She began the century that bears her name a princess and ended it as an empress. Queen Victoria ruled one of the most powerful empires in world history during a century of staggering change - for both good and bad.
Victoria becomes Queen of Great Britain, but she is not the only remarkable woman of her age. There is the activist Annie Besant, the doctor Elizabeth Garrett, the author Elizabeth Gaskell, the nurse Mary Seacole, the feminist Harriett Taylor and the photographer Julia Margaret Cameron. Their lives and achievements are sharply contrasted with the benevolent queen.