November 30, 1719: Birth of Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Princess of Wales. Part I

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Elector of Hanover, Frederick Louis of Great Britain, Frederick the Great of Prussia, Frederick William I of Prussia, George II, King of Great Britain, Lady Diana Spencer, Prince of Wales, Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Princess of Wales

Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (November 30, 1719 – 8 February 8, 1772) was Princess of Wales by marriage to Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales, son and heir of King George II of Great Britain. She never became queen consort, as Frederick Louis predeceased his father in 1751. Augusta’s eldest son succeeded her father-in-law as King George III in 1760. After her spouse died, Augusta was presumptive regent of Great Britain in the event of a regency until her son reached majority in 1756.

Early life

Princess Augusta was born in Gotha to Friedrich II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (1676–1732) and Magdalena Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst (1679–1740). Her paternal grandfather was Friedrich I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, eldest surviving son of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg.

In 1736, it was proposed that she marry 29-year-old Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales, eldest son of George II of Great Britain and his queen consort Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach. Originally, Frederick Louis intended to marry the eldest daughter of the King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia.

A marriage alliance between Great Britain and Prussia had been an ambition for many years. However, when George II suggested that his eldest son would marry Louisa Ulrika of Prussia the eldest (unmarried) daughter of the King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia, while George II’s second (unmarried) daughter, Amelia, would marry the eldest son of the Prussian king, future Friedrich II the Great, and King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia demanded that his eldest son should likewise marry the eldest (unmarried) daughter, Anne, of the King of Great Britain, and George II refused to agree to this demand.

Princess Louisa Ulrika of Prussia ended up marying Adolf Fredrik, King of Sweden. Princess Amelia of Great Britain remained unmarried, while her sister Princess Anne married Willem IV, Prince of Orange. Friedrich II the Great of Prussia marriage Duchess Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, daughter of Duke Ferdinand Albert II Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and his cousin Duchess Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in 1733. Elisabeth was the niece of Empress Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, wife of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI.

Around the time the Prussian plan was cancelled, there were rumours that Frederick Louis might marry Lady Diana Spencer, granddaughter of the Duchess of Marlborough, and that such a marriage had been proposed when he visited the duchess’s lodge at Richmond. Queen Caroline felt a need to arrange a marriage for her son quickly, in order to preempt any possibility of such a mésalliance. She therefore suggested to the king that, when he next visited Hanover, he should also visit Saxe-Gotha and view the princesses there.

The king did so, and informed the queen that he considered Augusta suitable. When the matter was broached with Frederick, he simply replied that he would accept any bride his father decided was suitable for him. His attitude arose from a desire to obtain an additional allowance from Parliament to be financially independent of his father.

Augusta did not speak French or English, and it was suggested that she be given lessons before the wedding, but her mother did not consider it necessary as the British royal family were from Germany. She arrived in Britain, speaking virtually no English, for a wedding ceremony which took place almost immediately, on May 8, 1736, at the Chapel Royal in St James’s Palace, London.

Princess of Wales

Augusta of Saxe-Gotha left Hellevoetsluis April 17, 1736 and arrived at Greenwich on the royal yacht William and Mary on the 25th, where she was welcomed by her groom. On April 27, 1736, she was escorted to St James’s Palace, London, where she met the rest of the royal family, followed by the wedding ceremony at the Royal Chapel. When she was introduced to the royal family, she made a favorable impression on the king and queen by throwing herself on the floor before them in a gesture of submission.

During the first year of marriage, Augusta could be seen playing with her doll in the windows of her residence, until her sister-in-law, Princess Caroline, told her to stop. Frederick Louis took advantage of her inexperience when he had his then lover, Lady Archibald Hamilton, employed as her lady of the bedchamber after convincing her that there was no truth in the rumour of his affair. Augusta and Frederick Louis had nine children, the last born after Frederick Louis’s death.

Frederick Louis once stated that he would never allow himself to be influenced by his consort as his father was, and he thus never made Augusta his confidante. He did, however, instruct her to act in accordance with his wishes in his feud with his parents, and on several occasions, Frederick Louis reportedly instructed her to snub them.

