Queen Victoria reigned over England from 1838 to 1901, from age 19 to 72 years old. She was born in 1819 at Kensington Palace in London. Many Victorian-era children did not attend school and were illiterate, with boys often sent to prestigious boarding schools while girls stayed home for instruction in music, sewing, and other domestic skills. Victorian families tended to be large due to high mortality rates, and children often worked difficult jobs like chimney sweeping or in coal mines and factories to contribute to family income. Life on a Victorian farm involved many hard-working people and animals maintaining the operations of places like the blacksmith, kitchen, and mill. Corporal punishment was common in schools, with dunce caps