1.
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
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Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. A member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Philip was born into the Greek and he was born in Greece, but his family was exiled from the country when he was an infant. After being educated in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, he joined the Royal Navy in 1939, from July 1939, he began corresponding with the 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth, whom he had first met in 1934. During the Second World War he served with the Mediterranean and Pacific fleets, after the war, Philip was granted permission by King George VI to marry Elizabeth. After an engagement of five months, he married Elizabeth on 20 November 1947, just before the wedding, he was created Duke of Edinburgh. Philip left active service when Elizabeth became Queen in 1952. He was formally made a Prince of the United Kingdom in 1957, Philip has four children with Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward. He has eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, a keen sports enthusiast, Philip helped develop the equestrian event of carriage driving. He is a patron of over 800 organisations and serves as chairman of the Duke of Edinburghs Award scheme for people aged 14 to 24 and he is the longest-serving consort of a reigning British monarch and the oldest-ever male member of the British royal family. Philips four elder sisters were Margarita, Theodora, Cecilie, and he was baptised into the Greek Orthodox Church. His godparents were Queen Olga of Greece and the Mayor of Corfu, shortly after Philips birth, his maternal grandfather, Prince Louis of Battenberg, then known as Louis Mountbatten, Marquess of Milford Haven, died in London. Louis was a naturalised British citizen, who, after a career in the Royal Navy, had renounced his German titles and adopted the surname Mountbatten during the First World War. After visiting London for the memorial, Philip and his mother returned to Greece where Prince Andrew had remained behind to command an army division embroiled in the Greco-Turkish War, the war went badly for Greece and the Turks made large gains. On 22 September 1922, Philips uncle, King Constantine I, was forced to abdicate, the commander of the army, General Georgios Hatzianestis, and five senior politicians were executed. Prince Andrews life was believed to be in danger, and Alice was under surveillance, in December, a revolutionary court banished Prince Andrew from Greece for life. The British naval vessel HMS Calypso evacuated Prince Andrews family, with Philip carried to safety in a cot made from a fruit box. Philips family went to France, where settled in the Paris suburb of Saint-Cloud in a house lent to them by his wealthy aunt, Princess George of Greece. Because Philip left Greece as a baby, he not have a strong grasp of Greek
2.
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
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The Duke of Edinburghs Award, is the generic name for a youth awards programme founded in the United Kingdom in 1956 by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, that has since expanded to 144 nations. The awards recognise adolescents and young adults for completing a series of self-improvement exercises modelled on Kurt Hahns solution to the Six Declines of Modern Youth, in the United Kingdom the programme is run by The Duke of Edinburghs Award, a royal charter corporation. In February 1956, The Duke of Edinburghs Award was first announced and it was at first for boys aged 15 to 18. It was first administered, and largely designed, by John Hunt, who had led the first successful climb of Everest in 1953 and it was designed to attract boys who had not been interested in joining one of the main British youth movements, such as the Scout Association. It was not necessary to any organisation, or wear a uniform to participate. In the first 12 months,7,000 boys had enrolled for the scheme, the programme borrowed from the Moray Badge, instituted at Gordonstoun School by its headmaster, Kurt Hahn, in 1936, and the County Badge adopted in Moray in 1941. In November 1957 it was announced that girls would be invited to participate, on 19 June 1958 the Award was extended to girls, with the first girls allowed to join from 1 September 1958. The programme for girls was not the same as that for boys, the first girls received their Gold Awards on 3 November 1959 at Buckingham Palace. From January 1965, the Gold Award for boys and girls was more similar. The first Gold Awards were achieved in 1958, and the charity was established in 1959, a single programme for young people aged 14 to 21 was launched in 1969, and extended to those up to 25 years of age in 1980. In 2013, the Duke presented Awards at St Jamess Palace which included his 500th Gold Award Presentation, the first Duke of Edinburghs Award ceremony was held in the United Kingdom in 1956. Participation in DofE programmes and the number of awards achieved has grown every year since 1956, over 5 million young people in the UK have taken part in the DofE in the UK since 1956. The Duke of Edinburghs Award is a member of the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services, in 2009, the old system of keeping track of progress through paper Record Books was replaced by the introduction of a major new online system – eDofE. Participants use this system to track their progress, while Leaders use it to oversee participants progress, the Duke of Edinburghs Award programmes take between one and four years to complete, and they must be completed by the participants twenty-fifth birthday. There are around 300,000 participants annually, the programmes are at three progressive levels which, if successfully completed, lead to a Bronze, Silver or Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. With assistance from adult Leaders, participants select and set objectives in each of the following areas, physical, improving in an area of sport, dance or fitness activities. Skills, developing practical and social skills and personal interests, expedition, planning, training for and completion of an adventurous journey in the UK or abroad. At Gold level, participants must do an additional fifth Residential section, to achieve an award, the participant must work on each section for a minimum period of time, and must be monitored and assessed by someone with knowledge of the chosen activities
3.
George VI
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George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death. He was the last Emperor of India and the first Head of the Commonwealth, known as Albert until his accession, George VI was born in the reign of his great-grandmother Queen Victoria, and was named after his great-grandfather Albert, Prince Consort. As the second son of King George V, he was not expected to inherit the throne and spent his life in the shadow of his elder brother. He attended naval college as a teenager, and served in the Royal Navy, in 1920, he was made Duke of York. He married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923 and they had two daughters, Elizabeth and Margaret, in the mid-1920s, he had speech therapy for a stammer, which he never fully overcame. Georges elder brother ascended the throne as Edward VIII upon the death of their father in 1936, however, later that year Edward revealed his desire to marry divorced American socialite Wallis Simpson. British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin advised Edward that for political and religious reasons he could not marry a divorced woman, Edward abdicated in order to marry, and George ascended the throne as the third monarch of the House of Windsor. During Georges reign, the break-up of the British Empire and its transition into the Commonwealth of Nations accelerated, the parliament of the Irish Free State removed direct mention of the monarch from the countrys constitution on the day of his accession. The following year, a new Irish constitution changed the name of the state to Ireland, from 1939, the Empire and Commonwealth – except Ireland – was at war with Nazi Germany. War with Italy and Japan followed in 1940 and 1941, respectively, though Britain and its allies were ultimately victorious in 1945, the United States and the Soviet Union rose as pre-eminent world powers and the British Empire declined. After the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947, George remained king of countries, but relinquished the title of Emperor of India in June 1948. Ireland formally declared itself a republic and left the Commonwealth in 1949, George adopted the new title of Head of the Commonwealth. He was beset by problems in the later years of his reign. He was succeeded by his eldest daughter, Elizabeth II, George was born at York Cottage, on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, during the reign of his great-grandmother Queen Victoria. His father was Prince George, Duke of York, the second and eldest-surviving son of the Prince and his mother was the Duchess of York, the eldest child and only daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Teck. His birthday was the 34th anniversary of the death of his great-grandfather, Albert, uncertain of how the Prince Consorts widow, Queen Victoria, would take the news of the birth, the Prince of Wales wrote to the Duke of York that the Queen had been rather distressed. Two days later, he again, I really think it would gratify her if you yourself proposed the name Albert to her. Consequently, he was baptised Albert Frederick Arthur George at St. Mary Magdalenes Church near Sandringham three months later, within the family, he was known informally as Bertie
4.
Charles, Prince of Wales
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Charles, Prince of Wales is the eldest child and heir apparent of Queen Elizabeth II. Known alternatively in South West England as Duke of Cornwall and in Scotland as Duke of Rothesay, he is the heir apparent in British history. He is also the oldest person to be next in line to the throne since Sophia of Hanover, Charles was born at Buckingham Palace as the first grandchild of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. After earning a bachelor of degree from Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer and they had two sons, Prince William later to become Duke of Cambridge, and Prince Harry, in 1996, the couple divorced, following well-publicised extramarital affairs. Diana died in a car crash in Paris the following year, in 2005, Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles. Charles has sought to raise awareness of the dangers facing the natural environment. As an environmentalist, he has received awards and recognition from environmental groups around the world. His support for alternative medicine, including homeopathy, has been criticised by some in the medical community and he has been outspoken on the role of architecture in society and the conservation of historic buildings. Subsequently, Charles created Poundbury, a new town based on his theories. He has authored a number of books, including A Vision of Britain, A Personal View of Architecture in 1989 and he was baptised in the palaces Music Room by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, on 15 December 1948. When Prince Charles was aged three his mothers accession as Queen Elizabeth II made him her heir apparent. As the monarchs eldest son, he took the titles Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince. Charles attended his mothers coronation at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953, seated alongside his grandmother, as was customary for upper-class children at the time, a governess, Catherine Peebles, was appointed and undertook his education between the ages of five and eight. Buckingham Palace announced in 1955 that Charles would attend school rather than have a private tutor, Charles then attended two of his fathers former schools, Cheam Preparatory School in Berkshire, England, followed by Gordonstoun in the north-east of Scotland. He reportedly despised the school, which he described as Colditz in kilts. Upon his return to Gordonstoun, Charles emulated his father in becoming Head Boy and he left in 1967, with six GCE O-levels and two A-levels in history and French, at grades B and C, respectively. Tradition was broken again when Charles proceeded straight from school into university
5.
Frederick, Prince of Wales
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Frederick Lewis, Prince of Wales, KG was heir apparent to the British throne from 1727 until his death. He was the eldest but estranged son of King George II and Caroline of Ansbach, under the Act of Settlement passed by the English Parliament in 1701, Frederick was high in line of succession to the British throne. He moved to Great Britain following the accession of his father and he predeceased his father, however, and upon the latters death on 25 October 1760, the throne passed to Prince Fredericks eldest son, George III. The Elector was the son of Sophia of Hanover, granddaughter of James VI and I and first cousin and heiress-presumptive to the English Queen Anne. However, Sophia died before Anne at age 83 in June 1714, which elevated the Elector to heir-presumptive, Queen Anne died on 1 August the same year and this made Fredericks father the new Prince of Wales and first-in-line to the British throne and Frederick himself second-in-line. Fredericks other godfather was his grand-uncle Frederick I, King in Prussia, Frederick was nicknamed Griff within the family. He was left in the care of his grand-uncle Ernest Augustus, Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück, in 1722, Frederick was inoculated against smallpox by Charles Maitland on the instructions of his mother Caroline. The latter two titles have been interpreted differently since – the ofs are omitted and Snaudon rendered as Snowdon, Frederick arrived in England in 1728 as a grown man, the year after his father had become King George II. By then, George and Caroline had had several younger children, the long separation damaged their relationship, and they would never be close. He was not permitted to go to Great Britain until after his father took the throne as George II on 11 June 1727, Frederick had continued to be known as Prince Friedrich Ludwig of Hanover even after his father had been created Prince of Wales. In 1728, Frederick was finally brought to Britain and was created Prince of Wales on 8 January 1729. He served as the tenth Chancellor of the University of Dublin from 1728 to 1751, and he sponsored a court of opposition politicians. Frederick and his group supported the Opera of the Nobility in Lincolns Inn Fields as a rival to Handels royally sponsored opera at the Kings Theatre in the Haymarket. He enjoyed the natural sciences and the arts, and became a thorn in the side of his parents, Hervey and Frederick wrote a theatrical comedy together which was staged at the Drury Lane Theatre in October 1731. It was panned by the critics, and even the theatres manager thought it so bad that it was unlikely to play out even the first night and he had soldiers stationed in the audience to maintain order, and when the play flopped the audience was given their money back. Hervey and Frederick also shared a mistress, Anne Vane, who had a son called FitzFrederick Vane in June 1732, either of them or William Stanhope, 1st Earl of Harrington, another of her lovers, could have been the father. Jealousy between them may have contributed to a breach, and their friendship ended, Hervey later wrote bitterly that Frederick was false. Never having the least hesitation in telling any lie that served his present purpose, a permanent result of Fredericks patronage of the arts is Rule, Britannia
6.