When she attended the service of the German Lutheran Chapel, for example, which was also attended by the queen, Frederick instructed Augusta to make sure she always arrived after the queen, so that she would be forced to push in front of the queen to reach her place. This eventually made the queen insist that Augusta should be directed to her place by another entrance, which in turn caused Frederick Louis to instruct Augusta to refuse to enter the Chapel if the queen had arrived before her.

June 12, 1758: Death of Prince August-Wilhelm of Prussia

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August Wilhelm of Prussia, Battle of Kolin, Frederick II of Prussia, Frederick the Great, Frederick William I of Prussia, George I of Great Britain, King Adolphus-Frederick of Sweden, Kingdom of Prussia, Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Seven Years War

August-Wilhelm of Prussia (August 9, 1722 – June 12, 1758) was Prince of Prussia and a younger brother and general of Friedrich II.

August-Wilhelm was the second surviving son of Friedrich-Wilhelm I and Sophia-Dorothea of Hanover, only daughter of Elector Georg-Ludwig of Hanover, later King George I of Great Britain, and his wife, Sophia Dorothea of Brunswick-Celle. She was detested by her elder brother, King George II of Great Britain.

August-Wilhelm of Prussia

August-Wilhelm’s older siblings included Wilhelmina, married Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, Friedrich II (King of Prussia), Friedrike-Louise, married her Hohenzollern kinsman Charles-Wilhelm-Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach and Louisa-Ulrika, married King Adolf-Fredrik of Sweden.

August-Wilhelm was favored by his father over Friedrich and popular at the Prussian court. When his brother Friedrich became king in 1740, August-Wilhelm became heir presumptive and moved into the Friedrich’s former residence, the Crown Prince’s Palace in Berlin. When his older sister Louisa Ulrika married the King Adolf-Fredrik of Sweden in 1744, she founded the Ordre de l’Harmonie, of which August-Wilhelm was one of the first recipients.

August-Wilhelm served his brother as a general in the War of the Austrian Succession, and distinguished himself in the Battle of Hohenfriedberg. But in the Seven Years’ War, owing to the fatal retreat of Zittau during the Battle of Kolin in 1757, he incurred the wrath of his brother the King, and withdrew from the army.

This conflict between the two brothers led to a correspondence, which was published in 1769. August-Wilhelm died suddenly in 1758 at Oranienburg, according to some of “a broken heart”, in reference to his brother Friedrich II’s harsh treatment of him for his incompetent military leadership in the Battle of Kolin. In reality, he died from a brain tumor.

August-Wilhelm of Prussia

August-Wilhelm married Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel,(January 29, 1722 – January 13, 1780) was daughter of Ferdinand-Albrecht II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and his wife Duchess Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel’s older sister was Elisabeth-Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, wife of August-Wilhelm’s brother, Friedrich II the Great. She was also the sibling of the Queen of Denmark and Norway and the Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Because his older brother had no children, August-Wilhelm’s oldest son inherited the throne as King Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia on Friedrich II’s death.

Issue: Children of August-Wilhelm and Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

* Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia (1744–1797)
* married (1) Elisabeth-Christine of Brunswick-Lüneburg. They had one child Princess Frederica-Charlotte of Prussia (1767–1820), who married Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany, the second son of George III of the United Kingdom.
* married (2) Frederika-Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt and had issue.
* Prince Heinrich of Prussia (1747–1767) died unmarried.
* Princess Wilhelmina of Prussia (1751–1820) married Willem V, Prince of Orange and had issue.
* Prince Emil of Prussia (1758–1759) died in infancy.

May 31, 1740: Death of King Friedrich-Wilhelm I in Prussia.

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Elector of Brandenburg, Frederick I of Prussia, Frederick the Great, Frederick William I of Prussia, Holy Roman Empire, King in Hanover, Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Sophia Dorothea of Great Britain

Friedrich-Wilhelm I (August 14, 1688 – May 31, 1740), known as the “Soldier King”, was the King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until his death in 1740, as well as Prince of Neuchâtel. He was succeeded by his son, Friedrich II the Great.

