1.
Thomas Gainsborough
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Thomas Gainsborough FRSA was an English portrait and landscape painter, draughtsman, and printmaker. He surpassed his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds to become the dominant British portraitist of the half of the 18th century. He painted quickly, and the works of his maturity are characterised by a light palette and he preferred landscapes to portraits, and is credited as the originator of the 18th-century British landscape school. Gainsborough was a member of the Royal Academy. He was born in Sudbury, Suffolk, the youngest son of John Gainsborough, a weaver and maker of woollen goods, and his wife, the artist spent his childhood at what is now Gainsboroughs House, on Gainsborough Street. The original building survives and is now a dedicated House to his life. Gainsborough was allowed to leave home in 1740 to study art in London and he assisted Francis Hayman in the decoration of the supper boxes at Vauxhall Gardens, and contributed to the decoration of what is now the Thomas Coram Foundation for Children. In 1746, Gainsborough married Margaret Burr, a daughter of the Duke of Beaufort. The artists work, then consisting of landscape paintings, was not selling well. He returned to Sudbury in 1748–1749 and concentrated on painting portraits, in 1752, he and his family, now including two daughters, moved to Ipswich. Commissions for personal portraits increased, but his clientele included mainly local merchants and he had to borrow against his wifes annuity. The Artists family and Self-Portrait In 1759, Gainsborough and his moved to Bath. There, he studied portraits by van Dyck and was able to attract a fashionable clientele. In 1761, he began to work to the Society of Arts exhibition in London. He selected portraits of well-known or notorious clients in order to attract attention, the exhibitions helped him acquire a national reputation, and he was invited to become a founding member of the Royal Academy in 1769. His relationship with the academy was not a one and he stopped exhibiting his paintings in 1773. In 1774, Gainsborough and his moved to London to live in Schomberg House. A commemorative blue plaque was put on the house in 1951, in 1777, he again began to exhibit his paintings at the Royal Academy, including portraits of contemporary celebrities, such as the Duke and Duchess of Cumberland
2.
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
3.
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
4.
Westminster Abbey
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It is one of the United Kingdoms most notable religious buildings and the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English and, later, British monarchs. Between 1540 and 1556, the abbey had the status of a cathedral, since 1560, however, the building is no longer an abbey nor a cathedral, having instead the status of a Church of England Royal Peculiar—a church responsible directly to the sovereign. The building itself is the abbey church. According to a tradition first reported by Sulcard in about 1080, a church was founded at the site in the 7th century, at the time of Mellitus, construction of the present church began in 1245, on the orders of King Henry III. Since the coronation of William the Conqueror in 1066, all coronations of English and British monarchs have held in Westminster Abbey. There have been at least 16 royal weddings at the abbey since 1100, two were of reigning monarchs, although, before 1919, there had been none for some 500 years. The first reports of the abbey are based on a tradition claiming that a young fisherman called Aldrich on the River Thames saw a vision of Saint Peter near the site. This seems to be quoted to justify the gifts of salmon from Thames fishermen that the abbey received in later years, in the present was, the Fishmongers Company still gives a salmon every year. The proven origins are that in the 960s or early 970s, Saint Dunstan, assisted by King Edgar, between 1042 and 1052, King Edward the Confessor began rebuilding St Peters Abbey to provide himself with a royal burial church. It was the first church in England built in the Romanesque style, the building was completed around 1090 and was consecrated on 28 December 1065, only a week before Edwards death on 5 January 1066. A week later, he was buried in the church, and, nine years later and his successor, Harold II, was probably crowned in the abbey, although the first documented coronation is that of William the Conqueror later the same year. The only extant depiction of Edwards abbey, together with the adjacent Palace of Westminster, is in the Bayeux Tapestry, construction of the present church was begun in 1245 by Henry III who selected the site for his burial. The abbot and monks, in proximity to the royal Palace of Westminster, the abbot often was employed on royal service and in due course took his place in the House of Lords as of right. The abbey built shops and dwellings on the west side, encroaching upon the sanctuary, the abbey became the coronation site of Norman kings. The Confessors shrine subsequently played a part in his canonisation. The work continued between 1245 and 1517 and was finished by the architect Henry Yevele in the reign of Richard II. Henry III also commissioned the unique Cosmati pavement in front of the High Altar, Henry VII added a Perpendicular style chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1503. Much of the came from Caen, in France, the Isle of Portland
5.
Anne, Duchess of Cumberland and Strathearn
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Anne Horton was a member of the British Royal Family, the wife of Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn. Anne was born in Marylebone, London and she was the daughter of Simon Luttrell, later first Earl of Carhampton, and his wife, Judith Maria Lawes. Her father was a Member of the House of Commons before being created Baron Irnham in 1768, Viscount Carhampton in 1781, Anne was first married to a commoner, Christopher Horton of Catton Hall, on 4 August 1765. She later married Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, the child of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Their marriage took place at Hertford Street in Mayfair, London on 2 October 1771, George III did not approve of the marriage as Anne was a commoner and previously married. Some sources describe Anne as being loose with her favours, given one wags comment that she was the Duke of Graftons Mrs Houghton. Horace Walpole wrote her coquetry was so active, so varied and yet so habitual, while she was generally considered a great beauty, Walpole considered her merely pretty, except for her eyes, which were enchanting. That her eyes were remarkably expressive is confirmed in the portraits of Anne by Thomas Gainsborough
6.
Dynasty
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A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a feudal or monarchical system but sometimes also appearing in elective republics. The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a house, historians periodize the histories of many sovereign states, such as Ancient Egypt, the Carolingian Empire and Imperial China, using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the dynasty may be used to delimit the era during which the family reigned and to describe events, trends. The word dynasty itself is often dropped from such adjectival references, until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty, that is, to increase the territory, wealth, and power of his family members. The longest-surviving dynasty in the world is the Imperial House of Japan, dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally, such as under the Frankish Salic law. Succession through a daughter when permitted was considered to establish a new dynasty in her husbands ruling house, however, some states in Africa, determined descent matrilineally, while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mothers dynasty when coming into her inheritance. It is also extended to unrelated people such as poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team. The word dynasty derives via Latin dynastia from Greek dynastéia, where it referred to power, dominion and it was the abstract noun of dynástēs, the agent noun of dynamis, power or ability, from dýnamai, to be able. A ruler in a dynasty is referred to as a dynast. For example, following his abdication, Edward VIII of the United Kingdom ceased to be a member of the House of Windsor. A dynastic marriage is one that complies with monarchical house law restrictions, the marriage of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, to Máxima Zorreguieta in 2002 was dynastic, for example, and their eldest child is expected to inherit the Dutch crown eventually. But the marriage of his younger brother Prince Friso to Mabel Wisse Smit in 2003 lacked government support, thus Friso forfeited his place in the order of succession, lost his title as a Prince of the Netherlands, and left his children without dynastic rights. In historical and monarchist references to formerly reigning families, a dynast is a member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchys rules still in force. Even since abolition of the Austrian monarchy, Max and his descendants have not been considered the rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position. The term dynast is sometimes used only to refer to descendants of a realms monarchs. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people, yet he is not a male-line member of the royal family, and is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor. Thus, in 1999 he requested and obtained permission from Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholic Princess Caroline of Monaco. Yet a clause of the English Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time and that exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts prior to triggering it by marriage to a Catholic
7.
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
8.
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
9.
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
10.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
11.
Royal Navy
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The Royal Navy is the United Kingdoms naval warfare force. Although warships were used by the English kings from the medieval period. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century, from the middle decades of the 17th century and through the 18th century, the Royal Navy vied with the Dutch Navy and later with the French Navy for maritime supremacy. From the mid 18th century it was the worlds most powerful navy until surpassed by the United States Navy during the Second World War. The Royal Navy played a key part in establishing the British Empire as the world power during the 19th. Due to this historical prominence, it is common, even among non-Britons, following World War I, the Royal Navy was significantly reduced in size, although at the onset of the Second World War it was still the worlds largest. By the end of the war, however, the United States Navy had emerged as the worlds largest, during the Cold War, the Royal Navy transformed into a primarily anti-submarine force, hunting for Soviet submarines, mostly active in the GIUK gap. The Royal Navy is part of Her Majestys Naval Service, which includes the Royal Marines. The professional head of the Naval Service is the First Sea Lord, the Defence Council delegates management of the Naval Service to the Admiralty Board, chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence. The strength of the fleet of the Kingdom of England was an important element in the power in the 10th century. English naval power declined as a result of the Norman conquest. Medieval fleets, in England as elsewhere, were almost entirely composed of merchant ships enlisted into service in time of war. Englands naval organisation was haphazard and the mobilisation of fleets when war broke out was slow, early in the war French plans for an invasion of England failed when Edward III of England destroyed the French fleet in the Battle of Sluys in 1340. Major fighting was confined to French soil and Englands naval capabilities sufficed to transport armies and supplies safely to their continental destinations. Such raids halted finally only with the occupation of northern France by Henry V. Henry VII deserves a large share of credit in the establishment of a standing navy and he embarked on a program of building ships larger than heretofore. He also invested in dockyards, and commissioned the oldest surviving dry dock in 1495 at Portsmouth, a standing Navy Royal, with its own secretariat, dockyards and a permanent core of purpose-built warships, emerged during the reign of Henry VIII. Under Elizabeth I England became involved in a war with Spain, the new regimes introduction of Navigation Acts, providing that all merchant shipping to and from England or her colonies should be carried out by English ships, led to war with the Dutch Republic. In the early stages of this First Anglo-Dutch War, the superiority of the large, heavily armed English ships was offset by superior Dutch tactical organisation and the fighting was inconclusive
12.
