Victoria, Princess Royal, known as Vicky, is best known as the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and the mother of Kaiser Wilhelm II. Yet, she is a fascinating figure in her own right. Intelligent, strong-willed, opinionated and politically liberal, she faced opposition at the conservative German Royal Court. With the death of her father Albert in December 1861, Vicky lost her mentor and teacher. This left her politically exposed and also meant she has to take on the role of close confidante to her mother. Their relationship is fully described in their 40-year correspondence and in Queen Victoria’s journals.Despite all their hardships, Vicky and Fritz’s love story is a genuine one. A meeting as children led to a long and happy marriage – in a similar way to that of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. With Queen Victoria as her mother, Wilhelm II as her son and Bismarck as her political nemesis, Vicky’s story is central to the era. An eyewitness to the wars which led to German unification, Vicky’s thoughts are recorded in her correspondence, which gives us the opportunity to see these events through her eyes.
