In season 5 of The Crown on Netflix, Queen Elizabeth II is supposed to have Queen Victoria Syndrome, but she considers the comparison to the monarch a compliment.
The Crown: What is Queen Victoria Syndrome?
Queen Victoria was the longest-serving British monarch, that is, until Elizabeth II. Her reign prevailed for 63 years, starting in 1837 and ending with her death in 1901. She ruled throughout the empire-building years and witnessed the Commonwealth grow during her reign.
In The Crown, the phrase “Queen Victoria Syndrome” is used to classify this fear or concern that the monarch is holding to power for too long or is out of touch with modern society. It signifies a belief that the queen needs to step aside to let a younger generation take on the reins of power.
Queen Victoria was presented with the idea of abdication during her reign, but she chose to remain in power. In the show, Queen Elizabeth II eventually ignores the calls for her to step aside, believing that the system requires stability. Any monarch who’d surrender to the whims of one political opinion poll is perhaps unfit for duty.
Although Elizabeth had Queen Victoria Syndrome in a sense, she didn’t perceive the “malady” in a negative light. And due to her steadfast belief in the institution, she greeted the comparison to the nineteenth-century ruler.
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