Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society
Episode: Royal Sex: Queen Victoria
Release Date: July 4, 2025
Host: Kate Lister

Introduction

In the episode titled "Royal Sex: Queen Victoria" from the podcast Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society, host Kate Lister delves into the intimate and lesser-known aspects of Queen Victoria's personal life. Partnering with royal historians Kate Williams and Robert Harding from Kings, Queens and Dastardly Things, Lister seeks to uncover whether Queen Victoria lived up to the prudish Victorian stereotype or exhibited more passionate tendencies behind palace walls.

Queen Victoria's Relationship with Prince Albert

Queen Victoria's Devotion
Queen Victoria's diaries provide a window into her deep affection and devotion to her husband, Prince Albert. Lister highlights the intensity of their early relationship:

Kate Lister [04:31]: "Queen Victoria gave birth to 9 children over a span of 17 years. ... She wrote obsessively about how beautiful his face is and how beautiful his shirt is and his body is."

Mutual Support and Intimacy
Victoria and Albert shared a unique bond, born from their similarly challenging upbringings. Their marriage marked a departure from previous royal unions, emphasizing a companionate and affectionate partnership.

Kate Williams [04:37]: "Albert is like her rescuer. He's the rescuer of her from Mama and her court. ... She really thinks she's finally got someone as a best friend and a supporter."

Challenges of Royal Duties and Power Dynamics
Despite their deep love, the couple faced power struggles, especially as Victoria balanced her role as monarch with Victorian ideals of marital submission.

Kate Lister [15:19]: "She can't submit easily because she's the queen... it all gets very tense."

Victorian Sexual Morality and Sex Work

Middle-Class Morality vs. Reality
Victorian society often portrayed itself as morally upright, distancing itself from the perceived promiscuity of the Georgians. However, the reality was more complex, with a burgeoning underground of sex work fueled by rapid urbanization and poverty.

Kate Lister [47:35]: "Increasing urbanization... you get poverty, and wherever you get poverty, you will get people who are gonna sell sex."

The Great Social Evil and Misconceptions
Victorians were alarmed by what they termed the "great social evil" of prostitution, though many of the statistics were exaggerated.

Kate Lister [22:06]: "They were really, really worried about what they termed the great social evil, which is people selling sex."

Dollymopping and Economic Necessity
Many employed women engaged in "dollymopping," a term referring to those who maintained regular employment while supplementing their income through sex work.

Kate Williams [24:00]: "Men as well couldn't earn very much money. So you would occasionally turn to a much more lucrative industry to top up your income."

Victorian Erotica and Myths

Dispelling Common Myths
The episode tackles prevalent myths surrounding Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, including the infamous "Prince Albert piercing" and the supposed "sex button" in Osborne House.

Kate Lister [37:15]: "Prince Albert himself did not have a piercing like this. I found zero record of it."

Kate Williams [40:51]: "There's no sex button. It’s not true at all."

Understanding Victorian Erotica
Victorian erotica was more prevalent and sophisticated than commonly perceived, often intertwined with emerging technologies and societal changes.

Kate Williams [20:13]: "They invented pornographic videos and pornographic photographs despite their outward prudishness."

Influence of Innovations: The Bicycle

Bicycle as a Symbol of Liberation
The bicycle played a significant role in the women's liberation movement during the Victorian era, symbolizing newfound freedom and challenging societal norms.

Kate Lister [31:38]: "The bicycle did that. It made people geographically closer than they have been before."

Sexual Associations and Cultural Shifts
The bicycle's design and the freedom it provided led to its association with women's sexuality and autonomy, further fueling Victorian erotica.

Kate Williams [33:16]: "They won't need a man anymore if they can just get it on a bicycle."

Challenges of Victorian Dress Codes
Traditional Victorian attire, such as corsets and voluminous skirts, hindered women's ability to ride bicycles comfortably, prompting the adoption of more practical clothing like bloomers.

Kate Lister [33:27]: "You have to wear different clothes. A corset, a tight fitting corset isn't much good to you when you're on a bicycle."

Art and Intimacy in Osborne House

Intimate Art Collections
Osborne House housed an array of art that reflected the intimate relationship between Victoria and Albert, including semi-nude paintings and personal sculptures.

Kate Williams [42:55]: "Victoria bought Albert Florinda... semi naked women around a pool."

Private Spaces and Art as Expression
Much of the intimate art remained in private rooms, serving as private expressions of the royal couple's affection away from public scrutiny.

Kate Lister [43:10]: "It's very intimate when you look at it now... for a queen, it was unbelievably erotic."

Gendered Perceptions in Art
While female nudity in art was relatively accepted, male nudity remained controversial, highlighting the era's gendered double standards.

Kate Williams [45:11]: "Female nudity is very tolerated... when it comes to a naked man, it's shocking."

Conclusion: Understanding Queen Victoria's Intimate Life

The episode concludes by emphasizing that Queen Victoria's intimate life was complex and multifaceted, challenging the simplistic view of Victorian repression. Through her diaries and personal relationships, Victoria exhibited both adherence to and deviations from societal norms, painting a more nuanced picture of sexuality in the Victorian era.

Kate Williams [50:06]: "Read Victoria's diaries... they knew that sexual pleasure was very important."

Final Thoughts
Kate Lister encourages listeners to re-examine historical narratives, recognizing that figures like Queen Victoria had rich personal lives that defy conventional stereotypes.

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Kate Lister [04:31]: "Queen Victoria gave birth to 9 children over a span of 17 years... She wrote obsessively about how beautiful his face is and how beautiful his shirt is and his body is."

• Kate Williams [04:37]: "Albert is like her rescuer... She really thinks she's finally got someone as a best friend and a supporter."

• Kate Williams [50:06]: "Read Victoria's diaries... they knew that sexual pleasure was very important."

• Kate Lister [37:15]: "Prince Albert himself did not have a piercing like this. I found zero record of it."

• Kate Williams [45:11]: "Female nudity is very tolerated... when it comes to a naked man, it's shocking."

Final Remarks

In "Royal Sex: Queen Victoria," Kate Lister and her guests unravel the myths and realities of Queen Victoria's personal life, offering listeners an engaging and informative exploration of Victorian sexuality. By examining diaries, societal norms, and cultural artifacts, the episode paints a comprehensive picture of a queen who navigated love, duty, and personal desires amidst the strictures of her time.

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