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
Legitimacy of Queen Victoria may have continued among descendants of Victoria. At least two of her descendants, Charlotte, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen, and Prince William of Gloucester are suspected of having suffered from it. Concrete evidence on the origins of the hæmophilia disease and paternity of Victoria could be achieved with a DNA test of her or her parents' remains, but no such study has been sanctioned by the Royal Family. Legitimacy of Queen Victoria The parentage of Queen Victoria has been the subject of speculation. Princess Charlotte of Wales was the only daughter and heiress presumptive of the Prince Regent (later King George IV).