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The Victorian Period
1830-1901
General Info About the Time
Enormous changes occurred in
political and social life in England and
the rest of the world
The scientific and technical
innovations of the Industrial
Revolution, the emergence of modern
nationalism, and the European
colonization of much of Africa, the
Middle East, and the Far East
changed most of Europe
Far-reaching new ideas created the
greatest outpouring of literary
production the world has ever seen
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Queen Victoria
Ruled England from
1837-1901
She took the crown at
18. Her reign lasted
over 63 years, the
longest of any British
monarch.
Like Elizabeth I, she
gave her name to this
period of British
history and literature.
• 1840-Victoria married a
German prince, Albert, who
became not king, but Princeconsort.
• After he died in 1861, she
sank into a deep depression
and wore black every day for
the rest of her life
Queen Victoria and
Prince Albert in a
photo taken in 1854
Queen Victoria
in 1887
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A Time of Change
Industrial Revolution
was at its height, a
period of social,
economic and
technological change.
Factory systems
emerged: Machines
meant that workers had
to be gathered in one
single place, the factory.
Many people left their
villages in the hope of
finding work in the cities.
In big industrial cities, houses were built very
fast to house the numerous workers arriving
from the country.
London became the most important city in
Europe
Population of London expanded from two million
to six million, creating a demand for housing,
food and clothing
Besides, there were new ideas in England : an
interest in scientific investigation and invention,
and the doctrine of “laissez-faire” : letting
business be regulated by supply and demand
rather than by laws.
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The Early Victorian Period
1830-1848
In 1830, the Liverpool and
Manchester Railway opened,
the first public railway line in the
world.
By 1850, railway lines
connected England’s major
cities
By 1900 , England had 15,195
lines of railroad and an
underground rail system
beneath London.
The train transformed England’s
landscape, supported the growth
of commerce, and shrank the
distance between cities.
The Reform Bills Transformed
English class structure
The Reform Bill of 1832 extended the right to vote
to all males owning property:
The Act granted seats in the House of Commons to
large cities that had sprung up during the
Industrial Revolution. It Act also increased the
number of individuals entitled to vote, increasing
the size of the electorate by 50–80%, and
allowing a total of one out of six adult males to
vote.
The Second Reform Bill of 1867
extended right to vote to working
class
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The Time of Troubles
Unemployment
Poverty
Rioting
Slums in large cities
Working conditions
for women and
children were terrible
Children
The brickyards of England - Children carrying clay
A child pulling a cart
The Victorian era became
notorious for Child labour.
Agile boys were employed by
the chimney sweeps; small
children were employed to
scramble under machinery to
retrieve cotton bobbins; and
children were also employed to
work in coal mines, crawling
through tunnels too narrow
and low for adults.
Children also worked as
errand boys, crossing
sweepers, or shoe blacks, or
selling matches, flowers, and
other cheap goods.
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School
Many children in early Victorian times never went to
school at all and more than half of them grew up unable
to read or write.
The poorest ended up in a Warehouse: it was a public
institution which housed and fed people who were
unable to support themselves. If these people were
otherwise fit, they were put to work (Charles Dickens
painted the best-known picture of it in his Oliver Twist)
Slowly, things changed for poorer children: by the end of
the Victorian age all children under 12 had to go to
school. Now everybody could learn how to read and
write, and how to count properly.
The Role of Women
Changing conditions of women’s
work created by the Industrial
Revolution
Social conventions for women
remain similar to those of the
Bennet sisters. Women were to
marry and provide homes. A
working class woman, if married,
could be a servant and if unmarried,
a teacher or governess.
Legal changes were to their
advantage. Although they still could
not vote, women had the right to
retain their own property after
marriage, to sue for divorce, and to
fight for the custody of their children
in a separation.
Florence Nightingale, who founded
the first modern nursing school,
gave women a role model.
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The Mid-Victorian Period
1848-1870
A time of prosperity
A time of improvement
A time of stability
A time of optimism
The Crystal Palace
Erected to display the
exhibits of modern
industry and science at
the 1851 Great Exhibition
One of the first buildings
constructed according to
modern architectural
principles
The building symbolized
the triumphs of Victorian
industry
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The British Empire
Between 1853 and 1880,
large scale immigration to
British colonies
In 1857, Parliament took
over the government of
India and Queen Victoria
became empress of India.
Many British people saw
the expansion of empire
as a moral responsibility.
Missionaries spread
Christianity in India, Asia,
and Africa.
Imperialism
“The sun never sets on the British Empire.”
England was a imperial nation gaining control of
countries around the world.
During Victoria’s reign, 25% of the world’s population,
was part of the British Empire.
Empire included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Hong
Kong, Singapore, South Africa, Kenya, and India.
This is the reason why the English language was at one
time the language of business, law, and government.
Irish question
Bismarck's Germany became a rival power
United States became a rival power
Economic depression led to mass immigration
Socialism
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Challenges to Religious Belief
The telegraph, telephone, photography
(Victoria was the first royal to have her
portrait “taken” rather than “painted”) the
advent of the automobile and electric
lighting changed not only the way people
lived, but their view of the world in which
they lived.
Science: Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
unsettled the world by offering another
view of creation lived. He introduced the
survival of the fittest theory (the Origin of
Species)
Geology: Charles Lyell (1797-1875):
showed that geological features on Earth
had developed continuously and slowly
over immense periods of time
Astronomy
Literacy, Publication, and Reading
By the end of the century,
literacy was almost universal.
Compulsory national education
required to the age of ten.
Due to technological
advances, an explosion of
things to read, including
newspapers, periodicals, and
books.
Growth of the periodical
Novels and short fiction were
published iin serial form.
The reading public expected
literature to illuminate social
problems.
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Victorian Poets
Poetry confirmed what the Victorians valued
or pointed out problems in their society. Their
poetry often related to society’s problems or
misdirections.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892): Most
popular Victorian poet. He wrote
narrative poems
Robert Browning (1812-1889): raised the
dramatic monologue to new heights—
making it a vehicle for deep psychological
probing and character study
Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861):
with Robert, one of literature’s greatest
love affairs. Wrote love sonnets valued
for their lyric beauty
Victorian Drama
The theater was a
flourishing and popular
institution during the
Victorian period.
The popularity of theater
influenced other genres.
Bernard Shaw and Oscar
Wilde transformed British
theater with their comic
masterpieces.
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The Victorian Novel
The novel was the dominant form in
Victorian literature.
Victorian novels seek to represent a large
and comprehensive social world, with a
variety of classes.
Victorian novels are realistic.
Major theme is the place of the individual in
society, the aspiration of the hero or heroine
for love or social position.
The protagonist’s search for fulfillment is
emblematic of the human condition.
For the first time, women were major writers:
the Brontes. Elizabeth Gaskell, George
Eliot.
The Victorian novel was a principal form of
entertainment.
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