Friedrich-Wilhelm I, King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg.

Reign

Friedrich-Wilhelm I was born in Berlin to King Friedrich I in Prussia and Princess Sophia-Charlotte of Hanover, the only daughter of Elector Ernst-August of Hanover and his wife Sophia of the Palatinate of the Rhine. Her eldest brother Elector Georg-Ludwig of Hanover succeeded to the British throne in 1714 as King George I of Great Britain and Ireland.

Friedrich-Wilhelm’s father, Friedrich I, had successfully acquired the title King in Prussia for the Margraves of Brandenburg. On ascending the throne in 1713 (the year before his maternal grandmother’s death and the ascension of his maternal uncle George I of Great Britain to the British throne) the new King sold most of his father’s horses, jewels and furniture; he did not intend to treat the treasury as his personal source of revenue the way Friedrich I and many of the other German Princes had.

Friedrich I, King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg (Father)

Throughout his reign, Friedrich-Wilhelm was characterized by his frugal, austere and militaristic lifestyle, as well as his devout Calvinist faith. He practiced rigid management of the treasury, never started a war, and led a simple and austere lifestyle, in contrast to the lavish court his father had presided over.

Princess Sophia-Charlotte of Hanover (Mother)

Friedrich-Wilhelm I did much to improve Prussia economically and militarily. He replaced mandatory military service among the middle class with an annual tax, and he established schools and hospitals. The king encouraged farming, reclaimed marshes, stored grain in good times and sold it in bad times.

He dictated the manual of Regulations for State Officials, containing 35 chapters and 297 paragraphs in which every public servant in Prussia could find his duties precisely set out: a minister or councillor failing to attend a committee meeting, for example, would lose six months’ pay; if he absented himself a second time, he would be discharged from the royal service. In short, Friedrich-Wilhelm I concerned himself with every aspect of his relatively small country, ruling an absolute monarchy with great energy and skill.

On November 28, 1706, Friedrich-Wilhelm married his first cousin Sophia-Dorothea of Hanover. She was only daughter of Georg-Ludwig of Hanover, later King George I of Great Britain, and his wife, Sophia-Dorothea of Celle. She was detested by her elder brother, King George II of Great Britain.

Sophia-Dorothea of Hanover

Friedrich-Wilhelm was faithful and loving to his wife but they did not have a happy relationship: Sophia-Dorothea feared his unpredictable temper and resented him, both for allowing her no influence at court and for refusing to marry her children to their English cousins. She also abhorred his cruelty towards their son and heir Crown Prince Friedrich (with whom she was close), although rather than trying to mend the relationship between father and son she frequently spurred Friedrich on in his defiance. They had fourteen children.

Although a highly effective ruler, Friedrich-Wilhelm had a perpetually short temper which sometimes drove him to physically attack servants (or even his own children) with a cane at the slightest provocation. His violent, harsh nature was further exacerbated by his inherited porphyritic disease, which gave him gout, obesity and frequent crippling stomach pains. He also had a notable contempt for France, and would sometimes fly into a rage at the mere mention of that country, although this did not stop him from encouraging the immigration of French Huguenot refugees to Prussia.
Burial and reburials

His eldest surviving son was Friedrich II (Fritz), born in 1712. Friedrich-Wilhelm wanted him to become a fine soldier. As a small child, Fritz was awakened each morning by the firing of a cannon. At the age of 6, he was given his own regiment of children to drill as cadets, and a year later, he was given a miniature arsenal.

Portrait of August II of Poland (left) and Friedrich-Wilhelm I of Prussia (right), during Friedrich-Wilhelm’s 1728 visit to Dresden. Painting by Louis de Silvestre, about 1730

The love and affection Friedrich-Wilhelm had for his heir initially was soon destroyed due to their increasingly different personalities. Friedrich-Wilhelm ordered Fritz to undergo a minimal education, live a simple Protestant lifestyle, and focus on the Army and statesmanship as he had.

