(laughs) Don't look so surprised. The Queen has many different duties.
It's heartening to see she won't neglect them, even on Coronation Day.
- I don't think Dash would allow it. - Try to get some rest before the ball.
I will. Since I firmly intend to dance until dawn.
(she hums softly)
(orchestra tunes up)
(Lord Chamberlain) Her Majesty the Queen.
Are you sure this is wise?
(orchestra starts up)
(music stops)
It's been quite a day. Are you tired?
Oh, no. Ah, well, not really. It's just...
Well, I'm stronger than I look.
- How much longer are you in London? - Only until Friday.
Then home via Brussels. Uncle Leopold must have his report.
- (laughs) - (music starts)
Oh, dear. I have a quadrille with the Prince of Prussia next.
My poor little toes. I feel sorry for them already. (laughs)
Your Majesty.
(Victoria) I've had a letter from King Leopold.
He proposes extending this visit of Prince Albert.
- And what have you answered? - Nothing yet.
Well, perhaps you should tell your uncle
you need to focus on your new duties right now.
(thunder)
(both laugh)
(she laughs)
Thank you for being my messenger.
I hope I've given my uncle enough detail. Fill in anything I've missed.
- He takes a great interest in you. - Yes, don't I know it.
You should see the questions he asks by every letter.
- Like a never-ending examination. - (both laugh)
Lord Melbourne calls him this... (laughs)
What about Lord Melbourne?
Nothing.
- The French Ambassador is here. - Right. Erm...
I wish you a good journey.
Victoria?
(sighs) I would so like to be useful to you.
If there is ever an opportunity.
I know you would.
But not yet.
- (inhales) - (Leopold) Have you read this?
No, sir.
It seems she does not think it appropriate
to discuss politics in our otherwise "delightful correspondence".
- Which was dictated by Melbourne. - Damn it!
(Leopold) Do something!
(Stockmar) I can't get past Melbourne.
Then get him past Melbourne! Get him into her bed!
(Albert) My dear Victoria, Uncle Leopold is full of ideas
of how you and I may spend more time together.
And I must say I hope that some of them, at least, will come to pass.
(clock chimes)
(Victoria) Dear Albert, you've been keeping secrets.
When did you learn to dance so beautifully?
Lord M assures me the next several months
will be particularly gruelling and busy for me as a new Queen.
Thus, I am not certain when I shall see you again.
I look forward to your every letter,
enjoying the detail of life in Germany, and wishing to share more.
- Waterloo might not... - Yours affectionately, Victoria.
Ah, this quite inoffensive little game can turn into an effective weapon!
(all laugh)
Lord Melbourne says French doctors kill their patients.
- English ones just let them die. - (all laugh)
I thought he might be here tonight.
(Victoria) He's thrown me over for Lady Holland.
- I expect Your Majesty will miss him. - Not too severely. He's back tomorrow.
No, no, no. I meant when he's out of power.
What?
Well, only, I don't wish to crow, but... I thought it was common knowledge
that he's about to lose the vote.
Schatzi? I thought you were in your bedroom.
(sobs)
Never mind.
- (sobs) - (Lehzen) Shh. Shh.
- You won't desert me, will you? - Never.
Mein liebes Schatzi.
Every one of your ladies is the wife of a friend of Lord Melbourne.
Surely you can see how that looks?
You should not set such store by appearances, Sir Robert.
I only ask for a token. For two ladies, even one, who supports my cause.
Otherwise, it must seem as if Palace and Parliament have fallen out.
- I want to go in. - I beg your pardon, ma'am.
Her Majesty is with the Prime Minister and cannot be disturbed.
But that will not apply to her mother.
I'm very sorry, ma'am.
Let me understand you.
Are you saying it is the Prime Minister who selects my household?
- Has the law changed in this regard? - No, of course not.
Well, then, there cannot be much more to be said.
- (bell rings) - Good day, Sir Robert.
Could you please ask Lady Portman to come in as you leave?
Yes, ma'am.
I wonder if you could have a note delivered to Lord Melbourne.
Of course, ma'am.
# ("King Arthur" by Purcell)
# What power...
(woman) Mrs Melbourne!
# Art thou...
- Good God! What are we coming to? - Who was it? I didn't see.
The Duchess of Montrose. That's the end to her career at Court, I hope.
If I ban everyone who thinks me wrong, you and I will be alone in the ballroom.
