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King George III
“Yes, you’re mad. Bonkers, off your head… but… I’ll tell you a secret… all the best people are.” This quote from Alice in Wonderland written by Lewis Carroll is an accurate depiction of the third Hanoverian king of Great Britain, King George the Third. King George III was best known for being Great Britain’s longest reigning monarch, losing the American colonies, and for going mad.
There are many things that led up to George being the longest reigning monarch. George III was born on June 4th, 1738 in London, and was the oldest son of Frederick, the Prince of Wales, and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha (George III (r. 1760-1820), 2016). As a child, George had very strong feelings, but was slow in his mental development, which led
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to the fact that he could not read properly until he was eleven years old. When George was only twelve years old, his father died, leaving him as heir to the throne (Watson, 2017). Despite his deep Hanoverian roots, during his accession speech to Parliament, George played down this part of his life saying, “born and educated in this country, I glory in the name of Britain” (History.com Staff, George III, pg. 1). He married Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, and even though this was a political union, they had 15 children together. King George III worked to expedite an end to the Seven Years’ War and tried his best to rule the country as best he could. However, in his near future, he would have to deal with a huge obstacle, as overseas, anger was rising in the colonies (History.com Staff, George III). Another thing that King George III was known for was losing the American colonies.
The loss of the colonies resulted from many different situations. First of all, there was a lack of consistency in British colonial policy. The Stamp Act, in 1765, was passed by Grenville but was then repealed by Lord Rockingham just a year later in 1766. The Townshend Acts were imposed in 1767 and then repealed except for the tax on tea shortly after. As a result of this commotion, the people looked for someone to blame, and King George III was blamed for this instability (Watson, 2017). According to Edmund Burke, a Whig statesman, George could not keep a ministry because “he was faithless and intrigued with friends ‘behind the curtain’” (Watson, 2017, George III). In 1770, the king was able to find a minister, Lord North who had the power to appease the people and government. This led to 12 years of a stable government, which was a welcome relief after a decade of disarray (Watson, 2017). However, things were too far gone with the American colonies for them to be saved and on July 4th, 1776 Americans declared their independence. The loss of the American colonies put the Hanoverian throne in danger, but “George’s strong defense of what he saw as the national interest and the prospect of long war with revolutionary France made him, if anything, more popular than before” (George III (r. 1760-1820), 2016, pg.
1). Lastly, King George III was known for his madness. Medical historians believe that George III’s mental instability was caused by a hereditary physical disorder called porphyria (George III (r. 1760-1820), 2016). Porphyria is “a defect of the metabolism that may in time lead to delirium” (George III, 2017). This disease results from a buildup of natural chemicals that produce porphyrin in the body; porphyrins are necessary for the function of hemoglobin, however, high levels of porphyrins can lead to a copious amount of problems (Porphyria, 2017). George III suffered from sporadic attacks, but there were four major attacks that were recorded. These attacks occurred October 1788 to February 1789; February-March 1801, January-March 1804, and October 1810 to his death on Jan. 29th, 1820 (George, III, 1998). In 1788 his derangement increased to such a degree that a regency bill was passed, but the king recovered the following year (George III, 2017). In his last year of life, George III was also totally blind and deaf, drawing sympathy and affection from the public (George, III, 1998). He spent the rest of his life in the care of his loving and devoted wife, Charlotte Sophia, leaving the prince of Wales as regent (King of Great Britain and Ireland George III, 2018). While losing the American colonies, and going crazy are not necessarily the best way to be remembered, King George was also the longest reigning monarch and changed the world as we know it. He was a very influential person who has forever earned a spot in the history book. King George might not have been that delusional; it was a medical condition, and after all, everyone is a little crazy.
About one-third of the colonists were patriots who were ready to take any means necessary to fight for independence for their country. The patriots were so passionate about their cause that they would torture or even kill loyalists or indifferent people. Because of this strong passion, the colonists had much more to gain then the British had to lose. The British had other colonies and other forms of export and import to create a profit, but if the Colonists lost they would have lost their independence and freedom.
There is a common misconception that the sole cause of the American Revolutionary War was the taxes imposed on the colonies by Britain. If a closer look is taken at the history of the Americas, however, it is easy to see that idea of freedom has been pulsing through the colonies for years. Just how did His Majesty King George III lose his American colonies? The answer is a chain of events stringing from the French and Indian war to the day George Washington handed over his troops to the Continental Congress, officially ending the War for Independence. Before the French and Indian War, Britain had used a system of Salutary Neglect with the colonies, giving them a sense of freedom.
In the second half of the eighteenth century, the British were faced with rebelling colonies. Finally realizing that they had to fight to keep their colonial possessions, the British sent troops to America. Once the battles began in America, the British were not impressed with the colonial military, but the weak militias soon proved to be effective. With foreign aid from France, American devotion, and the lack of British vigor, the Americans soon discovered the open doors of independence. In my opinion, the American advantages and the British disadvantages proved to be the downfall of the English in the American Revolution.
Some say that the Revolution was destined to happen ever since Settlers set foot on this continent, others argue that it would not have happened if it weren't for a set of issues that finally drove the colonists to revolt. Ultimately, Britain lost control in 1765 when they gave in to the Stamp Act Congress’s boycotts against parliamentary taxation and gave them the idea that they had the power to run a country. To a lesser degree, Salutary Neglect led to the conception of a legacy of colonial religious and political ideals which set in motion an eminent conflict. During this period, England “forgot” about the colonies and gave them colonists a taste of independence and suspicions of individual political theories. Through Parliament's ruthless taxation without representation and a near opposite religious and political mindset, Britain and the colonists were heaved into a revolutionary war.