However, the intellectual Fritz was more interested in music, books and French culture, which were forbidden by his father as decadent and unmanly. As Fritz’s defiance for his father’s rules increased, Friedrich-Wilhelm would frequently beat or humiliate Fritz (he preferred his younger sibling Wilhelm-August). Fritz was beaten for being thrown off a bolting horse and wearing gloves in cold weather. After the prince attempted to flee to England with his tutor, Hans Hermann von Katte, the enraged King had Katte beheaded before the eyes of the prince, who himself was court-martialled.

The court declared itself not competent in this case. Whether it was the king’s intention to have his son executed as well (as Voltaire claims) is not clear. However, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI intervened, claiming that a prince could only be tried by the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire itself.

Crown Prince Friedrich (Friedrich II)

Fritz was imprisoned in the Fortress of Küstrin from September 2, to November 19, 1731 and exiled from court until February 1732, during which time he was rigorously schooled in matters of state. After achieving a measure of reconciliation, Friedrich-Wilhelm had his son married to Princess Elisabeth of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, whom Friedrich despised, but then grudgingly allowed him to indulge in his musical and literary interests again. He also gifted him a stud farm in East Prussia, and Rheinsberg Palace. By the time of Friedrich-Wilhelm’s death in 1740, he and Fritz were on at least reasonable terms with each other.

Although the relationship between Friedrich-Wilhelm and Fritz was clearly hostile, Fritz himself later wrote that his father “penetrated and understood great objectives, and knew the best interests of his country better than any minister or general.”

Friedrich-Wilhelm died in 1740 at age 51 and was interred at the Garrison Church in Potsdam. At his death, Prussia had a sound exchequer and a full treasury, in contrast to the other German states.

During World War II, in order to protect Friedrich-Wilhelm I’s coffin from advancing allied forces, Hitler ordered the king’s coffin, as well as those of Friedrich the Great and Paul von Hindenburg, into hiding, first to Berlin and later to a salt mine outside of Bernterode.

The coffins were later discovered by occupying American Forces, who re-interred the bodies in St. Elisabeth’s Church in Marburg in 1946. In 1953 the coffin was moved to Burg Hohenzollern, where it remained until 1991, when it was finally laid to rest on the steps of the altar in the Kaiser Friedrich Mausoleum in the Church of Peace on the palace grounds of Sanssouci. The original black marble sarcophagus collapsed at Burg Hohenzollern—the current one is a copper copy.

May 23, 1730: Birth of Prince August-Ferdinand of Prussia

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Augustus William of Prussia, Battle of Breslau, Frederick II of Prussia, Frederick the Great, Frederick William I of Prussia, Knights of the Bailiwick of Brandenburg of the Order of Saint John, Prince Augustus Ferdinand of Prussia, Princess Friederike-Luise of Prussia, Princess Sophia-Dorothea of Prussia

Prince August-Ferdinand of Prussia (May 23, 1730, Berlin – May 2, 1813, Berlin) was a Prussian prince and general, as well as Master of the Knights of the Bailiwick of Brandenburg of the Order of Saint John. He belonged to the House of Hohenzollern, and was the youngest son of King Friedrich-Wilhelm I of Prussia by his wife, Queen Sophia Dorothea.

Prince August-Ferdinand of Prussia

Prince August-Ferdinand of Prussia was also a younger brother of King Friedrich II the Great of Prussia. As the youngest son King Friedrich-Wilhelm I of Prussia these were some of his other older siblings:

Princess Wilhelmine (1709-1758), married in 1731 to her Hohenzollern kinsman, Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth.

Princess Friederike-Luise (1714-1784) married her Hohenzollern kinsman Karl-Wilhelm-Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach.