Admiral (Royal Navy)
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Admiral is a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, which equates to the NATO rank code OF-9, outranked only by the rank admiral of the fleet. Royal Navy officers holding the ranks of admiral, vice admiral and admiral of the fleet are sometimes considered generically to be admirals. The rank of admiral is currently the highest rank to which an officer in the Royal Navy can be promoted, King Edward I of England appointed the first English admiral in 1297 when he named William de Laybourne “Admiral of the sea of the King of England”. The rank of admiral should not be confused with the office of Admiral of England or Lord High Admiral, the Royal Navy has had vice and rear admirals since at least the 16th century. When in command of the fleet, the admiral would be in either the lead or the portion of the fleet. When the admiral commanded from the portion of the fleet his deputy. Below him was another admiral at the rear of the fleet, in Elizabethan times the fleet grew large enough to be organised into squadrons. The squadron’s admiral wore a red ensign, the vice admirals white, as the squadrons grew, each was eventually commanded by an admiral and the official ranks became admiral of the white, etc. This was the Navys first attempt at superannuating older officers and they were often assigned to shore-based administrative roles, such as commander of a port or Commissioner of one of the Royal Dockyards. During the Interregnum, the rank of admiral was replaced by that of general at sea, after the battle of Trafalgar in 1805 the rank of admiral of the red was introduced. Thereafter the number of admirals was reduced and in 1853 there were 79 admirals, although the admirals were promoted according to strict seniority, appointments to command were made at the discretion of the Board of Admiralty. As there were invariably more admirals in service there were postings, many admirals remained unemployed. The organisation of the fleet into coloured squadrons was abandoned in 1864. The Red Ensign was allocated to the Merchant Navy, the White Ensign became the flag of the Royal Navy, the 18th- and 19th-century British Navy also maintained a positional rank known as port admiral. A port admiral was typically a veteran captain who served as the commander of a British naval port and was in charge of supplying, refitting. The problem of promoting strictly by seniority was well illustrated by the case of Provo Wallis who served for 96 years, when he died in 1901 four admirals under him could immediately be promoted. In 1996, the rank of admiral of the fleet was put in abeyance in peacetime, admirals of the fleet continue to hold their rank on the active list for life. The current ranks are rear admiral, vice admiral, admiral and admiral of the fleet, also known as flag ranks because admirals, an admiral of the fleet flies a Union Flag at the masthead, while an admiral flies a St Georges cross
13.
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
14.
Royal Marriages Act 1772
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The right of veto vested in the sovereign by this act provoked severe adverse criticism at the time of its passage. It was repealed on 26 March 2015 as a result of the 2011 Perth Agreement and its provisions were replaced by more limited restrictions that apply only to the first six people in the line of succession. That consent was to be set out in the licence and in the register of the marriage, any marriage contracted without the consent of the monarch was to be null and void. There is, however, no instance in which the formal consent in Council was refused. The Act further made it a crime to perform or participate in a marriage of any member of the Royal Family. This provision was repealed by the Criminal Law Act 1967, both alliances were considered highly unsuitable by the King, who saw himself as having been forced to marry for purely dynastic reasons. Although viewed as a canonically sound marriage by Roman Catholics, this marriage was invalid under the Act, had the marriage been valid, it would have excluded the Prince from succession to the throne under the terms of the Act of Settlement 1701. Both marriages were declared null and void by the Court of Arches on 14 July 1794, acceptance of the marriage would have meant acceptance of the Dukes earlier marriage and the legitimacy of his two children. However, the couple cohabited and were accepted as husband. From about 1858, Fairbrother took the name Mrs FitzGeorge, the marriage was non-existent, not a morganatic marriage as many have called it. It is also incorrect to say that Queen Victoria refused to consent to marriage, as no application was made to her under the Act. The Act rendered void any marriage wherever contracted or solemnised in contravention of it, the Act applied to Catholics, even though they are ineligible to succeed to the throne. It did not apply to descendants of Sophia of Hanover who are not also descendants of George II, the effects of the law were not always foreseen. All European monarchies, and many non-European realms, have laws or traditions requiring prior approval of the monarch for members of the dynasty to marry. Many of George IIs descendants in female lines have married back into the British royal family, in particular, the Queen and other members of the House of Windsor descend from two daughters of George II — — who married foreign rulers, and through Queen Mary from a third. Consent to marriages in the Royal Family continued to be sought, thus, some marriages of British princesses to continental monarchs and princes were not, in law, marriages to foreigners. The wording of the statute also excluded any issue of the marriage from being subject to the Act, in October 2011 David Cameron wrote to the leaders of the other Commonwealth realms proposing that the act be limited to the first six people in line to the throne. The leaders approved the change at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting held in Perth
15.
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
16.
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
17.
David Morier
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David Morier, was an Anglo-Swiss painter of portraits, military subjects and historical scenes around and after the time of the War of the Austrian Succession and the related Jacobite rising of 1745. His most recognizable work is entitled An Incident in the Rebellion of 1745 but is commonly known as The Battle of Culloden. Morier thrived during the 1750s under the patronage of the Duke of Cumberland, after the Duke lost his position due to his inept leadership in this new war, Moriers career went into decline. He was jailed for debt in the Fleet prison in 1769, next to nothing is known of Moriers early life, even his exact year of birth is questionable. He arrived in England in 1743, and by some means obtained the patronage of the Duke during the two years. Moriers most famous painting depicts the Highland charge at the climax of the Battle of Culloden, the painting remains the best contemporary source on the material culture of both the British and the Jacobite forces in this conflict. With the coming of peace in 1748, the Duke wished to have his beloved Army immortalized, on each panel three grenadier privates of three different regiments are portrayed, in numerical order and in a variety of poses, from formal drill to route march order. Less well-known, but equally important, Morier also painted depictions of the regiments of the Army. When he was finished, his patron had a record of every regular British regiment that had ever come under his command. Morier exhibited at the first exhibition of the Society of Artists in 1760, and again in 1762,1765, and 1768, sending equestrian portraits, and in the last year An Old Horse, by 1769 Morier was deeply in debt, and was confined to Fleet Prison. He died there in early January,1770, at the age of 65 years. His colleagues of the Society paid to have him buried at St. Jamess Church, Clerkenwell, attribution This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Cust, Lionel Henry
18.
Olivia Serres
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Olivia Serres, known as Olive, was a British painter and writer, born at Warwick. She is also known as an English impostor, who claimed the title of Princess Olive of Cumberland, Olive was born Olivia Wilmot, the daughter of Robert Wilmot, a house painter, in Warwick. At the age of ten she was sent to board with her uncle, James Wilmot, in 1789 she rejoined her father in London. She had a talent for painting and studied art with John Thomas Serres, marine painter to George III, Olive exhibited her paintings at the Royal Academy of Arts and the British Institution, but was financially reckless, both she and her husband were imprisoned for debt. George Fields, an artist friend, moved in with Olive, in 1817, Olive wrote a letter to the Prince Regent, claiming that she was the natural daughter of Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland by Mrs. Olive Payne. She asked the prince for financial support, in a petition to George III, she put forward a claim to be the natural daughter of the Duke of Cumberland, the kings brother. In 1820, after her father, her uncle, and King George III had died, Olive claimed to be the only child of this marriage, and that her mother had died of a broken heart on the Duke of Cumberlands second and bigamous marriage to Anne Horton. She herself, ten days after her birth, was, she alleged, taken from her mother, according to Olive Serres, King George III had learned the truth and had given her £5000 in cash and a yearly pension of £500 for life. In a memorial to George IV she assumed the title of Princess Olive of Cumberland, placed the arms on her carriage. Olivia Serress claim was supported by documents, and she bore sufficient resemblance to her father to be able to impose on numerous gullible people. In 1821, she had herself rebaptized as the daughter of the Duke of Cumberland at Islington Church and she actually succeeded in obtaining some courtesies in response to her claims of royal status, such as being permitted to pass through the Constitution Gate. The same year, however, she was arrested again for debt and she appealed to the public for contributions, placing posters reading The Princess of Cumberland in Captivity. All over London, and publishing, in 1822, further details of her claims, on her release, she had an affair with Sheriff J. W. Parkins, a London eccentric, who turned against her when she failed to honour her debts to him. She next had an affair with a man who called himself William Henry FitzClarence. Olive managed to persuade Sir Gerard Noel, a member of Parliament, to make inquiry into her claims, but by this time the royal family was fighting back. In 1823 Sir Robert Peel, then Home Secretary, speaking in parliament, responded to Noels speech in Olives favour with a denunciation of her documents as forgeries and it was concluded that her claims were false, but Olive escaped prosecution for forgery. Her husband, who had never given her pretensions any support, Olive continued to have economical problems and was for the rest of her life in and out of debtors prisons. In 1830 she again published a pamphlet staking a claim on royalty, Serres became friendly with Lady Anne Hamilton, who had been lady-in-waiting to Queen Caroline, and gained her confidence
19.
