# King Leopold — Queen Victoria character guide > King Leopold in Queen Victoria by Lytton Strachey. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** Leopold, Uncle Leopold, the wily old King **First appearance:** 0002-i-antecedents ## Snapshot Victoria's calculating uncle and King of the Belgians, forever offering advice and insinuations that his devoted niece accepts with perfect affection and perfect refusal. ## Who they are Leopold writes constantly to his niece, mixing endearments with hints about English foreign policy that he clearly hopes to steer. Victoria answers with unyielding respect: she loves her uncle, but his province is not hers, and her Ministers' business is not his. His running correspondence with her matters because it exposes the strange compound of childishness, pride, and fixed determination in the young Queen, and foreshadows the imperious temper that will harden as her reign proceeds. ## Relationships ### [Queen Victoria](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/queen_victoria) _family_ Victoria's uncle and trusted advisor, who acted as a surrogate father figure and political guide through extensive correspondence. ### [Duchess of Kent](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/duchess_of_kent) _family_ Siblings who collaborated closely to arrange Victoria's marriage and influence her upbringing, with Leopold advising the Duchess. ### [Queen Victoria](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/queen_victoria) _family_ Victoria's uncle and trusted advisor, who acted as a surrogate father figure and political guide through extensive correspondence. ### [Queen Victoria](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/queen_victoria) _family_ Victoria's uncle and trusted advisor, who acted as a surrogate father figure and political guide through extensive correspondence. ### [Duchess of Kent](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/duchess_of_kent) _family_ Siblings who collaborated closely to arrange Victoria's marriage and influence her upbringing, with Leopold advising the Duchess. ### [Duchess of Kent](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/duchess_of_kent) _family_ Siblings who collaborated closely to arrange Victoria's marriage and influence her upbringing, with Leopold advising the Duchess. ## In the story ### [I: Antecedents](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/i-antecedents) Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg at this time; marries Princess Charlotte in 1816, becomes a widower after her death, and later plays a key role in the Coburg family's rise. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/i) Referred to as Prince Leopold at this time; later becomes King of the Belgians. ### [Chapter III: The Duke of Kent's Dilemma](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iii) Referenced as Prince Leopold, whose popularity with the nation makes the Princess of Saxe-Coburg a favorable marriage candidate for the Duke of Kent. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iv) Mentioned as the brother of the Duchess of Kent, who made a career for himself and married the heiress of England. ### [II: Childhood](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ii-childhood) Victoria's uncle and 'second father,' who left for Belgium when she was eleven but remained a distant paternal influence through correspondence. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ii) Provides financial support to the Duchess and offers Victoria joyful visits to Claremont, treating her with kindness and seriousness. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iii) Victoria's uncle, who left England to become King of the Belgians when she was eleven, but remained a father figure through correspondence. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iv) Writes an indignant letter to Victoria criticizing King William's interference and urging her to assert her spirit. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/v) Writes letters of advice to Victoria and sends Baron Stockmar to guide her during the crisis. ### [Lord Melbourne](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iii-lord-melbourne) Uncle of the Queen, whose political interference is rebuffed. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ii) Described as craving the whole apparatus of royalty, seeking to be a crowned head with all appropriate circumstances, and corresponding with the Queen of England. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iv) Uncle Leopold is an unsubstantial shadow, incidental to Victoria's early reign. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/v) Leopold attempts to use his family position to influence British foreign policy, but is repeatedly rebuffed by Victoria, leading to a shift in his letters toward personal and nostalgic topics. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/vi) Corresponds with Victoria but is rebuffed in his attempts to influence foreign policy. His insinuations and entreaties are useless against the Queen's rigidity. ### [Happiness and Turmoil](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/viii) Pushes for Victoria to marry Albert; Victoria writes to him to clarify there is no formal engagement. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/i) Uncle to both Albert and Victoria; he desired the marriage and consulted Stockmar about it. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ii) Corresponds with Victoria, but she finds him 'ungracious' and resents his attempts to control. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iv) Recipient of Victoria's rapturous letters; his court is described as gloomy and his wife oppressed by his strictness. ### [The Victorian Age in Full Swing](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/vi) Receives a letter from Victoria about Lord Melbourne's impending death. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/vii) Victoria writes to him after the opening, calling it the greatest day in history. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/i) Referenced as a Coburg firmly fixed in Belgium and as an uncle to Victoria and Albert. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ii) Not directly mentioned in the provided excerpts, but his influence is implied through the Coburg connections and the Queen's sympathies. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/iii) Recipient of a letter from Victoria expressing her emotions about the soldiers. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ii) Victoria writes to him expressing her grief and determination, and fears he might try to interfere in her affairs. ### [Old Age](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/ix-old-age) His death in 1865 is noted as removing the predominant figure of the older generation. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/i) His death in 1865 removed the predominant figure of the older generation. ### [X: The End](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/x-the-end) Recalled with his soft voice at Claremont. ### [Endnotes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/chapters/endnotes) Referenced in letters and historical accounts. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters/king_leopold - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/queen_victoria_se/characters