Walter Dean Myer's At Her Majesty's Request: A Review by Ms. Lane!

Who would ever have thought the queen of England had an African goddaughter? It’s true. African princess, Sarah, at age 5 survived the slaughter of her parents and her village by a Dahoman tribe. Sarah was spared and taken into captivity for human sacrifice in the bloody Dahoman ritual known as “watering the graves.” The Dahomans believed to honor their ancestors they must kill their captured and spread the blood of their victims over the graves of their ancestors. The markings on Sarah’s face indicated she was of royal blood and Sarah’s royal blood would please the Dahoman ancestors. Sarah was rescued from this ritual by a British captain, Commander Forbes, who convinced the Dahoman king that the England’s queen would not respect a king who killed a child. As a result Sarah was given as a present to Queen Victoria by the Dahoman king. When Captain Forbes returned to England with the child the queen sent for little Sarah and was so impressed with Sarah’s intelligence and personality she took the child under her protection and oversaw her upbringing, education and even Sarah’s marriage. Sarah lived a privileged life in London. She married, returned to Africa with her husband and taught school there. The queen continued to provide an annuity for Sarah and for Sarah’s daughter, Victoria, after Sarah’s death. Young Victoria was a regular a visitor to the Queen Victoria. When the queen died young Victoria was one of her last visitors. This is an enthralling nonfiction story is based on true events discovered in a stack of letters found in an old antique store in London.