George II (George Augustus; 10 November 1683 –
25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and Ireland,
Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Hanover) and Archtreasurer and Prince-Elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727
until his death.
He was the last British monarch to have been born outside of Great Britain, and was
famous for his numerous conflicts with his father and, subsequently, with his son. As king, he exercised little control over
policy in his early reign, the government instead being controlled by Great Britain's first de
facto Prime Minister, Sir Robert
Walpole.
Early life
HSH Duke Georg August of Hanover was born at Herrenhausen Palace, Hanover
(Germany). He was the son of Georg Ludwig,
then the Hereditary Prince of Brunswick-Lüneburg, and his wife, Sophia of Celle; both George I and Sophia committed adultery but Sophia's alleged abandonment
of George led to their being divorced in 1694.
He married Margravine Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach in 1705. One of
the other Princesses considered was the Swedish Princess Hedvig Sophia of
Sweden, who became a widow 1702.
Act of Settlement
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Under the Act, the Hereditary Prince became a naturalised English subject in that same year. Anne, who had succeeded to the
English throne in 1702, admitted him to the Order of the Garter in 1706. She created
him Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Milford Haven, Viscount Northallerton and Baron
Tewkesbury on 9 November[1] of the same year.
When Anne died on 1 August 1714, George Ludwig (Louis) acceded as George I, and the Duke,
automatically became Duke of Cornwall, Duke of
Rothesay and Earl of Carrick. His father created him Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 27 September 1714.
Quarrel with the King
The Prince of Wales had an extremely poor relationship with his father. When the Princess of Wales gave birth to
Prince George William in 1717, a family quarrel ensued; at the
baptism, the Prince of Wales insisted on having the Duke of Newcastle (whom the king detested) as a godfather, whilst the King chose his brother, the Duke of York and Albany. When he publicly vituperated his father, the Prince of
Wales was temporarily put under arrest. Afterwards, the King banished his son from
St. James's Palace, the King's residence, and excluded him from all public
ceremonies.
Political opposition
The Prince of Wales did all in his power to encourage opposition to George
I's policies. His London residence, Leicester House, became a meeting place
for his father's opponents, including Sir Robert Walpole and Viscount Townshend. In 1720, Walpole encouraged the King and his son to
reconcile. In the same year, Walpole made a return to political office, from which he had been excluded since 1717.
In 1721, the economic disaster of the South Sea Bubble allowed Sir Robert to
rise to the pinnacle of government. Walpole and his Whig Party were dominant in
politics, for George I feared that the Tories
did not support the succession laid down in the Act of Settlement. The power of
the Whigs was so great that the Tories would not come to hold power for another half-century. Sir Robert essentially controlled
British government, but, by joining the King's side, lost the favour of the Prince of Wales.
Early reign
Monarchical Styles of
King George II of Great Britain |
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| Reference style |
His Majesty |
| Spoken style |
Your Majesty |
| Alternative style |
Sire |
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George II succeeded to the throne at the time of his father's death on 11 June
1727, but a battle of wills continued with his son and heir-apparent, Prince Frederick. The King may have planned to exile his son to the British colonies, but, in
any event, did not actually do so. George was crowned at Westminster Abbey on
4 October. The Hanoverian composer Handel was
commissioned to write four new anthems for the coronation; one of which, Zadok the
Priest, has been sung at every coronation since.
It was widely believed both that George would dismiss Walpole, who had distressed him by joining his father's government, and
that he would be replaced by Sir Spencer Compton; George
requested Compton, rather than Walpole, to write his first speech for him. Sir Spencer, however, requested Walpole for aid in the
task, leading Queen Caroline, an ardent supporter of Sir Robert, to claim that Compton was incompetent. George did not behave
obstinately; instead, he agreed with his wife and retained Walpole as Prime Minister, who continued to slowly gain royal favour,
securing a generous civil list of £800,000 for the King.
He also persuaded many Tory politicians to accept the succession laid down in the Act of Settlement as valid. In turn, the
King helped Sir Robert to gain a strong parliamentary majority by creating peers sympathetic to
the Whigs.
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British Royalty |
|
House of Hanover |
 |
|
George II |
| Frederick, Prince of Wales |
| Anne, Princess of Orange |
| Princess Amelia Sophia |
| Princess Caroline Elizabeth |
| William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland |
| Mary, Landgravine of Hesse-Cassel |
| Louise, Queen of Denmark |
| Grandchildren |
| Augusta Charlotte, Duchess of Brunswick |
| George III |
| Edward Augustus, Duke of York |
| Princess Elizabeth Caroline |
| William Henry, Duke of
Gloucester |
| Henry Frederick, Duke of
Cumberland |
| Caroline Matilda, Queen of Denmark |
| Great-grandchildren |
| Princess Sophia of Gloucester |
| William Frederick, Duke of
Gloucester |
Whilst the Queen was still alive, Walpole's position was secure. He was the master of domestic policy, and he still exerted
some control over George's foreign policy. Whilst the King was eager for war in Europe, the Prime Minister was more cautious.
Thus, in 1729, he encouraged George to sign a peace treaty with Spain.