Edinburgh
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Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 local government council areas. Located in Lothian on the Firth of Forths southern shore, it is Scotlands second most populous city and the seventh most populous in the United Kingdom. The 2014 official population estimates are 464,990 for the city of Edinburgh,492,680 for the authority area. Recognised as the capital of Scotland since at least the 15th century, Edinburgh is home to the Scottish Parliament and it is the largest financial centre in the UK after London. Historically part of Midlothian, the city has long been a centre of education, particularly in the fields of medicine, Scots law, literature, the sciences and engineering. The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1582 and now one of four in the city, was placed 17th in the QS World University Rankings in 2013 and 2014. The city is famous for the Edinburgh International Festival and the Fringe. The citys historical and cultural attractions have made it the United Kingdoms second most popular tourist destination after London, attracting over one million overseas visitors each year. Historic sites in Edinburgh include Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace, the churches of St. Giles, Greyfriars and the Canongate, Edinburghs Old Town and New Town together are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which has been managed by Edinburgh World Heritage since 1999. It appears to derive from the place name Eidyn mentioned in the Old Welsh epic poem Y Gododdin, the poem names Din Eidyn as a hill fort in the territory of the Gododdin. The Celtic element din was dropped and replaced by the Old English burh, the first documentary evidence of the medieval burgh is a royal charter, c. 1124–1127, by King David I granting a toft in burgo meo de Edenesburg to the Priory of Dunfermline. In modern Gaelic, the city is called Dùn Èideann, the earliest known human habitation in the Edinburgh area was at Cramond, where evidence was found of a Mesolithic camp site dated to c.8500 BC. Traces of later Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements have found on Castle Rock, Arthurs Seat, Craiglockhart Hill. When the Romans arrived in Lothian at the end of the 1st century AD, at some point before the 7th century AD, the Gododdin, who were presumably descendants of the Votadini, built the hill fort of Din Eidyn or Etin. Although its location has not been identified, it likely they would have chosen a commanding position like the Castle Rock, Arthurs Seat. In 638, the Gododdin stronghold was besieged by forces loyal to King Oswald of Northumbria and it thenceforth remained under their jurisdiction. The royal burgh was founded by King David I in the early 12th century on land belonging to the Crown, in 1638, King Charles Is attempt to introduce Anglican church forms in Scotland encountered stiff Presbyterian opposition culminating in the conflicts of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. In the 17th century, Edinburghs boundaries were defined by the citys defensive town walls
7.
Scotland
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Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain. It shares a border with England to the south, and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the North Sea to the east. In addition to the mainland, the country is made up of more than 790 islands, including the Northern Isles, the Kingdom of Scotland emerged as an independent sovereign state in the Early Middle Ages and continued to exist until 1707. By inheritance in 1603, James VI, King of Scots, became King of England and King of Ireland, Scotland subsequently entered into a political union with the Kingdom of England on 1 May 1707 to create the new Kingdom of Great Britain. The union also created a new Parliament of Great Britain, which succeeded both the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England. Within Scotland, the monarchy of the United Kingdom has continued to use a variety of styles, titles, the legal system within Scotland has also remained separate from those of England and Wales and Northern Ireland, Scotland constitutes a distinct jurisdiction in both public and private law. Glasgow, Scotlands largest city, was one of the worlds leading industrial cities. Other major urban areas are Aberdeen and Dundee, Scottish waters consist of a large sector of the North Atlantic and the North Sea, containing the largest oil reserves in the European Union. This has given Aberdeen, the third-largest city in Scotland, the title of Europes oil capital, following a referendum in 1997, a Scottish Parliament was re-established, in the form of a devolved unicameral legislature comprising 129 members, having authority over many areas of domestic policy. Scotland is represented in the UK Parliament by 59 MPs and in the European Parliament by 6 MEPs, Scotland is also a member nation of the British–Irish Council, and the British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly. Scotland comes from Scoti, the Latin name for the Gaels, the Late Latin word Scotia was initially used to refer to Ireland. By the 11th century at the latest, Scotia was being used to refer to Scotland north of the River Forth, alongside Albania or Albany, the use of the words Scots and Scotland to encompass all of what is now Scotland became common in the Late Middle Ages. Repeated glaciations, which covered the land mass of modern Scotland. It is believed the first post-glacial groups of hunter-gatherers arrived in Scotland around 12,800 years ago, the groups of settlers began building the first known permanent houses on Scottish soil around 9,500 years ago, and the first villages around 6,000 years ago. The well-preserved village of Skara Brae on the mainland of Orkney dates from this period and it contains the remains of an early Bronze Age ruler laid out on white quartz pebbles and birch bark. It was also discovered for the first time that early Bronze Age people placed flowers in their graves, in the winter of 1850, a severe storm hit Scotland, causing widespread damage and over 200 deaths. In the Bay of Skaill, the storm stripped the earth from a large irregular knoll, when the storm cleared, local villagers found the outline of a village, consisting of a number of small houses without roofs. William Watt of Skaill, the laird, began an amateur excavation of the site, but after uncovering four houses
8.
British royal family
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The British royal family comprises the monarch of the United Kingdom and her close relations. There is no legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member of the British royal family. Different terms may be applied to the same or similar group of relatives of the monarch in his or her role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, for example, in Canada, the family is known as the Canadian royal family. Some members of the family have official residences named as the places from which announcements are made in the Court Circular about official engagements they have carried out. The state duties and staff of some members of the family are funded from a parliamentary annuity. Since 1917, when King George V changed the name of the house from Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, members of the royal family belong, either by birth or by marriage. In 2014, the family were regarded as British cultural icons. Today, they often perform ceremonial and social duties throughout the United Kingdom, in the other countries of the Commonwealth royalty do not serve as Counsellors of State, although they may perform ceremonial and social duties on behalf of individual states or the organisation. Wives of the said enjoy their husbands precedence, and husbands of princesses are unofficially but habitually placed with their wives as well and she did not alter the relative precedence of other born-princesses, such as the daughters of her younger sons. The Oxford Illustrated History of the British Monarchy and they Serve the Queen, A New and Authoritative Account of the Royal Household. The Lives of the Kings & Queens of England, symbol and Privilege, The Ritual Context of British Royalty. Britains Royal Families, The Complete Genealogy, Royal Family is a celebrated and reverential BBC documentary made by Richard Cawston to accompany the investiture of the current Prince of Wales. The documentary is frequently responsible for the greater press intrusion into the royal familys private life since its first broadcast. Official website of the royal family Official YouTube Channel House of Windsor Family Tree, archived from the original on 2010-12-02
9.
Elizabeth II
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Elizabeth II has been Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand since 6 February 1952. Elizabeth was born in London as the eldest child of the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth and her father acceded to the throne on the abdication of his brother Edward VIII in 1936, from which time she was the heir presumptive. She began to undertake duties during the Second World War. Elizabeths many historic visits and meetings include a visit to the Republic of Ireland. She has seen major changes, such as devolution in the United Kingdom, Canadian patriation. She has reigned through various wars and conflicts involving many of her realms and she is the worlds oldest reigning monarch as well as Britains longest-lived. In October 2016, she became the longest currently reigning monarch, in 2017 she became the first British monarch to commemorate a Sapphire Jubilee. Elizabeth has occasionally faced republican sentiments and press criticism of the family, however, support for the monarchy remains high. Elizabeth was born at 02,40 on 21 April 1926, during the reign of her paternal grandfather and her father, Prince Albert, Duke of York, was the second son of the King. Her mother, Elizabeth, Duchess of York, was the youngest daughter of Scottish aristocrat Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and she was delivered by Caesarean section at her maternal grandfathers London house,17 Bruton Street, Mayfair. Elizabeths only sibling, Princess Margaret, was born in 1930, the two princesses were educated at home under the supervision of their mother and their governess, Marion Crawford, who was casually known as Crawfie. Lessons concentrated on history, language, literature and music, Crawford published a biography of Elizabeth and Margarets childhood years entitled The Little Princesses in 1950, much to the dismay of the royal family. The book describes Elizabeths love of horses and dogs, her orderliness, others echoed such observations, Winston Churchill described Elizabeth when she was two as a character. She has an air of authority and reflectiveness astonishing in an infant and her cousin Margaret Rhodes described her as a jolly little girl, but fundamentally sensible and well-behaved. During her grandfathers reign, Elizabeth was third in the line of succession to the throne, behind her uncle Edward, Prince of Wales, and her father, the Duke of York. Although her birth generated public interest, she was not expected to become queen, many people believed that he would marry and have children of his own. When her grandfather died in 1936 and her uncle succeeded as Edward VIII, she became second-in-line to the throne, later that year, Edward abdicated, after his proposed marriage to divorced socialite Wallis Simpson provoked a constitutional crisis. Consequently, Elizabeths father became king, and she became heir presumptive, if her parents had had a later son, she would have lost her position as first-in-line, as her brother would have been heir apparent and above her in the line of succession
10.
