned from 1837 to 1901. A great deal of change happened during the Victorian period, most of which came from the impact of the Industrial Revolution, the growth of the British Empire and medical and scientific discoveries.
The Victorians were people who lived during Queen Victoria’s reign from 1837 to 1901. The Victorians had defined social classes and people were categorised by social class based on both economic and social factors including their wealth and income, occupation, education, political alignments and family structure. There were three overarching social classes during the Victorian era, the upper class (sometimes also known as the aristocracy), the rising middle class and the working class.
Many Victorians saw a huge period of change and growth due to industrialisation and urbanisation during the Industrial Revolution which changed everyday life as the Victorians knew it.
Many famous Victorians are still referenced today including Charles Dickens, Florence Nightingale, Alexander Bell, Emily Brontë, Charles Darwin and many others.
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Queen Victoria was born at Kensington Palace in London on May 24, 1819. Her father died shortly after her birth and she became heir to the throne as her three uncles, who were ahead of her in the line of succession, had no legitimate children who survived. In 1837, Victoria became queen at the age of 18 and her coronation was held the following year on 28 June 1838 (it famously lasted for 5 hours!).
Queen Victoria is known for the large amount of change that happened in Britain and around the world during her reign. She is associated with Britain's great age of industrial expansion, economic progress and empire.
Queen Victoria married her cousin, Prince Albert, on 10 February 1840 and together they had nine children. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert popularised many traditions in England that are still around today such as decorating your tree at Christmas and having a Christmas dinner! When Prince Albert died in 1861, Queen Victoria went into a period of mourning which lasted the rest of her lifetime; she symbolised her period of mourning by only wearing black clothing until she died in 1901.
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Life during the Victorian era varied greatly for the different social classes with large disparities between income and living situations. Upper classes would earn anywhere upwards of £1,000 per year and live in large houses that were kept by servants including cooks, house maids, butlers and nannies. The middle class, made up of people with occupations such as doctors, bankers, clerks and factory owners, saw large growth during the Victorian period that created a huge demand for goods and services which were once only available to the upper class. Income in the middle class ranged significantly and could be anywhere between £100 and £1,000 per year and living situations varied depending on income. The working class and people in poverty earned less than £100 per year often through working in the most manual, labour intensive and dangerous jobs in factories, mines and docks. The working class lived in cramped conditions and in close proximity with multiple families in small, terraced houses, sharing water closets (privies) and water pumps often with the whole street!
During the Victorian era, and largely due to the impact of the Industrial Revolution, several reforms and acts were introduced to give children from poor families who often had to work in factories, mines and docks more rights and opportunities. In fact, the Victorian Era became the first period to acknowledge that childhood was a significant period of life and family life became idealised due to Victoria and Albert’s large family who were often in public view. In 1819, the Factory Act was passed meaning that factories couldn’t employ children under the age of nine and children between the age of 9 and 16 were not allowed to work more than 12 hours a day. In 1833, a Factory commission took place which led to another passed Factory Act. This Act banned children of any age from working before 5:30am and after 8:30pm, gave them a one-hour lunch break and made education a right for them all. It also introduced a mandatory factory inspection to check that conditions for workers were always being improved. In 1880, education became a universal need and eventually a universal right and as such, education was made compulsory for all children up to the age of 10.
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The Victorian era was a period of huge growth and the Industrial Revolution paved the way for new inventions and innovation. In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell made the first telephone call on his patented device to his assistant Thomas Watson. In 1879, Thomas Edison and Joseph Swan developed upon pre-existing work to create the first successful incandescent filament electric lamp. Thomas Crapper invented the first lavatory, not to be confused with inventing the first flushing toilet, in which a toilet and sink basin were located together in one contained room. In 1861 Thomas Crapper was hired by Prince Edward to construct lavatories in several royal palaces.
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Christmas grew in popularity during the Victorian era and by the end of the 19th century it was regarded as one of the most important holidays of the year. Many Victorian traditions are still present in the modern day for those who celebrate Christmas.
Victorian Christmas traditions you may recognise today:
The Christmas card - in 1843, Sir Henry Cole introduced the idea of the Christmas card, but it wasn’t until Prince Albert popularised various Christmas traditions, including decorating trees in the home, that the Christmas card became popular.
A Christmas cracker - in the 1840s Tom Smith, a sweet shop owner, was looking for new inventive ways to sell his sweets. Inspired by a trip to Paris, Smith came up with the cracker. It wasn’t until the 1860s that he perfected the cracker and added the explosive ‘snap’ sound that we’re all used to hearing around the Christmas table these days.
Decorating Christmas trees - although the first decorated Christmas tree was brought to England in the 1800s by Queen Charlotte, it was Prince Albert who popularised the tradition when he and Queen Victoria were famously illustrated with their children standing next to a decorated Christmas tree adorned with lit candles and trinkets.
Christmas dinner and Christmas pudding – another one that the Victorians didn’t invent but popularised during the Christmas period. Christmas dinner often featured a turkey or festive bird but would largely depend on income. Richer families may have opted for turkey, whilst families who were poorer may have opted for goose, which may have even been paid for in instalments throughout the year. Christmas puddings were also a treat enjoyed by the richer Victorians, many of whom would have finished their meal with a Christmas pudding.
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Although toys were common and often seen as a staple for children in rich Victorian families, many children from poorer families didn’t get the opportunity to play with them until the Factory and Education Act. With compulsory schooling, toys and playground games became commonplace for children during school breaks. Many popular Victorian toys and games are still around today such as teddy bears, dolls and doll houses, rocking horses, skipping ropes, hopscotches and skittles.
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