King Edward VII

Prince Albert Edward Wettin Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was born on November 9, 1841 to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Great Britain. He was the second child and first son which meant that he would become King after his mother died. As he grew up he was compared unfavorably to his father and then his very bright older sister, Vicky. His childhood was unsubstantial. He went to school and periodically went on vacation to Osborne House, or Balmoral. When he was about 20 years old he was sent to Scotland to undergo a sort of boot camp for the army. While he was there he had his first taste of sex when his friends put Nelly Clifton in his bed. He was very discreet about the affair but his father's friends found out about it and told him. Prince Albert, who was sick, made the journey to Oxford where Bertie, as he was called, was at University. Albert told his son that he should forget about it because the consequences for that type of lifestyle would be too great. Albert returned to London and shortly afterward died. Victoria blamed Bertie for the rest of her life. It was also around this time that Bertie got married. His choice of a wife was very important because she would someday be the Queen. He met Alexandra, a Danish Princess, on what was essentially a blind date. Queen Victoria knew that he would not accept anybody that the family would pick out for him so she had Alexandra meet him at a designated site in Germany.

On March 10, 1863 they were married and eventually had six children together. Even though he was the Prince of Wales his mother did not involve him in matters of state. Because of this he had no demands on his time and did what he liked. What he liked was drinking, having sex, and having fun with his friends. During the almost 40 years between the time he married and the time he became King, Bertie allegedly fathered several children besides the ones with his wife.

Children: Prince Albert Victor, King George V, Louise Victoria Alexandra Dagmar (1867-1931), Victoria Alexandra Olga Mary (1868-1935), Dronning Maud, and Alexander John Charles Albert (1871-1871).

In January 1901 his mother died, making him King Edward VII.

His Coronation had originally been intended for 26 June 1902, but had to be delayed until 9 August when the King underwent life-saving surgery for appendicitis.

He delayed his state visit to Russia in 1906 until 1908 due to concerns over what was happening under Tsar Nicholas II's rule.

Considered abdicating in the winter of 1909 due to ill health and the stress of the Irish Home Rule movement.