Richard Grosvenor, 1st Earl Grosvenor
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Richard Grosvenor, 1st Earl Grosvenor, known as Sir Richard Grosvenor, Bt between 1755 and 1761 and as The Lord Grosvenor between 1761 and 1784, was a British peer, racehorse owner and art collector. He was created Baron Grosvenor in 1761 and in 1784 became both Viscount Belgrave and Earl Grosvenor, Richard Grosvenor was born at Eaton Hall, Cheshire, the elder son of Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet. He was educated at Oriel College, Oxford, graduating MA in 1751 and he became Member of Parliament for Chester in 1754 and continued to represent the city until 1761, when he became Baron Grosvenor and was elevated to the House of Lords. He was mayor of Chester in 1759 and in 1769 he paid for the building of the Eastgate in the city, Grosvenor extended his estate by the purchase of the village of Belgrave, and the manor of Eccleston in 1769. He succeeded as 7th baronet on the death of his father in 1755, initially, Grosvenor was, like his father, a Tory, but later he came to support the ideas of William Pitt the elder. In 1758 he declared himself in favour of the Pitt-Newcastle coalition, however, when the Tory Earl of Bute became Prime Minister the following year, Grosvenor changed his allegiance. Then, when Pitt was returned to power in the Chatham Ministry of 1766–68, during the 1770s he supported Lord North during the American War of Independence. He voted against Foxs India Bill in 1783 and was rewarded by William Pitt the Younger with title of Earl Grosvenor the following year, otherwise, Grosvenor was interested in the acquisition of art and in horse racing. He was also the patron of the satirist and journalist William Gifford. For his art collection he acquired works from Italy, and also paintings from Benjamin West, Thomas Gainsborough, Richard Wilson. In 1788 a collection of pieces composed at Eaton was published as The Eaton Chronicle. Grosvenor was appointed as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1777, to breed his race horses Grosvenor established studs at Wallasey and at Eaton. His horses won the Derby on three occasions and the Oaks six times, in the 1760s, Grosvenor occupied Aubrey House, in the Campden Hill area of Holland Park. A London County Council blue plaque commemorates Grosvenor and other residents of the house, on 19 July 1764 Grosvenor married Henrietta Vernon, daughter of Henry Vernon of Hilton Park, Staffordshire, they had four sons. However the marriage was not happy, and Henrietta had an affair with Henry, Duke of Cumberland, the couple were discovered in flagrante delicto in 1769, which led to Grosvenor bringing an action against the Duke for criminal conversation. He was awarded damages of £10,000, which together with costs, but Grosvenor was also known to be guilty of adultery himself, regularly seeking out prostitutes around Leicester Square, so he could not sue for divorce. The couple separated and he settled an annual allowance of £1,200 on his estranged wife, Grosvenor died at Earls Court in 1802 and was buried in the family vault at St Marys Church, Eccleston. His assets amounted to under £70,000, but his debts were over £100,000 and he was succeeded at Eaton Hall by his eldest son Robert
20.
Adultery
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Adultery is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. A single act of intercourse is generally sufficient to constitute adultery. Historically, many cultures have considered adultery to be a serious crime. Adultery often incurred severe punishment, usually for the woman and sometimes for the man, with penalties including capital punishment, mutilation, such punishments have gradually fallen into disfavor, especially in Western countries from the 19th century. In most Western countries, adultery itself is no longer a criminal offense, Adultery is not a ground for divorce in jurisdictions which have adopted a no-fault divorce model. In some societies and among certain religious adherents, adultery may affect the status of those involved. In countries where adultery is an offense, punishments range from fines to caning. A joint statement by the United Nations Working Group on discrimination against women in law and in states that. In Muslim countries that follow Sharia law for justice, the punishment for adultery may be stoning. There are fifteen countries in which stoning is authorized as lawful punishment, though in recent times it has been carried out only in Iran. In some jurisdictions, having sexual relations with the wife or the wife of his eldest son constitutes treason. The term adultery refers to acts between a married person and someone who is not that persons spouse. It may arise in criminal law or in family law, for instance, in the United Kingdom, adultery is not a criminal offense, but is a ground for divorce, with the legal definition of adultery being physical contact with an alien and unlawful organ. Extramarital sexual acts not fitting this definition are not adultery though they may constitute unreasonable behavior, the application of the term to the act appears to arise from the idea that criminal intercourse with a married woman. Tended to adulterate the issue of an innocent husband, and to expose him to support and provide for another mans. Thus, the purity of the children of a marriage is corrupted, the term adultery, rather than extramarital sex, implies a moral condemnation of the act, as such it is usually not a neutral term because it carries an implied judgment that the act is wrong. In the traditional English common law, adultery was a felony, although the legal definition of adultery differs in nearly every legal system, the common theme is sexual relations outside of marriage, in one form or another. Traditionally, many cultures, particularly Latin American ones, had double standards regarding male and female adultery
21.
Midshipman
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A midshipman is an officer cadet or a commissioned officer candidate of the junior-most rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada, Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Kenya. Beginning in the 18th century, an officer candidate was rated as a midshipman. After serving at least three years as a midshipman or masters mate, he was eligible to take the examination for lieutenant, promotion to lieutenant was not automatic, and many midshipmen took positions as masters mates for an increase in pay and responsibility aboard ship. Midshipman began to mean an officer cadet at a naval college, trainees now spent around four years in a college and two years at sea prior to promotion to commissioned officer rank. Between the mid-19th and mid-20th centuries, time at sea declined to less than a year as the age was increased from 12 to 18. Ranks equivalent to midshipman exist in other navies. Using US midshipman or pre-fleet board UK midshipman as the basis for comparison, using post-fleet board UK midshipman for comparison, the rank would be the most junior commissioned officer in the rank structure, and similar to a US ensign in role and responsibility. Today, these ranks all refer to cadets, but historically they were selected by the monarchy. The first published use of the term midshipman was in 1662, the word derives from an area aboard a ship, amidships, but it refers either to the location where midshipmen worked on the ship, or the location where midshipmen were berthed. By the 18th century, four types of midshipman existed, midshipman, midshipman extraordinary, midshipman, by 1794, all midshipmen were considered officer candidates, and the original rating was phased out. Beginning in 1661, boys who aspired to become officers were sent by their families to serve on ships with a letter of service from the crown, and were paid at the same rate as midshipmen. Their official rating was volunteer-per-order, but they were known as Kings letter boys. Beginning in 1677, Royal Navy regulations for promotion to lieutenant required service as a midshipman, by the Napoleonic era, the regulations required at least three years of services as a midshipman or masters mate and six years of total sea time. Sea time was earned in various ways, most boys served this period at sea in any lower rating, either as a servant of one of the ships officers, a volunteer, or a seaman. By the 1730s, the rating volunteer-per-order was phased out and replaced with a system where prospective midshipmen served as servants for officers. For example, a captain was allowed four servants for every 100 men aboard his ship, the school was unpopular in the Navy, because officers enjoyed the privilege of having servants and preferred the traditional method of training officers via apprenticeship. Volunteers were paid £6 per year, by 1816, the rating of midshipman ordinary was phased out, and all apprentice officers were rated as midshipmen
22.