George III of the United Kingdom
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He was concurrently Duke and prince-elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire until his promotion to King of Hanover on 12 October 1814. He was the third British monarch of the House of Hanover, early in his reign, Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years War, becoming the dominant European power in North America and India. However, many of Britains American colonies were soon lost in the American War of Independence, further wars against revolutionary and Napoleonic France from 1793 concluded in the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. In the later part of his life, George III had recurrent, although it has since been suggested that he had the blood disease porphyria, the cause of his illness remains unknown. After a final relapse in 1810, a regency was established, on George IIIs death, the Prince Regent succeeded his father as George IV. Historical analysis of George IIIs life has gone through a kaleidoscope of changing views that have depended heavily on the prejudices of his biographers and the sources available to them. Until it was reassessed in the half of the 20th century, his reputation in the United States was one of a tyrant. George was born in London at Norfolk House and he was the grandson of King George II, and the eldest son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. As Prince George was born two months prematurely and he was unlikely to survive, he was baptised the same day by Thomas Secker. One month later, he was baptised at Norfolk House. His godparents were the King of Sweden, his uncle the Duke of Saxe-Gotha, George grew into a healthy but reserved and shy child. The family moved to Leicester Square, where George and his younger brother Prince Edward, Duke of York, 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 and his religious education was wholly Anglican. At age 10 George took part in a production of Joseph Addisons play Cato and said in the new prologue, What. It may with truth be said, A boy in England born, historian Romney Sedgwick argued that these lines appear to be the source of the only historical phrase with which he is associated. Georges grandfather, King George II, disliked the Prince of Wales, however, in 1751 the Prince of Wales died unexpectedly from a lung injury, and George became heir apparent to the throne. He inherited one of his fathers titles and became the Duke of Edinburgh, now more interested in his grandson, three weeks later the King created George Prince of Wales. Georges mother, now the Dowager Princess of Wales, preferred to keep George at home where she could imbue him with her moral values
11.
George I of Great Britain
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George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 until his death, and ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1698. George was born in Hanover and inherited the titles and lands of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg from his father, a succession of European wars expanded his German domains during his lifetime, and in 1708 he was ratified as prince-elector of Hanover. At the age of 54, after the death of his second cousin Queen Anne of Great Britain, in reaction, Jacobites attempted to depose George and replace him with Annes Catholic half-brother, James Francis Edward Stuart, but their attempts failed. During Georges reign, the powers of the monarchy diminished and Britain began a transition to the system of cabinet government led by a prime minister. Towards the end of his reign, actual power was held by Sir Robert Walpole. George died of a stroke on a trip to his native Hanover, George was born on 28 May 1660 in Hanover in the Holy Roman Empire. He was the eldest son of Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Sophia was the granddaughter of King James I of England through her mother, Elizabeth of Bohemia. For the first year of his life, George was the heir to the German territories of his father. In 1661 Georges brother, Frederick Augustus, was born and the two boys were brought up together, after Sophias tour she bore Ernest Augustus another four sons and a daughter. In her letters, Sophia describes George as a responsible, conscientious child who set an example to his brothers and sisters. In 1679 another uncle died unexpectedly without sons and Ernest Augustus became reigning Duke of Calenberg-Göttingen, Georges surviving uncle, George William of Celle, had married his mistress in order to legitimise his only daughter, Sophia Dorothea of Celle, but looked unlikely to have any further children. Under Salic law, where inheritance of territory was restricted to the male line, in 1682, the family agreed to adopt the principle of primogeniture, meaning George would inherit all the territory and not have to share it with his brothers. The same year, George married his first cousin, Sophia Dorothea of Celle, the marriage of state was arranged primarily as it ensured a healthy annual income and assisted the eventual unification of Hanover and Celle. His mother was at first against the marriage because she looked down on Sophia Dorotheas mother and she was eventually won over by the advantages inherent in the marriage. In 1683, George and his brother, Frederick Augustus, served in the Great Turkish War at the Battle of Vienna, and Sophia Dorothea bore George a son, George Augustus. The following year, Frederick Augustus was informed of the adoption of primogeniture and it led to a breach between father and son, and between the brothers, that lasted until Frederick Augustuss death in battle in 1690. With the imminent formation of a single Hanoverian state, and the Hanoverians continuing contributions to the Empires wars, Georges prospects were now better than ever as the sole heir to his fathers electorate and his uncles duchy. Sophia Dorothea had a child, a daughter named after her, in 1687
12.
Prince of Wales
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Charles, Prince of Wales is the eldest child and heir apparent of Queen Elizabeth II. Known alternatively in South West England as Duke of Cornwall and in Scotland as Duke of Rothesay, he is the heir apparent in British history. He is also the oldest person to be next in line to the throne since Sophia of Hanover, Charles was born at Buckingham Palace as the first grandchild of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. After earning a bachelor of degree from Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer and they had two sons, Prince William later to become Duke of Cambridge, and Prince Harry, in 1996, the couple divorced, following well-publicised extramarital affairs. Diana died in a car crash in Paris the following year, in 2005, Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles. Charles has sought to raise awareness of the dangers facing the natural environment. As an environmentalist, he has received awards and recognition from environmental groups around the world. His support for alternative medicine, including homeopathy, has been criticised by some in the medical community and he has been outspoken on the role of architecture in society and the conservation of historic buildings. Subsequently, Charles created Poundbury, a new town based on his theories. He has authored a number of books, including A Vision of Britain, A Personal View of Architecture in 1989 and he was baptised in the palaces Music Room by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, on 15 December 1948. When Prince Charles was aged three his mothers accession as Queen Elizabeth II made him her heir apparent. As the monarchs eldest son, he took the titles Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince. Charles attended his mothers coronation at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953, seated alongside his grandmother, as was customary for upper-class children at the time, a governess, Catherine Peebles, was appointed and undertook his education between the ages of five and eight. Buckingham Palace announced in 1955 that Charles would attend school rather than have a private tutor, Charles then attended two of his fathers former schools, Cheam Preparatory School in Berkshire, England, followed by Gordonstoun in the north-east of Scotland. He reportedly despised the school, which he described as Colditz in kilts. Upon his return to Gordonstoun, Charles emulated his father in becoming Head Boy and he left in 1967, with six GCE O-levels and two A-levels in history and French, at grades B and C, respectively. Tradition was broken again when Charles proceeded straight from school into university
13.
The London Gazette
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The London Gazette claims to be the oldest surviving English newspaper and the oldest continuously published newspaper in the UK, having been first published on 7 November 1665 as The Oxford Gazette. This claim is made by the Stamford Mercury and Berrows Worcester Journal. It does not have a large circulation, in turn, The London Gazette carries not only notices of UK-wide interest, but also those relating specifically to entities or people in England and Wales. However, certain notices that are only of specific interest to Scotland or Northern Ireland are also required to be published in The London Gazette, the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes are published by TSO on behalf of Her Majestys Stationery Office. They are subject to Crown Copyright, the London Gazette is published each weekday, except for Bank Holidays. The official Gazettes are published by The Stationery Office, the content, apart from insolvency notices, is available in a number of machine-readable formats, including XML and XML/RDFa via Atom feed. The London Gazette was first published as The Oxford Gazette on 7 November 1665. Charles II and the Royal Court had moved to Oxford to escape the Great Plague of London, the Gazette was Published by Authority by Henry Muddiman, and its first publication is noted by Samuel Pepys in his diary. The King returned to London as the plague dissipated, and the Gazette moved too, the Gazette was not a newspaper in the modern sense, it was sent by post to subscribers, not printed for sale to the general public. Her Majestys Stationery Office took over the publication of the Gazette in 1889, publication of the Gazette was transferred to the private sector, under government supervision, in the 1990s, when HMSO was sold and renamed The Stationery Office. In time of war, dispatches from the conflicts are published in The London Gazette. People referred to are said to have mentioned in dispatches. When members of the forces are promoted, and these promotions are published here. Man tally-ho, Miss piano, Wife silk and satin, Boy Greek and Latin, the phrase gazetted fortune hunter is also probably derived from this. Notices of engagement and marriage were also published in the Gazette. Gazettes, modelled on The London Gazette, were issued for most British colonial possessions
14.
Isle of Wight
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The Isle of Wight /ˈaɪl əv ˈwaɪt/ is a county and the largest and second-most populous island in England. It is located in the English Channel, about 4 miles off the coast of Hampshire, the island has resorts that have been holiday destinations since Victorian times, and is known for its mild climate, coastal scenery, and verdant landscape of fields, downland and chines. The island has been home to the poets Swinburne and Tennyson and to Queen Victoria and it has a maritime and industrial tradition including boat building, sail making, the manufacture of flying boats, the hovercraft, and Britains space rockets. The island hosts annual festivals including the Isle of Wight Festival. It has well-conserved wildlife and some of the richest cliffs and quarries for dinosaur fossils in Europe, the Isle was owned by a Norman family until 1293 and was earlier a kingdom in its own right. Rural for most of its history, its Victorian fashionability and the affordability of holidays led to significant urban development during the late 19th. The island was part of Hampshire until 1890 when it became its own administrative county, apart from a shared police force, there is now no administrative link with Hampshire, although a combined local authority with Portsmouth and Southampton is being considered. Until 1995 the island had a governor, the quickest public transport link to the mainland is the hovercraft from Ryde to Southsea, while three ferry and two catamaran services cross the Solent to Southampton, Lymington and Portsmouth. During the Ice Age, sea levels were lower and the Solent was part of a river flowing south east from current day Poole Harbour towards mid-Channel. As sea levels rose, the valley became flooded. The first inhabitants are assumed to have been hunter-gatherers migrating by land during the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age period, as the ice age began to recede. From the Neolithic era onwards, there are indications that the island had wide trading links, with a port at Bouldnor, evidence of Bronze Age tin trading, caesar reported that the Belgae took the Isle of Wight in about 85 BC and gave its name as Vectis. The Roman historian Suetonius mentions that the island was captured by the commander Vespasian, the Romans built no towns or roads on the island, but the remains of at least seven Roman villas have been found, indicating the prosperity of local agriculture. During the Dark Ages the island was settled by Jutes as the kingdom of Wihtwara under King Arwald. In 685 it was invaded by Caedwalla, who tried to replace the inhabitants with his own followers and it suffered especially from Viking raids, and was often used as a winter base by Viking raiders when they were unable to reach Normandy. Later, both Earl Tostig and his brother Harold Godwinson held manors on the island, the Norman Conquest of 1066 created the position of Lord of the Isle of Wight, the island being given by William the Conqueror to his kinsman William FitzOsbern. Carisbrooke Priory and the fort of Carisbrooke Castle were then founded, allegiance was sworn to FitzOsbern rather than the king, the Lordship was subsequently granted to the de Redvers family by Henry I, after his succession in 1100. For nearly 200 years the island was a semi-independent feudal fiefdom, the final private owner was the Countess Isabella de Fortibus, who, on her deathbed in 1293, was persuaded to sell it to Edward I
15.
