Queen Victoria received the famous Dash, King Charles’s spaniel, as a gift when she was still a princess. During her childhood, she felt very alone and Dash was one of her only friends. When the dog died in 1840, three years into the Queen’s reign, she dedicated a grave to him with a touching message:
Here rests Dash, the favorite spaniel of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, at whose request this commemoration was erected. He died on December 20, 1840, following 9 years of life. His attachment was unconditional, his playfulness without malevolence and his loyalty without disappointment. Dear reader, if you want to live loved by your loved ones and die while being missed, be like Dash.
Queen Victoria has had several other dogs, but her Dash will always be the one she loved the most.