Corsica
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Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 13 regions of France. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, southeast of the French mainland, a single chain of mountains make up two-thirds of the island. While being part of France, Corsica is also designated as a territorial collectivity by law, as a territorial collectivity, Corsica enjoys a greater degree of autonomy than other French regions, for example, the Corsican Assembly is able to exercise limited executive powers. The island formed a single department until it was split in 1975 into two departments, Haute-Corse and Corse-du-Sud, with its capital in Ajaccio, the prefecture city of Corse-du-Sud. Bastia, the city of Haute-Corse, is the second-largest settlement in Corsica. After being ruled by the Republic of Genoa since 1284, Corsica was briefly an independent Corsican Republic from 1755 until it was conquered by France in 1769. Due to Corsicas historical ties with the Italian peninsula, the island retains to this day many elements of the culture of Italy, the native Corsican language, whose northern variant is closely related to the Italian language, is recognised as a regional language by the French government. This Mediterranean island was ruled by various nations over the course of history but had several periods of independence. Napoleon was born in 1769 in the Corsican capital of Ajaccio and his ancestral home, Maison Bonaparte, is today used as a museum. The origin of the name Corsica is subject to much debate, to the Ancient Greeks it was known as Kalliste, Corsis, Cyrnos, Cernealis, or Cirné. Of these Cyrnos, Cernealis, or Cirné derive from a corruption of the most ancient Greek name of the island, Σειρηνούσσαι, the claim that latter Greek names are based on the Phoenician word for peninsula are highly unlikely. Corsica has been occupied continuously since the Mesolithic era and it acquired an indigenous population that was influential in the Mediterranean during its long prehistory. The Romans, who built a colony in Aléria, considered Corsica as one of the most backward regions of the Roman world, the island produced sheep, honey, resin and wax, and exported many slaves, not well considered because of their fierce and rebellious character. Moreover, it was known for its wines, exported to Rome. Administratively, the island was divided in pagi, which in the Middle Ages became the pievi, Corsica was integrated by Emperor Diocletian in Roman Italy. In the 5th century, the half of the Roman Empire collapsed, and the island was invaded by the Vandals. Briefly recovered by the Byzantines, it became part of the Kingdom of the Lombards—this made it a dependency of the March of Tuscany. Pepin the Short, king of the Franks and Charlemagnes father, expelled the Lombards, in the first quarter of the 11th century, Pisa and Genoa together freed the island from the threat of Arab invasion
23.
Corsican Republic
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In November 1755, Pasquale Paoli proclaimed Corsica a sovereign nation, the Corsican Republic, independent from the Republic of Genoa. The republic created an administration and justice system, and founded an army, after a series of successful actions, Paoli drove the Genoese from the whole island except for a few coastal towns. He then set to work re-organizing the government, introducing many reforms and he founded a university at Corte and created a short-lived Order of Saint-Devote in 1757 in honour of the patron saint of the island, Saint Devota. A national parliament, or Diet, was composed of delegates elected from each district for three-year terms, suffrage was extended to all men over the age of 25. The Republic minted its own coins at Murato in 1761, imprinted with the Moors Head, Paolis ideas of independence, democracy and liberty gained support from such philosophers as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, Raynal, and Mably. The publication in 1766 of An Account of Corsica by James Boswell made Paoli famous throughout Europe, diplomatic recognition was extended to Corsica by the Bey of Tunis. The French invaded Corsica the same year, and for a whole year Paolis forces fought desperately for their new republic against the invaders. However, in May 1769, at the Battle of Ponte Novu they were defeated by superior forces commanded by the Comte de Vaux. French control was consolidated over the island, and in 1770 it became a province of France, the fall of Corsica to the French was poorly received by many in Great Britain, which was Corsicas main ally and sponsor. It was seen as a failure of the Grafton Ministry that Corsica had been lost, the Corsican Crisis severely weakened the Grafton Ministry, contributing to its ultimate downfall. A number of exiled Corsicans fought for the British during the American Revolutionary War, the aspiration for Corsican independence, along with many of the democratic principles of the Corsican Republic, were revived by Paoli in the Anglo-Corsican Kingdom of 1794-1796. On that occasion, British naval and land forces were deployed in defence of the island, however, their efforts failed, to this day, some Corsican separatists such as the Armata Corsa, advocate the restoration of the islands republic. Account of Corsica Corsican Constitution Corsican Crisis Pasquale Paoli History of Corsica First Corsican constitution, in French
24.
Rear admiral
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Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the admiral ranks, in many navies it is referred to as a two-star rank. It originated from the days of naval sailing squadrons and can trace its origins to the Royal Navy, each naval squadron would be assigned an admiral as its head, who would command from the centre vessel and direct the activities of the squadron. The admiral would in turn be assisted by a vice admiral and this has survived into the modern age, with the rank of rear admiral the most-junior of the admiralty ranks of many navies. In some European navies, and in the Canadian Forces French rank translations, in the German Navy the rank is known as Konteradmiral, superior to the flotilla admiral. In the Royal Netherlands Navy, this rank is known as schout-bij-nacht, denoting the role junior to the squadron admiral, the Royal Australian Navy maintains a rank of rear admiral, refer to Australian Defence Force ranks and insignia. Since the mid-1990s, the insignia of a Royal Australian Navy rear admiral is the Crown of St. Edward above a crossed sword and baton, like the Royal Navy version, the sword is a traditional naval cutlass. The stars have eight points, unlike the four pointed Order of the Bath stars used by the army, prior to 1995, the RAN shoulder board was identical to the Royal Navy shoulder board. The Royal Navy shoulder board changed again in 2001 and the Australian, rear Admiral Robyn Walker AM, RAN became the first female admiral in the Royal Australian Navy when she was appointed Surgeon-General of the Australian Defence Force on 16 December 2011. In the Royal Canadian Navy, the rank of rear-admiral is the Navy rank equivalent to major-general of the Army, a rear-admiral is a flag officer, the naval equivalent of a general officer. A rear-admiral is senior to a commodore and brigadier-general, and junior to a vice-admiral and lieutenant-general, the service dress features a wide strip of gold braid around the cuff and, since June 2010, above it a narrower strip of gold braid embellished with the executive curl. On the visor of the cap are two rows of gold oak leaves. Konteradmiral is an OF-7 two-star rank equivalent to the Generalmajor in the German Army, see also The Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard is the naval component of the Military of Guyana. As such, the ranks of the Coast Guard are naval ranks similar to the practice in the respective Coast Guards of Jamaica and Trinidad, the rank of rear admiral was first awarded to chief of staff commodore Gary Best on August 19,2013. The rank insignia consists of two silver pips with green highlights, beneath a crossed sword and baton, all surmounted by the gold-colored Caciques crown with red, the Indian Navy also maintains a rear admiral rank senior to commodore and captain ranks and junior to vice admiral ranks. The rank insignia for a rear-admiral is two stars beneath crossed sword and baton, all surmounted by Emblem of India, worn on shoulder boards, before Islamic Revolution The Iranian Imperial Navy. After Islamic Revolution The Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, also known as the Iranian Navy, a rear admiral in the Pakistani Navy is a senior and two-star rank naval officer, appointed in higher naval commands. Like most Commonwealth navies, the rear admiral rank is superior to commodore, however, the rank is junior to the three-star rank vice-admiral and four-star rank admiral, who is generally a Chief of Naval Staff of the Navy
25.
Vice admiral
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Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to an admiral and junior to an admiral. The rank insignia for a vice admiral often involves three stars, but this is not always the case, in the navy of Iraq, vice admiral insignia involves one star. Vice admiral is the equivalent of air marshal in the Royal Australian Air Force, in the Royal Canadian Navy, the rank of vice-admiral is equivalent to lieutenant-general of the Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Air Force. A vice-admiral is an officer, the naval equivalent of a general officer. A vice-admiral is senior to a rear-admiral and major general, two rows of gold oak leaves are located on the black visor of the white service cap. Vice-admirals are addressed by rank and name, thereafter by subordinates as Sir or Maam, vice-admirals are normally entitled to a staff car, the car will normally bear a flag, dark blue with three gold maple leaves arranged one over two. A vice-admiral generally holds only the most senior command or administrative appointments, barring only Chief of Defence Staff, charles, Prince of Wales holds the honorary rank of vice admiral in the Royal Canadian Navy. The vice-amiral rank used to be an OF-8 rank in NATO charts, the rank of vice-amiral descadre equals a NATO OF-8 rank. In the ancien régime Navy, between 1669 and 1791, the office of Vice-Admiral of France was the highest rank, the supreme office of Admiral of France being purely ceremonial. Distinct offices were, 1669-1791 Vice-admiral of the West, 1778-1791 Vice-admiral of the Asian and American Seas. 1784-1788 Vice-admiral of the Indian Seas, vizeadmiral is an OF-8 three-star rank equivalent to the German Heer and Luftwaffe rank of Generalleutnant. In India, vice admiral is a three star admiral, in Italy, the equivalent to vice admiral is the ammiraglio di squadra or squadron admiral. In the Philippines, the vice admiral is the highest-ranking official of the Philippine Navy. He is recognized as the flag officer in-charge of the Navy, the rank vice-admiral in the Philippines, has the same ranking in the U. S Navy. In Vietnam, the equivalent to vice admiral is the phó đô đốc
26.