Isle of Ely
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The Isle of Ely /ˈiːli/ is a historic region around the city of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England. It used to be a county in its own right and its name is said to mean island of eels, a reference to the creatures that were often caught in the local rivers for food. This etymology was first recorded by the Venerable Bede, until the 17th century, the area was an island surrounded by a large area of fenland, a type of swamp. It was coveted as a difficult to penetrate, and was controlled in the very early medieval period by the Gyrwas. Upon their marriage in 652, Tondbert, a prince of the Gyrwas, presented Æthelthryth and she afterwards founded a monastery at Ely, which was destroyed by Viking raiders in 870, but was rebuilt and became a famous Abbey and Shrine. This began in 1626 using a network of canals designed by Dutch experts, the areas natural defences led to it playing a role in the military history of England. Following the Norman Conquest, the Isle became a refuge for English forces under Earl Morcar, Bishop Aethelwine of Durham, the area was taken by William the Conqueror only after a prolonged struggle. In 1139 civil war broke between the forces of King Stephen and the Empress Matilda, Bishop Nigel of Ely, a supporter of Matilda, unsuccessfully tried to hold the Isle. In 1143 Geoffrey de Mandeville rebelled against Stephen, and made his base in the Isle, Geoffrey was mortally wounded at Burwell in 1144. In 1216, during the First Barons War, the Isle was unsuccessfully defended against the army of King John, Ely took part in the Peasants Revolt of 1381. From 1107 until 1837, the Isle was under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Ely who appointed a Chief Justice of Ely and exercised temporal powers within the Liberty of Ely. This temporal jurisdiction originated in a charter granted by King Edgar in 970, the latter monarch established Ely as the seat of a bishop in 1107, creating the Isle of Ely a county palatine under the bishop. However, the bishop retained exclusive jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters, a chief bailiff was appointed for life by the bishop, and performed the functions of high sheriff within the liberty, who also headed the government of the city of Ely. The Liberty of Ely Act 1837 ended the secular powers in the Isle. The area was declared a division of Cambridgeshire, with the right to appoint justices revested in the crown, following the 1837 Act the Isle maintained separate Quarter Sessions, and formed its own constabulary. Under the Local Government Bill of 1888, which proposed the introduction of elected county councils, following the intervention of the local member of parliament, Charles Selwyn, the Isle of Ely was constituted a separate administrative county in 1889. The county was small in terms of area and population, and its abolition was proposed by the Local Government Boundary Commission in 1947. The report of the LGBC was not acted upon, and the administrative county survived until 1965, Whittlesey Rural district consisted of only one parish, which was added to Whittlesey urban district, in 1926
16.
Queen Victoria
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Victoria was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she adopted the title of Empress of India. Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, both the Duke of Kent and King George III died in 1820, and Victoria was raised under close supervision by her German-born mother Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. She inherited the throne aged 18, after her fathers three brothers had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. The United Kingdom was already a constitutional monarchy, in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, Victoria attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments, publicly, Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together, after Alberts death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, republicanism temporarily gained strength and her Golden and Diamond Jubilees were times of public celebration. Her reign of 63 years and seven months is known as the Victorian era and it was a period of industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. She was the last British monarch of the House of Hanover and her son and successor, Edward VII, belonged to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the line of his father. Victorias father was Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, until 1817, Edwards niece, Princess Charlotte of Wales, was the only legitimate grandchild of George III. Her death in 1817 precipitated a crisis that brought pressure on the Duke of Kent. In 1818 he married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, a widowed German princess with two children—Carl and Feodora —by her first marriage to the Prince of Leiningen and her brother Leopold was Princess Charlottes widower. The Duke and Duchess of Kents only child, Victoria, was born at 4.15 a. m. on 24 May 1819 at Kensington Palace in London. Victoria was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on 24 June 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace and she was baptised Alexandrina, after one of her godparents, Emperor Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. Additional names proposed by her parents—Georgina, Charlotte, and Augusta—were dropped on the instructions of the Dukes eldest brother, George, the Duke of Clarence and the Duke of Kent married on the same day in 1818, but both of Clarences daughters died as infants. Victorias father died in January 1820, when Victoria was less than a year old, a week later her grandfather died and was succeeded by his eldest son, George IV. The Duke of York died in 1827, when George IV died in 1830, he was succeeded by his next surviving brother, William IV, and Victoria became heir presumptive
17.
Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
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Alfred reigned as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1893 to 1900. He was the son and fourth child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg. He was known as the Duke of Edinburgh from 1866 until he succeeded his paternal uncle Ernest II as the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and he was second in the line of succession behind his elder brother, the Prince of Wales. He was known to his family as Affie, after a childhood mispronunciation of the name Alfred, Alfred was christened by the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Howley, at the Private Chapel in Windsor Castle on 6 September 1844. His godparents were his mothers first cousin, Prince George of Cambridge, his aunt, the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Alfred studied violin at Holyrood, Edinburgh, where his accompanist was Hungarian expatriate George Lichtenstein. Alfred remained second in line to the British throne from his birth until 8 January 1864, any legitimate children of his older brother took priority in the succession list. Alfred became third in line to the throne and as Edward and Alexandra continued to have children, in 1856 it was decided that Prince Alfred, in accordance with his own wishes, should enter the Royal Navy. A separate establishment was accordingly assigned to him, with Lieutenant J. C. Cowell, RE and he passed the examination in August 1858, and was appointed as midshipman in HMS Euryalus at the age of 14. In July 1860, while on this ship, he paid a visit to the Cape Colony. He took part in a hunt at Hartebeeste-Hoek, resulting in the slaughter of large numbers of game animals and she and her late husband had made plans for him to succeed to the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg. Prince Alfred, therefore, remained in the navy, and was promoted to lieutenant on 24 February 1863 and he was promoted to captain on 23 February 1866 and was appointed to the command of the frigate HMS Galatea in January 1867. In the Queens Birthday Honours on 24 May 1866, the Prince was created Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Ulster and he took his seat in the House of Lords on 8 June. While still in command of the Galatea, the Duke of Edinburgh started from Plymouth on 24 January 1867 for his round the world. On 7 June 1867, he left Gibraltar, reached the Cape of Good Hope on 24 July and he landed at Glenelg, South Australia, on 31 October. Being the first member of the family to visit Australia. During his stay of five months he visited Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane. Adelaide school Prince Alfred College was named in his honour to mark such an occasion, at the function he was wounded in the back by a revolver fired by Henry James OFarrell
18.
Duke of York
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The Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually given to the second son of English monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Duke of Albany, initially granted in the 14th century in the Peerage of England, the title Duke of York has been created eight times. Additionally, the title Duke of York and Albany has been created three times and these occurred during the 18th century, following the 1707 unification of the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into a single, united realm. The double naming was done so that a territorial designation from each of the separate realms could be included. The current Duke of York is Prince Andrew, the son of Queen Elizabeth II. Prince Andrew currently has no heirs and has been unmarried since his 1996 divorce. In medieval times, York was the city of the North of England. Yorkshire was Englands largest shire in area, York under its Viking name Jorvik was a petty kingdom in the Early Medieval period. In the interval between the fall of independent Jorvik under Eirik Bloodaxe, last King of Jorvik, and the first creation of the Dukedom of York, there were a few Earls of York. The title Duke of York was first created in the Peerage of England in 1385 for Edmund of Langley, the surviving son of Edward III. His son Edward, who inherited the title, was killed at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the title passed to Edwards nephew Richard, the son of Richard of Conisburgh, 3rd Earl of Cambridge. The younger Richard managed to obtain a restoration of the title, but when his eldest son, who inherited the title, became king in 1461 as Edward IV, the title was next created for Richard of Shrewsbury, second son of King Edward IV. Richard was one of the Princes in the Tower, and, as he died without heirs, the third creation was for Henry Tudor, second son of King Henry VII. When his elder brother Arthur, Prince of Wales, died in 1502, when Henry ultimately became King Henry VIII, his titles merged into the crown. The title was created for the time for Charles Stuart. When his elder brother, Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, died in 1612 and he was created Prince of Wales in 1616 and eventually became Charles I in 1625 when the title again merged into the Crown. The fifth creation was in favour of James Stuart, the son of Charles I
19.
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
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Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, was an Ernestine duchy ruled by a branch of the House of Wettin, consisting of territories in the present-day states of Bavaria and Thuringia in Germany. It lasted from 1826 to 1918, in the early part of the 20th century, before the First World War, it was the family of the sovereigns of the United Kingdom, Belgium, Portugal, Bulgaria, and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. In 1910, the Portuguese king was deposed, and the same thing occurred in Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in 1918, as of 2016, branches of the family still reign in Belgium, the United Kingdom, and the other Commonwealth realms. The former Tsar of Bulgaria, Simeon II, kept his surname while serving as the Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 2001 to 2005, after the extinction of the Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg line, the Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen exchanged his Duchy for that of Saxe-Altenburg. By then, the Principality of Lichtenberg, on the Nahe River, had already been a part of the Duchy of Coburg for ten years. Ernest III, the sovereign of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, had received it in 1816 from the Congress of Vienna for providing assistance to the Allies in their war against France. But, because of the distance from Coburg and of the unrest caused by the Hambach Festival. The newly created Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was initially a double duchy, ruled by Ernest III as Duke Ernest I in a personal union, the opportunity to unify the two duchies in 1826 was missed. After the Staatsgrundgesetz of 1852, the duchies were bound in a political and real union and they were then a quasi-federal unitary state. It also joined the German Zollverein in 1834, the North German Confederation in 1866 and his elder son and successor, Ernest II, ruled until his own death in 1893. Because he had died childless, the throne of the two duchies would have passed to his late brother Prince Alberts male descendants. But Prince Albert was the husband of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and his eldest son, Edward, besides, he was prohibited by the Constitutions of both duchies from inheriting the throne if there were other eligible male heirs. But he had renounced his claim in favour of his next brother, Prince Alfred. So Alfred became the next Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, reigning as Duke Carl Eduard, Charles Edward, because of his age, began under the Regency of Prince Ernst von Hohenlohe-Langenburg until he came of age in 1905. The new Duke also continued to use his British title, the Duke of Albany, but, because he chose to side with the Germans against the British in the First World War, he was stripped of his British titles in 1919. After the November Revolution ended the monarchy in 1918, the two became two different and independent states, the Free State of Coburg and the Republic of Gotha. But their leaders believed that their new countries were not economically feasible so they began to search for possible mergers, eventually, a referendum was held on 30 November 1919 and the decision was made. On 1 May 1920 the Free State of Gotha merged with the new State of Thuringia, in the German Empire, the Duchy had only one vote in the Bundestag and two votes in the Reichstag
20.
Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
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Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was the only son and heir apparent of Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He died aged 24 under circumstances still not entirely clear, Prince Alfred of Edinburgh was born on 15 October 1874 at Buckingham Palace, London. His father was Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, second eldest son of Queen Victoria and his mother was Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, a daughter of Emperor Alexander II of Russia and Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine. In 1893, his granduncle, Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, brother of his paternal grandfather, thus, the duchy devolved upon Alfreds father, who was at that time the Duke of Edinburgh. Alfred thus became Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. ”The exact circumstances of Alfreds death are not known and his sister Maries memoirs simply say his health broke down, and other writers have said that he had consumption. The Times published an account stating he had died of a tumor, according to theory, Alfred shot himself with a revolver while the rest of the family was gathered for the anniversary celebration. He survived and was looked after at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha for three days before being sent to the Martinnsbrunn Sanatorium in Gratsch near Merano in the South Tyrol, Alfred died there at 4,15 pm on 6 February 1899, aged 24 years. He was buried in the mausoleum of the Friedhof am Glockenberg, Coburg. Later in 1899 Alfreds uncle the Duke of Connaught and his son Prince Arthur of Connaught renounced their rights to the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg. As a result, his first cousin Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Albany, british Honours United Kingdom, Knight of the Garter,1894 Foreign Honours Order of the Red Eagle,1889 Media related to Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha at Wikimedia Commons
21.
George I of Greece
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George I was King of Greece from 1863 until his assassination in 1913. Originally a Danish prince, George was born in Copenhagen, and he was only 17 years old when he was elected king by the Greek National Assembly, which had deposed the unpopular former king Otto. His nomination was both suggested and supported by the Great Powers, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Second French Empire and he married the Russian grand duchess Olga Constantinovna of Russia, and became the first monarch of a new Greek dynasty. Two of his sisters, Alexandra and Dagmar, married into the British, King Edward VII and Tsar Alexander III were his brothers-in-law and King George V and Tsar Nicholas II were his nephews. Georges reign of almost 50 years was characterized by territorial gains as Greece established its place in pre-World War I Europe, Britain ceded the Ionian Islands peacefully, while Thessaly was annexed from the Ottoman Empire after the Russo-Turkish War. Greece was not always successful in its ambitions, it was defeated in the Greco-Turkish War. During the First Balkan War, after Greek troops had captured much of Greek Macedonia, compared to his own long tenure, the reigns of his successors Constantine, Alexander, and George II proved short and insecure. George was born at the Yellow Palace, an 18th-century town house at 18 Amaliegade and he was the second son of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and Louise of Hesse-Kassel. Although he was of blood, his family was relatively obscure. In 1852, however, Georges father was designated the heir presumptive to the childless King Frederick VII of Denmark, Georges siblings were Frederick, Alexandra, Dagmar, Thyra and Valdemar. Georges mother tongue was Danish, with English as a second language and he was also taught French and German. He embarked on a career in the Royal Danish Navy, while Frederick was described as quiet and extremely well-behaved, George was lively and full of pranks. Many Greeks, seeking closer ties to the pre-eminent world power, Great Britain, rallied around Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, second son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. British prime minister Lord Palmerston believed that the Greeks were panting for increase in territory, hoping for a gift of the Ionian Islands, which were then a British protectorate. The London Conference of 1832, however, prohibited any of the Great Powers ruling families from accepting the crown, the Greeks nevertheless insisted on holding a plebiscite in which Prince Alfred received over 95% of the 240,000 votes. There were 93 votes for a Republic and 6 for a Greek, with Prince Alfreds exclusion, the search began for an alternative candidate. Eventually, the Greeks and Great Powers winnowed their choice to Prince William of Denmark, aged only 17, he was elected King of the Hellenes on 30 March 1863 by the Greek National Assembly under the regnal name of George I. Paradoxically, he ascended a royal throne before his father, who became King of Denmark on 15 November the same year, there were two significant differences between Georges elevation and that of his predecessor, Otto
22.
Christian IX of Denmark
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Christian IX was King of Denmark from 1863 to 1906. From 1863 to 1864, he was concurrently Duke of Schleswig, Holstein, however, in 1852, Christian was chosen as heir to the Danish monarchy in light of the expected extinction of the senior line of the House of Oldenburg. Upon the death of King Frederick VII of Denmark in 1863, Christian married his second cousin, Princess Louise of Hesse-Kassel, in 1842. Their six children married into royal families across Europe, earning him the sobriquet the father-in-law of Europe. The British consort Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is also a descendant of Christian IX, as are Michael I of Romania and Constantine II of Greece. Also, the queens consort Anne of Romania, Anne-Marie of Greece and he was named after Prince Christian of Denmark, the later King Christian VIII, who was also his godfather. Christians father was the head of the house of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck. As such, Christian was eligible to succeed in the duchies of Schleswig-Holstein. Initially, Christian lived with his parents and many siblings at Gottorf Castle, however, on 6 June 1825, Duke Friedrich Wilhelm was appointed Duke of Glücksburg by his brother-in-law Frederick VI of Denmark, as the elder Glücksburg line had become extinct in 1779. He subsequently changed his title to Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and founded the younger Glücksburg line, subsequently, the family moved to Glücksburg Castle, where Christian was raised with his siblings under their fathers supervision. Following the early death of the father in 1831, Christian grew up in Denmark and was educated in the Military Academy of Copenhagen, as a young man, Christian unsuccessfully sought the hand of his third cousin, Queen Victoria, in marriage. At the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen on 26 May 1842, he married his cousin, Louise of Hesse-Kassel. A justification for this choice was his marriage to Louise of Hesse-Kassel, Frederick VIIs childlessness had presented a thorny dilemma and the question of succession to the Danish throne proved problematic. Denmarks adherence to the Salic Law and a burgeoning nationalism within the German-speaking parts of Schleswig-Holstein hindered all hopes of a peaceful solution, proposed resolutions to keep the two Duchies together and part of Denmark proved unsatisfactory to both Danish and German interests. While Denmark had adopted the Salic Law, this affected the descendants of Frederick III of Denmark. Agnatic descent from Frederick III would end with the death of the childless King Frederick VII and his childless uncle. At that point, the law of succession promulgated by Frederick III provided for a Semi-Salic succession, as the nations of Europe looked on, the numerous descendants of Helvig of Schauenburg began to vie for the Danish throne. Frederick VII belonged to the branch of Helvigs descendants
23.
British prince
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Individuals holding the title of prince will usually also be granted the style of Royal Highness. For example, the wife of Prince Michael of Kent is known as Princess Michael of Kent, prior to 1714, the title of prince and the style of HRH was not customary in usage. Sons and daughters of the sovereign were not automatically or traditionally called a prince or princess, an exception was the Prince of Wales, a title conferred on the eldest son of the sovereign since the reign of Edward I of England. While in the Kingdom of Scotland, even though an honorific principality was created by James I, some others include John, brother of Richard the Lionheart and later King John, who is sometimes called Prince John. After the accession of George I, it became customary for the sons of the sovereign and grandsons of the sovereign in the line to be titled Prince. Great-grandsons of the sovereign were princes styled His Highness, the first male-line great-grandchild of a British monarch was not born until 1776. In keeping with tradition he was given the style of His Highness Prince William of Gloucester, on 22 July 1816 when he married his cousin and daughter of King George III, he was granted the style His Royal Highness. His only surviving sister, Princess Sophia of Gloucester, was also elevated to Her Royal Highness style the following day. Prince William died in 1834 before the accession of Queen Victoria, the first of the second set of male-line great-grandchildren of a British monarch was born on 21 September 1845 as Prince Ernest Augustus. He was granted the style of His Royal Highness because he was a grandson of the King of Hanover. He was also born a Prince of the United Kingdom but the question of using HH for his British title, the letters patent did not address the styling of great grandchildren or further descendants as His/Her Highness or Prince or Princess. However, the only living person of this type was Prince Ernest Augustus. At no point until World War I was his status as a British prince, based on being a grandson of the sovereign. With letters patent dated 28 May 1898, the Crown granted the children of the eldest son of any Prince of Wales the style of Royal Highness, later that year, letters patent altered the rights to the title prince and the style Royal Highness. It was also decreed in these letters that grandchildren of the sons of any such Sovereign in the male line. Shall have and enjoy in all occasions the style and title enjoyed by the children of Dukes of these Our Realms, the total royals affected were seven princes and seven blood line princesses, and three spouses who had assumed the style of princess through their marriage. Both the proclamation and the patent of 1917 remain in force today, excepting a few amendments. This title and style remains in use to this day by his descendants, including the current head of the House of Hanover, Ernst August, Prince of Hanover
24.
House of Hanover
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Upon Victorias death, the British throne passed to her eldest son Edward VII, a member of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha through his father. The House of Hanover was formally named the House of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Hanover line, the senior branch became extinct in 1884, and the House of Hanover is now the only surviving branch of the House of Welf, which is the senior branch of the House of Este. The current head of the House of Hanover is Ernst August, George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, is considered the first member of the House of Hanover. When the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg was divided in 1635, George inherited the Principality of Calenberg and his son, Christian Louis inherited the Principality of Lüneburg from Georges brother. Calenberg and Lüneburg were then shared between Georges sons until united in 1705 under his grandson, also called George, who subsequently became George I of Great Britain, all held the title Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. George died in 1641 and was succeeded by, Christian Louis, 1st son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg and he relinquished Calenburg when he became Prince of Lüneburg. George William, 2nd son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg and he relinquished Calenburg when he became Prince of Lüneburg on the death of his brother, Christian Louis. John Frederick, 3rd son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg, Ernest Augustus, 4th son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg. He became Prince of Calenberg on the death of his brother John Frederick and he was elevated to prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire in 1692. Ernest Augustuss wife, Sophia of the Palatinate, was declared heiress of the throne of England by the Act of Settlement of 1701, Sophia was at that time the senior eligible Protestant descendant of James I of England. George Louis, son of Duke Ernest Augustus and Sophia, became Elector and Prince of Calenberg in 1698 and he inherited his mothers claim to the throne of Great Britain when she died in 1714. George Louis became the first British monarch of the House of Hanover as George I in 1714, George I, George II, and George III also served as electors and dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg, informally, Electors of Hanover. From 1814, when Hanover became a kingdom, the British monarch was also King of Hanover, in 1837, however, the personal union of the thrones of the United Kingdom and Hanover ended. After the death of William IV in 1837, the kings of Hanover continued the dynasty. The 1866 rift between the House of Hanover and the House of Hohenzollern was settled only by the 1913 marriage of Princess Viktoria Luise of Prussia to Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick. At the end of the Thirty Years War, the Peace of Westphalia awarded the Prince-Bishopric of Osnabrück alternately to a Catholic bishop, since the treaty gave cadets priority over heirs and reigning princes, Osnabrück became a form of appanage of the House of Hanover. In 1884, the branch of the House of Welf became extinct. By a law of 1879, the Duchy of Brunswick established a council of regency to take over at the Dukes death
25.
