This New to Netflix Historical Royal Series Is the Perfect Fix for ‘The Crown’ and ‘Downton Abbey’ Fans

This New to Netflix Historical Royal Series Is the Perfect Fix for ‘The Crown’ and ‘Downton Abbey’ Fans Image via ITV By  Carolyn Jenkins Published 48 minutes ago Rotten Tomatoes | Letterboxd | Metacritic Carolyn Jenkins is a voracious consumer of film and television. She graduated from Long Island University with an MFA in Screenwriting and Producing where she learned the art of character, plot, and structure. The best teacher is absorbing media and she spends her time reading about different worlds from teen angst to the universe of Stephen King. Sign in to your Collider account Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

Before Queen Elizabeth, there was Victoria. The Crown may be over, but there is still a world of fascinating royal shows that depict the line of succession. Now on Netflix, viewers should get excited about Victoria, a series depicting the female ruler who came before the modern example of royalty. The series ran for three seasons on PBS Masterpiece and starred Doctor Who’s own Jenna Coleman as the queen herself.

At the age of only 18, Alexandrina Victoria ascended to the throne of England after the death of her uncle, King William IV, in 1837. Though she had a few male family members who were ahead of her in line for the throne, they all died without legitimate heirs, leaving Victoria as the only person left. Victoria charts the day that she learns of her uncle’s death and her rocky coronation. For all of her life, Victoria was raised in seclusion at Kensington Palace with only her mother, the Duchess of Kent (Catherine Flemming), and stringent advisor, Sir John Conroy (Paul Rhys), whose only interest is controlling the young queen.

Victoria is admittedly new to ruling, but she takes it in stride. She makes Prime Minister Lord Melbourne (Rufus Sewell) her personal advisor and educates herself in the ways of court. Like many Philippa Gregory adjacent stories that feature women in a man’s world, Victoria can be tempestuous and overzealous at times. Even so, she became one of the most celebrated English monarchs in recent history.

‘Victoria’ Is an Underrated Gem in a Popular Genre

Series such as Downton Abbey and The Crown captured the attention of fans for depicting an era long since past. Social hierarchy is an antiquated system, but viewers can still enjoy these similar shows. Victoria mirrors the core dynamics of The Crown in particular. Like Queen Elizabeth (Claire Foy), Victoria also finds herself in rooms full of men who do not want to see her succeed. Victoria was the last resort in a monarchy that had no other choice. While generally accepted by the population at large, men always think that they can do better.

Victoria also has the added pressure of finding a male consort who would be comfortable taking a backseat in the power structure. Prince Philip (Matt Smith) famously chafed at being left out of his wife’s decisions since he was only the consort. After an infatuation with her advisor, Lord Melbourne, Victoria finds just the right consort in Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (Tom Hughes). The queen married her first cousin, a common practice of the time, and maintained power within the family. Even so, the two shared a passionate relationship in life and in the PBS series.

Victoria and Albert are a delightfully romantic cornerstone of the series that is based on fact. Though like fire and ice, the opposites were attracted to each other and made a cohesive monarchy. In the series, Albert helps Victoria rein in her more impulsive nature and becomes a neutral political figure, which has continued in the monarchy until this day. Victoria defies all gender stereotypes in the series, lasting for three seasons. The show only covers the first few years of her reign, but viewers can catch all the drama and romance by streaming it on Netflix.

Victoria

Like Follow Followed TV-PG Drama Release Date 2016 - 2019-00-00

Cast

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• Jenna Coleman
• Tom Hughes
• Nell Hudson
• Ferdinand Kingsley

Genres Drama Creator(s) Daisy Goodwin Powered by Expand Collapse

• TV Features
• Victoria
• Jenna Coleman

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