- (hubbub) - With sorrow, I must inform the House
that I have been unable to persuade the Queen
that her ladies should not solely adhere to the views of my opponents.
- (hubbub) - I have therefore informed Her Majesty
that I am not qualified to form a government,
if I do not enjoy her confidence.
(hubbub)
Mr Speaker, are we to understand that the great Sir Robert Peel
has been frightened off by a few frilly petticoats?
(laughter / hubbub)
(Speaker) Prime Minister!
(Peel) Mr Speaker, what frightens me
is to see the Crown used as a shuttlecock
- in the game of politics! - (hubbub)
Which, apparently, Lord Melbourne plays better than you!
- (hubbub) - Order!
Constitutional crisis!
(newsboy) Queen flouts Prime Minister! Threat to bring down Tory government!
- Order! - Constitutional crisis!
(Peel) You should be ashamed of yourself, sir.
If the Queen has been foolish, she can plead youth.
You are old enough to know better.
What troubles you is that Lord Melbourne is Prime Minister again.
I do hate a bad loser.
We are all losers in this, sir. Most especially the Queen.
(Adelaide) You have to understand you reign
by right of Parliament. Work with the voters' choice.
- Lord Melbourne says... - He says what suits his interest.
He has used you to punish his enemies
without a thought for the damage to the Crown.
The Queen is in the clutches of Melbourne, the great seducer!
And when he is silent, who does she listen to?
- Her German mother. - I'm glad he thinks I listen to Mama.
You are confusing stubbornness with strength, my dear.
And I warn you, the people will not like you for it.
(hubbub)
(Ernst) She's brought down a government over her ladies?
- Apparently. - Then she's a fool.
No, she is not a fool. But she has listened to a fool.
Then she had better change her advisor.
(Ernst) Or things will get worse before they get better.
- (protesters shouting outside) - Open the door.
"Not all the water in the rough, rude sea
can wash the balm off from an anointed king."
"The breath of worldly men
cannot depose the deputy elected by the Lord."
- (shouting outside) - "For every man..."
Sir John, what are you doing here?
- I must speak to the Queen. - You know that's impossible.
(he whispers)
"Welcome, my lord. How far off lies your power?"
An armed man has been found in the gardens.
- What?! - He said he wished to harm the Queen.
"..discomfort guides my tongue and bids me speak of nothing but..."
(glass smashes /hubbub)
(shouting outside)
They think I have interfered in matters that do not concern me.
It'll pass, ma'am, you'll see.
(Albert) My dear Victoria, while these days may feel endless,
please do not lose faith in yourself or your people.
We are all allowed to make mistakes,
most especially when we have looked to others for guidance.
(Victoria) The storm still rages outside the palace walls.
I wonder now if everyone was right.
Perhaps I am too young and inexperienced for my position.
(Albert) Open your mind, examine your choices,
and your honesty will take you through the storm.
I promise that you can do this work and do it well.
You have courage and heart
and you said yourself you're stronger than you look.
(footsteps)
(Lehzen) A letter from your mother.
(Duchess of Kent) My dearest child.
You will not let me come to you,
and that I may deserve,
but however you resent me,
however I have failed, I am still and always your mother.
What troubles you, troubles me.
What pleases you, pleases me.
I love you.
And my only prayer is that one day you will understand how much.
Goodnight, mein Liebling. Your own Mama.
(sobs)
(Victoria) My dearest Albert.
You asked me once if you could be of help to me,
and I so proud and confident of my great powers replied, "Not yet".
But since that day so much has changed.
I'm not forgiven yet.
Not yet, but soon.
Just wait for unseasonal weather or the news of some elopement,
and it'll all be forgotten.
You don't have a very high opinion of ordinary people,
do you, Lord Melbourne?
With respect, I have lived longer than Your Majesty.
I said once I didn't understand
whose task it was to see to the public welfare.
Ma'am, in my lifetime, I have seen with my own eyes,
what happens when the rabble is empowered.
Lord Melbourne.
I want a report on living conditions, on parish benefits,
housing, all of it. And by the end of the month.
And one more thing,... I have invited Prince Albert for another visit.
Very good, Your Majesty.
When you get there, don't be a spy or Uncle Leopold's puppet.
It's your life, Albert. Live it.
For yourself and for Victoria.
Our uncle wouldn't thank you for that.
I don't care.
- I should have worn the red. - You look beautiful, Your Majesty.
His Serene Highness Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Your Majesty.
