And so, we move to the final part of the list...
13) William, Duke of Gloucester (1689-1710)
The only surviving child of Anne and her husband, Prince George of Norway and Denmark, William was seen as the future for the new Stuart dynasty, cementing in place the Protestant line as opposed to that of his grandfather, James II's Catholic line. His aunt, Mary II, died when he was young, but he got on well with his Dutch uncle, William III, who reigned alone after her death(and I mean alone; the English people generally distrusted this 'foriegn' ruler, despite the fact they invited him in to get rid of James II). William was made a Kinght of the Garter when only a toddler, and he developed his own miniature army of young boys. However, following a trend in heirs to the throne when the future depends on them, William was a sickly child, and his health often failed him. He died aged 11, leaving only his mother as the sole heir. The Act of Settlement was drawn up the following year, that supported the claim of the distant relatives, the kings of Hanover, to become the rulers of the newly United Kingdom of Great Britain following the rule and death of Queen Anne.
14) Frederick Lewis, Prince of Wales (1707-1751)
Son of George II and Caroline of Ansbach, like the rest of his family, he was born and raised a German in the kingdom of Hanover. He never got on well with his parents, who seemed to despise him for no reason. He was not allowed to leave Hanover upon his father succession to the throne of England, and was therefore unable to take up his position as Prince of Wales until the year after the coronation. He was interested in politics, and was especially drawn to the more Whiggish elements of the opposition. He was also a lover of the arts, loving artists and painting, and even dabbled in writing plays, although the latter was deemed a huge failure. He even had connections to the musical world, and was an accomplished musician himself. However, his greatest musical patronage would be Thomas Arne's 'Rule Britannia'. He even dabbled in sport, and was very closely involved in promoting and playing cricket. He seemed, for all intents and purposes, the perfect English prince. The public and parliament loved him, but his parents loathed him. He brought some scandal to the family (he had a few affairs) and also came cap in hand when he almost became bankrupt due to rich living and gambling debts. They seemed glad when he died young at the age of 44, but the country mourned. He did, however, leave an heir, who became the next Prince of Wales, and would later become George III, which brought a new set of problems.
15) Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (1763-1827)
The 'Grand Old Duke of York' of nursery rhyme, Frederick was the second son of George III, and brother to George IV. As his elder brother had only the daughter (who married Prince Leopold (later King of the Belgians)), who died in childbirth, Frederick was the heir assumptive from 1817.
Frederick was a military man (hence the popular rhyme), and climbed the ranks quickly (something which his rank as a royal prince made easy). He was on active servive during the wars that followed the French Revolution, but he was deemed an ineffectual general. One thing he did pick up from his experience was the lack of organisation in the army, and following the Napoleonic Wars, he became a great reformer of the armed forces, a task made all the easier when when he was promoted to Commander-in-Chief. He helped found Sandhurst to better educate and develop officers, but his downfall came when his mistress was caught selling commissions. Whilst he married, he and his wife, Fredeica Charlotte of Prussia, were never close, and lived seperate lives. They had no children. He died in 1827 of dropsy, and his death began something of a succession crisis. None of his younger brothers were married or had children, so there became something of a race to produce an heir. His younger brother William became heir (and later William IV), but he too had no children, so it was down to the daughter of the fourth son, Edward, Duke of Kent, to become the hope of the Hanover line: she was Alexandrina Victoria.
16) Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence (1864-1892)
The eldest son of the Prince of Wales (the future Edward VII), Albert was the grandson of the reigning Queen Victoria, and she could see clearly that her line was safe for the future. However, if she thought her son and heir was a problem, Albert was even more of an embarrassment. Arrogant, idle, and dim-witted, he was a liability. Even more so when the Cleveland Street scandal broke, where his name was mentioned in connection with a male brothel. There are some that also suspect him of being involved in the Jack the Ripper case, if not the killer himself. Whatever his family thought of him, his friends and the country at large adored him. He was dashing, handsome, and a bit of a rogue, and people seemed to love that. The family arranged an important match for him, but he caught influenza during the epidemic of 1889-92, and died shortly before his scheduled wedding. His bride-to-be, Princess Mary of Teck, shortly married his youngest brother, Prince George, later to be George V.
And this ends our look at the heirs that never quite made it. Of course, their stories can be fleshed out a considerable amount, but all have great tales to tell (some more than others: some warrant (and indeed have) books written about them on their own. But I hope that you all enjoyed this run-down, and the repercussions that most of them had on the future. The possibility that some of them may have somehow survived throws up a plethora of interesting 'what-ifs'!
