Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
Encyclopedia
Prince William, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (William Frederick or "Silly Billy"; 15 January 1776 – 30 November 1834) was a member of the British Royal Family
, a great-grandson of George II
and nephew of George III
.
Prince William of Gloucester was born on 15 January 1776 at the Teodoli Palace in Rome
, Italy
. His father was Prince William, Duke of Gloucester
, the third son of the Prince of Wales
. His mother was Maria, Duchess of Gloucester
, the illegitimate daughter of Edward Walpole
and granddaughter of Robert Walpole
. As a great-grandson of George II
he held the title of Prince of Great Britain
with the style His Highness, not His Royal Highness, at birth. The young prince was christened at Teodoli Palace, on 12 February 1776 by a Rev Salter. His godparents were The Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (his first cousin once-removed and his wife) and The Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach
(his second cousin one-removed).
During his stay in Stockholm in 1802-1803, his interest and rumoured affair with Aurora Wilhelmina Koskull
attracted a lot of attention, and he reportedly had plans to marry her; according to Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp, William Frederick said to her: "If she was your daughter, I would marry her!," with reference to Koskull.
He was admitted to the University of Cambridge
(Trinity College
) in 1787, and granted his MA in 1790. On 25 August 1805, Prince William's father died, and he inherited the titles, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
and Earl of Connaught. From 1811 until his death he was Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He was offered the position of king of Sweden in 1812 by some members of the Swedish nobility, but the British monarch would not allow it.
, his cousin and the fourth daughter of George III
. The marriage took place at St. James's Palace
, London
. On that day, The Prince Regent
granted the Duke the style of His Royal Highness by Order in Council.
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester lived at Bagshot Park
in Surrey
. They had no children together; they had married when both were 40. The Duke had been encouraged to stay single, so that there might be a suitable groom for Princess Charlotte of Wales, the heiress to the throne, even if no foreign match proved suitable; she had married Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg
ten weeks earlier.
's new United University Club
. Politics, however, was not among them; he entered the House of Lords rarely, and he voted on few of the great issues of his time. He did advocate the abolition of slavery, and he supported Queen Caroline
and the Duke of Sussex
against George IV
.
He kept more state than the King; he never permitted a gentleman to be seated in his presence (which King George did as an exceptional favour) and expected to be served coffee by the ladies of any party he attended, and that they would stand while he drank it. The general estimate of his capacity is given by his nickname, "Silly Billy"; he was also called "Slice of Gloucester" and "Cheese", a reference to Gloucester cheese.
The Duke died on 30 November 1834, and was buried in St. George's Chapel, Windsor.
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
, a great-grandson of George II
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer 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 and brought up in Northern Germany...
and nephew of George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
.
Early life
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. His father was Prince William, Duke of Gloucester
Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
Prince William, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandson of George II and a younger brother of George III.-Early life:...
, the third son of the Prince of Wales
Frederick, Prince of Wales
Frederick, Prince of Wales was a member of the House of Hanover and therefore of the Hanoverian and later British Royal Family, the eldest son of George II and father of George III, as well as the great-grandfather of Queen Victoria...
. His mother was Maria, Duchess of Gloucester
Maria, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh
Maria Walpole , the Countess Waldegrave and Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh, was a member of the British Royal Family, the wife of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh...
, the illegitimate daughter of Edward Walpole
Edward Walpole
Sir Edward Walpole KB PC was a British politician, and a younger son of Sir Robert Walpole, Prime Minister from 1721 to 1742....
and granddaughter of Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, KG, KB, PC , known before 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British statesman who is generally regarded as having been the first Prime Minister of Great Britain....
. As a great-grandson of George II
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer 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 and brought up in Northern Germany...
he held the title of Prince of Great Britain
British prince
This is a list of British princes from the accession of George I in 1714. The title of prince is at the will of the sovereign, who can both grant and revoke the title. Individuals holding the title of prince will usually also be styled His Royal Highness or formerly His Highness...
with the style His Highness, not His Royal Highness, at birth. The young prince was christened at Teodoli Palace, on 12 February 1776 by a Rev Salter. His godparents were The Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (his first cousin once-removed and his wife) and The Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach
Christian Frederick Charles Alexander, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach
Christian Frederick Charles Alexander was the last Margrave of the two Franconian principalities Brandenburg-Ansbach and Brandenburg-Bayreuth, which he sold to the King of Prussia, a fellow member of the House of Hohenzollern.-Life:His parents were Charles William...
