Queen Victoria replaced him. Salisbury remained prime minister for the remainder of Victoria's reign. On 23 September 1896, Victoria surpassed her grandfather George III as the longest-reigning monarch in British history. The Queen requested that any special celebrations be delayed until 1897, to coincide with her Diamond Jubilee, which was made a festival of the British Empire at the suggestion of the Colonial Secretary, Joseph Chamberlain. The prime ministers of all the self-governing Dominions were invited to London for the festivities. One reason for including the prime ministers of the Dominions and excluding foreign heads of state was to avoid having to
Statue of Queen Victoria, Bangalore Further poets from the Madras Presidency and the Kingdom of Mysore wrote verses describing her beauty, as a result of the youthful image being presented. The diamond jubilee of the reign of Queen Victoria was celebrated in Bangalore four months ahead of England. The Wodeyars had issued commemorative flags, as they were grateful that the Kingdom of Mysore was restored to the Wodeyars by Queen Victoria by appointing the mother of Krishnaraja Wadiyar III as the regent of Mysore. Studying the Royal records reveal that Queen Victoria was very concerned about the condition of women and had directed setting up