Princess Philippine-Charlotte (1716-1801) was a Duchess consort of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel by marriage to Charles I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Princess Sophia-Dorothea (1719-1765) Margravine of Brandenburg-Schwedt. Sophia Dorothea married her Hohenzollern kinsman Prince Friedrich-Wilhelm, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, son of Philipp-Wilhelm, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, and Princess Johanna-Charlotte of Anhalt-Dessau, daughter of Johann-George II, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau. They are the parents of Prince August-Ferdinand’s wife, Margravine Elisabeth-Louise of Brandenburg-Schwedt.

Princess Sophia-Dorothea and Prince Friedrich-Wilhelm, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt.

Princess Louisa-Ulrica (1720-1782), the consort of King Adolph-Friedrich of Sweden.

August-Wilhelm of Prussia (1722-1758) married Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Because his older brother had no children, August-Wilhelm’s oldest son inherited the throne as Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia on the death of Friedrich II.

Princess Anna Amalia, Abbess of Quedlinburg (1723-1787) never married.

Prince Heinrich of Prussia (1726–1802). Prince Friedrich-Heinrich-Ludwig; (1726-1802), commonly known as Heinrich was a Prince of Prussia and the younger brother of Friedrich II the Great. In 1786, he was suggested as a candidate for a monarch for the United States.

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Already at the age of 5, Prince August-Ferdinand joined the Infantry regiment „Kronprinz“. In 1740, his brother named him commander of Infantry regiment Nr 34. In 1756, he became Major General and accompanied his brother the King on his campaigns in Saxony, Bohemia and Silesia. He fought in the Battle of Breslau and the Battle of Leuthen. But in 1758, bad health forced him to leave the army.

Apotheosis of Prince August-Ferdinand (1779) by Anna Dorothea Therbusch.

On September 12, 1763, August-Ferdinand was elected as Master of the Knights of the Bailiwick of Brandenburg of the Order of Saint John, a post he held until 1812. August-Ferdinand is also remembered for having the Schloss Bellevue in the Berliner Tiergarten built.

Marriage and children

He married his niece, Margravine Elisabeth-Louise of Brandenburg-Schwedt (1738-1820) on September 27, 1755. She was a daughter of his older sister Sophia-Dorothea and her husband Margrave Friedrich-Wilhelm of Brandenburg-Schwedt. Despite this family tie, she was only eight years younger than he, due to the significant age difference between him and his sister.

Margravine Elisabeth-Louise of Brandenburg-Schwedt

They had seven children:

* Princess Friederike Elisabeth Dorothea Henriette Amalie (1761–1773)
* Prince Friedrich Heinrich Emil Karl (1769–1773)
* Princess Friederike Luise (1770–1836), married to Prince Antoni Radziwiłł. Had issue.
* Prince Friedrich Christian Heinrich Ludwig (1771–1790)
* Prince Louis Ferdinand (1772–1806), killed in the Battle of Saalfeld. No legitimate issue.
* Prince Friedrich Paul Heinrich August (1776)
* Prince Augustus (1779–1843), morganatic marriage (1832-1843) to Polish aristocrat Emilie von Ostrowska.

The biological father of his daughter Princess Friederike-Luise, who was born in 1770, may not have been the daughter of Prince August-Ferdinand, but May have been the daughter of his wife through her affair with Count Friedrich Wilhelm Carl von Schmettau. Princess Friederike-Luise was described as nice, witty and kind.

Prince August-Ferdinand of Prussia

Augustus died in Berlin on May 2, 1813, as the last surviving grandchild of King George I of Great Britain. Princess Elisabeth-Louise would die seven years later, on February 10, 1820.

November 18, 1730: Crown Prince Friedrich of Prussia is released from Prison.

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Frederick II of Prussia, Frederick the Great, Frederick William I of Prussia, George I of Great Britain, Hans Hermann von Katte, House of Hohenzollern

King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia, popularly dubbed the Soldier King, had created a large and powerful army led by his famous “Potsdam Giants”, carefully managed his treasury, and developed a strong centralized government. He was prey to a violent temper (in part due to porphyritic illness) and ruled Brandenburg-Prussia with absolute authority.

