Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (25 November 1743 – 25 August 1805), was a grandson of George II and a younger brother of

George III of the United Kingdom George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Great Britain and Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great ...

Life

Youth

Prince William Henry was born at

Leicester House, Westminster Leicester House was a large aristocratic townhouse in Westminster, London, to the north of where Leicester Square now is. Built by the Earl of Leicester and completed in , it was later occupied by Elizabeth Stuart, a British princess and former ...

. His parents were

Frederick, Prince of Wales Frederick, Prince of Wales (Frederick Louis, German: ''Friedrich Ludwig''; 31 January 1707 – 31 March 1751) was the eldest son and heir apparent of King George II of Great Britain. He grew estranged from his parents, King George and Queen C ...

, eldest son of George II and

Caroline of Ansbach Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach (Wilhelmina Charlotte Caroline; 1 March 1683 – 20 November 1737) was List of British royal consorts, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland and List of Hanoverian royal consorts, Electress of Hanover from 11 J ...

, and

Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg ( – 8 February 1772) was Princess of Wales by marriage to Frederick, Prince of Wales, eldest son and heir apparent of King George II of Great Britain, George II. She never became queen consort, as Freder ...

, then Princess of Wales. He was baptized at Leicester House eleven days later. His godparents were his paternal uncle by marriage, the

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by the stadtholders of, and then the heirs apparent of ...

; his paternal uncle, the

Duke of Cumberland Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British royal family, named after the historic county of Cumberland. History The Earldom of Cumberland, created in 1525, became extinct in 1643. The dukedom w ...

; and his paternal aunt, Princess Amelia. He was fourth in the

line of succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility.Prince George, heir-apparent to the throne. He succeeded as George III on 25 October 1760, and created William

Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh ( ) was a British title (after Gloucester and Edinburgh) in the Peerage of Great Britain; the sole creation carried with it the subsidiary title of Earl of Connaught. It existed for the brother of King Geor ...

and Earl of Connaught on 19 November 1764. He had been made a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, it is outranked in ...

on 27 May 1762, and invested on 22 September of that year. In 1764, he began to court Maria Walpole, the Dowager Countess of Waldegrave, an illegitimate granddaughter of Sir

Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (; 26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745), known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British Whigs (British political party), Whig statesman who is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prim ...

Career and marriage

WilliamHenryDukeOfGloucesterThomasGainsborough

He initially wished for active service in the military, but his health and intelligence both proved insufficient. Instead he was appointed

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

of the

13th Regiment of Foot In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The thirteenth is most commonly major or minor . A thirteenth chord is the ...

in 1766. That same year, he and Maria married in secret in his home on Pall Mall. This marriage only became known to the King after the passing of the

Royal Marriages Act 1772 The Royal Marriages Act 1772 (12 Geo. 3. c. 11) was an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard ...

. The Duke and Maria lived at

St Leonard's Hill St Leonard's Hill was a large mansion near Clewer in Berkshire. History The house, originally known as Forest Court, was built by Thomas Sandby for Maria, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh, Countess Waldegrave in the 1760s. She named it Glouces ...

Clewer Clewer (also known as Clewer Village) is an ecclesiastical parish and an area of Windsor, in the ceremonial county of Berkshire, England. Clewer makes up three wards of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, namely Clewer North, Cle ...

, near Windsor and had three children, all of whom were styled ''Highness'' from birth and used the territorial designation of Gloucester in conjunction with their princely styles, as great-grandchildren in the male line of George II. In 1767, he was promoted to major-general and made colonel of the 3rd Regiment of Foot Guards. The same year he was made Warden of

Windsor Forest Windsor may refer to: Places *Detroit–Windsor, Michigan-Ontario, USA-Canada, North America; a cross-border metropolitan region Australia New South Wales *Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area Queen ...

, gaining the post's official residence at

Cranbourne Lodge Cranbourne Lodge was a keeper's lodge for the royal hunting grounds of Cranbourne Chase, once adjoining but now part of Windsor Great Park in the England, English county of Berkshire. All that remains of it today is the Grade II* listed Cranbou ...

. In 1768, he employed the renowned violin maker

Richard Duke Richard Duke (13 June 1658 – 11 February 1711) was an English clergyman and poet, associated with the Tory writers of the Restoration era. Life He was born in London, son of Richard Duke, and was admitted to Westminster School in 1670. He ...

as his official instrument maker; giving him private lodgings in Old Gloucester Street and workshops in

Gloucester Place Gloucester Place is a street in Marylebone in Central London. Located in the City of Westminster, it runs north from Portman Square across the Marylebone Road eventually merging into Park Road. It is parallel to Baker Street to the east and form ...

. He was made the thirteenth

Chancellor of the University of Dublin Introduction The Chancellor of the University of Dublin is the titular head of the University of Dublin, generally referred to by its sole college, Trinity College Dublin, founded in 1592. The current Chancellor is Mary McAleese, former preside ...

in 1771, holding the post until 1805. The Duke and Maria had three children: *

Princess Sophia of Gloucester Princess Sophia of Gloucester (Sophia Matilda; 29 May 1773 – 29 November 1844) was a great-granddaughter of King George II of Great Britain and niece of King George III. Life Princess Sophia was born in Grosvenor Street, Mayfair. Her fathe ...