13) William, Duke of Gloucester (1689-1710)
The only surviving child of Anne and her husband, Prince George of Norway and Denmark, William was seen as the future for the new Stuart dynasty, cementing in place the Protestant line as opposed to that of his grandfather, James II's Catholic line. His aunt, Mary II, died when he was young, but he got on well with his Dutch uncle, William III, who reigned alone after her death(and I mean alone; the English people generally distrusted this 'foriegn' ruler, despite the fact they invited him in to get rid of James II). William was made a Kinght of the Garter when only a toddler, and he developed his own miniature army of young boys. However, following a trend in heirs to the throne when the future depends on them, William was a sickly child, and his health often failed him. He died aged 11, leaving only his mother as the sole heir. The Act of Settlement was drawn up the following year, that supported the claim of the distant relatives, the kings of Hanover, to become the rulers of the newly United Kingdom of Great Britain following the rule and death of Queen Anne.
14) Frederick Lewis, Prince of Wales (1707-1751)
Son of George II and Caroline of Ansbach, like the rest of his family, he was born and raised a German in the kingdom of Hanover. He never got on well with his parents, who seemed to despise him for no reason. He was not allowed to leave Hanover upon his father succession to the throne of England, and was therefore unable to take up his position as Prince of Wales until the year after the coronation. He was interested in politics, and was especially drawn to the more Whiggish elements of the opposition. He was also a lover of the arts, loving artists and painting, and even dabbled in writing plays, although the latter was deemed a huge failure. He even had connections to the musical world, and was an accomplished musician himself. However, his greatest musical patronage would be Thomas Arne's 'Rule Britannia'. He even dabbled in sport, and was very closely involved in promoting and playing cricket. He seemed, for all intents and purposes, the perfect English prince. The public and parliament loved him, but his parents loathed him. He brought some scandal to the family (he had a few affairs) and also came cap in hand when he almost became bankrupt due to rich living and gambling debts. They seemed glad when he died young at the age of 44, but the country mourned. He did, however, leave an heir, who became the next Prince of Wales, and would later become George III, which brought a new set of problems.
15) Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (1763-1827)
The 'Grand Old Duke of York' of nursery rhyme, Frederick was the second son of George III, and brother to George IV. As his elder brother had only the daughter (who married Prince Leopold (later King of the Belgians)), who died in childbirth, Frederick was the heir assumptive from 1817.
Frederick was a military man (hence the popular rhyme), and climbed the ranks quickly (something which his rank as a royal prince made easy). He was on active servive during the wars that followed the French Revolution, but he was deemed an ineffectual general. One thing he did pick up from his experience was the lack of organisation in the army, and following the Napoleonic Wars, he became a great reformer of the armed forces, a task made all the easier when when he was promoted to Commander-in-Chief. He helped found Sandhurst to better educate and develop officers, but his downfall came when his mistress was caught selling commissions. Whilst he married, he and his wife, Fredeica Charlotte of Prussia, were never close, and lived seperate lives. They had no children. He died in 1827 of dropsy, and his death began something of a succession crisis. None of his younger brothers were married or had children, so there became something of a race to produce an heir. His younger brother William became heir (and later William IV), but he too had no children, so it was down to the daughter of the fourth son, Edward, Duke of Kent, to become the hope of the Hanover line: she was Alexandrina Victoria.
16) Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence (1864-1892)
The eldest son of the Prince of Wales (the future Edward VII), Albert was the grandson of the reigning Queen Victoria, and she could see clearly that her line was safe for the future. However, if she thought her son and heir was a problem, Albert was even more of an embarrassment. Arrogant, idle, and dim-witted, he was a liability. Even more so when the Cleveland Street scandal broke, where his name was mentioned in connection with a male brothel. There are some that also suspect him of being involved in the Jack the Ripper case, if not the killer himself. Whatever his family thought of him, his friends and the country at large adored him. He was dashing, handsome, and a bit of a rogue, and people seemed to love that. The family arranged an important match for him, but he caught influenza during the epidemic of 1889-92, and died shortly before his scheduled wedding. His bride-to-be, Princess Mary of Teck, shortly married his youngest brother, Prince George, later to be George V.
And this ends our look at the heirs that never quite made it. Of course, their stories can be fleshed out a considerable amount, but all have great tales to tell (some more than others: some warrant (and indeed have) books written about them on their own. But I hope that you all enjoyed this run-down, and the repercussions that most of them had on the future. The possibility that some of them may have somehow survived throws up a plethora of interesting 'what-ifs'!
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