Frederick V, b. Aug. 26, 1596, d. Nov. 29, 1632, elector palatine(1610-20) and king of Bohemia (1619-20), called the Winter King, waslargely responsible for the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War.
A member of the Calvinist Palatine branch of the house of Wittelsbach,Frederick V was the nephew of Maurice of Nassau, virtual ruler of theNetherlands. In 1613 he married Elizabeth, daughter of James I ofEngland. The couple shared religion, personal charm, ambition, andpolitical incompetence. In 1619 the rebellious Bohemians electedFrederick king. Failing to receive support from his powerful relatives,Frederick was defeated in 1620 by the armies of the Holy Roman emperorand the Catholic League and fled. His generals and other allies continuedthe war, but the emperor bestowed the Upper Palatinate and the electorateon Frederick's distant relative, Maximilian, duke of Bavaria.
H. G. Koenigsberger
Bibliography: Wedgwood, Cecelia V., The Thirty Years' War (1969).
The house of Hanover, the ruling dynasty of the electorate (laterkingdom) of Hanover in Germany, supplied five British monarchs between1714 and 1837. Their title derived from the marriage of Elizabeth,daughter of the Stuart king James I, to Frederick V, elector Palatine;the last surviving offspring of this match, Sophia (1630-1714), marriedErnest Augustus, who in 1692 became the first elector of Hanover.Sophia's title to the English throne was recognized, for lack of betterqualified Protestant heirs, by the Act of Settlement of 1701. Shepredeceased the last Protestant Stuart ruler in Britain, Queen Anne, buther son George I duly succeeded to the throne in 1714.
Despite a serious threat from the legitimate, but staunchly RomanCatholic, Stuart line (see Stuart family), George I was followed by hisson George II in 1727, by his great-grandson George III in 1760, and bythe latter's sons George IV in 1820 and William IV in 1830. In 1837 theBritish throne passed to a granddaughter of George III, Victoria, whilethe kingdom of Hanover, which could not be inherited by females, passedto the next male descendant of George III. Victoria married Prince Albertof Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and the British royal family was thenceforwardknown by his family name, Wettin, until changed to Windsor in 1917 (seeWindsor dynasty).
The house of Hanover, the ruling dynasty of the electorate (laterkingdom) of Hanover in Germany, supplied five British monarchs between1714 and 1837. Their title derived from the marriage of Elizabeth,daughter of the Stuart king James I, to Frederick V, elector Palatine;the last surviving offspring of this match, Sophia (1630-1714), marriedErnest Augustus, who in 1692 became the first elector of Hanover.Sophia's title to the English throne was recognized, for lack of betterqualified Protestant heirs, by the Act of Settlement of 1701. Shepredeceased the last Protestant Stuart ruler in Britain, Queen Anne, buther son George I duly succeeded to the throne in 1714.
Despite a serious threat from the legitimate, but staunchly RomanCatholic, Stuart line (see Stuart family), George I was followed by hisson George II in 1727, by his great-grandson George III in 1760, and bythe latter's sons George IV in 1820 and William IV in 1830. In 1837 theBritish throne passed to a granddaughter of George III, Victoria, whilethe kingdom of Hanover, which could not be inherited by females, passedto the next male descendant of George III. Victoria married Prince Albertof Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and the British royal family was thenceforwardknown by his family name, Wettin, until changed to Windsor in 1917 (seeWindsor dynasty).
George I (of Great Britain) (1660-1727), king of Great Britain(1714-1727) and elector of Hannover (1698-1727), first of the Hannoverianline of British rulers.
George was born in Osnabrck, Hannover (now in Germany), the son ofErnest Augustus, elector of Hannover, and Sophia, granddaughter of KingJames I of England. George succeeded Queen Anne by the terms of the Actof Settlement. Thoroughly German in tastes and habits, he never learnedthe English language, and he made periodic lengthy visits to Hannover,which always remained his primary concern, despite his dutiful efforts toattend to his new kingdom's needs. He remained, however, unpopular inBritain, due in part to his private life. He divorced his wife in 1694and kept her imprisoned in Hannover. When he came to England, he broughtwith him two mistresses who both became unpopular because of their greed.Supporters of the house of Stuart, known as the Jacobites, plotted toreplace him with James II's son, James Edward Stuart, known as the OldPretender but they were defeated in battle. George appointed only Whigsas his ministers and advisers, reasoning that the Tories were favorableto the Stuart cause. He took a keen interest in foreign affairs, and itwas his judgment that made possible the formation in 1717 of the thirdTriple Alliance with the Netherlands and France. For domestic policies herelied on his ministers, James Stanhope, 1st earl Stanhope, CharlesTownshend 2nd viscount Townshend of Raynham, and Robert Walpole, 1st earlof Orford. Their sound administrative skills strengthened the position ofthe house of Hannover in Great Britain. He was succeeded by his son,George II."George I (of Great Britain)," Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 96 Encyclopedia.(c) 1993-1995 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. (c) Funk &Wagnalls Corporation. All rights reserved.
George quarreled both with his wife, Sophia Dorothea (1666-1726), whom hedivorced and incarcerated (from 1694 until her death) in punishment forher alleged infidelity.
George II (of Great Britain and Ireland) (1683-1760), king of GreatBritain and Ireland (1727-60), and elector of Hannover (1727-60), the sonof King George I.
George was born at Herrenhausen Palace in Hannover (now in Lower Saxonystate, Germany) on November 10, 1683, and he grew up a German prince. In1705 he married Caroline of Ansbach, an intelligent woman who wieldedgreat influence over her husband and thereby on government. Like hisfather, George II was more interested in Hannover than in Great Britain,and during his many absences from London Caroline frequently acted asregent. During the war of the Austrian Succession (1740-48), the kingsubordinated the interests of Great Britain to those of his Germanprincipality. This policy was unpopular in Great Britain, but the kingwon admiration for his courage at the Battle of Dettingen in Bavaria(1743), the last engagement in which a British monarch participated inperson. George II contributed to the material progress of Great Britain,mainly because he was shrewd enough to listen to his wife and heed theadvice of his ministers. He retained Sir Robert Walpole as chief ministeronly upon Caroline's insistence, and he later relied on Henry Pelham,and, toward the end of his reign, William Pitt the Elder, although heoriginally had a great dislike for him. George's reign was marked by thesuppression of the last major Jacobite rebellion (see Jacobites) and bythe successful prosecution-at Pitt's initiative-of the Seven Years' War.He was succeeded by his grandson George III. George died at KensingtonPalace, London, on October 25, 1760."George II (of Great Britain and Ireland)," Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 96Encyclopedia. (c) 1993-1995 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.(c) Funk & Wagnalls Corporation. All rights reserved.
Although George has been represented as a king manipulated by his ownministers--notably Sir Robert Walpole and the duke of Newcastle--and byhis highly intelligent wife, Queen Caroline (1683-1737), he was by nomeans a weak monarch.
George III (1738-1820), king of Great Britain and Ireland (1760-1820),who presided over the loss of Britain's American colonies; he was alsoelector of Hannover (1760-1815) and, by decision of the Congress ofVienna, king of Hannover (1815-20).
George III was the longest reigning of male British monarchs. Born onJune 4, 1738, he was the son of Frederick, prince of Wales, and thegrandson of George II. He succeeded his grandfather in 1760, his fatherhaving died in 1751.
George had high but impractical ideas of kingship. On his accession hesought to rule without regard to party, to banish corruption frompolitical practice, and to abandon the Hanoverian preoccupations of hispredecessors. The chief minister chosen to implement his new system ofpolitics, the third earl of Bute (1713-92), however, was an unpracticedpolitician who merely succeeded in disrupting the established politics ofthe day without creating a viable alternative. The result was 10 years ofministerial instability and public controversy, which ended only in 1770with the appointment of Frederick, Lord North, an able and congenialminister.
Although never an autocratic monarch in the sense that his opponentscontended, George III was always a powerful force in politics. He was astrong supporter of the war against America, and he viewed the concessionof independence in 1783 with such detestation that he consideredabdicating his throne. At the same time he fought a bitter personal feudwith the Whig leader Charles James Fox, and his personal interventionbrought the fall of the Fox-North ministry in 1783. He then found anotherminister, William Pitt, the Younger, who suited him. Even as late as 1801he preferred, however, to force Pitt to resign as prime minister ratherthan permit Catholic Emancipation, a measure that he interpreted ascontrary to his coronation oath to uphold the Church of England.
After 1801 George III was increasingly incapacitated by an illness,sometimes identified as porphyria, that caused blindness and senility.His recurring bouts of insanity became a political problem and ultimatelycompelled him to submit to the establishment of a formal Regency in 1811.The regent was his oldest son, the future George IV, one of 15 childrenborne him by his wife, Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
George III was bitterly criticized by Whig historians of his own andlater days. But 20th-century scholarship has somewhat redressed thebalance, and he is now seen as a strong-minded but public-spiritedmonarch who perhaps ascended the throne at an overly young andimpressionable age. He learned quickly, however, and developed into ashrewd and sensible statesman, although one of conservative views. To thecourt he brought a sense of public duty and private morality that provedpopular in a society already being transformed by the evangelicalrevival. He showed considerable interest in agricultural improvement andwas an avid collector of paintings and books. The best loved of theHanoverian rulers, he enjoyed a personal reputation that stood his housein good stead during the disastrous reign of his son George. George IIIdied on Jan. 29, 1820.
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
15 children borne him by his wife, Charlotte Sophia ofMecklenburg-Strelitz.
William IV, b. Aug. 21, 1765, d. June 20, 1837, known from his earlierservice in the Royal Navy as the Sailor King, ruled Great Britain andIreland from 1830 to 1837. The third son of George III, he had a largefamily (the FitzClarences) as a result of his liaison with an Irishactress. After his niece Charlotte died (1817) and he became heirpresumptive, he hurriedly married Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen;their two children died in infancy, however. A vulgar man, William soughtpopularity after he succeeded his brother, George IV. He briefly welcomedthe accession to power of the Whigs and Canningites with theirparliamentary Reform Bill, dissolving Parliament to secure a majority forit in the House of Commons. Other Whig proposals soured him, however. Topass the Reform Act in the House of Lords, he reluctantly agreed (1832)to create new peers (an action that eventually proved unnecessary). Hisrefusal late in 1834 to accept Lord John Russell as leader of the Commonswas virtually a dismissal of the Whig government of Lord Melbourne andgave a definite advantage to the Tory party. After the Whigs narrowly wonthe 1835 election and he was forced to deal with the uncongenialMelbourne, William welcomed the Tories' power of obstruction in the Houseof Lords. He was succeeded by Queen Victoria, his niece.
George IV (1762-1830), king of Great Britain and Ireland (1820-30), andking of Hannover (1820-30).
George was born in London on August 12, 1762, the eldest son of KingGeorge III. As prince of Wales, he became notorious for his profligacyand extravagance. Despite his father's strongly anti-Catholic views, hesecretly married a Roman Catholic, Mrs. Maria Anne Fitzherbert, in 1785;less than two years later, to obtain money for his debts, he allowedParliament to declare the marriage illegal, which in fact it was by theterms of acts governing royal marriages and succession. In 1795, again toliquidate his debts, he married his cousin, Caroline of Brunswick, butthey became estranged after the birth of their daughter, PrincessCharlotte, in 1796. His misconduct alienated the British people; when hetried to divorce Caroline, charging her with adultery, she was soenthusiastically supported by the London crowds that her trial had to beabandoned. His cleverness and gracious manners, however, gave him thename of "first gentleman of Europe." George became prince regent in 1811,when his father became mentally unable to discharge his duties, andsucceeded to the throne in 1820. The outstanding event of his reign wasthe passage of the Catholic Emancipation Act, which the king opposed.George IV died at Windsor Palace on June 26, 1830, and was succeeded byhis brother William IV."George IV," Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 96 Encyclopedia. (c) 1993-1995Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. (c) Funk & WagnallsCorporation. All rights reserved.
In 1795, again to liquidate his debts, he married his cousin, Caroline ofBrunswick, but they became estranged after the birth of their daughter,Princess Charlotte, in 1796.
Princess Victoria, daughter of the duke of Saxe-Coburg.
Albert (prince consort), full name Albert Francis Charles AugustusEmmanuel of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1819-1861), prince consort to QueenVictoria of England. He was born near Coburg, Germany, a younger son ofErnest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. In 1840 he married Victoria, who hadbeen queen for three years, and he soon became her most trusted adviser.In this role he exerted enormous influence on policies and events, ininternational as well as national matters. He was an active and effectivepatron of the arts and sciences, organizing such enterprises as theepochal Great Exhibition of 1851 at the Crystal Palace, to stimulate thegrowth of British commerce, industry, and national pride. Althoughregarded by many Britons as a meddling foreigner, Albert succeeded instrengthening the monarchy and in encouraging social progress.Overburdened with work, he succumbed to typhoid fever at the age of 42.
"Albert (prince consort)," Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 96 Encyclopedia. (c)1993-1995 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. (c) Funk & WagnallsCorporation. All rights reserved.
Victoria (queen), (1819-1901), queen of the United Kingdom of GreatBritain and Ireland (1837-1901) and empress of India (1876-1901).
Born Alexandrina Victoria on May 24, 1819, in Kensington Palace, London,Victoria was the daughter of Victoria Mary Louisa, daughter of the dukeof Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; her father was Edward Augustus, duke of Kent andStrathern, the fourth son of George III and youngest brother of George IVand William IV, kings of Great Britain. Because William IV had nolegitimate children, his niece Victoria became heir apparent to theBritish crown upon his accession in 1830. On June 20, 1837, with thedeath of William IV, she became queen at the age of 18.
Early in her reign Victoria developed a serious concern with affairs ofstate, guided by her first prime minister, William Lamb, 2nd ViscountMelbourne. Melbourne was leader of that wing of the Whig party that laterbecame known as the Liberal party. He exercised a strongly progressiveinfluence on the political thinking of the queen.Marriage
In 1840 Victoria was married to her first cousin, Albert, prince ofSaxe-Coburg-Gotha, whom she had known for about four years. Although thiswas a marriage of state, it was a highly romantic and successful one, andVictoria was devoted to her domestic responsibilities. The first of theirnine children was Victoria Adelaide Mary Louise, later empress ofGermany. Their first son, Albert Edward, prince of Wales and later kingof Great Britain as Edward VII, was born in 1841. When the conservativePrince Albert convinced her that Liberal policy jeopardized the future ofthe Crown, the queen began to lose her enthusiasm for the party. After1841, when the Melbourne government fell and Sir Robert Peel became primeminister, Victoria was an ardent supporter of the Conservative party.Also under Albert's influence, she began to question the tradition thatrestricted the British sovereign to an advisory role. In 1850 shechallenged the authority of Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston,foreign secretary in the Whig government that had been in power since1846. Her position was that the sovereign should at least be consulted onforeign policy. Palmerston, independent and self-assertive, ignored therequest. Their struggle reached a climax in 1851, when the primeminister, Lord John Russell, who was also displeased with Palmerston'sarbitrary methods, dismissed him from the foreign office. Theiraltercations with Palmerston, one of the most popular political leadersin the country, caused Victoria and Albert to lose some of the esteem oftheir subjects. Their popularity dwindled even more in 1854, when theytried to avert the Crimean War. After the war had begun, however, theygave it their wholehearted support. In 1856, shortly before the end ofthe war, the queen instituted the Victoria Cross, the highest Britishaward for wartime valor.
In 1857, Victoria had the title of prince consort bestowed on Albert.Four years later he died, and she remained in virtual mourning for muchof the rest of her life. She avoided public appearances, letting theprince of Wales fulfill most of the royal ceremonial duties. Her detailedpersonal interest in the affairs of state continued, however.Reign After 1861
Several prime ministers served during the latter part of Victoria'sreign, but only the Conservative party leader Benjamin Disraeli, who heldoffice in 1868 and from 1874 to 1880, gained her confidence. Heingratiated himself with the queen by his cultivated personal approachand his gift for flattery. He also allowed her a free hand in theawarding of church, military, and some political appointments. She fullyendorsed his policy of strengthening and extending the British Empire,and in 1876 Disraeli secured for her the title of empress of India. Sherarely agreed with the brilliant leader of the Liberal party, William E.Gladstone, who served as prime minister four times between 1868 and 1894.Victoria disapproved of the democratic reforms he enunciated, such asabolishing the purchase of military commissions and legalizing tradeunions, and his powerful intellectualized method of argument. She wasalso strongly opposed to his policy of home rule for Ireland. TheConservative leader Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess ofSalisbury, who served as prime minister three times between 1885 and1902, more often found favor with the queen. Like Disraeli, he advocatedprotecting British interests and increasing British influence abroad.British Idol
Victoria's popularity among all classes in British society reached itsheight in the last two decades of her reign. Her golden jubilee in 1887and her diamond jubilee in 1897 were occasions for great publicrejoicing. Her subjects were then enjoying an unprecedented period ofprosperous complacency, and her enthusiastic execution of the Boer Warincreased her appeal at home and abroad. Victoria died on January 22,1901. Her 63-year reign was the longest in the history of England. Herdescendants, including 40 grandchildren, married into almost every royalfamily of Europe.
With her personal example of honesty, patriotism, and devotion to familylife, Victoria became a living symbol of the solidity of the BritishEmpire. The many years of her reign, often referred to as the Victorianage, witnessed the rise of the middle class and were marked by a deeplyconservative morality and intense nationalism.
Victoria's correspondence was published in three series, Letters, 1837-61(3 vol., 1907), Letters, 1862-85 (3 vol., 1926-1928), and Letters,1886-1901 (3 vol., 1930-32).Further Reading
"Victoria (queen)," Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 96 Encyclopedia. (c)1993-1995 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. (c) Funk & WagnallsCorporation. All rights reserved.
Edward VII (1841-1910), king of Great Britain and Ireland and emperor ofIndia (1901-10). The Edwardian period is named after him.
Edward was born on November 9, 1841, in Buckingham Palace, London, theeldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, and was christened AlbertEdward. He studied at the universities of Edinburgh, Oxford, andCambridge. In 1860 he visited Canada, inaugurating the custom of goodwillvisits by members of the British royal family, particularly the prince ofWales, to British dominions and foreign countries.
In 1863 Edward married Alexandra, eldest daughter of King Christian IX ofDenmark. The prince and princess then assumed much of the burden of courtceremonials and public functions, which Queen Victoria had laid aside ongoing into virtual retirement after the death of the prince consort in1861. Edward traveled extensively. In Russia and France, particularly, hemade valuable personal contacts in political and social circles. At home,his popularity was increased both as prince of Wales and as king by hisinterest in sports, notably yachting and horse racing; his horses won theDerby in 1896, 1900, and 1909 and the Grand National at Liverpool in 1900.
Edward succeeded to the throne in 1901. From the beginning of his reignhe adopted a policy of promoting international amity in Europe, wherepolitical tension had been mounting. His visits to various Europeancapitals from 1901 to 1904 and return visits to him by European rulershelped promote the signing of arbitration treaties in 1903-4 betweenGreat Britain and France, Spain, Italy, Germany, and Portugal. He wasalso an important force behind two agreements that strengthened theposition of Great Britain on the Continent, the Entente Cordiale of 1904between France and Great Britain, and a pact between Russia and GreatBritain in 1907. In 1909 the king and queen paid a diplomatic visit toEmperor William II of Germany (Edward's nephew) that temporarilydispelled German suspicion that the increasingly friendly relationsbetween Great Britain and France and Russia were aimed at weakeningGermany. Because of his efforts to increase international amity the kingbecame known as Edward the Peacemaker.
Edward died at Buckingham Palace on May 6, 1910, having reigned for onlynine years. Three daughters and two sons were born of the marriagebetween Edward and Alexandra. The sons were Prince Albert Victor, duke ofClarence, and George, duke of York, who succeeded Edward as George V. In1896 Edward's youngest daughter, Princess Maude Charlotte Mary Victoria,married her cousin, Prince Charles of Denmark, who later became KingHåkon VII of Norway.