Anne Horton
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Anne Horton was a member of the British Royal Family, the wife of Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn. Anne was born in Marylebone, London and she was the daughter of Simon Luttrell, later first Earl of Carhampton, and his wife, Judith Maria Lawes. Her father was a Member of the House of Commons before being created Baron Irnham in 1768, Viscount Carhampton in 1781, Anne was first married to a commoner, Christopher Horton of Catton Hall, on 4 August 1765. She later married Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, the child of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Their marriage took place at Hertford Street in Mayfair, London on 2 October 1771, George III did not approve of the marriage as Anne was a commoner and previously married. Some sources describe Anne as being loose with her favours, given one wags comment that she was the Duke of Graftons Mrs Houghton. Horace Walpole wrote her coquetry was so active, so varied and yet so habitual, while she was generally considered a great beauty, Walpole considered her merely pretty, except for her eyes, which were enchanting. That her eyes were remarkably expressive is confirmed in the portraits of Anne by Thomas Gainsborough
27.
Simon Luttrell, 1st Earl of Carhampton
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Simon Luttrell, 1st Earl of Carhampton was an Anglo-Irish politician and nobleman. He was the son of Col. Henry Luttrell, of Luttrellstown. He served as a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons of Great Britain for four constituencies, Mitchell, Wigan, Weobley, on 13 October 1768 he was created Baron Irnham of Luttrellstown in the Peerage of Ireland. As his title was an Irish peerage, he was able to keep his seat in the British House of Commons and he was elevated to the title of Viscount Carhampton on 9 January 1781 and was made Earl of Carhampton on 23 June 1785. He lived at Four Oaks Hall, Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield from 1751 to 1766, elizabeth Luttrell Lucy Luttrell His rakish behaviour earned him the nickname King of Hell, Hell being a district of Dublin notorious for its brothels. He is reputed to have started the courtesan Mary Nesbitt in her career by seducing her and he had a natural son, Henry Luttrell, possibly by a gardeners daughter. He became known in London as a conversationalist and sometime writer, the Diaboliad, a poem dedicated to the worst man in His Majestys dominions
28.
Brighton
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Brighton /ˈbraɪtən/ is a seaside resort on the south coast of England. It is part of the county of East Sussex, within the historic county of Sussex. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the dates back to the Bronze Age, Roman. The ancient settlement of Brighthelmstone was documented in the Domesday Book, Brighton began to attract more visitors following improved road transport to London and becoming a boarding point for boats travelling to France. The town also developed in popularity as a resort for sea bathing as a purported cure for illnesses. Brighton continued to grow as a centre of tourism following the arrival of the railways in 1841. Many of the attractions were built in the Victorian era, including the Grand Hotel, the West Pier. Brighton attracted 7.5 million day visitors in 2015/16 and 4.9 million overnight visitors, Brighton has also been called the UKs hippest city, and the happiest place to live in the UK. Brightons earliest name was Bristelmestune, recorded in the Domesday Book, although more than 40 variations have been documented, Brighthelmstone was the standard rendering between the 14th and 18th centuries. Brighton was originally a shortened form, first seen in 1660, it gradually supplanted the longer name. Brighthelmstone was the official name until 1810, though. The name is of Anglo-Saxon origin, most scholars believe that it derives from Beorthelm + tūn—the homestead of Beorthelm, a common Old English name associated with villages elsewhere in England. The tūn element is common in Sussex, especially on the coast, an alternative etymology taken from the Old English words for stony valley is sometimes given but has less acceptance. Brighthelm gives its name to, among other things, a church, the town was originally split in half by the Wellesbourne, a winterbourne which was culverted and buried in the 18th century. Poet Horace Smith called it The Queen of Watering Places, which is widely used. Novelist William Makepeace Thackeray referred to Doctor Brighton, calling the one of the best of Physicians. London-by-Sea is well-known, reflecting Brightons popularity with Londoners as a resort, a commuter dormitory. The Queen of Slaughtering Places, a pun on Smiths description, the mid 19th-century nickname School Town referred to the remarkable number of boarding, charity and church schools in the town at the time
29.
Horace Walpole
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Horatio Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford — also known as Horace Walpole — was an English art historian, man of letters, antiquarian and Whig politician. He had Strawberry Hill House built in Twickenham, south-west London and his literary reputation rests on his Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto and his Letters, which are of significant social and political interest. He was the son of the first British Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole, as Horace Walpole was childless, on his death his barony descended to his cousin of the same surname, who was created the new Earl of Orford. Walpole was born in London, the youngest son of British Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole, like his father, he received early education in Bexley, he was also educated at Eton College and Kings College, Cambridge. Walpoles first friends were probably his cousins Francis and Henry Conway, to whom Walpole became strongly attached, at Eton he formed with Charles Lyttelton and George Montagu the Triumvirate, a schoolboy confederacy. More important were another group of friends dubbed the Quadruple Alliance, Walpole, Thomas Gray, Richard West, at Cambridge Walpole came under the influence of Conyers Middleton, an unorthodox theologian. Walpole came to accept the nature of Middletons attitude to some essential Christian doctrines for the rest of his life, including a hatred of superstition. Walpole ceased to reside at Cambridge at the end of 1738, according to one biographer his love for his mother was the most powerful emotion of his entire life. the whole of his psychological history was dominated by it. Walpole did not have any relationships with women, he has been called a natural celibate. Walpoles sexual orientation has been the subject of speculation, many contemporaries described him as effeminate. Biographers such as Timothy Mowl explore his possible homosexuality, including a passionate, some previous biographers such as Lewis, Fothergill, and Robert Wyndham Ketton-Cremer, however, have interpreted Walpole as asexual. Upon coming of age he became Comptroller of the Pipe and Clerk of the Estreats which gave him an income of £300 per annum, Walpole decided to go travelling with Thomas Gray and wrote a will whereby he left Gray all his belongings. They left Dover on 29 March and arrived at Calais later that day and they then travelled through Boulogne, Amiens and Saint-Denis, arriving at Paris on 4 April. Here they met many aristocratic Englishmen, in early June they left Paris for Rheims, then in September going to Dijon, Lyons, Dauphiné, Savoy, Aix-les-Bains, Geneva, and then back to Lyons. In October they left for Italy, arriving in Turin in November, then going to Genoa, Piacenza, Parma, Reggio, Modena, Bologna, and in December arriving at Florence. Here he struck up a friendship with Horace Mann, an assistant to the British Minister at the Court of Tuscany and wrote Epistle from Florence to Thomas Ashton, tutor to the Earl of Plymouth, a mixture of Whig history and Middletons teachings. In February 1740 Walpole and Gray left for Rome with the intention of witnessing the papal conclave upon the death of Pope Clement XII, Walpole wanted to attend fashionable parties and Gray wanted to visit all the antiquities. At social occasions in Rome he saw the Old Pretender James Francis Edward Stuart, Walpole and Gray returned to Florence in July
30.
Royal Thames Yacht Club
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The Royal Thames Yacht Club is the oldest continuously operating yacht club in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are located at 60 Knightsbridge, London, England, the RTYC was established in 1775 when Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, brother of King George III, put up a silver cup for a race on the River Thames and formed the Cumberland Fleet. This remains the name of the club today. The RTYC name originates from 1830 when William IV of the United Kingdom came to the throne, members of the club initially met in coffee houses. From 1857, the club owned various properties in London, moving to its current location of 60 Knightsbridge in 1923, yachting originally took place on the Thames but the Solent became increasingly important in the 1850s as the railways made the south coast more accessible. The club has had many distinguished Flag Officers and traditionally the Commodore has been a member of the royal family, louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma was Commodore for 20 years and today the clubs Commodore is HRH Prince Andrew, the Duke of York. The Patron of the Club is HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, the club is involved in a range of yachting events for both the cruising and racing yachtsman, motor yacht owners and all those interested in the sea. Through the clubs events and other contacts, members have access to yachting activities worldwide and they also have use of all the facilities of the clubhouse in Knightsbridge and leading reciprocal clubs around the world. The club participates in racing events both in the UK and worldwide. There is an annual regatta - the Cumberland Regatta - on the Solent, the club is particularly active in keelboat team racing and regularly competes with other leading clubs around the world. Every year the club organises cruises in UK waters and overseas, overseas cruises have taken place all over the world from New Zealand to the Caribbean. Some members join in with their own boats while others charter, the club hosts a varied range of social events. There are the traditional Black Tie events that have held for over a hundred years, such as the Fitting Out and the Laying Up Dinners. More recently the club has introduced Ladies Lunches, the Annual Cruising Dinner, the club is licensed for civil marriages and civil partnerships. Non-members may hold private or business functions at the club, the Royal Thames Yacht Club Charitable Trust provides funding to young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to become members of a working ships crew and to experience going to sea. List of Londons gentlemens clubs List of International Council of Yacht Clubs members royalthames. com, – History The Chronicles of the Royal Thames Yacht Club by Bob Ward and Fernhurst Books ISBN 189866062X Official website RTYC Charitable Trust
31.