(''Sophia Matilda''; 29 May 1773 – 29 November 1844), was born in 1773. * Princess Caroline of Gloucester (''Caroline Augusta Maria''; 24 June 1774 – 14 March 1775) was christened privately on 22 July 1774; her godparents were the Duchess of Gloucester (her mother), the Hereditary Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg (her paternal aunt) and the Hereditary Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (her uncle by marriage). The princess died at just nine months old following a

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

inoculation, intended to protect her from the disease. * Prince William Frederick (15 January 1776 – 30 November 1834) With the outbreak of the

American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, the Duke hoped for a field command, but George refused. He made a request to serve in the forces of

Frederick II of Prussia Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself '' King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prus ...

during the

War of Bavarian Succession The War of the Bavarian Succession (; 3 July 1778 – 13 May 1779) was a dispute between the Austrian Habsburg monarchy and an alliance of Saxony and Prussia over succession to the Electorate of Bavaria after the extinction of the Bavarian bran ...

(1777–1779) – George consented but Frederick himself turned down the offer. He later transferred to the

1st Regiment of Foot Guards The Grenadier Guards (GREN GDS) is the most senior infantry regiment of the British Army, being at the top of the Infantry Order of Precedence. It can trace its lineage back to 1656 when Lord Wentworth's Regiment was raised in Bruges to protect ...

, and he became a

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

on 18 October 1793. He went on to be General Officer Commanding Northern District in 1796, a command that he held until 1802.

Interests and family connections

In 1780, the Duke was made a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

and remained interested in medical and scientific matters of the day. In 1797, he invited Norwich surgeon Philip Meadows Martineau to dine with him at

Raynham Hall Raynham Hall is a country house in Norfolk, England. For nearly 400 years it has been the seat of the Townshend family. The hall gave its name to the five estate villages, known as The Raynhams, and is reported to be haunted, providing the ...

, the home of

George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend, Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, PC (28 February 172414 September 1807), known as The Viscount Townshend from 1764 to 1787, was a Great Britain, ...

whose first cousin was

Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney (24 February 1733 – 30 June 1800) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1754 to 1783 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Sydney. He held several important Cabinet posts in ...

, after whom

Sydney, Australia Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 km (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean ...

was named. The Marquess, like Martineau was a Whig and, at this time,

Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk This is an incomplete list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk. Since 1689, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Norfolk. * William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton, 1549 – *Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of S ...

. In 1825,

Sir William Beechey Sir William Beechey (12 December 175328 January 1839) was a British portraitist during the golden age of British painting. Early life Beechey was born at Burford, Oxfordshire, on 12 December 1753, the son of William Beechey, a solicitor, and ...

exhibited his portraits of both Martineau and the Duke at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

. Additionally, in 1782, an illegitimate daughter was born to the Duke, * Louisa Maria La Coast (6 January 1782 – 10 February 1835), who later married Godfrey Macdonald, 3rd Baron Macdonald. Her mother was the Duke's mistress Lady Almeria Carpenter, a daughter of the first

Earl of Tyrconnell Earl of Tyrconnell is a title that has been created four times in the Peerage of Ireland. It was first created in 1603, for Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, formerly king of Tyrconnell, along with the subsidiary title Baron Donegal. The 1 ...

. The Duke died at Gloucester House in London in 1805 and was succeeded as duke by his son William Frederick. He was buried at

St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle St George's Chapel, formally titled The King's Free Chapel of the College of St George, Windsor Castle, at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is a Royal peculiar, Royal Peculia ...

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles

*25 November 1743 – 19 November 1764: ''His Royal Highness'' Prince William *19 November 1764 – 25 August 1805: ''His Royal Highness'' The Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh His peerages were gazetted on 17 November 1764.

Honours

*27 May 1762: Royal Knight of the Garter (KG) *

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are current or former ...

(PC) *Royal

(FRS)

Arms

William was granted use of the arms of the kingdom, differenced by a ''label argent of five points, the centre bearing a fleur-de-lys azure, the other points each bearing a cross gules''.Marks of Cadency in the British Royal Family
/ref>

Ancestors

References

External links

* Wikiquotes of Edward Gibbon, for the Duke's remark on

The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', sometimes shortened to ''Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', is a six-volume work by the English historian Edward Gibbon. The six volumes cover, from 98 to 1590, the peak of the Ro ...

Royal Berkshire History: Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester
* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:William Henry of Gloucester And Edinburgh, Duke, Prince 1743 births 1805 deaths British princes House of Hanover British field marshals Grenadier Guards officers Scots Guards officers Somerset Light Infantry officers

101 101 may refer to: *101 (number), the number * AD 101, a year in the 2nd century AD * 101 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC It may also refer to: Entertainment * ''101'' (album), a live album and documentary by Depeche Mode * "101" (song), a 19 ...

Peers of Great Britain created by George III Peers of Ireland created by George III Knights of the Garter Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain People from Westminster People from Windsor, Berkshire Chancellors of the University of Dublin Gloucester, William Henry Military personnel from Westminster Children of Frederick, Prince of Wales 18th-century British Army personnel