Duke of Edinburgh
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Duke of Edinburgh, named after the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, is a title that has been created four times for members of the British royal family since 1726. The current holder is the Prince Philip, consort to Queen Elizabeth II, the title was first created in the Peerage of Great Britain on 26 July 1726 by George I, who bestowed it on his grandson Prince Frederick, who also became Prince of Wales the following year. These titles were also in the Peerage of Great Britain, the marquessate was apparently erroneously gazetted as Marquess of the Isle of Wight although Marquess of the Isle of Ely was the intended title. In later editions of the London Gazette the Duke is referred to as the Marquess of the Isle of Ely, upon Fredericks death, the titles were inherited by his son Prince George. When Prince George became King George III in 1760, the merged into the Crown. On 19 November 1764, George III created a variation of the title for his brother, Prince William. This title was in the Peerage of Great Britain and the subsidiary title of the dukedom was Earl of Connaught, in the Kingdom of Ireland. In 1805, the titles were inherited by Williams only son, another William, Queen Victoria re-created the title on 24 May 1866 for her second son Prince Alfred, this time in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The subsidiary titles of the dukedom were Earl of Kent and Earl of Ulster, when Alfred became the sovereign of the two German duchies Saxe-Coburg and Saxe-Gotha in 1893, he retained his British titles. His only son Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha committed suicide in 1899, the title was created for a fourth time on 19 November 1947 by King George VI, who bestowed it on his son-in-law Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten, when he married Princess Elizabeth. Subsequently, Elizabeth was styled HRH Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh until she became Queen in 1952, the subsidiary titles of the dukedom were Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich, of Greenwich in the County of London. Like the dukedom, these titles were also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, earlier that year, Philip had renounced his Greek and Danish royal titles along with his rights to the Greek throne. In 1957, Philip became a Prince of the United Kingdom and this is unlikely to happen by direct inheritance, as Prince Edward is the youngest of Prince Philips three sons
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Duke of Cornwall
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Duke of Cornwall is a title in the Peerage of England, traditionally held by the eldest son of the reigning British monarch, previously the English monarch. The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in England and was established by charter in 1337. The present duke is the Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and his wife, Camilla, is the current Duchess. According to legend, Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall under King Uther Pendragon, Uther killed Gorlois and took Igraine, the result of their union was the future King Arthur. Edward, the Black Prince, the eldest son of Edward III, was made the first Duke of Cornwall in 1337, after Edward predeceased the King, the duchy was recreated for his son, the future Richard II. Under a charter of 1421, the passes to the sovereigns eldest son. Cornwall was the first dukedom conferred within the Kingdom of England, the dukedom of Cornwall can only be held by the oldest living son of the monarch who is also heir apparent. In the event of a Duke of Cornwalls death, the title merges in the Crown even if he left surviving descendants, the monarchs grandson, even if he is the heir apparent, does not succeed to the dukedom. Similarly, no female may ever be Duke of Cornwall, even if she is heir presumptive or heir apparent to the throne. However, if a Duke of Cornwall should die without descendants and has no sister, his next brother obtains the duchy. It is possible for an individual to be Prince of Wales, the title Prince of Wales is the traditional title of the heir apparent to the throne, granted at the discretion of the Sovereign, and is not restricted to the eldest son. For example, King George IIs heir apparent, the future George III, was Prince of Wales, James Francis Edward Stuart, son of James II, was born Duke of Cornwall in 1688. Although his father lost the throne, James Francis Edward was not deprived of his own honours, on a Jacobite perspective, on his fathers death in 1701 the duchy of Cornwall was merged in the Crown. On a Hanoverian perspective, it was as a result of his claiming his fathers lost thrones that James was attainted for treason on 2 March 1702, the current Duke of Cornwall is Charles, Prince of Wales, eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning monarch. Charles was officially proclaimed Duke of Cornwall at Launceston Castle in 1973. As part of his feudal dues there was a pair of gloves, gilt spurs and greyhounds, a pound of pepper and cumin, a bow, one hundred silver shillings, wood for his fires. The Dukes second wife, Camilla, whom he married on 9 April 2005 at the Guildhall in Windsor, is the current Duchess of Cornwall and she is also Princess of Wales but does not use that title. Should there be no Duke of Cornwall at any time, the income of the Duchy goes to the Crown, the Duchy includes over 570 square kilometres of land, more than half of which lies in Devon
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Duke of Rothesay
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Duke of Rothesay is a title of the heir apparent to the British throne, currently Prince Charles. The Duke of Rothesay also holds other Scottish titles, including those of Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland. The title is named after Rothesay on the Isle of Bute, Argyll and Bute, david Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, the son of Robert III of Scotland, King of Scots, first held the dukedom from its creation in 1398. After his death, his brother James, later King James I, thereafter, the heir-apparent to the Scottish Crown held the dukedom, an Act of the Scottish Parliament passed in 1469 confirmed this pattern of succession. The Earldom of Carrick existed as early as the twelfth century, in 1306, Robert the Bruce, Earl of Carrick, became King Robert I of Scotland, with the earldom merging in the Crown. In the following years, successive Kings of Scots created several heirs-apparent Earl of Carrick, the Act of 1469 finally settled the earldom on the eldest son of the Scottish monarch. The office of the Great Steward of Scotland dates back to its first holder, Walter fitz Alan, the seventh Great Steward, Robert, ascended the Scots throne as Robert II in 1371. Thereafter, only the heirs-apparent to the Crown held the office, the 1469 Act also deals with this. Between the 1603 Union and Edward VIIs time as heir apparent and it was Queen Victoria who mandated the title for use to refer to the eldest son and heir apparent when in Scotland, and this usage has continued since. This may have been as a result, direct or indirect, another of the non-peerage titles belonging to the heir-apparent, that of Lord of the Isles, merits special mention. The Lords of the Isles, of the MacDonald family, originally functioned as vassals of the Scottish — or Norwegian — kings who ruled the Western Isles. The ambitious John MacDonald II, fourth Lord of the Isles, made a treaty in 1462 with King Edward IV of England. In 1475, James III discovered the Lord of the Isles actions, MacDonald later regained his position, but James IV again deprived him of his titles in 1493 after his nephew provoked a rebellion. In 1540 James V of Scotland granted the Lordship to the heirs-apparent to the Crown, an Act of the Parliament of Scotland passed in 1469 governs the succession to most of these titles. It provides that the first-born Prince of the King of Scots for ever should hold the dukedom, though the Act specified King, eldest sons of queens regnant subsequently also held the dukedom. The interpretation of the word Prince, however, does not include women, the eldest son of the British Sovereign, as Duke of Rothesay, had the right to vote in elections for representative peers from 1707. This right continued until 1963, when the UK Parliament abolished the election of representative peers and he has the formal Scottish style of HRH The Prince Charles, Duke of Rothesay. The personal arms of the current Duke were bestowed upon him in 1974 by HM The Queen, the escutcheon features on the 1st and 4th quarters the arms of the Great Steward of Scotland, with the 2nd and 3rd quarters featuring the arms of the Lord of the Isles
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Leineschloss
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The Leineschloss, situated on the Leine in Hanover, Germany, is the former residence of the Hanoverian kings and the current seat of the Landtag of Lower Saxony. The first building on the site was a Franciscan friary, constructed in about 1300, in 1636, George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, began construction of the palace on the site as his residence. In 1742 the north-west wing was renewed, between 1816 and 1844, the architect Georg Ludwig Friedrich Laves fully re-built the palace. The column portico with six Corinthian columns was built during this period, during World War II, the Leineschloss burnt out entirely after British aerial bombings. King George I of Great Britain was originally buried in the Chapel of the Leineschloss, architect Dieter Oesterlen re-built the palace between 1957 and 1962
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Hanover
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At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the Electorate was enlarged to become a Kingdom with Hanover as its capital. From 1868 to 1946 Hanover was the capital of the Prussian Province of Hanover and it is now the capital of the Land of Lower Saxony. Since 2001 it has been part of the Hanover district, which is a body made up from the former district. With a population of 518,000, Hanover is a centre of Northern Germany. Hanover also hosts annual commercial trade fairs such as the Hanover Fair, every year Hanover hosts the Schützenfest Hannover, the worlds largest marksmens festival, and the Oktoberfest Hannover, the second largest such festival in Germany. In 2000, Hanover hosted the world fair Expo 2000, the Hanover fairground, due to numerous extensions, especially for the Expo 2000, is the largest in the world. Hanover is of importance because of its universities and medical school, its international airport. The city is also a crossing point of railway lines and highways. Hanover is the traditional English spelling, the German spelling is becoming more popular in English, recent editions of encyclopaedias prefer the German spelling, and the local government uses the German spelling on English websites. The traditional English spelling is used in historical contexts, especially when referring to the British House of Hanover. Hanover was founded in times on the east bank of the River Leine. Its original name Honovere may mean high bank, though this is debated, Hanover was a small village of ferrymen and fishermen that became a comparatively large town in the 13th century due to its position at a natural crossroads. As overland travel was difficult, its position on the upper navigable reaches of the river helped it to grow by increasing trade. In the 14th century the churches of Hanover were built. The beginning of industrialization in Germany led to trade in iron and silver from the northern Harz Mountains, in 1636 George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, ruler of the Brunswick-Lüneburg principality of Calenberg, moved his residence to Hanover. The Dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg were elevated by the Holy Roman Emperor to the rank of Prince-Elector in 1692, thus the principality was upgraded to the Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg, colloquially known as the Electorate of Hanover after Calenbergs capital. Its electors would later become monarchs of Great Britain, the first of these was George I Louis, who acceded to the British throne in 1714. The last British monarch who ruled in Hanover was William IV, semi-Salic law, which required succession by the male line if possible, forbade the accession of Queen Victoria in Hanover
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George II of Great Britain
