How old was Queen Victoria when she became queen? The answer is 18.
Victoria became queen at age 18 on 20 June 1837, when her uncle, King William IV, died. She had turned 18 less than a month earlier, on 24 May. Because she had reached the legal age required to rule independently, a regency was avoided.
She was awakened early at Kensington Palace and informed that the king had died and that she was now queen. Victoria reportedly received the news alone, then met the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lord Chamberlain. Her accession marked the beginning of a reign that lasted nearly 64 years.
Her coronation took place later, on 28 June 1838, at Westminster Abbey, when she was 19. This distinction often causes confusion: she became queen at 18, but was crowned at 19. She reigned until her death in 1901 and was succeeded by her son, Edward VII.