Mad Kings & Queens: Raving Royals and How To Survive Them (Wednesday, 2nd Period)
Ghanima was in her usual perch, sitting on the desk and watching as the students filed into the classroom.
"George the Third, known to those of you that are Americans as Mad King George, was born in London at Norfolk House. He was the grandson of King George II, and the son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha," she said, not even waiting for the class to settle down before launching into the lecture. "Family letters show that he could read and write in both English and German, as well as comment on political events of the time, by the age of eight. He was the first British monarch to study science systematically. Apart from chemistry and physics, his lessons included astronomy, mathematics, French, Latin, history, music, geography, commerce, agriculture and constitutional law, in addition to sporting and social accomplishments such as dancing, fencing, and riding." Ghanima said crisply. "He was not the feeble-minded idiot many associate with European royalty, and was actually highly intelligent. He succeeded to the Crown when his grandfather, George II, died suddenly on 25 October 1760. On 8 September 1761, the newly-crowned King married in the Chapel Royal, St James's Palace, Duchess Sophia Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, whom he met on their wedding day. A fortnight later, both were crowned at Westminster Abbey. George remarkably never took a mistress - in contrast with both his Hanoverian predecessors, his brothers, and his sons - and the couple enjoyed a genuinely happy marriage. They had 15 children-nine sons and six daughters."
"George was deeply devout and spent hours in prayer, but his sobriety was not shared by his brothers. George was appalled by what he saw as their loose morals. In 1770, his brother Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, was exposed as an adulterer, and the following year Cumberland married a young widow, Anne Horton. The King considered her inappropriate as a royal bride: she was from a lower social class and German law barred any children of the couple from the Hanoverian succession. George III insisted on a new law that essentially forbade members of the Royal Family from legally marrying without the consent of the Sovereign. The subsequent bill was unpopular in Parliament, including among George's own ministers, but passed as the Royal Marriages Act 1772. Shortly afterward, another of George's brothers, Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, revealed he had been secretly married to Maria, Countess Waldegrave, the illegitimate daughter of Sir Edward Walpole. The news confirmed George's opinion that he had been right to introduce the law: Maria was related to his political opponents."
Ghanima smiled thinly. "Neither lady was ever received at court."
"However, by 1775, George III's health was deteriorating. He suffered from a mental illness, now widely believed to be a symptom of porphyria. A study of samples of the King's hair published in 2005 revealed high levels of arsenic, a possible trigger for the disease. Sadly, treatment for mental illness was primitive by modern standards, and the King's doctors treated the King by forcibly restraining him until he was calm, or applying caustic poultices to draw out "evil humours"."
"In 1810, at the height of his popularity but already virtually blind with cataracts and in pain from rheumatism, George's health deteriorated farther, most likely brought on by the death of his favorite child, the Princess Ameila, and eventually became completely deranged. Eventually, he became completely blind and increasingly deaf. He never knew that he was declared King of Hanover in 1814, or of the death of his wife in 1818. Over Christmas 1819, he spoke nonsense for 58 hours, and for the last few weeks of his life was unable to walk. On 29 January 1820, he died at Windsor Castle. His favourite son, Frederick, Duke of York, was with him. His death came six days after that of his fourth son, the Duke of Kent. George III was buried on 15 February in St. George's Chapel, Windsor."
"George was succeeded by two of his sons George IV and William IV, who both died without surviving legitimate children, leaving the throne to their niece, Victoria, the last monarch of the House of Hanover and the only legitimate child of the Duke of Kent."
"He lived for 81 years and 239 days and reigned for 59 years and 96 days-both his life and his reign were longer than any of his predecessors. Only George's granddaughter Queen Victoria exceeded his record, though Elizabeth II has lived longer. George himself hoped that "the tongue of malice may not paint my intentions in those colours she admires, nor the sycophant extoll me beyond what I deserve", but in the popular mind George III has been both demonized and praised due to the American Revolution and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars."
"In pursuing war with the American colonists, George III firmly believed he was defending the right of an elected Parliament to levy taxes, not seeking to expand his own power or prerogatives. Today, many scholars perceive the long reign of George III as a continuation of the reduction in the political power of monarchy, and its growth as the embodiment of national morality. Under George, who was passionately interested in agriculture, the British Agricultural Revolution reached its peak and great advances were made in fields such as science and industry. There was unprecedented growth in the rural population, which in turn provided much of the workforce for the concurrent Industrial Revolution."
[OOC: OCD coming up]
"George the Third, known to those of you that are Americans as Mad King George, was born in London at Norfolk House. He was the grandson of King George II, and the son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha," she said, not even waiting for the class to settle down before launching into the lecture. "Family letters show that he could read and write in both English and German, as well as comment on political events of the time, by the age of eight. He was the first British monarch to study science systematically. Apart from chemistry and physics, his lessons included astronomy, mathematics, French, Latin, history, music, geography, commerce, agriculture and constitutional law, in addition to sporting and social accomplishments such as dancing, fencing, and riding." Ghanima said crisply. "He was not the feeble-minded idiot many associate with European royalty, and was actually highly intelligent. He succeeded to the Crown when his grandfather, George II, died suddenly on 25 October 1760. On 8 September 1761, the newly-crowned King married in the Chapel Royal, St James's Palace, Duchess Sophia Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, whom he met on their wedding day. A fortnight later, both were crowned at Westminster Abbey. George remarkably never took a mistress - in contrast with both his Hanoverian predecessors, his brothers, and his sons - and the couple enjoyed a genuinely happy marriage. They had 15 children-nine sons and six daughters."
"George was deeply devout and spent hours in prayer, but his sobriety was not shared by his brothers. George was appalled by what he saw as their loose morals. In 1770, his brother Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, was exposed as an adulterer, and the following year Cumberland married a young widow, Anne Horton. The King considered her inappropriate as a royal bride: she was from a lower social class and German law barred any children of the couple from the Hanoverian succession. George III insisted on a new law that essentially forbade members of the Royal Family from legally marrying without the consent of the Sovereign. The subsequent bill was unpopular in Parliament, including among George's own ministers, but passed as the Royal Marriages Act 1772. Shortly afterward, another of George's brothers, Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, revealed he had been secretly married to Maria, Countess Waldegrave, the illegitimate daughter of Sir Edward Walpole. The news confirmed George's opinion that he had been right to introduce the law: Maria was related to his political opponents."
Ghanima smiled thinly. "Neither lady was ever received at court."
"However, by 1775, George III's health was deteriorating. He suffered from a mental illness, now widely believed to be a symptom of porphyria. A study of samples of the King's hair published in 2005 revealed high levels of arsenic, a possible trigger for the disease. Sadly, treatment for mental illness was primitive by modern standards, and the King's doctors treated the King by forcibly restraining him until he was calm, or applying caustic poultices to draw out "evil humours"."
"In 1810, at the height of his popularity but already virtually blind with cataracts and in pain from rheumatism, George's health deteriorated farther, most likely brought on by the death of his favorite child, the Princess Ameila, and eventually became completely deranged. Eventually, he became completely blind and increasingly deaf. He never knew that he was declared King of Hanover in 1814, or of the death of his wife in 1818. Over Christmas 1819, he spoke nonsense for 58 hours, and for the last few weeks of his life was unable to walk. On 29 January 1820, he died at Windsor Castle. His favourite son, Frederick, Duke of York, was with him. His death came six days after that of his fourth son, the Duke of Kent. George III was buried on 15 February in St. George's Chapel, Windsor."
"George was succeeded by two of his sons George IV and William IV, who both died without surviving legitimate children, leaving the throne to their niece, Victoria, the last monarch of the House of Hanover and the only legitimate child of the Duke of Kent."
"He lived for 81 years and 239 days and reigned for 59 years and 96 days-both his life and his reign were longer than any of his predecessors. Only George's granddaughter Queen Victoria exceeded his record, though Elizabeth II has lived longer. George himself hoped that "the tongue of malice may not paint my intentions in those colours she admires, nor the sycophant extoll me beyond what I deserve", but in the popular mind George III has been both demonized and praised due to the American Revolution and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars."
"In pursuing war with the American colonists, George III firmly believed he was defending the right of an elected Parliament to levy taxes, not seeking to expand his own power or prerogatives. Today, many scholars perceive the long reign of George III as a continuation of the reduction in the political power of monarchy, and its growth as the embodiment of national morality. Under George, who was passionately interested in agriculture, the British Agricultural Revolution reached its peak and great advances were made in fields such as science and industry. There was unprecedented growth in the rural population, which in turn provided much of the workforce for the concurrent Industrial Revolution."
[OOC: OCD coming up]