George IV of the United Kingdom
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George IV was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover following the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten years later. From 1811 until his accession, he served as Prince Regent during his fathers mental illness. George IV led an extravagant lifestyle that contributed to the fashions of the Regency era and he was a patron of new forms of leisure, style and taste. He commissioned John Nash to build the Royal Pavilion in Brighton and remodel Buckingham Palace and he even forbade Caroline to attend his coronation and asked the government to introduce the unpopular Pains and Penalties Bill in a desperate, unsuccessful attempt to divorce her. For most of Georges regency and reign, Lord Liverpool controlled the government as Prime Minister and his ministers found his behaviour selfish, unreliable and irresponsible. At all times he was much under the influence of favourites, taxpayers were angry at his wasteful spending at a time when Britons were fighting in the Napoleonic Wars. He did not provide leadership in time of crisis, nor act as a role model for his people. Liverpools government presided over Britains ultimate victory, negotiated the peace settlement, after Liverpools retirement, George was forced to accept Catholic emancipation despite opposing it. His only child, Princess Charlotte, died before him in 1817 and so he was succeeded by his younger brother, George was born at St Jamess Palace, London, on 12 August 1762, the first child of King George III of the United Kingdom and Queen Charlotte. As the eldest son of a British sovereign, he automatically became Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay at birth, he was created Prince of Wales, on 18 September of the same year, he was baptised by Thomas Secker, Archbishop of Canterbury. His godparents were the Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the Duke of Cumberland, George was a talented student, and quickly learned to speak French, German and Italian, in addition to his native English. He was a witty conversationalist, drunk or sober, and showed good, the Prince of Wales turned 21 in 1783, and obtained a grant of £60,000 from Parliament and an annual income of £50,000 from his father. It was far too little for his needs – the stables alone cost £31,000 a year and he then established his residence in Carlton House, where he lived a profligate life. Animosity developed between the prince and his father, who desired more frugal behaviour on the part of the heir apparent, the King, a political conservative, was also alienated by the princes adherence to Charles James Fox and other radically inclined politicians. Soon after he reached the age of 21, the prince became infatuated with Maria Fitzherbert and she was a commoner, six years his elder, twice widowed, and a Roman Catholic. Despite her complete unsuitability, the prince was determined to marry her, nevertheless, the couple went through a marriage ceremony on 15 December 1785 at her house in Park Street, Mayfair. Legally the union was void, as the Kings consent was not granted, however, Fitzherbert believed that she was the princes canonical and true wife, holding the law of the Church to be superior to the law of the State. For political reasons, the union remained secret and Fitzherbert promised not to reveal it, the prince was plunged into debt by his exorbitant lifestyle
32.
Monarchy of the United Kingdom
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The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom, its dependencies and its overseas territories. The monarchs title is King or Queen, the current monarch and head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, ascended the throne on the death of her father, King George VI, on 6 February 1952. The monarch and his or her immediate family undertake various official, ceremonial, diplomatic, as the monarchy is constitutional, the monarch is limited to non-partisan functions such as bestowing honours and appointing the Prime Minister. The monarch is, by tradition, commander-in-chief of the British Armed Forces, from 1603, when the Scottish monarch King James VI inherited the English throne as James I, both the English and Scottish kingdoms were ruled by a single sovereign. From 1649 to 1660, the tradition of monarchy was broken by the republican Commonwealth of England, the Act of Settlement 1701 excluded Roman Catholics, or those who married Catholics, from succession to the English throne. In 1707, the kingdoms of England and Scotland were merged to create the Kingdom of Great Britain, and in 1801, the British monarch became nominal head of the vast British Empire, which covered a quarter of the worlds surface at its greatest extent in 1921. After the Second World War, the vast majority of British colonies and territories became independent, George VI and his successor, Elizabeth II, adopted the title Head of the Commonwealth as a symbol of the free association of its independent member states. The United Kingdom and fifteen other Commonwealth monarchies that share the person as their monarch are called Commonwealth realms. In the uncodified Constitution of the United Kingdom, the Monarch is the Head of State, oaths of allegiance are made to the Queen and her lawful successors. God Save the Queen is the British national anthem, and the monarch appears on postage stamps, coins, the Monarch takes little direct part in Government. Executive power is exercised by Her Majestys Government, which comprises Ministers, primarily the Prime Minister and the Cabinet and they have the direction of the Armed Forces of the Crown, the Civil Service and other Crown Servants such as the Diplomatic and Secret Services. Judicial power is vested in the Judiciary, who by constitution, the Church of England, of which the Monarch is the head, has its own legislative, judicial and executive structures. Powers independent of government are legally granted to public bodies by statute or Statutory Instrument such as an Order in Council. The Sovereigns role as a monarch is largely limited to non-partisan functions. This role has been recognised since the 19th century, the constitutional writer Walter Bagehot identified the monarchy in 1867 as the dignified part rather than the efficient part of government. Whenever necessary, the Monarch is responsible for appointing a new Prime Minister, the Prime Minister takes office by attending the Monarch in private audience, and after kissing hands that appointment is immediately effective without any other formality or instrument. Since 1945, there have only been two hung parliaments, the first followed the February 1974 general election when Harold Wilson was appointed Prime Minister after Edward Heath resigned following his failure to form a coalition. Although Wilsons Labour Party did not have a majority, they were the largest party, the second followed the May 2010 general election, in which the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats agreed to form the first coalition government since World War II
33.
Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange
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Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange was the second child and eldest daughter of King George II of Great Britain and his consort, Caroline of Ansbach. She was the spouse of William IV, Prince of Orange, Princess Anne was the second daughter of a British sovereign to hold the title Princess Royal. She was Regent of the Netherlands from 1751 until her death in 1759 and she was known as an Anglophile due to her English upbringing and family connections, but was unable to convince the Dutch Republic to enter the Seven Years War on the side of the British. Anne was born at Herrenhausen Palace, Hanover, five years before her grandfather, Elector George Louis. She was christened shortly after birth at Herrenhausen Palace and she was named after her paternal grandfathers second cousin Anne, Queen of Great Britain. She learned German, French and English, and was music by Georg Friedrich Händel. Händel did not like teaching, but said he would make the exception for Anne. She remained a supporter, attending his operas and subscribing to his music. Convinced of its value, the Queen had her two younger daughters, Amelia and Caroline, inoculated successfully. Annes face was scarred by the disease, and she was not considered as pretty as her two younger sisters. On 30 August 1727, George II created his eldest daughter Princess Royal, a potential marriage contract between Anne and King Louis XV of France was eventually discarded when the French insisted that Anne convert to Roman Catholicism. On 25 March 1734 in the Chapel Royal at St. Jamess Palace, she married William IV and she ceased to use her British style in favour of the title she gained by marriage. The music played on her wedding, This is the day was set by Handel to the princesss own words based on Psalms 45 and 118. Handel also composed an operatic entertainment, Parnasso in Festa, in honour of her wedding which was performed for the first time at the Kings Theatre, London, on 13 March 1734, with great success. William had a deformity, which affected his appearance. She quarreled with her brother, the Prince of Wales, about her choice, William and Anne sailed to Holland after a honeymoon at Kew. In the Netherlands, they resided at Leeuwarden and this caused a conflict with her spouse and father, who commanded her to return to Holland after a brief stay. By April 1735, it was clear she was not with child after all, in 1736, she did become pregnant, but the child was stillborn
34.
Princess Amelia of Great Britain
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Princess Amelia of Great Britain was the second daughter of George II of Great Britain. Princess Amelia was born at Herrenhausen Palace, Hanover, Germany and her father was The Hereditary Prince of Brunswick-Lüneburg, the son of the Elector of Hanover. Her mother was Caroline of Ansbach, daughter of Johann Friedrich, at her birth she was styled HSH Princess Amelia of Hanover. She was known to her family as Emily, under the Act of Settlement 1701, Princess Amelias grandfather became King of Great Britain on 1 August 1714 following the death of Queen Anne. Amelias father became Duke of Cornwall, and was created Prince of Wales on 27 September 1714 and she moved to Great Britain with her family and resided at St Jamess Palace in London. Though comparatively healthy as an adult, Amelia was a child and her mother employed Johann Georg Steigerthal. On 11 June 1727, George I died and her father succeeded him as George II, Amelia was now styled HRH The Princess Amelia. She lived with her father until his death in 1760, Amelia may have been the mother of composer Samuel Arnold through an affair with a commoner of the name Thomas Arnold. Amelia greatly enjoyed riding and hunting, in 1751, Princess Amelia became ranger of Richmond Park after the death of Robert Walpole. Immediately afterwards, the Princess caused major public uproar by closing the park to the public, only allowing few close friends and this continued until 1758, when a local brewer, John Lewis, took the gatekeeper, who stopped him from entering the park, to court. The court ruled in favour of Lewis, citing the fact that, Princess Amelia was forced to lift the restrictions. The Princess was generous in her gifts to charitable organisations, in 1760 she donated £100 to the society for educating poor orphans of clergymen to help pay for a school for 21 orphan daughters of clergymen of the Church of England. In 1783 she agreed to become a subscriber of £25 to the new County Infirmary in Northampton. She also owned a property in Cavendish Square, Soho, London, a miniature of Prince Frederick of Prussia was found on her body. She was buried in the Henry VII Lady Chapel in Westminster Abbey, Amelia Island in Florida, United States, is named for her, as is Amelia County in Virginia, United States. On 31 January 1719, as a grandchild of the sovereign, Amelia was granted use of the arms of the realm, on 30 August 1727, as a child of the sovereign, Amelias difference changed to a label argent of three points ermine. Panton, Kenneth J. Historical Dictionary of the British Monarchy, van der Kiste, John George II and Queen Caroline
35.