I only just got your note.
I was riding.
Sit. Please.
- The park is marvellous. - I'm so pleased you like it.
I do want you to feel quite at home.
I'm sure you're aware why I wished you to come here.
Because it would make me happier than anything,...
.. too happy, really, if you would agree to what I wish.
- And stay with you? - And stay with me.
- And marry you? - And marry me. (laughs)
Wilt thou have this woman to thy wedded wife?
T o live together after God's ordinance,
- in the holiest state of matrimony? - I will.
Now I am quite married.
- You know when we're old... - Hmm.
..and surrounded by our children,...
..we will remember this as the day our lives began.
Not too surrounded, please.
And not too soon.
Oh? I should warn you that I am expecting a very large family.
(she giggles)
- Good morning, wife. - Good morning.
(Victoria giggles)
(Lehzen) Have you woken Her Majesty?
- No, ma'am. - Don't you think you should?
No, ma'am. Not this morning, I don't.
Let's take a little tour and visit Scotland.
I hear if any part of Britain is like Germany, it's the Scottish Highlands.
- Yes, we must one day. - No. Straight away. Now.
- Now? (laughs) - Only for a few weeks.
You're a bride. They can't expect you back before that.
Dearest, I may be a bride but I'm also a queen.
I cannot be away for more than three days at the most.
What are you doing?
- Well, if we've only got three days... - (both laugh)
(both laugh)
So tell me, will the weather be this fine for all of the three days?
(laughs) Yes.
Albert, where are you going?
(she laughs)
(both laugh)
- Seriously, is it always like this? - (laughs) Yes!
(she laughs)
We will take care of each other, won't we?
Always.
(she laughs)
- (crowd cheers) - How changeable they are.
They hate you. They love you. They hate you.
They punished her,... but they never hated her.
And now she's a bride and back on top. Until the next mistake.
What on earth have I done with my life?
I had many gifts, you know.
As a boy, I was tipped for success.
You have served me well.
(sighs) What is that?
(thunder)
(door opens)
(door closes)
(she giggles)
(Leopold) Dear Albert, why haven't you responded to my last two letters?
I must be kept informed of your progess.
I need help. England's help.
And you must and will secure it for me.
Never forget that you are first a Coburg.
Your Uncle Leopold.
- What is it? - Just a question for Lord M.
- Could I help? - lt'll keep.
Why are these windows so dirty? I can hardly see out.
Same as the fires, I'm afraid.
The departments can't agree to wash inside and out at the same time.
- Why don't we do something about it? - I quite agree.
Because it's how things are done here. And it's worked well for many years.
Meanwhile, we live in a filthy, freezing house.
We live as guests of the Queen.
Thank you, Baroness, for reminding me that I am a guest here.
Let him go.
How is Albert settling in?
Why? What have you heard?
He says he wants to reorganise the way the palaces are run.
Well then, for Heaven's sake, let him!
He says that Lord Melbourne controls me,
and he says that Lehzen controls me.
It seems everyone controls me except him.
A man who has no work becomes ridiculous.
And a poor man with a rich wife must work twice as hard as anyone else.
- Besides, you have chosen well. - My Uncle William chose well.
- You did not take on half his duties - You don't know that.
You don't know what I did.
- What is this for? - Your Royal Highness.
The Red Room dinner service, sir. For the officers guarding the King.
- What king? - King George lll, sir.
And how often do we provide
this dinner for a king who has been dead for 20 years?
Every night, sir.
I cannot believe I'm being subjected to this interrogation.
You're not being subjected to anything, Sir John.
You have been in charge of the Duchess's finances for many years.
Indeed, you have made public statements testifying to their health.
- Yes, I have. - I am so grateful.
All I am asking is that you will be so good as to tell us
exactly where the money has gone?
Are you sure?
(she laughs)
- (applause) - Congratulations, ma'am.
Mein liebes Schatzi! I'm so happy.
- Meine Liebling! - Heavens, Mama, don't crush me.
You'll let me know at once if there's anything you need.
You're not going already?
I cannot leave too soon for my daughter.
- Anyway, I have a lot on my mind. - Something I could help with?
Congratulations.
Your Highness.
There's your opening, if you'll take my advice.
Lord Melbourne, forgive me, but...
you seem to have confused me with a member of your club.
I am not your drinking companion, nor your whist partner.
I am the husband of your sovereign.
And as such, I will make my own decisions,
and I neither seek nor invite your advice.
