Memorial works
Victoria commissioned works that memorialised her beloved husband
Queen Victoria (1819-1901) and Prince Albert's (1819-61) marriage lasted 21 years until his premature death in 1861. Throughout their lives together, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert collected and commissioned art to celebrate their relationship, family and shared history. In her enduring grief, Queen Victoria continued this tradition, regularly commissioning new artworks and objects that memorialised Prince Albert. Queen Victoria instructed that Prince Albert’s private rooms at royal residences be preserved and documented, and initiated the creation of the mausoleum at Frogmore and the Albert Memorial Chapel at Windsor. Prince Albert was also commemorated by many public sculptures in Britain and internationally. The act of collecting perpetuates personal and cultural memory and Queen Victoria continued a number of Prince Albert’s album series and projects after his death.
