She became queen on June 20, 1837, at the age of 18. She became the
first Empress of India, 39 years later, on May 1, 1876.
Her 63 year, seven month reign lasted until her death on January 22, 1901; the longest by any monarch in British history.
The Victorian Era, considered one of the Golden Ages in Britain, witnessed two extraordinary events.
First, domestically, the Industrial Revolution achieved its apex under Victoria. The iconic works of Charles Dickens provide snapshots of this era: Extreme poverty, dazzling opulence and an overall period of social, economic, and technological progress. Victoria's reign saw Britain shake off the bonds of feudalism, moving from an agrarian society to an industrial community connected by a vast railway network.
Her rule was marked by enormous expansion of the British Empire, notably into Asia. When Britain's territorial reach was at its zenith, it had absorbed parts of North America, South America, Africa and Southeast Asia, along with all of India and Australia. The sun, it then seemed, would never set on the British Empire.
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