King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia

As his eldest son and heir Crown Prince Friedrich (future King Friedrich II The Great of Prussia) grew, his preference for music, literature and French culture clashed with his father’s militarism, resulting in Friedrich Wilhelm frequently beating and humiliating him. In contrast, Friedrich’s mother Sophia of Hanover was polite, charismatic and learned. Her father, Elector George Louis of Brunswick-Lüneburg, succeeded to the British throne as King George I in 1714.

Crown Prince Friedrich became close friends with Hans Hermann von Katte, a Prussian officer several years older than him and served as one of his tutors. When he was 18, Friedrich plotted to flee to England with Katte and other junior army officers. While the royal retinue was near Mannheim in the Electorate of the Palatinate, Robert Keith, Peter Keith’s brother, had an attack of conscience when the conspirators were preparing to escape and begged King Friedrich Wilhelm for forgiveness on August 5, 1730.

Friedrich as Crown Prince (1739)

Crown Prince Friedrich and Katte were subsequently arrested and imprisoned in Küstrin. Because they were army officers who had tried to flee Prussia for Great Britain, Friedrich Wilhelm leveled an accusation of treason against the pair. The king briefly threatened the crown prince with execution, then considered forcing Friedrich to renounce the succession in favour of his brother, August Wilhelm, although either option would have been difficult to justify to the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire.

The king forced Friedrich to watch the beheading of his confidant Katte at Küstrin on November 6, leading the crown prince to faint just before the fatal blow. Friedrich was granted a royal pardon and released from his cell on November 18, although he remained stripped of his military rank. Instead of returning to Berlin, however, he was forced to remain in Küstrin and began rigorous schooling in statecraft and administration for the War and Estates Departments on November 20.

Tensions eased slightly when Friedrich Wilhelm visited Küstrin a year later, and Friedrich was allowed to visit Berlin on the occasion of his sister Wilhelmine’s marriage to Margrave Friedrich of Bayreuth on November 20, 1731. The crown prince returned to Berlin after finally being released from his tutelage at Küstrin on February 26, 1732.

The Name Louis and the British Monarchy: IV

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Frederick Louis Prince of Wales, Frederick William I of Prussia, Hanover, House of Hanover, King George II of Great Britain, Kingdom of Prussia, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, Louis, Prince Louis of Cambridge, Prince of Wales, Queen Caroline

The next prince on my list in this examination of the name of Louis and its association with the British Royal Family is HRH Frederick-Louis, Prince of Wales, KG (February 1, 1707 – March 31, 1751). He was heir apparent to the British throne from 1727 until his death from a lung injury at the age of 44 in 1751. He was the eldest son King George II and Caroline of Ansbach, and the father of King George III.

HRH Prince Frederick-Louis, Prince of Wales and Duke of Edinburgh


Under the Act of Settlement passed by the English Parliament in 1701, Frederick-Louis was born fourth in the line of succession to the British throne, after his great-grandmother (Electress Sophia of Hanover), paternal grandfather (King George I) and father (George II). All of these relatives were alive at the time of his birth. Prince Frederick-Louis was born in Hanover, Holy Roman Empire (Germany), as Duke Friedrich-Ludwig of Brunswick-Lüneburg, His paternal great-grandmother, Sophia of Hanover, a granddaughter of James I-VI, King of England, Scotland and Ireland, was cousin and heir presumptive to Queen Anne of Great Britain. When Sophia died before Anne at age 83 in June 1714, this elevated elevated Elector George-Louis to heir-presumptive.

Queen Anne died on August 1, of that same year, and Sophia’s son became King George I. This made Frederick-Louis’s father the new Prince of Wales and first-in-line to the British throne and Frederick-Louis himself became second-in-line.


In 1726 Frederick-Louis’ grandfather, George I, created him Duke of Edinburgh, Marquess of the Isle of Ely, Earl of Eltham in the county of Kent, Viscount of Launceston in the county of Cornwall, and Baron of Snaudon in the county of Carnarvon. The latter two titles have been interpreted differently since – the ofs are omitted and Snaudon rendered as Snowdon.

