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Victoria's pregnancy raises the sticky topic of a Regency. When Victoria names Albert as the head of state in case of her death, the Tories are outraged by prospect of being ruled by a German prince.Albert however is still desperate to have more influence in the present. He proposes a trip to the rapidly industrialising North in an attempt to engage with the country at large. Far from the thrilling journey he anticipated, Albert is humiliated by his Tory hosts and confused by Victoria's insensitivity.In this hostile environment Albert finds a kindred spirit in Sir Robert Peel and to his delight he invites Albert to visit his railway.Below stairs, Lohlein is subject to similar antagonism for being foreign and back at the palace, Francatelli and Skerrett are starting to fall in love.

With no real role in the household, Albert feels worthless and matters are made worse when the Duke of Sussex refuses to let him take precedence at dinner. Whilst a dejected Albert hopes that an heir might garner more respect, Victoria is determined to outmanoeuvre Sussex and give Albert the esteem he deserves.Below stairs, the servants gossip over when to expect the first Royal baby and Skerrett faces a dilemma when the only person who can save her cousin and small child from imminent death is the person she trusts the least - Francatelli.Albert has his own ideas about how to make himself valuable - he decides to open the anti-slavery convention and nervously prepares his speech.

In the precious stolen moments before Albert leaves for Coburg, he asks Victoria to secure a title and settlement for him before they marry. Victoria however is more preoccupied with telling Melbourne of her engagement.In Coburg Albert fears for his future in England: husband to the most powerful woman in the world but without financial independence. Victoria meanwhile has let paranoia reign and has convinced herself that Albert only wants the money to support a mistress on the side.Melbourne finally gives Victoria the approval of her fianc? she's been seeking and at last she and Albert confront their deepest fears about married life. Victoria says her last farewell to Melbourne before she and Albert nervously prepare for their wedding night.

Prince Albert immediately puts Victoria on the defensive upon his arrival, but despite her protestations of indifference, she struggles to hide her true feelings and faces a difficult choice between the comfortable familiarity of Melbourne and the enthralling but prickly Albert.

When Victoria's uncle Leopold proposes Albert as a husband, other suitors swoop in, desperate to win the Queen's hand in marriage. Although Victoria is determined to reign alone, Leopold rightly suspects that her indifference to marriage could have something to do with the chemistry between her and Melbourne.

As Melbourne's popularity in the house wanes, the Tories eagerly await their imminent triumph. Most impatient of all is Victoria's wicked uncle Cumberland, who views Melbourne's pending defeat as a chance to prey on Victoria's vulnerability and establish a co-regency with the Duchess of Kent and Conroy.Victoria is devastated when Melbourne regretfully announces he is stepping down, and even more bewildered that she must ask a complete stranger, Sir Robert Peel, to form a government. Desperate, Victoria implores Melbourne to return as her Prime Minister and is stumped when he rejects her - Peel is the rightful candidate. Unable to accept this, Victoria concocts a plan that humiliates Peel, leaving him no choice but to refuse to form government.

18-year-old Alexandrina's life transforms upon becoming Queen; no longer hidden in Kensington Palace under the repressive system of her mother's advisor Lord Conroy, she renames herself Victoria and revels in her newfound freedom with the charismatic prime minister Lord Melbourne. But Victoria's inexperience makes her susceptible to mistakes and ultimately, scandal.