Good evening.
- So... - (Victoria laughs)
- Are you discussing names? - We're discussing the help.
He writes that he'd prefer not to talk politics in his letters,
but only to discuss news of the family.
I have planned this marriage for 20 years!
And now I'm supposed to accept that I have failed?!
On the contrary, Your Majesty, we must accept it.
The birds have flown.
Your Majesty.
(piano recital)
I've been boring Sir Robert and the Duke
with my ideas for encouraging the Arts.
Hmm. Does Sir Robert care for such frivolity?
I have many interests, ma'am.
And my government would support the Prince's plans.
Your government? What government is this?
If I should be fortunate enough to form another government, ma'am.
And when he does, there'll be no repeat of the old problem.
Some of your ladies have already agreed to resign.
And Sir Robert will ask for no more change than that.
Thank you, Sir Robert.
How dare you speak to me in that way before them.
How dare you... talk across me, as if I were a child.
- l... I did no such thing. - Oh, no?
Well, you've sorted this, you've sorted that.
You and Sir Robert.
You and the Duke. All without reference to me!
- Victoria, I thought you'd be pleased. - I will tell you what you thought.
You thought that I was a woman!
To be petted and passed over and ignored!
Would it were so simple then we might avoid more scandals of your making.
- Have you lost your mind?! - Do you wonder at it?
Less than three years on the throne and you and your precious Melbourne
have pushed this monarchy to the brink of an abyss!
I've told you before and I will again,
you are my husband here, and that is all!
- And that is quite enough, believe me! - I will not have my role usurped!
I wear the crown.
Any mistakes will be my mistakes, and no one else will make them.
No one! Not even you!
I'm leaving before you excite yourself and harm the child.
You will go when I dismiss you.
I am your Queen and I am telling you to stay.
Goodnight, Victoria.
You may not go. You may not go!
I order you to stay here in this room! Albert!
(Sergeant Major) Guard, royal salute!
Present arms!
There is no need for you to accompany me.
I said I would and so I will.
(coachman) Walk on. Hup!
For pity's sake smile, woman. Anyone would think we'd quarrelled.
Don't talk to me.
(gunshot echoes)
There's nothing more I can do here. The Prince needs rest.
Your Majesty.
(she sobs)
I'm so sorry!
I thought I was going to lose you!
- He was not a very good shot. - Why did you do it?
You're so stupid! Why did you do it?
I had two very good reasons.
First, I am replaceable and you are not.
- You are not replaceable to me. - Shh.
Second,... you are the only wife I've got or ever will have.
You are my whole existence. And I will love you until my last breath.
(birdsong)
We're told the man was mad.
Is that reassuring? I can't decide.
May I be honest, ma'am?
- Even a politician can be sometimes. - (she laughs)
My guidance... hasn't always been faultless,...
..and I'm sorry for it.
- But I speak now as a true friend. - I know.
The Prince is a good man. A better man than any of us knew.
I know he does not think as well of me. My vanity is not the issue here.
He is able.
He is clever.
And he's faithful.
Let him share your work.
There is one task more Your Majesty must face,...
if the Prince is to feel truly welcome here.
I needed her so much as a child.
I hope you don't mind, I had your desk brought in.
- Don't I have a say in this? - No! (laughs)
(she laughs)
(baby gurgles)
- Good morning, wife. - Good morning.
(she laughs)
His Royal Highness Prince Albert. Her Majesty the Queen.
# ("Only You" by Sinead O'Connor)
# My love
# Your love
# Has opened up a world I've never known
# All hope
# Was found
# A place I never dreamed I would go
# Feels like only yesterday
# I had locked my heart away
# Safe behind a castle of stone
# Sure I'd always be alone
# Only you
# Know how
# To hear me through
# The silence
# You reach a part of me
# That no one else can see
# Forever true
# There's only me
# And only you
# Only me and you
# In your faith
# I trust
# With you beside me I am standing strong
# One truth
# Two hearts
# You took my life and made it beautiful
# So you dare to let me shine
# Even walk a step behind
# Willingly you give yourself to me
# Knowing who I was born to be
# Only you
# Know how
# To hear me through
# The silence
# You reach a part of me
# That no one else can see
# Forever true
# There's only me
# And only you
# Only me and you
# Only you
# Know how
# To hear me through
# The silence
# You reach a part of me
# That no one else can see
# Forever true
# There's only me
# And only you
# Only me and you