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George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death. George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain, he was born, after the deaths of Sophia and Anne, Queen of Great Britain, in 1714, his father George I, Elector of Hanover, inherited the British throne. In the first years of his fathers reign as king, George was associated with opposition politicians, as king from 1727, George exercised little control over British domestic policy, which was largely controlled by the Parliament of Great Britain. As elector, he spent twelve summers in Hanover, where he had direct control over government policy. He had a relationship with his eldest son, Frederick. During the War of the Austrian Succession, George participated at the Battle of Dettingen in 1743, Frederick died unexpectedly in 1751, nine years before his father, and so George II was ultimately succeeded by his grandson, George III. For two centuries after George IIs death, history tended to him with disdain, concentrating on his mistresses, short temper. Since then, most scholars have reassessed his legacy and conclude that he held and exercised influence in foreign policy and military appointments. George was born in the city of Hanover in Germany, and was the son of George Louis, Hereditary Prince of Brunswick-Lüneburg, both of Georges parents committed adultery, and in 1694 their marriage was dissolved on the pretext that Sophia had abandoned her husband. She was confined to Ahlden House and denied access to her two children, George and his sister Sophia Dorothea of Hanover, who never saw their mother again. George spoke only French, the language of diplomacy and the court, until the age of four, after which he was taught German by one of his tutors, Johann Hilmar Holstein. In addition to French and German, he was schooled in English and Italian. Georges second cousin once removed, Queen Anne, ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland in 1702, consequently, after his grandmother and father, George was third in line to succeed Anne in two of her three realms. England and Scotland united in 1707 to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, Georges father did not want his son to enter into a loveless arranged marriage as he had, and wanted him to have the opportunity of meeting his bride before any formal arrangements were made. Negotiations from 1702 for the hand of Princess Hedvig Sophia of Sweden, Dowager Duchess and regent of Holstein-Gottorp, the English envoy to Hanover, Edmund Poley, reported that George was so taken by the good character he had of her that he would not think of anybody else. A marriage contract was concluded by the end of July, on 22 August /2 September 1705O. S. /N. S. Caroline arrived in Hanover for her wedding, which was held the evening in the chapel at Herrenhausen. George was keen to participate in the war against France in Flanders, in early 1707, Georges hopes were fulfilled when Caroline gave birth to a son, Frederick
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Caroline of Ansbach
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Wilhelmina Charlotte Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach, commonly known as Caroline of Ansbach, was Queen of Great Britain as the wife of King George II. Her father, Margrave John Frederick of Brandenburg-Ansbach, belonged to a branch of the House of Hohenzollern and was the ruler of a small German state, the Principality of Ansbach. Caroline was orphaned at an age and moved to the enlightened court of her guardians, King Frederick I. As a young woman, Caroline was much sought-after as a bride and they had eight children, seven of whom grew to adulthood. Caroline moved permanently to Britain in 1714 when her husband became Prince of Wales, as Princess of Wales, she joined her husband in rallying political opposition to his father King George I. In 1717, her husband was expelled from court after a family row, Caroline came to be associated with Robert Walpole, an opposition politician who was a former government minister. Walpole rejoined the government in 1720, and Carolines husband and King George I reconciled publicly, over the next few years, Walpole rose to become the leading minister. Caroline succeeded as queen and electress consort in 1727, when her husband became King George II and her eldest son, Frederick, became Prince of Wales. He was a focus for the opposition, like his father before him, as princess and as queen, Caroline was known for her political influence, which she exercised through and for Walpole. Her tenure included four regencies during her husbands stays in Hanover, Caroline was widely mourned following her death in 1737, not only by the public but also by the King, who refused to remarry. Caroline was born on 1 March 1683 at Ansbach, the daughter of John Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach and her father was the ruler of one of the smallest German states, he died of smallpox at the age of 32, when Caroline was three years old. Caroline and her full sibling, her younger brother Margrave William Frederick, left Ansbach with their mother. In 1692, Carolines widowed mother was pushed into a marriage with the Elector of Saxony. Eleonore Erdmuthe was widowed two years later, after her unfaithful husband contracted smallpox from his mistress. Eleonore remained in Saxony for another two years, until her death in 1696, the orphaned Caroline and William Frederick returned to Ansbach to stay with their elder half-brother, Margrave George Frederick II. Frederick and Sophia Charlotte became king and queen of Prussia in 1701, the queen was the daughter of Dowager Electress Sophia of Hanover, and the sister of George, Elector of Hanover. She was renowned for her intelligence and strong character, and her uncensored and liberal court attracted a great many scholars, Caroline was exposed to a lively intellectual environment quite different from anything she had experienced previously. Before she began her education under Sophia Charlottes care, Caroline had received formal education
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Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha
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Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg was Princess of Wales between 1736 and 1751, and Dowager Princess of Wales thereafter. She was one of only four Princesses of Wales who never became queen consort, Princess Augustas eldest son succeeded as George III of the United Kingdom in 1760, as her husband, Frederick, Prince of Wales, had died nine years earlier. Princess Augusta was born in Gotha to Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and her paternal grandfather was Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, eldest surviving son of Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. In 1736, it was proposed that she marry 29-year-old Frederick, Prince of Wales, eldest son of King George II of Great Britain, originally, Frederick was intended to marry the eldest daughter of the King of Prussia. A marriage alliance between Great Britain and Prussia had been an ambition for many years, Frederick simply replied that he accepted any bride his father would decide for him. His motive in seeking a marriage was to obtain an additional allowance from Parliament in order to be financially independent of his father. Augusta did not speak French or English, and it was suggested that she be given lessons before the wedding, but her mother did not consider it necessary as the British royal family were from Germany. She arrived in Britain, speaking virtually no English, for a ceremony which took place almost immediately, on 8 May 1736, at the Chapel Royal in St Jamess Palace. Augusta of Saxe-Gotha left Hellevoetsluis 17 April 1736 and arrived at Greenwich on the royal yacht William and Mary on the 25th, where she was welcomed by her groom. On 27 April 1736, she was escorted to St Jamess Palace, London, when she was introduced to the royal family, she made a favorable impression on the king and queen by throwing herself on the floor before them in a gesture of submission. During the first year of marriage, Augusta could be playing with her doll in the windows of her residence, until her sister-in-law, Princess Caroline. Augusta and Frederick had nine children, the last born after Fredericks death, Frederick once stated that he would never allow himself to be influenced by his consort as his father was, and he thus never made Augusta his confidante. He did, however, instruct her to act in accordance with his wishes in his feud with his parents, when Augustas first pregnancy was announced, the queen stated that she would be sure to witness to birth, to be assured that the pregnancy was indeed genuine. She reportedly wished the succession to pass to her second son, the delivery was traumatic, St James palace was not ready to receive them, no bed was prepared, no sheets could be found, and Augusta was forced to give birth on a tablecloth. After the reconciliation, the couple became less isolated from high society, Augusta made a good impression in society life, where she was described as pretty, elegant and as a considered hostess. On 2 March 1751, Frederick unexpectedly died, making Augusta a widow and she was then the mother of eight children, expecting shortly to be the mother of a ninth, and she was brought reluctantly to knowledge that their father was no more. By this the world lost some rare supplementary chapters to the Cronique Scandaleuse, the king reportedly did not show much feeling upon the death of his son and the funeral was simple. This caused a controversy and opposition from William, Duke of Cumberland, the role of designated regent became irrelevant when her son came of age upon his eighteenth birthday in 1756
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Leicester Square
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Leicester Square is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. It was laid out in 1670 and is named after the contemporary Leicester House, itself named after Robert Sidney, the square was originally a gentrified residential area, with tenants including Frederick, Prince of Wales and artists William Hogarth and Joshua Reynolds. It became more down-market in the late 18th century as Leicester House was demolished and retail developments took place, several major theatres were established in the 19th century, which were converted to cinemas towards the middle of the next. The square remains a popular tourist attraction, including hosting events for the Chinese New Year, the square has always had a park in its centre, which was originally Lammas land. The parks fortunes have varied over the centuries, reaching near dilapidation in the century after changing ownership several times. It was restored under the direction of Albert Grant, which included the construction of four new statues, the square was extensively refurbished and remodelled for the 2012 London Olympics, costing more than £15m and taking over 17 months to complete. The square lies within an area bound by Lisle Street, to the north, Charing Cross Road, to the east, Orange Street, to the south, and Whitcomb Street, to the west. It is within the City of Westminster, north of Trafalgar Square, east of Piccadilly Circus, west of Covent Garden, the nearest tube station is Leicester Square tube station, which opened in 1906. London bus routes 24,29 and 176 run on nearby Charing Cross Road, the land where Leicester Square now lies once belonged to the Abbot and Convent of Westminster Abbey and the Beaumont family. In 1536, Henry VIII took control of 3 acres of land around the square, the square is named after Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester, who purchased this land in 1630. By 1635, he had himself a large house, Leicester House. The area in front of the house was enclosed, depriving inhabitants of St Martin in the Fields parish of their right to use the previously common land. The parishioners appealed to King Charles I, and he appointed three members of the council to arbitrate. Lord Leicester was ordered to keep part of his land open for the parishioners, the square was laid out to the south of Leicester House and developed in the 1670s. The area was originally residential, with properties laid out in a similar style to nearby Pall Mall. In 1687, the part of the square became part of the new parish of St Anne. The Jocelyn Sidney, 7th Earl of Leicester took ownership of the property in 1728 and it was briefly the residence of Frederick, Prince of Wales from 1742 until Leicesters death the following year. The poet Matthew Prior lived at what is now No.21 around 1700, the magistrate Thomas de Veil, later to found Bow Street Magistrates Court, lived at No 40 between 1729 and 1737, this location is now the Odeon West End
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London
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London /ˈlʌndən/ is the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south east of the island of Great Britain and it was founded by the Romans, who named it Londinium. Londons ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its 1. 12-square-mile medieval boundaries. London is a global city in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism. It is crowned as the worlds largest financial centre and has the fifth- or sixth-largest metropolitan area GDP in the world, London is a world cultural capital. It is the worlds most-visited city as measured by international arrivals and has the worlds largest city airport system measured by passenger traffic, London is the worlds leading investment destination, hosting more international retailers and ultra high-net-worth individuals than any other city. Londons universities form the largest concentration of education institutes in Europe. In 2012, London became the first city to have hosted the modern Summer Olympic Games three times, London has a diverse range of people and cultures, and more than 300 languages are spoken in the region. Its estimated mid-2015 municipal population was 8,673,713, the largest of any city in the European Union, Londons urban area is the second most populous in the EU, after Paris, with 9,787,426 inhabitants at the 2011 census. The citys metropolitan area is the most populous in the EU with 13,879,757 inhabitants, the city-region therefore has a similar land area and population to that of the New York metropolitan area. London was the worlds most populous city from around 1831 to 1925, Other famous landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Pauls Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, and The Shard. The London Underground is the oldest underground railway network in the world, the etymology of London is uncertain. It is an ancient name, found in sources from the 2nd century and it is recorded c.121 as Londinium, which points to Romano-British origin, and hand-written Roman tablets recovered in the city originating from AD 65/70-80 include the word Londinio. The earliest attempted explanation, now disregarded, is attributed to Geoffrey of Monmouth in Historia Regum Britanniae and this had it that the name originated from a supposed King Lud, who had allegedly taken over the city and named it Kaerlud. From 1898, it was accepted that the name was of Celtic origin and meant place belonging to a man called *Londinos. The ultimate difficulty lies in reconciling the Latin form Londinium with the modern Welsh Llundain, which should demand a form *lōndinion, from earlier *loundiniom. The possibility cannot be ruled out that the Welsh name was borrowed back in from English at a later date, and thus cannot be used as a basis from which to reconstruct the original name. Until 1889, the name London officially applied only to the City of London, two recent discoveries indicate probable very early settlements near the Thames in the London area