The British policies having to do with the American colonies that passed between 1763 and 1776 were an attempt by Britain to have the colonists pay for the French and Indian War and an attempt to keep the colonies subservient to British rule. However these policies backfired and cause the colonist’s to resist British authority and strengthened their commitment to republican values in government. The policies implemented new taxes in order to raise funds and caused what the colonists believed to be injustices to go unchecked by the government, as well as causing the colonists to turn to republican ways of self-governing. The colonists felt as if they were not being properly represented in the British parliament, which led to them turning towards
George Washington was born on February 22, 1732 at the Bridges Creek Plantation in Wakefield Virginia. George was the eldest child out of
The American Revolution is without a question one of the, if not the most, important period in the beginning of American history. Between 1765 and 1783, the colonists rejected the British monarchy and aristocracy after a series of taxes and tariffs were forced upon them, finally the colonists then ultimately overthrew their authority and founded the United States of America. Many historians and authors have debated over the exact reason and overall effects of the War for Independence, however, all agree of the significance and importance of this event. The colonies, which were created as a resource for raw materials and a means for generating profits for Parliament and the Crown, began to desire managing their own affairs and worked towards
After the French Indian War ended, the Britain was in debt, and they also wanted to have more control of the colonies, and the colonists. They passed different acts and procedures in order to collect money, and hold the control of the colonists, and the colonies. Yet the colonists were not given any representation, and they were losing their freedoms one by one; these caused a serious tension between Britain and the colonies, which eventually lead to the American revolution, followed by the Declaration of Independence. The colonies were justified for declaring independence from England, because the king of England caused “repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over the states”("The
The mistake that King George and the rest of Britain made was thinking that they could forever keep the colonies under their thumb. These were not the same colonists who came over as British citizens to set up forts. These men and women thought of themselves and American citizens and they did not need a government across the ocean telling them what to do. Ultimately, Britain lost control when they gave in to the colonists' boycotts and showed them that they had the power to run a country, and that Britain feared that power. Through Parliament's ruthless taxation without representation, restrictions upon what colonists had assumed were civil liberties and British military action, Britain and the colonists were thrown into a revolutionary war.
A new era was dawning on the American colonies and its mother country Britain, an era of revolution. The American colonists were subjected to many cruel acts of the British Parliament in order to benefit England itself. These British policies were forcing the Americans to rebellious feelings as their rights were constantly being violated by the British Crown. The colonies wanted to have an independent government and economy so they could create their own laws and stipulations. The British imperial policies affected the colonies economic, political, and geographic situation which intensified colonists’ resistance to British rule and intensified commitment to their republican values.
The connection between Britain and the English colonies was that of the ruling of the colonies by the king of Britain, King George III and his parliament. The king’s ruling was very unfavorable for the colonists because of his tyrannic dictatorship and unjustly taxations. The mere thought of an island ruling an entire continent thousands of miles away with poor communication and lack of supervision of the colonies by the king, did not work in favor of the colonies nor for Britain. Three contributing factors for the outbreak of the American Revolution were (1) the king’s taxes, (2) neglect of the 13 colonies and (3) England’s mercantilism policy. King George III and his decisions were one of the major causes that had the English colonists fumed with anger towards Britain and this eventually led to the American Revolution.
Throughout the play of Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, Macbeth is supposed to be a likeable character until he kills the king. By committing this heinous act, Macbeth instantly becomes a villain and continues to commit murderous acts, all stemming from his first terrible mistake. One of his motives consists of choosing power over integrity, therefore he kills the king. Another reason why Macbeth is a villain is because he continued to kill innocent people to hide his doings. Lastly, since Macbeth is a villain and murderer, he deserves to be condemned and disdained.
The main reason for the severance of the colonies from Britain was the lack of equality in parliament and the disregard for colonial needs. Whether it be forcing someone to pay for a war they did not fight or want, limiting one’s need for land, or piling on the taxes, all of these factors played a part in the dissolving of British-colonial ties. The colonists were only human and had the human reaction of defiance to injustice. If the colonists had not of had the audacity that they did, today’s America would be a very different place. Breaking away from Britain was the greatest thing the colonists could have possible done.
Revolutions sought to fashion equitable societies where monarchs and aristocrats were attacked. Kings originally relied on divine sanctions for power. However, after philosophes and other advocates of Enlightenment ideas, John Locke proposed that individuals should retain personal right to life liberty, and death, and they voluntarily established governments. In the mid-eighteenth century, the American colonies originally benefited heavily from British imperial rule. After the mid-1760s, this sentiment disappeared after heavy taxes. The Continental Congress declared the colonies as independent and used Enlightenment ideas. Britain was destroyed with foreign help, and surrendered in 1781. Disenfranchised groups claimed and struggled for political and legal rights. French revolutionaries also sought to create a new society, and King Louis XVI
The present monarch of the Great Britain is the Queen Elizabeth the Second, who came into power after the death of her father the King George the Fourth, in 1952. Substitution of the monarch into the forehead of the monarchy must be in accordance with the laws of succession and inheritance principles enshrined in the laws throughout the system. Moreover, it also must be in accordance with customary law and principles of birth right. There is a condition of belonging to the Church of England and the composition of its prescribed promise of a Westminster Abbey.