George II
November 10 1683-October 25 1760. King of the United Kingdom, 1727-1760.
George II was the sole son of his father George I and his mother Sophia. The future monarch spent his youth in Germany and married his wife in 1705. She was called Caroline of Ansbach and gave birth to three sons and five daughters. Similar to his father and due to his stay in Germany, he was considered a German prince. Nevertheless, he integrated into English society well and was used to the English customs. [1]
Generally, it is said that George possessed three passions: the army, music and his wife (in spite of this, he also had mistresses). He loved the music of George Frideric Handel, who had been George I's court musician in Hanover. Handel composed "Four coronation anthems in full score" for his royal fan. [2]
The King declared war on Spain in 1739 against the wishes of his Prime Minister Robert Walpole. [3] In the War of the Austrian Succession, George II led his troops in the successful Battle of Dettingen (the last British monarch to do so). In celebration of the victory, Handel composed the "Dettingen Te Deum".
George II died on 25 October 1760 (Mayhan, 304).
Sources
- http://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon54.html
- George Frideric Handel. "Four coronation anthems: composed for the coronation of King George II." General Publishing: London, 1994.
- Alfred Thayer Mahan. The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783. Gretna: Pelican 2003.