Frederick-Louis spent much of his early life in Hanover even after his grandfather and father moved to England. Frederick-Louis arrived in England in 1728 as a grown man, the year after his father had become King George II. By then, George II and Caroline had had several younger children, and Frederick-Louis, created Prince of Wales January 8th 1729, was a high-spirited youth fond of drinking, gambling and women. The long separation damaged the parent-child relationship, and they would never be close.

With Frederick-Louis now in England it was time for him to settle down and start to raise a family. Negotiations between George II and his brother-in-law Friedrich-Wilhelm I of Prussia on a proposed marriage between the Prince of Wales and Friedrich-Wilhelm I’s daughter, Wilhelmine, were welcomed by Frederick-Louis even though the couple had never met. George II was not keen on the proposal but continued talks for diplomatic reasons. Frustrated by the delay, Frederick-Louis sent an envoy of his own to the Prussian court. When King George II discovered the plan, he immediately arranged for Frederick-Louis to leave Hanover for England. The marriage negotiations ultimately collapsed when Friedrich-Wilhelm I demanded that Frederick-Louis be made Regent in Hanover which meant he’d have the power and authority as Elector of Hanover, just not the tittle. George II would have none of that!

Frederick-Louis also almost married Lady Diana Spencer, daughter of Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland and Lady Anne Churchill. Lady Diana was the favourite grandchild of the powerful Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough. The duchess sought a royal alliance by marrying Lady Diana to the Prince of Wales with a massive dowry of £100,000. The prince, who was in great debt, agreed to the proposal, but the plan was vetoed by Robert Walpole, Prime Minister of the day, and by King George II himself. Lady Diana instead married John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford.

Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg HRH The Princess of Wales

After a marriage with Lady Diana Spencer did not come to fruition, king George II was visiting Hanover when Queen Caroline suggested that Frederick-Louis visit Saxe-Gotha to view the princesses there. The princess that caught his eye was Princess Augusta. Princess Augusta was born in Gotha to Friedrich II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (1676–1732) and Magdalena Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst (1676–1740). Her paternal grandfather was Friedrich I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, eldest surviving son of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg.

When Frederick-Louis informed his mother that he considered Augusta suitable, the marriage was swiftly decided upon. Frederick-Louis simply stated that he accepted any bride his father would decide for him. His motive in seeking an early marriage was not because he’d fallen in love with Princess Augusta, his motive was to obtain an additional allowance from Parliament in order to be financially independent of his father, whom he detested.

The Prince and Princess of Wales and family

Princess Augusta did not speak French or English, and the British Court suggested that she be given language lessons before the wedding. Since British royal family was originally from Germany and since Frederick-Louis also spoke German, Princess Augusta‘s mother did not consider it necessary for her daughter to learn English. Therefore she arrived in Britain speaking virtually no English, for a wedding ceremony which took place almost immediately, on 8 May 1736, at the Chapel Royal in St James’s Palace, London.

The union was presided over by Edmund Gibson, Bishop of London and Dean of the Chapel Royal. Handel provided the new anthem ‘Sing unto God’ for the service and the wedding was also marked in London by two rival operas, Handel’s Atalanta and Porpora’s La festa d’Imeneo.

The royal couple had 9 children (5 sons and 4 daughters) with Prince George being the eldest, born 1738. Frederick-Louis died at Leicester House at the age of 44 in 1751. In the past this has been attributed to a burst lung abscess caused by a blow from a cricket or a real tennis ball, but it is now thought to have been from a pulmonary embolism. He was buried at Westminster Abbey on April 13, 1751.

Prince George inherited his father’s title of Duke of Edinburgh. George II showed more interested in his grandson and three weeks after the death of the Prince of Wales the King created George Prince of Wales, a title that is not automatically inherited.

Britain would not have a King Frederick-Louis and this was the closest they would come to a King with the name Louis.

