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King George III: 20 Facts About the King Who Lost America

George William Frederick was born on the 4th of June 1938 at the Norfolk House, St James Square, London, England.

George became the heir apparent and Prince of Wales to the throne after the death of his father in 1751. He succeeded to the throne at the age of 22, after the death of his paternal grandfather King George II in 1760.

He served as the king of Great Britain and Ireland for almost 60 years. He also held the titles of king of Hanover and Duke and Prince-elector of Brunswick-Luneburg in the Holy Roman Empire.

George is widely remembered for losing the American colonies in the American War of Independence. The war was costly, divisive, and ended with the loss of the American colonies.

He also had recurrent and eventually permanent mental illness.

Here are 20 facts about the king who lost America:

1. He Was The third British Monarch from the House of Hanover

, King George III, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

 The House of Hanover is a European royal house of German descent that ruled over Hanover which is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony.

It also ruled over Great Britain and Ireland from the 17th to the 20th century. The house began in 1635 as the cadet branch of the House of Brunswick-Luneburg. George III was the third British monarch of Great Britain and Ireland.

The first two were his grandfather King George II and great-grandfather King George I. George III was the only king who never visited Hanover even though he was its ruler.

2. King George III Was the First Hanoverian Monarch to Be Born in Britain

, King George II, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

King George III was the royal descendant of the Hanoverian European royal house. He was not born in Hanover, he was born in London, England, unlike his predecessors.

His father Prince Frederick and his mother Augusta Duchess of Brunswick Wolfenbuttel had moved to London due to the estranged relationship between King George II and the Prince.

Prince Frederick had instructed his pregnant wife to flee Hampton Court Palace and ride 21 km to St James Palace so the King and queen would not be present for the birth of Georgia’s elder sister Princess Augusta of Great Britain.

Prince Frederick was then banished from the King’s Court because of his actions. He could not return home and the rest of his children were born in London.

3. He Was the First British Monarch to Speak English as His First Language

King George III was born at the Norfolk house at St James Square. He was born two months prematurely, considered unlikely to survive, and was baptized on the same day.

King George III grew up into a healthy smart boy who excelled in his studies. He was taught by private tutors together with his younger brother Edward. Studies have shown that he was excellent in reading and writing in English and German by the time he was 8 years old.

He was the first British Monarch to speak English as his first language for he was born in London, England, unlike his predecessors.

4. He Married the German Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

, Princess Charlotte, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

King George III was a shy and reserved person spending most of his time involved with astronomy and his studies and the other time tending to his garden.

His first love interest was Lady Sarah Lennox and was interested in a match but lord Bute, the British nobleman and Prime Minister of Great Britain advised against it.

Heartbroken George abandoned the thoughts of marriage and said he was born for the happiness and misery of a great nation and consequently must act contrary to his Passions.

After the death of King George II, the Dowager Princess of Wales, George’s mother sent out an offer of marriage to German Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.

Charlotte accepted the match and set out from Strelitz to London. She arrived on the 8th of September 1761 and got married that same evening at the Chapel Royal, St James Palace.

5. King George III Was a Devoted Husband and Father

King George  III married Charlotte on the 8th of September 1761. He purchased Buckingham House for his bride and used the palace for family retreats.

The king also purchased Kew Palace and Windsor Castle as his property. King George was reported to be smitten and the people admired his fidelity.

He became the first Hanover king to not take a mistress. The couple had 15 children, 9 sons and six daughters. King George and Queen Charlotte had a happy marriage until George’s  illness struck

6. George III Suffered from Mental Illness

Courtesy of YouTube

George III was the epitome of excellence with intellectual prowess and physical stamina.

However, he was flawed and struggled with mental illness which became more severe over time. His doctors were greatly at a loss to explain his illness and resorted to primitive ways to deal with it.

They forcibly strained him until he came or applied a cataplasm to deal with his episodes of mania, depression, and delusions.

The cause for his mental illness was first diagnosed to be bipolar disorder however a different study of George’s hair revealed he had high levels of arsenic which causes metabolic blood disorder and possibly triggers porphyria.

7. His son, the Prince of Wales, Became Prince Regent

,  Prince George IV, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

George’s mania worsened in his later years. He was found talking to himself for many hours without pause causing him to foam at the mouth.

It was soon realized that he was unfit to rule therefore his eldest son George IV, Prince of Wales became the prince regent.

This meant that the Prince of Wales took over the duties of kingship for 9 years, as George III could no longer rule effectively. The prince ultimately succeeded his father in 1820.

8. King George III Was the Longest-reigning British Monarch at The Time of His Death

King George III was a virtuous and benevolent ruler. He came into power at the young age of 22 in 1760 after the death of his grandfather.

He served as the king of Great Britain and Ireland for almost 60 years.  He died at the age of 81 due to pneumonia. At the time of his death, he was considered the longest-lived and longest-reigning British monarch.

That title has since been lost and the current longest-reigning British monarch is Queen Elizabeth II who reigned for around 70 years until she died in 2022.

9. King George III Was Very Popular

Courtesy of YouTube

King George III was very popular in his early years and beloved for he was believed to be a just, moral, and intellectual leader. The people admired him for his devotion and faithfulness to his wife.