In 1732, by granting a charter to James Oglethorpe, the King created the
Province of Georgia in British North
America, which was named after him.
Family problems
George's relationship with the Prince of Wales worsened during the 1730s. When the Prince of
Wales married, an open quarrel broke out; the King banished him and his family from the royal court in 1737.
After banishing his son, George also lost his wife, who died on 20 November
1737. Reputedly, when she asked her husband to remarry, he replied, "Non, j'aurai des maitresses!"
(French for "No, I will have mistresses!"). George had already had an illegitimate son,
Johann Ludwig, Graf von Wallmoden-Gimborn (22 April
1736 - 10 October 1811) by his
mistress Amalie von Wallmoden, Countess of Yarmouth
(1704-1765). The most famous of his mistresses was Henrietta Howard, Countess of Suffolk, who was one of Caroline's
ladies-of-the-bedchamber.
War and rebellion
Against Walpole's advice, George once again entered into war, the War of Jenkins'
Ear, with Spain in 1739. The entire continent of Europe was plunged into war upon the death of the Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI in 1740. At dispute was the right of his daughter,
Maria Theresa, to succeed to his Austrian dominions. George II's war with Spain
quickly became part of the War of the Austrian Succession.
Sir Robert Walpole was powerless to prevent a major European conflict. He also faced the opposition of several politicians,
led by John, Baron Carteret, later Earl Granville. Accused of rigging
an election, Walpole retired, in 1742, after over twenty years in office. He was replaced by Spencer Compton, 1st
Earl of Wilmington, George's original choice for the
premiership, who had previously failed to gain office due to the manœuvres of Queen Caroline. Lord Wilmington, however, was a
figurehead; actual power was held by Lord Carteret. When Lord Wilmington died in 1743, Henry
Pelham took his place.
The pro-war faction was led by Lord Carteret, who claimed that if Maria Theresa failed to succeed to the Austrian Throne, then
French power in Europe would increase. George II agreed to send more troops to Europe, ostensibly to support Maria Theresa, but
in reality to prevent enemy troops from marching into Hanover. The British army had not fought in a major European war in over
twenty years, during which time the government had badly neglected its upkeep. Nevertheless, the King enthusiastically sent his
troops to Europe. He personally accompanied them, leading them into the Battle of
Dettingen in 1743, thus becoming the last British monarch to lead troops into battle. His armies were controlled by his
military-minded son, HRH The Duke of Cumberland. The
war was not welcomed by the British public, who felt that the King and Lord Carteret were subordinating British interests to
Hanoverian ones.
Half-Crown of George II, 1746. The inscription reads GEORGIUS II DEI GRATIA (George II by the Grace of
God). Under the King's head is the word LIMA, signifying that the coin was struck from silver seized from the Spanish treasure
fleet off
Lima,
Peru.
Shrewdly, George II's French opponents encouraged rebellion by the Jacobites during the
War of the Austrian Succession. The Jacobites were the supporters of the Roman Catholic James II, who had been deposed in 1689 and replaced not by his Catholic son, but by his Protestant
daughter. James II's son, James Francis Edward Stuart, known as the Old
Pretender, had attempted two prior rebellions; that of 1715, "the Fifteen", which
was after he fled to France; and the rebellion of 1719, "the Nineteen", which was so
weak that it was almost farcical. The Old Pretender's son, Charles Edward Stuart,
popularly known, both then and since, as Bonnie Prince Charlie, however, led a much stronger rebellion on his father's
behalf in 1745.
Bonnie Prince Charlie landed in Scotland in July 1745. Many Scots were loyal to his cause; he defeated British forces in
September. He then attempted to enter England, where even Roman Catholics seemed hostile to the invasion. The French monarch,
Louis XV, had promised to send twelve thousand soldiers to aid the rebellion, but did
not deliver. A British army under the Duke of Cumberland, meanwhile, drove the Jacobites back into Scotland. On 16 April 1746, Bonnie Prince Charlie faced the Duke of Cumberland in the
Battle of Culloden, the last battle ever fought on British soil. The ravaged Jacobite
troops were routed by the British Government Army. Bonnie Prince Charlie escaped to France, but many of his Scottish supporters
were caught and executed. Jacobitism was all but crushed; no further serious attempt was made at restoring the House of
Stuart.
After the Forty-Five, the War of the Austrian Succession continued. Peace was made in 1748, with Maria Theresa being
recognised as Archduchess of Austria. She subsequently dropped Great Britain as a key ally, deeming it too unreliable.
Later life
For the remainder of his life, George did not take any active interest in politics or war. During his last years, the
foundation of the Industrial Revolution was laid as the population rose rapidly.
British dominance in India increased with the victories of Robert Clive at the Battle of Arcot and the
Battle of Plassey.
When the Prince of Wales died suddenly in 1751, his son, Prince George immediately succeeded him as Duke of Edinburgh.
The new Duke was soon created Prince of Wales in recognition of his status as heir-apparent. However, the Dowager Princess of Wales mistrusted the King, and kept the two apart.
In 1752, Great Britain reformed its calendar. It had previously operated under the
Julian Calendar, but during 1752 adopted the Gregorian Calendar. The calendar change required omitting eleven days; 2 September was followed by 14 September. Furthermore,
1 January became the official beginning of the New Year, instead of 25 March. The former date had been commonly regarded as the beginning of the New Year for a long time, but the
latter was retained in formal usage. To ensure consistency of financial record keeping, and to prevent annual payments falling
due before they would have under the Julian Calendar, the fiscal year was not shortened, with the result that in the United
Kingdom each tax year has since begun on 6 April.
In 1754, King George issued the charter for King's College in New York City, which
would later become Columbia University after the American Revolution. George's Prime Minister, Henry Pelham died in 1754, to be succeeded by his
brother, the Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and,
thereafter, by the Duke of Devonshire in 1756. Another notable
minister was William Pitt, the Elder. Pitt was appointed a Secretary
of State in Lord Devonshire's administration, but was disliked by the King, for he had previously opposed involvement in the War
of the Austrian Succession. The hostility was marked by George's criticism of Pitt's speeches in early 1757. In April of the same
year, George dismissed Pitt, but later recalled him. At the same time, Lord Newcastle returned as Prime Minister.
As Secretary of State for the Southern Department,
Pitt the Elder guided policy relating to the Seven Years' War, which may be viewed as a
continuation of the War of the Austrian Succession. Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria, made an alliance with her nation's
former enemies, Russia and France, and became the enemy of Great Britain and Hanover. George II
feared that this new alliance would invade Hanover; thus, he aligned himself with Prussia. Great Britain, Hanover and Prussia
were thus pitted against many major European powers, including Austria, Russia, France, Sweden
and Saxony. The war spread from Europe to North America (where the conflict is also known as the
French and Indian War) and to India, where it
was termed the Second Carnatic War.
Statue of George II in
Golden Square,
Soho,
London. By
John Nost the elder, this was erected in 1753, but had
actually been made 33 years previously for the
Duke of Chandos. It is badly corroded (it
has been suggested that this is due to over-zealous cleaning) and the right hand is damaged. The only other public statue of this
king in London is at the
Royal Naval College in
Greenwich. (January 2006)
The King died unceremoniously of aortic dissection while seated on the lavatory on
25 October 1760. He was subsequently buried in Westminster Abbey. He was succeeded by his grandson, who became George III.
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles
Styles
In Great Britain, George II used the official style "George the Second, by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain,
France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc." In
some cases (especially in treaties), the formula "Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Archtreasurer and Prince-Elector of the Holy
Roman Empire" was added before "etc."
His full style immediately prior to his succession was His Royal Highness The Prince George Augustus, Prince of
Wales and Earl of Chester, Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Duke of Cambridge, Marquess of Cambridge, Earl of Carrick,
Earl of Milford Haven, Viscount Northallerton, Baron Renfrew, Baron of Tewkesbury, Lord of the Isles, Prince and Great Steward of
Scotland, Hereditary Prince of Hanover, Knight of the Garter
Arms
George II's arms were: Quarterly, I Gules three lions passant guardant in pale Or (for
England) impaling Or a lion rampant within a tressure flory-counter-flory Gules (for Scotland); II Azure three fleurs-de-lys Or
(for France); III Azure a harp Or stringed Argent (for Ireland); IV tierced per pale and per chevron (for Hanover), I Gules two
lions passant guardant Or (for Brunswick), II Or a semy of hearts Gules a lion rampant Azure (for Lüneburg), III Gules a horse
courant Argent (for Westfalen), overall an escutcheon Gules charged with the crown of Charlemagne Or (for the dignity of Archtreasurer of the Holy Roman Empire).
Ancestors
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16. William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg |
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8. George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg |
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17. Dorothea of Denmark |
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4. Ernest Augustus, Elector of Hanover |
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18. Louis V, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt |
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9. Anne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt |
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19. Magdalena of
Brandenburg |
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2. George I of Great Britain |
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20. Frederick IV, Elector Palatine |
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10. Frederick V, Elector Palatine |
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21. Countess Louise Juliana of Nassau |
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5. Sophia, Princess Palatine of the Rhine |
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22. James I of England |
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11. Princess Elizabeth Stuart of Scotland |
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23. Anne of Denmark |
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1. George II of Great
Britain |
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24. William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (= 16) |
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12. George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (= 8) |
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25. Dorothea of Denmark (= 17) |
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6. George William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg |
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26. Louis V, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt (= 18) |
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13. Anne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt (= 9) |
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27. Magdalena of Brandenburg
(= 19) |
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3. Sophia Dorothea of Celle |
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28. Alexander d'Esnier,
Seigneur d'Olbreuse |
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14. Alexander II d'Esnier,
Marquis de Desmiers |
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29. Marie Baudouin |
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7. Eleonore d'Esnier,
Countess of Williamsburg |
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30. Joachim Poussard,
Seigneur de Bas Vandre |
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15. Jacquette Poussard de
Vendre |
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31. Susan Gaillard |
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Issue
Caroline's nine pregnancies, between 1707 and 1724, resulted in
eight live births:
