Tags

, , , , ,

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (May 19, 1744 – November 17, 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and of Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on September 8, 1761 until the union of the two kingdoms on January 1, 1801, after which she was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until her death in 1818. As George III’s wife, she was also Electress of Hanover until becoming Queen of Hanover on October 12, 1814, when the electorate became a kingdom.

Sophia Charlotte was born on May 19, 1744. She was the youngest daughter of Duke Charles Ludwig of Mecklenburg, Prince of Mirow (1708–1752) and of his wife Princess Elisabeth Albertine of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1713–1761). Elisabeth Albertine was a daughter of Ernst Friedrich I, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1681–1724), and his wife, Countess Sophia Albertine of Erbach-Erbach (1683–1742).

Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a small north-German duchy in the Holy Roman Empire.

The children of Duke Charles were all born at the Untere Schloss (Lower Castle) in Mirow. According to diplomatic reports at the time of her engagement to George III in 1761, Charlotte had received “a very mediocre education”. Her upbringing was similar to that of a daughter of an English country gentleman.

She received some rudimentary instruction in botany, natural history, and language from tutors, but her education focused on household management and religion—the latter taught by a priest. Only after her brother Adolphus Friedrich succeeded to the ducal throne, in 1752, did she gain any experience of princely duties and of court life.

Marriage

When King George III succeeded to the throne of Great Britain upon the death of his grandfather, George II, he was 22 years old and unmarried. His mother and advisors were eager to have him settled in marriage.

The 17-year-old Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz appealed to him as a prospective consort partly because she had been brought up in an insignificant north German duchy, and therefore would probably have had no experience or interest in power politics or party intrigues. That proved to be the case; to make sure, he instructed her shortly after their wedding “not to meddle”, a precept she was glad to follow.

The King announced to his Council in July 1761, according to the usual form, his intention to wed the Princess, after which a party of escorts, led by the Earl Harcourt, departed for Germany to conduct Princess Charlotte to England.

They reached Strelitz on August 14, 1761, and were received the next day by the reigning Duke, Adolphus Friedrich, Princess Charlotte’s brother, at which time the marriage contract was signed by him on the one hand and Lord Harcourt on the other.

Three days of public celebrations followed, and on August 17, 1761, the Princess set out for Britain, accompanied by her brother, Duke Adolphus Friedrich and by the British escort party. On August 22, they reached Cuxhaven, where a small fleet awaited to convey them to England.

The voyage was extremely difficult; the party encountered three storms at sea, and landed at Harwich only on September 7. They set out at once for London, spent that night in Witham, at the residence of Lord Abercorn, and arrived at 3:30 pm the next day at St. James’s Palace in London. They were received by the King and his family at the garden gate, which marked the first meeting of the bride and groom.

At 9:00 pm that same evening (September 8, 1761), within six hours of her arrival, Charlotte was united in marriage with King George III. The ceremony was performed at the Chapel Royal, St. James’s Palace, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Secker. Only the royal family, the party who had travelled from Germany, and a handful of guests were present.

Upon her wedding day, Charlotte spoke no English. However, she quickly learned the language, albeit speaking with a strong German accent. One observer commented, “She is timid at first but talks a lot, when she is among people she knows.”

As Charlotte was a minor German princess with no interest in politics, George considered her a suitable consort. The marriage lasted 57 years and produced 15 children, 13 of whom survived to adulthood. They included two future British monarchs, George IV and William IV; as well as Charlotte, Princess Royal, who became Queen of Württemberg; Prince Edward, the father of Queen Victoria; Prince Adolphus, grandfather of the British queen consort Mary of Teck; and Prince Ernest Augustus, who became King of Hanover.

Charlotte was a patron of the arts and an amateur botanist who helped expand Kew Gardens. She introduced the Christmas tree to Britain, after decorating one for a Christmas party for children from Windsor in 1800.

She was distressed by her husband’s bouts of physical and mental illness, which became permanent in later life. She maintained a close relationship with Queen Marie Antoinette of France, and the French Revolution likely enhanced the emotional strain felt by Charlotte.

Her eldest son, George, was appointed as Prince Regent in 1811 due to the increasing severity of the King’s illness.

Death

The Queen died in the presence of her eldest son, the Prince Regent, who was holding her hand as she sat in an armchair at the family’s country retreat, Dutch House in Surrey (now known as Kew Palace). She was buried at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. Her husband died just over a year later.

She is the longest-serving female consort and second-longest-serving consort in British history (after Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh), having served as such from her marriage (on 8 September 1761) to her death (17 November 1818), a total of 57 years and 70 days.