George III鈥檚 strong defense of what he saw as the national interest and the prospects of the Long War with revolutionary France made him more popular than before with the defeat of Napoleon after the Revolutionary War at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.

10. King George III was Dubbed “Farmer George”

King George was especially fond of gardening. He was particularly interested in agriculture and constructed model farms at Windsor Castle.

Under his reign, the British Agricultural Revolution reached an unprecedented increase in agricultural production and great advances in fields such as Science and Industry.

He was later dubbed 鈥淔armer George鈥� by satirists to Mock his interest in mundane matters like agriculture and his skill as a farmer and gardener rather than politics.

11. King George III Was a Devout Christian

King George III was a devoted Christian, unlike his predecessors who were born in Hanover and raised as Lutherans.

He was the head of the church of the Anglican Communion. His faith shaped his standards, morals, and duty to which he held his friends and family members.

King George III was the Protestant king of religion who shaped the ecclesiastical empire. This set the stage for the violent anti-Catholic riots that rocked Edinburg and London during the war.

12. King George III Was The “Tyrant” Named in The US Declaration of Independence

Courtesy of YouTube

The Declaration of Independence was created in 1776 and is regarded as the founding document of the United States.

It was written by Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Rodger Sherman, and Robert R Livingston. The declaration’s purpose was to explain the colonists’ right to revolution hence declaring the causes that compelled them to separate from Great Britain.

The founders labeled George III a tyrant and unfit to rule over a free people in the 27 separate indictments.

13. King George III Was the First British Monarch to Be Vaccinated Against Smallpox

Smallpox is an acute contagious disease that is caused by the Variola virus. It is a member of the Orthopoxvirus family but is believed to have originated over 3000 years ago in India or Egypt.

Smallpox affected all levels of society killing many of its victims and leaving the survivors blind. During the 18th century, it affected Europe killing 400,000 people annually. A vaccine was created to curb this disease.

King George III was the first British Monarch to be vaccinated against smallpox

14. King George III Was a Skilled Musician

Courtesy of YouTube

George III was a very skilled individual. He is well known for his prowess in sciences, agriculture, and politics. He also dabbled in music.

Apart from his busy schedule where he played sports like cricket and tennis, his lessons in mathematics and science, and his involvement with dance and Opera he still found time to practice on the harpsichord.

This is a keyboard musical instrument in which strings are set in vibration by plucking. It is one of the most famous instruments from the 16th- 18th centuries in Europe.

15. King George Was a Patron of Sports

George III was an all-round student. He was involved in the physical and intellectual aspects of learning.

He indulged in the sciences of mathematics and literature, the art of dancing and acting, and finally, he played a number of sports. George enjoyed enjoyed playing cricket and tennis.

This kept him a vibrant energetic student. He played against various opponents and more often than not came out the winner. He was a patron of sports during his hay days.

16. King George III Was a Fan of The Arts

,  Joseph Addison, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

King George III was an intellectual and curious person, he fancied the Arts and partook in them. Since childhood, he enjoyed horse racing, dancing, and opera. At the tender age of 10, he took part in a play called “Cato”.

It was a family production by Joseph Addison the English essayist, writer, and playwright. A historian by the name of Romaney Sedgwick argued that the lines ” what, tho’ a boy! It may with truth be said, a boy in England born, in England bred” as the only phrases where George is associated with in the play.

17. King George III Died of Pneumonia

King George III was mentally ill and was ruled as unfit to reign since 1810. He suffered from dementia, became completely blind, and lost the ability to walk.

In 1820, King George III died of pneumonia at Windsor Castle on the 29th of January. This was six days after the death of his fourth son Prince Edward who was the Duke of Kent and Strathearn.

George’s body lay in state according to tradition to allow the public to pay respect for two days. His funeral took place on the 16th of February at Saint George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.

18. He was the first British Monarch to Study Science Systematically

George was an excellent student. He studied under private tutors and excelled in science, literature, and politics among others. His favorite was astronomy, agriculture, and literature where he learned French Latin, etc.

At a Palace in Richmond-upon-Thames, he had set up an observatory tower where he would look at stars and carry out his research. He was the first British monarch to study science and excel at it.

19. King George III Condemned Slavery

, Young King George III, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

King George III was not a fan of slavery nor did he condone it. Reports claim that George III never bought or sold a slave in his life and neither was he interested in any companies that partook in such.

During George III’s reign, a coalition of abolitionists for slavery began against the Atlantic slave trade. This caused the British public to shun slavery.

While still a prince, George III wrote a document in 1750 denouncing all the arguments for slavery and calling them ridiculous, absurd, and inhuman.

His document was met with discontentment by the  King and his son as they wanted to delay the abolition of the British slave trade for almost 20 years.

Almost 50 years later George III finally signed a decree into law, the act for the abolition of the slave trade where the transatlantic slave trade was banned in the British Empire

20. King George III鈥檚 Collection Started the British Museum Library

King George III was particularly fond of sciences and research. He sanctioned exploratory voyages to the Pacific Ocean and collected model ships and coins.

He also collected books and manuscripts and he shared them with the people. This collection is now said to have begun The British Museum library.

The British Museum library now includes 300,000 books dedicated to the research of human cultures past and present across the world. It is one of the biggest in Europe