Princess Caroline of Great Britain
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Princess Caroline of Great Britain was the fourth child and third daughter of George II. Princess Caroline was born at Herrenhausen Palace in Hanover, Germany and her father was George Augustus, Hereditary Prince of Hanover, the eldest son of George Louis, Elector of Hanover. Her mother was Caroline of Ansbach, daughter of Johann Friedrich, as a granddaughter of the Elector of Hanover, she was styled Her Serene Highness Princess Caroline of Hanover at birth. Under the Act of Settlement 1701, she was seventh in the line of succession to the British throne and she was baptised the day after her birth at Herrenhausen Palace. In 1714, Queen Anne died, and Carolines grandfather became George I, at the age of one year, Caroline accompanied her mother and elder sisters, the Princesses Anne and Amelia, to Great Britain, and the family resided at St Jamess Palace, London. She was then styled as a Princess of Great Britain, and was known as HRH Princess Caroline, a newly attributed list from January–February 1728 documents her personal expenses, including charitable contributions to several Protestant groups in London. In 1722, at the direction of her mother, she was inoculated against smallpox by variolation, Princess Caroline was her mothers favourite, and became known as the truth-telling Caroline Elizabeth. When any disagreement took place among the children, her parents would say, Send for Caroline. According to Dr. John Doran, The truth-loving Caroline Elizabeth was unreservedly beloved by her parents, was worthy of the affection and she was fair, good, accomplished, and unhappy. According to popular belief, Carolines unhappiness was due to her love for the married courtier Lord Hervey, Hervey, who was bisexual, may have had an affair with Carolines elder brother, Prince Frederick, and was romantically linked with several ladies of the court as well. When Hervey died in 1743, Caroline retired to St. Jamess Palace for many years prior to her own death, accessible to only her family and she was so unhappy that she wanted only to die. Princess Caroline died, unmarried and childless, on 28 December 1757, aged 44 and she was buried at Westminster Abbey. Her goodness was constant and uniform, her generosity immense, her charities most extensive, in short, I, no royalist, could be lavish in her praise. On 31 January 1719, as a grandchild of the sovereign, Caroline was granted use of the arms of the realm, differenced by a label argent of five points, each bearing three roses gules. On 30 August 1727, as a child of the sovereign, list of British princesses House of Hanover
36.
Prince George William of Great Britain
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He died at age 3 months,4 days. Prince George William was born at St Jamess Palace, London and his father later, The Prince George, Prince of Wales, son of George I. His mother was Caroline of Ansbach, daughter of Johann Friedrich, twenty-six days after his birth, he was baptised at St Jamess Palace by Bishop of London John Robinson. His godparents were his grandfather the King, the Duke of Newcastle, the baptism was the catalyst for a family quarrel. The infants parents wanted to call the baby Louis, and suggested the Queen of Prussia, the King chose the names George William, and, supposedly following custom, appointed the Lord Chamberlain, the Duke of Newcastle, as one of the baptismal sponsors of the child. Which the Duke apparently misheard as I shall fight you, the Prince of Wales was banished from court, and he and the Princess of Wales moved into Leicester House, while their children remained in the care of the King. Caroline fell sick with worry, and fainted during a visit to her children made without the Kings approval. By January, the King had relented and allowed Caroline unrestricted access, in February, Prince George William fell ill, and the King allowed both the Prince and Princess of Wales to see him at Kensington Palace without any conditions. When George William died, a post-mortem was conducted to prove that the cause of death was rather than the separation from his mother. The young prince died at just over three months of age, long before his father acceded to the throne as George II and his parents blamed George I for his death because his grandfather made his parents leave St. Jamess Palace and leave their young children behind. Even though this didnt cause his death, this only worsened the relationship between father and son,13 November 1717 –17 February 1718, His Royal Highness Prince George William Arkell, R. L. Caroline of Ansbach. Van der Kiste, John George II and Queen Caroline
37.
Prince William, Duke of Cumberland
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Prince William Augustus KG KB FRS, was the third and youngest son of George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach, and Duke of Cumberland from 1726. He is best remembered for his role in putting down the Jacobite Rising at the Battle of Culloden in 1746 and he is often referred to by the nickname given to him by his English Tory opponents, Butcher Cumberland. Despite his triumph at Culloden, he had an unsuccessful military career. Following the Convention of Klosterzeven in 1757, he never held active military command and switched his attentions to politics and horse racing. William was born in Leicester House, in Leicester Fields, Westminster, London and his godparents included the King and Queen in Prussia, but they apparently did not take part in person and were presumably represented by proxy. The young prince was educated well, his mother appointed Edmond Halley as a tutor, another of his tutors was his mothers favourite Andrew Fountaine. At Hampton Court Palace, apartments were designed specially for him by William Kent, Williams elder brother Frederick, Prince of Wales, proposed dividing the kings dominions. Frederick would get Britain, while William would get Hanover, from childhood, he showed physical courage and ability, and became his parents favourite. He was enrolled in the 2nd Foot Guards and made a Knight of the Bath aged four, in December 1742, he became a major-general, and, the following year, he first saw active service in Germany. George II and the martial boy shared in the glory of the Battle of Dettingen, after the battle he was made a lieutenant general. As it became clear that the French intention was to take Tournai, Cumberland advanced to the relief of the town, in the resulting Battle of Fontenoy on 11 May 1745, the Allies were defeated by the French. Saxe had picked the battleground on which to confront the British, Cumberland ignored the threat of the woods when drawing up his battle plans, and instead concentrated on seizing the town of Fontenoy and attacking the main French army nearby. Following the battle Cumberland was frequently criticised for his tactics, particularly the failure to occupy the woods, in the wake of the battle, Cumberland was forced to retreat to Brussels and was unable to prevent the fall of Ghent, Bruges and Ostend. His appointment was popular, and caused morale to soar amongst the public, recalled from Flanders, Cumberland proceeded with preparations for quelling the Stuart uprising. The Jacobite army had advanced southwards into England, hoping that English Jacobites would rise, however, after receiving only limited support such as the Manchester Regiment, the followers of Charles decided to withdraw to Scotland. Cumberland joined the Midland army under Ligonier, and began pursuit of the enemy, carlisle was retaken, and he was recalled to London, where preparations were in hand to meet an expected French invasion. Arriving in Edinburgh on 30 January 1746, he at once proceeded in search of Charles and he made a detour to Aberdeen, where he spent some time training the well-equipped forces now under his command for the next stage of the conflict in which they were about to engage. He trained his troops to hold their fire until the enemy came within firing range, fire once
38.
Princess Mary of Great Britain
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Princess Mary of Great Britain was the second-youngest daughter of King George II and Landgravine of Hesse-Kassel as the wife of Landgrave Frederick II. Princess Mary was born at Leicester House, Westminster, London and her father was the Prince of Wales, later King George II. Her mother was Caroline of Ansbach, daughter of Johann Friedrich and her father succeeded, as George II, on 11 June 1727, and she became HRH The Princess Mary. Upon her death in 1737, her mother, queen Caroline, entrusted Mary to her elder sister Caroline, urging her to do what she could to support the meek and mild disposition of Princess Mary. A marriage was negotiated with Landgrave Frederick of Hesse-Kassel, the son and heir of William VIII. For the marriage, Parliament voted Mary £40,000 and they married by proxy at the Chapel Royal of St. Jamess Palace in London on 8 May, then in person on 28 June 1740 at Kassel. They had four sons, three of whom survived to adulthood, the marriage was unhappy, and Frederick was said to be brutal and a boor. Frederick reportedly subjected Mary to spousal abuse, in late 1746, Mary made an extended trip to Britain to escape his maltreatment. The couple separated in 1754 on Fredericks conversion to Roman Catholicism and she was supported by her father-in-law, who provided her with a residence in Hanau, as she did not wish to return to Great Britain, but to stay on the continent to raise her children. In 1756, Mary moved to Denmark, to care of the children of her sister, Louise of Great Britain. She took her children with her, and they were raised at the royal court, Mary died on 14 or 16 January 1772, aged 48 at Hanau, Germany. Britains Royal Families, The Complete Genealogy, henry Churchyard Royal Genealogies, Part 10 Sam Sloan Big Combined Family Trees
39.