The name Louis and the British Monarchy: III

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Frederick the Great of Prussia, Frederick William I of Prussia, King George I of Great Britain, Kingdom of Prussia, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, Louis, Prince Louis of Cambridge, Sophia Dorothea of Great Britain

As we continue to examine the name Louis and its association with the British monarchy this next entry does stray a bit from a rigid definition of the British Royal Family. For these next examples they were not members of the British Royal Family technically speaking; they were members of the king’s family. This is a distinction that does have a difference. Though these examples were members of the German House of Hanover that ruled over Prussia, they were also the grandchildren of King George I of Great Britain.

Sophia-Dorothea of Great Britain and Hanover

King George I had one daughter, Sophia Dorothea. On November 28, 1706, she married her paternal cousin, Crown Prince Frederick William of Prussia, heir apparent to the Prussian throne. The Crown Prince’s mother, was Princess Sophia of Hanover, brother of King George I of Great Britain, and wife of King Frederick I in Prussia. Sophia -Dorothea and Frederick-William had met as children when Frederick-William had spent some time in Hanover under the care of their grandmother. Sophia-Dorothea disliked him, however, Frederick-William had reportedly felt an attraction to her early on.

Sophia-Dorothea was described as tall, with a beautiful slender figure, graceful and dignified with big blue eyes. She was seen as quite attractive at the time of her marriage and was described as charming in her manners, and made a good impression in Berlin.

Sophia-Dorothea and Frederick-William were different from one another and were ill suited for one another and the marriage suffered as a result. Sophia-Dorothea was a cultured princess with a strong interested in art, science, literature and fashion, while Frederick-William was described as an unpolished, uneducated and spartan military man with rough manners. Sophia Dorothea loved entertainment, something he regarded to be frivolous and this was a major source of friction between them.

Frederick-William I, King in Prussia

Though Frederick-William was never unfaithful to her, a rare trait in a Royal prince of those days, he was unable to win her affection. At one point Frederick-William contemplated divorcing her the same year they married and, judging by her letters, accused her of not wanting to be married to him. It seems that was a correct assumption. Despite great animosity between the couple they seemed to be compatible in the bedroom. Between 1707 and 1730 the couple had 14 children, 10 survived to adulthood.

The name Louis was found among three of their sons, and the feminine form Louise was found among the names of two of their daughters. The first child, a son, was born in 1707 and christened Frederick-Louis, and his birth was celebrated greatly in Prussia. Sadly the next year, 1708 Frederick-Louis died. Sophia-Dorothea’s physicians declared was not likely to conceive again.

This declaration of her possible future barrenness prompted her father-in-law, Frederick I, King in Prussia, to marry Sophia-Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, to insure the succession to the Prussian throne. However, Sophia-Louise had no children by him. It is interesting to note that shortly before wedding the king had been informed that his daughter-in-law (Sophia-Dorothea) was pregnant, and answered that had he been aware of this, he would not have married again. Despite the declaration by her physicians Sophia-Dorothea did give birth to several children, as previously mentioned, including Frederick II The Great, King of Prussia (1740-1786).

The next child of Sophia-Dorothea of Great Britain and Hanover and Frederick-William I, King in Prussia which had with the name of Louis among them was HRH Prince Frederick-Henry-Louis of Prussia, January 18, 1726 and died August 3, 1802, was commonly known as Henry. He also served as a general and statesman, leading Prussian armies in the Silesian Wars and the Seven Years’ War, having never lost a battle in the latter. In 1786, he was suggested as a candidate for a monarch for the United States, prior to the decision to become a Republic.


The last child of Sophia-Dorothea of Great Britain and Hanover and Frederick-William I, King in Prussia which had with the name of Louis among them was HRH Prince Louis-Charles-Wilhelm, born in 1717 and died sadly in 1719 at the age of two.

This concludes a look at the grandchildren of King George I of Great Britain, Elector of Hanover and its association with the name Louis.

Part IV coming soon!