This statue of Queen Victoria cost £1,500 to build in 1902. The front is inscribed: 'Victoria Queen Empress 1837-1901 She wrought her people lasting good' (quotation taken from Tennyson); and on the back: 'Erected by the people of Leamington October 11th 1902 William Davis Mayor'. A plaque on the side of the pedestal records that: 'A German bomb moved this statue one inch on its plinth on the 14th November 1940'
When King William IV died in 1837, Victoria became Queen of the United Kingdom at the age of eighteen. Her official coronation took place on June 28, 1838. Victoria was determined to be a good queen and to restore the faith of the people of the United Kingdom in the monarchy. One of the first things she did was to pay off her father's debts. The people liked her from the start.
Victoria didn't know a lot about how to govern, however, she made a good friend and tutor in the Prime Minister at the time, Lord Melbourne. Melbourne advised Victoria on political issues and had considerable influence over her at the start of her reign.