Louise of Great Britain
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Louise of Great Britain was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1746 until her death, as the first wife of King Frederick V. She was the youngest surviving daughter of George II of Great Britain, Princess Louise was born as the fifth daughter and youngest child of the then Prince and Princess of Wales, on 7 December 1724, at Leicester House, London. She was baptised Louisa there on 22 December and her godparents were her elder sister and two cousins, Princess Amelia of Great Britain, Princess Louisa Ulrika of Prussia, and Frederick, Prince Royal of Prussia, later Frederick the Great. On 11 June 1727, when Louise was two old, her grandfather, George I, died, and her father ascended the throne as George II. On 30 August, as a child of the sovereign, Louise was granted use of the arms of the realm, in a dynastic marriage, Louise wed Prince Frederick of Denmark and Norway on 11 December 1743 in Copenhagen. A first ceremony was conducted on 10 November 1743 in Hannover with her brother, the marriage was proposed by Great Britain. At the time of the marriage, both France and Great Britain wished to make an alliance with Denmark, and Great Britain had the advantage of being able to make a marriage alliance. Fredericks father, King Christian VI, hoped the marriage would lead to British support for his or his sons claim to the throne of Sweden, on a more personal level, there were hopes that marriage would suppress the frequent drinking and debauched behavior of the Crown Prince. The couple had five children, one of whom did not survive infancy, although the marriage was arranged, the couple got along quite well, and at least during the first years, their relationship was described as happy. Frederick was comfortable with her, and Louise pretended not to notice his adultery, though Frederick came to feel high regard for her and always treated her with kindness, however, he reportedly was not in love with her and continued to have affairs after their marriage. She quickly made herself popular in the Danish court, and her father-in-law remarked that she seemed to him to be kind, when her husband ascended the throne, on 6 August 1746, as Frederick V, Louise became Queen of Denmark and Queen of Norway. Queen Louise was very popular in Denmark, and the popularity of the royal couple has been attributed to Louise. Interested in music, dance and theatre, the royal court acquired a more easy-going tone than under her strictly religious parents-in-law, Louise had a vivacious personality, allowing her to socialize easily with others. Her effort to speak the Danish language, including with her children, was much appreciated and she studied the Danish language under the court priest Erik Pontoppidan, and also hired teachers so that her children could learn to speak their countrys language. She was described as educated and good at conversation, not beautiful but very dignified. She finds pleasure in reading and music, she plays the clavichord well, Queen Louise unsuccessfully opposed the dynastic marriage between her daughter Sophia Magdalena and Crown Prince of Sweden in 1751. The reason was her fear that her daughter would not be treated by the Queen of Sweden. Louisa Ulrika was known for her views and for being opposed to the match
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Princess Augusta of Great Britain
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Princess Augusta Frederica of Great Britain was a granddaughter of George II and the only elder sibling of George III. She married into the house of Brunswick, of which she was already a member. Her daughter Caroline was the wife of George IV, Princess Augusta Frederica was born at St. Jamess Palace, London. Her father was Frederick, Prince of Wales, the eldest son of King George II and Queen Caroline of Ansbach and her mother was the Princess of Wales and she was born second in the line of succession. Fifty days later, she was christened at St. Jamess Palace by the Archbishop of Canterbury and her godparents were her paternal grandfather, the King, and her grandmothers, Queen Caroline and the Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Gotha. Her third birthday was celebrated by the first public performance of Rule, Augusta was given a careful education. She was not described as a beauty, having protuberant eyes, loose mouth, in 1761-62, a marriage was discussed between Augusta and the Hereditary Prince of Brunswick, but the negotiations were delayed because her mother disliked the House of Brunswick. This obstacle was overcome due to a described by Walpole, Lady Augusta was lively. As non of her children but the King, had, or had reason to have, much affection for their mother and she could not forbid her daughters frequent visits at Buckingham House, but to prevent ill consequence of them, she often accompanied her thither. This, however, was an attendance and a constraint the Princess of Wales could not support, to obtain this end, the profusion of favors to the hated House of Brunswick was not though too much. The Hereditary Prince was prevailed to accept Lady Augustas hand, with four-scour thousand pounds, an annuity of £5.000 a year on Ireland, on 16 January 1764, Augusta married Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, at the Chapel Royal of St Jamess Palace. Augusta never fully adapted to life in Brunswick due to her British patriotism, Augusta was not well liked at Brunswick, where her popularity was damaged by the fact that her eldest sons were born with handicaps. During her first pregnancy in 1764, she returned to Great Britain in the company of Charles to give birth to her first child, during their visit in England, it was noted that the Brunswicks were cheered by the crowds when they showed themselves in public. This, reportedly, exposed them to suspicion at court, during their visit, her sister-in-law Queen Charlotte apparently refused them some honors at court, such as military salutes. This attracted negative publicity toward the royal couple. Augusta regarded the residence in Brunswick as too simple, and was bored with the tone of her mother-in-laws court, particularly during the summers. In her retreat, Augusta amused herself spending her days eating heavy luncheons, gossiping and playing cards with her favorites, the marriage was an purely arranged dynastic marriage. In 1771-72, Augusta visited England on the invitation of her mother, on this occasion, she was involved in another conflict with her sister-in-law Queen Charlotte
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Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany
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Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany, KG PC FRS, was the younger brother of George III of the United Kingdom and the second son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. As a boy, Prince Edward, with his brother, went through hours of schooling in arithmetic, Latin, geometry, writing, religion, French, German, Greek. For the future George III, the young Prince Edward was his constant companion. As he grew up, quite unlike his simple and solitary brother and those who knew Prince Edward described him as silly, frivolous, rather a chatter-box, someone who loved a good practical joke and who did not keep the most upright company. Prince Edward showed an interest in affairs and sought permission to serve with the Royal Navy. He participated in the naval descents against the French coast taking part in the failed Raid on St Malo and he was made Captain on 14 June 1759, Rear-Admiral of the Blue in 1761 and Vice-Admiral of the Blue in 1762. He was created Duke of York and Albany and Earl of Ulster by his grandfather, George II. When Edwards brother ascended the throne on 25 October 1760 as George III, from the time his brother became king and until the birth of the kings first child, the future George IV, on 12 August 1762, the duke was heir presumptive to the British throne. On 27 July 1765, he was initiated into the Masonic Order, in the late summer of 1767, on his way to Genoa, the duke fell ill and had to be landed in the harbour of Monaco. Despite the care and attention he was given, he died in the Palace of Honoré III, Prince of Monaco, the state bedchamber where the ill duke died has since been known as the York Room. After his death, his body was returned to London aboard HMS Montreal, in 1762, James Boswell published “The Cub at Newmarket”, a poem which he dedicated to Prince Edward, without getting his permission. Boswell met the prince at the Newmarket races in 1760 during his first visit to London, the cub referenced in the work is Boswell himself. The dedication reads, TO His ROYAL HIGHNESS EDWARD Duke of YORK Sir, PERMIT me to take this method of thanking your Royal Highness, THIS Trifle, SIR, would not presume to interrupt you, when engaged in matters of Consequence. It only begs leave to pay its Respects in a devoted to cheerful Festivity. I wish your Royal Highness a long, a merry, and a happy Life, Edward is mentioned as having had a special link with her, stronger than with his other siblings. Cape York, the tip of the Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, is the northernmost point on the Australian continent, the Duke of York Islands in East New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea. They are found in St Georges Channel between New Britain and New Ireland islands and form part of the Bismarck Archipelago, Duke of York Island, the largest island of Duke of York Islands, Papua New Guinea. Prince Edward Augustus, fourth son of King George III, who was born the day after the Duke was buried at Westminster Abbey
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Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain
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Princess Elizabeth was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandchild of George II and sister of George III. Princess Elizabeth was born at Norfolk House, St Jamess Square and her father was The Prince Frederick, Prince of Wales, eldest son of King George II and Caroline of Ansbach. Her mother was The Princess of Wales, little is known of her short life other than a fragment preserved in the Letters of Walpole. We have lost another Princess, Lady Elizabeth and she died of an inflammation in her bowels in two days. Her figure was so unfortunate, that it would have been difficult for her to be happy. I saw her act in Cato at eight years old, better than any of her brothers and sisters. She had been so unhealthy, that at that age she had not been taught to read and she went to her father and mother, and begged she might act. They put her off as gently as they could—she desired leave to repeat her part, and when she did, it was with so much sense and she died on 4 September 1759 at Kew Palace, London and was buried at Westminster Abbey. 10 January 1741 –4 September 1759, Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth of Wales List of British princesses
Great Britain
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