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Norfolk House
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Norfolk House, at 31 St Jamess Square, London, was built in 1722 for the Duke of Norfolk. King George III was born in the house, which was offered to the couple by the 9th Duke of Norfolk. The family moved to Leicester House in 1742, and it was to remain the home until his death nine years later. The original Norfolk House remained in the ownership of the Dukes of Norfolk until 1938 when it was pulled down, two plaques on the exterior of the building acknowledge the role of the building in the War. Today the 1930s building on the site is occupied by offices, parts of the interior of the eighteenth-century house survive, having been removed before demolition, including the Music Room, designed by Giovanni Battista Borra for the ninth Dukes wife Mary. Having been in storage, the room is now displayed in the Victoria and Albert Museum, restored and redecorated to its scheme of brilliant white paintwork with gilt. List of demolished buildings and structures in London Detailed history and description - from the Survey of London, photograph of 1932 - from the Survey of London
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Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
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Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was the wife of King George III. She was also the Electress of Hanover in the Holy Roman Empire until the promotion of her husband to King of Hanover on 12 October 1814, Queen Charlotte was a patroness of the arts and an amateur botanist, who helped expand Kew Gardens. George III and Charlotte had 15 children,13 of whom survived to adulthood and she was distressed by her husbands bouts of physical illness and insanity, which became permanent in later life and resulted in their eldest son being appointed Prince Regent in 1811. Sophia Charlotte was born on 19 May 1744 and she was the youngest daughter of Duke Charles Louis Frederick of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Prince of Mirow and his wife Princess Elizabeth Albertine of Saxe-Hildburghausen. Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a small north German duchy in the Holy Roman Empire, the children of Duke Charles were all born at the Untere Schloss in Mirow. According to diplomatic reports at the time of her engagement to George III, when King George III succeeded to the throne of Great Britain upon the death of his grandfather, George II, he was unmarried. His mother and advisors were anxious to have him settled in marriage and he instructed her on her arrival in London not to meddle, a precept she was glad to follow. Charlotte spoke no English but was quick to learn the language and it was noted by many observers that she was ugly, had a dark complexion and flared nostrils. She is timid at first but talks a lot, when she is among people she knows, said one observer. Three days of public celebrations followed, and on 17 Aug 1761, the Princess set out for Britain, accompanied by her brother, Duke Adolphus Frederick, on 22 Aug, they reached Cuxhaven, where a small fleet awaited to convey them to England. The voyage was difficult, the party encountered three storms at sea, and landed at Harwich only on 7 September. They set out at once for London, spent that night in Witham, at the residence of Lord Abercorn and they were received by the King and his family, which marked the first meeting of the bride and groom. At 9,00 pm that evening, within six hours of her arrival, Charlotte married George III at the Chapel Royal, St. Jamess Palace, with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Secker, officiating. The Queen favored this residence, and spent much of her time there, as many as 14 of her 15 children were born in Buckingham House. Less than a year after the marriage, on 12 August 1762, the Queen gave birth to her first child, the Prince of Wales, in the course of their marriage, they had 15 children, all but two of whom survived into adulthood. Around 1762 the King and Queen moved to Buckingham House, at the end of St. Jamess Park. The house which forms the core of the present palace was built for the first Duke of Buckingham. Buckinghams descendant, Sir Charles Sheffield, sold Buckingham House to George III in 1761 for £21,000, the house was originally intended as a private retreat, in particular for Charlotte, and was known as The Queens House
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Windsor Castle
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Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is notable for its association with the English and later British royal family. The original castle was built in the 11th century after the Norman invasion of England by William the Conqueror, since the time of Henry I, it has been used by the reigning monarch and is the longest-occupied palace in Europe. Inside the castle walls is the 15th-century St Georges Chapel, considered by the historian John Martin Robinson to be one of the achievements of English Perpendicular Gothic design. Gradually replaced with stone fortifications, the castle withstood a siege during the First Barons War at the start of the 13th century. Edwards core design lasted through the Tudor period, during which Henry VIII and Elizabeth I made increasing use of the castle as a royal court and centre for diplomatic entertainment. Windsor Castle survived the period of the English Civil War, when it was used as a military headquarters for Parliamentary forces. At the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Charles II rebuilt much of Windsor Castle with the help of the architect Hugh May, Queen Victoria made a few minor changes to the castle, which became the centre for royal entertainment for much of her reign. Windsor Castle was used as a refuge for the family during the Luftwaffe bombing campaigns of the Second World War. It is a popular tourist attraction, a venue for hosting state visits, today, more than 500 people live and work in Windsor Castle, making it the largest inhabited castle in the world. Windsor Castle occupies 13 acres, and combines the features of a fortification, a palace, the present-day castle was created during a sequence of phased building projects, culminating in the reconstruction work after a fire in 1992. It is in essence a Georgian and Victorian design based on a medieval structure, since the 14th century, architecture at the castle has attempted to produce a contemporary reinterpretation of older fashions and traditions, repeatedly imitating outmoded or even antiquated styles. Although there has some criticism, the castles architecture and history lends it a place amongst the greatest European palaces. At the heart of Windsor Castle is the Middle Ward, a formed around the motte or artificial hill in the centre of the ward. The motte is 50 feet high and is made from chalk originally excavated from the surrounding ditch, the Round Tower is in reality far from cylindrical, due to the shape and structure of the motte beneath it. The western entrance to the Middle Ward is now open, the eastern exit from the ward is guarded by the Norman Gatehouse. Wyatville redesigned the exterior of the gatehouse, and the interior was later converted in the 19th century for residential use. The Upper Ward of Windsor Castle comprises a number of major buildings enclosed by the bailey wall
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Windsor, Berkshire
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Windsor is a historic market town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the residences of the British Royal Family. The town is situated 23 miles west of Charing Cross, London,7 miles south east of Maidenhead and it is immediately south of the River Thames, which forms its boundary with its ancient twin town of Eton. Windlesora is first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the name originates from old English Windles-ore or winch by the riverside. By the late 12th century the settlement at Windelsora was renamed Old Windsor, the early history of the site is unknown, although it was almost certainly settled some years before 1070 when William the Conqueror had a timber motte and bailey castle constructed. The focus of royal interest at that time was not the castle, however, from about the 8th century, high status people started to visit the site occasionally, and possibly this included royalty. From the 11th century the sites link with king Edward the Confessor is documented, after the Conquest of 1066 royal use of the site increased, probably because it offered good access to woodlands and opportunities for hunting – a sport which also practised military skills. Windsor Castle is noted in the Domesday Book under the entry for Clewer, although this might seem strange, it occurred because plans for the castle had changed since 1070, and more land had been acquired in Clewer on which to site a castle town. This plan was not actioned until the early 12th century, King Henry married his second wife at Windsor Castle in 1121, after the White Ship disaster. The settlement at Old Windsor largely transferred to New Windsor during the 12th century,1170, under Henry II, following the civil war of Stephens reign. At about the time, the present upper ward of the castle was rebuilt in stone. It had a merchant guild from the early 13th century and, under patronage, was made the chief town of the county in 1277. Somewhat unusually, this gave no new rights or privileges to Windsor. Windsors position as town of Berkshire was short-lived, however. Wallingford took over this position in the early 14th century, as a self-governing town Windsor enjoyed a number of freedoms unavailable to other towns, including the right to hold its own borough court, the right of membership and some financial independence. The town accounts of the 16th century survive in part, although most of the once substantial borough archive dating back to the 12th century was destroyed, probably in the late 17th century. New Windsor was a significant town in the Middle Ages. Its prosperity came from its association with the royal household
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House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
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House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is a German dynasty, the line of the Saxon House of Wettin that ruled the Ernestine duchies including the duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Due to anti-German sentiment in the United Kingdom during World War I, George V changed the name of his branch from Saxe-Coburg, the same happened in 1920 in Belgium, where it was changed to van de Belgen or des Belges. The first duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was Ernest I, who reigned from 1826 until his death in 1844 and he had previously been Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld from 1806 until the duchy was reorganized in 1826. Ernsts younger brother Leopold became King of the Belgians in 1831, léopolds only daughter, Princess Charlotte of Belgium, was the consort of Maximilian I of Mexico, known as the Empress Carlota of Mexico, in the 1860s. Ernsts nephew Ferdinand married Queen Maria II of Portugal, and his descendants continued to rule Portugal until that became a republic in 1910. Ernest Is second son, Prince Albert, married Queen Victoria in 1840, in 1826, a cadet branch of the house inherited the Hungarian princely estate of Koháry, and converted to Roman Catholicism. Its members managed to marry a princess of Brazil, an archduchess of Austria, a royal princess of the French, a royal princess of Belgium. A scion of this branch, also named Ferdinand, became Prince, and then Tsar, of Bulgaria, according to the House law of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha the full title of the Duke was, There were two official residences, in Gotha and Coburg. Therefore, the ducal court, including the Court Theater, had to move twice a year, from Gotha to Coburg for the summer. For the Court Theater, two almost identical buildings had to be built in 1840 in Gotha and Coburg and thereafter maintained at the same time. In 1893, the duke died childless, whereupon the throne would have devolved, by male primogeniture. However, as heirs to the British throne, Alberts descendants consented, therefore, the German duchy became a secundogeniture, hereditary among the younger princes of the British royal family who belonged to the House of Wettin, and their male-line descendants. Instead of the future Edward VII of the United Kingdom inheriting the duchy, it was diverted to his brother, Prince Alfred. Upon the latters death without surviving sons, it went to the youngest grandson of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, Prince Charles Edward, Charles Edwards uncle Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and his male line had renounced their claim. Although senior by birth, they were not acceptable to the German Emperor as a member of the British military or unwilling to move to Germany. The current head of the branch is Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg. The House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Koháry is the Catholic cadet branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and it was founded with the marriage of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, second son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, with Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág. In Portugal, the royal house is usually not distinguished from the House of Braganza
