Georgian Britain: British history under King George I/II/III/IV & William IV

	Study, work or travel in the UK. British culture and life.
Homepage	Search	A-Z index	Message Board	Contact us
Britain	Course	Life	Work	Links
English	Prepare	Personal	Travel	Ideas





< Up	Britain / History / Georgian
The Georgian era in Britain (1714-1837)


Sections:	Introduction
	The Georgians
	Further information
	Links

Related pages:	Early Britain (before 1066)
	The Middle Ages (1066-1485)
	The Tudors (1485-1603)
	The Stuarts (1603-1714)
	The Victorian age (1837-1914)
	Modern Britain (1914-present)

INTRODUCTION

A brief summary of the history of Britain in the Georgian period (1714-1837)

Ruling family	King/Queen	Dates
HOUSE OF HANOVER	George I	1714-1727
	George II	1727-1760
	George III	1760-1820
	George IV	1820-1830
	William IV	1830-1837

Year	Prime Minister	Party
1721	Robert Walpole	Whig
1742	Spencer Compton	Whig
1743	Henry Pelham	Whig
1754	Thomas Pelham-Holles	Whig
1756	William Cavendish	Whig
1757	Thomas Pelham-Holles	Whig
1762	John Stuart	Tory
1763	George Grenville	Whig
1765	Charles Watson-Wentworth	Whig
1766	William Pitt the Elder	Whig
1767	Augustus Fitzroy	Whig
1770	Frederick North	Tory
1782	Charles Watson-Wentworth	Whig
1782	William FitzMaurice	Whig
1783	William Bentinck	Tory
1783	William Pitt the Younger	Tory
1801	Henry Addington	Tory
1804	William Pitt the Younger	Tory
1806	William Grenville	Whig
1807	William Bentinck	Tory
1809	Spencer Perceval	Tory
1812	Robert Jenkinson	Tory
1827	George Canning	Tory
1827	Frederick Robinson	Tory
1828	Arthur Wellesley (Duke of Wellington)	Tory
1830	Charles Grey (Earl Grey)	Whig
1834	William Lamb	Whig
1834	Arthur Wellesley (Duke of Wellington)	Tory
1834	Robert Peel	Tory
1835	William Lamb	Whig

THE GEORGIANS (1714-1837)

Anne had 17 children but they all died as babies or children. Her nearest Protestant relative was George from the House of Hanover, in northern Germany. For over 100 years (from 1714 until 1830) all of the kings were called George: George I, George II, George III and George IV. This is known as the Georgian period.

During this time the Parliament in Westminster became increasingly powerful. The role of Prime Minister was established. The first and longest serving Prime Minister was Walpole. The two main political parties during the Georgian period were the Tories (who usually supported the King) and the Whigs (who usually supported the rights of the land-owners and Parliament).

The Jacobite Rebellions were rebellions by supporters in Scotland of James the Second and the Stuarts. The second of these was led by Bonnie Prince Charlie. Although this was successful at first, Bonnie Prince Charlie was defeated at the battle of Culloden, although he managed to escape to France.

Farming methods were greatly improved: this is known as the Agricultural Revolution. The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain: new machines were invented to make clothes, water wheels were replaced by steam power after Watt improved the steam engine, and Darby discovered how to improve the way of making iron. Coal mining became a major industry to support these new technologies. Faraday discovered how to make electricity to drive machines.

This was a time of colonialisation by several European countries, including Britain. Captain Cook claimed for Britain the islands of New Zealand and the eastern coast of Australia. Britain and France fought each other over colonies in America and in India. The Seven Years' War against France broke out in 1756. Victory by Britain allowed the British Navy to dominate the Atlantic and Mediterranean. French soldiers were expelled from North America.

Britain established 13 colonies along the eastern coast of America (including the urban centres of Philadelphia, New York and Boston and rural states such as Virginia). The cost of administrating these colonies rose, so the British Parliament tried to raise money by imposing new taxes. The Stamp Act introduced tax on property deals in America. This upset the wealthy local landowners and led to violent protests, which the British tried to suppress by force. In 1774 the Americans created a Congress containing representatives of all 13 colonies, and raised an army under the leadership of George Washington to fight what is known as the American War of Independence. In 1776 the Declaration of Independence was published. With help from France the British army was defeated at Yorktown in 1781, after which Britain no longer controlled these former American colonies. George Washington became the president of the newly independent states.

A few years after the French Revolution in 1789, France declared war on Britain and other countries in Europe. The French army, under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte, had a great deal of success at first. Napoleon was finally defeated by an allied force under the leadership of the Duke of Wellington at the Batle of Waterloo (near Brussels) in 1815.

George the Third suffered from a type of madness when he was older. His eldest son George was made Prince Regent. John Nash was asked to plan large parts of London, including Regent Street and Regent's Park. When George the Third died in 1820 the Prince Regent became George the Fourth. Ten years later he died and his brother became William the Fourth.

The George pub
Aldwych, London

Wellington Monument (c) ukstudentlife.com

Wellington Monument,
Hyde Park Corner, London

English redcoats in battle
(Napoleonic Association)

FURTHER INFORMATION

	The Georgians 1714-1837 Publisher: Kingfisher Books Date: May 2002		Life in Georgian Britain Publisher: Pitkin Unichrome Date: May 2000
	Georgian Cookery: Recipes and History Author: Jennifer Stead Publisher: English Heritage Publications Date: November 2003

LINKS

British history: Britain/History

Places associated with the Georgian period:
Trafalgar Square: Travel/Tours/London/TrafalgarSquare
Edinburgh (New Town): Travel/Tours/Scotland/Edinburgh
Bath (Royal Crescent): Travel/Tours/England/Bath
Brighton (Royal Pavilion): Travel/Tours/England/Brighton

Home page: Home

Back to top

© UK Student Life 2002-2009

* Search this website (www.ukstudentlife.com) or the web: