Queen Victoria

The queen of a vast empire, comparable only to ancient Rome, the grandmother of all Europe, the ruler during the industrial revolution, was a sensual woman who loved handsome men, soldiers in uniform, Scots in kilts, and Indians in turbans.... The best dancer in the kingdom, she adored balls that ended only at dawn, diluted her tea with whiskey and learned Italian through bel canto lessons. She preferred her servants, simple and kind, to highborn lords. The people called her "the republican queen." Loving flowers and the bright colors of the Mediterranean, she popularized vacations on the French Riviera. A passionate nature, she loved her Albert almost to madness. And, widowed at forty-two, she blindly followed the Lutheran principles of her German prince until her death.
This biographical narrative tells of the fervent and fierce Victoria without any embellishments.