Queen Victoria had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. The United Kingdom was already an established constitutional monarchy, in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, Victoria attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments; publicly, she became a national icon who was identified with strict standards of personal morality. Victoria married her first cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together and earning her the sobriquet "the grandmother of Europe". After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and
Cultural depictions of Queen Victoria Sunday, so the new premiere took place the next day, at the Lyric Theatre. Pamela Stanley reprised the title role at Housman's request, and Carl Esmond played Prince Albert. The play later appeared on Broadway, where Helen Hayes portrayed the Queen, with Vincent Price in the role of Prince Albert. Queen Victoria appears in Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell's graphic novel "From Hell", where she is depicted as instigating the Whitechapel murders. A "Royal Diaries" book was written, documenting her childhood between 1829 and 1830: "Victoria, May Blossom of Britannia" by Anna Kirwan. The Victorian age is experienced through the