(his second cousin one-removed).
During his stay in Stockholm in 1802-1803, his interest and rumoured affair with Aurora Wilhelmina Koskull
Aurora Wilhelmina Koskull
Aurora Wilhelmina Koskull was a Swedish lady-in-waiting and politically active salonist.She was the daughter of the courtier Baron Otto Anders Koskull and Amalia Beata Silfversparre. Married in 1806 to Count Magnus Fredrik Brahe .Koskull became one of the first maids-of-honor appointed to the new...
attracted a lot of attention, and he reportedly had plans to marry her; according to Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp, William Frederick said to her: "If she was your daughter, I would marry her!," with reference to Koskull.
He was admitted to the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
(Trinity College
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
) in 1787, and granted his MA in 1790. On 25 August 1805, Prince William's father died, and he inherited the titles, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
Duke of Gloucester
Duke of Gloucester is a British royal title , often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England, the next in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; this current creation carries with it the...
and Earl of Connaught. From 1811 until his death he was Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He was offered the position of king of Sweden in 1812 by some members of the Swedish nobility, but the British monarch would not allow it.
Marriage
On 22 July 1816, he married The Princess MaryPrincess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh
The Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh was a member of the British Royal Family, the eleventh child and fourth daughter of George III....
, his cousin and the fourth daughter of George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
. The marriage took place at St. James's Palace
St. James's Palace
St. James's Palace is one of London's oldest palaces. It is situated in Pall Mall, just north of St. James's Park. Although no sovereign has resided there for almost two centuries, it has remained the official residence of the Sovereign and the most senior royal palace in the UK...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. On that day, The Prince Regent
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
granted the Duke the style of His Royal Highness by Order in Council.
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester lived at Bagshot Park
Bagshot Park
Bagshot Park is a royal residence located near Bagshot, a village south west of Windsor and approximately north east of Guildford . It is the current home of The Earl and Countess of Wessex. Bagshot Park is on Bagshot Heath, a fifty square-mile tract of formerly open land in Surrey and Berkshire...
in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
. They had no children together; they had married when both were 40. The Duke had been encouraged to stay single, so that there might be a suitable groom for Princess Charlotte of Wales, the heiress to the throne, even if no foreign match proved suitable; she had married Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg
Leopold I of Belgium
Leopold I was from 21 July 1831 the first King of the Belgians, following Belgium's independence from the Netherlands. He was the founder of the Belgian line of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
ten weeks earlier.
Later life
He was active in many walks of life, and on 27 April 1822 chaired the first Annual General Meeting of LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's new United University Club
United University Club
The United University Club was a London gentlemen's club, founded in 1821. It occupied the purpose-built University Club House, at 1, Suffolk Street, London, England, from 1826 until 1971.-Formation and membership:...
. Politics, however, was not among them; he entered the House of Lords rarely, and he voted on few of the great issues of his time. He did advocate the abolition of slavery, and he supported Queen Caroline
Caroline of Brunswick
Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel was the Queen consort of King George IV of the United Kingdom from 29 January 1820 until her death...
and the Duke of Sussex
Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex
The Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex , was the sixth son of George III of the United Kingdom and his consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He was the only surviving son of George III who did not pursue an army or naval career.- Early life :His Royal Highness The Prince Augustus...
against George IV
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
.
He kept more state than the King; he never permitted a gentleman to be seated in his presence (which King George did as an exceptional favour) and expected to be served coffee by the ladies of any party he attended, and that they would stand while he drank it. The general estimate of his capacity is given by his nickname, "Silly Billy"; he was also called "Slice of Gloucester" and "Cheese", a reference to Gloucester cheese.
The Duke died on 30 November 1834, and was buried in St. George's Chapel, Windsor.
Titles and styles
- 15 January 1776 – 25 August 1805: His Highness Prince William of Gloucester
- 25 August 1805 – 22 July 1816: His Highness The Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
- 22 July 1816 – 30 November 1834: His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
Honours
- KG: Knight of the GarterOrder of the GarterThe Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
, 16 July 1794 - GCB: Knight Grand Cross of the BathOrder of the BathThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
- GCH: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic OrderRoyal Guelphic OrderThe Royal Guelphic Order, sometimes also referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent . It has not been conferred by the British Crown since the death of King William IV in 1837, when the personal union of the...
- PC: Lord of His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy CouncilPrivy Council of the United KingdomHer Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
- FRS: Fellow of the Royal Society