King George III is the King of Great Britain and Ireland.
History[]
Betrothal[]
King George was talking to Farmer Crosby about the advantages of using horses in place of oxen when his valet, Reynolds came to get him and said his mother needed him at the palace. He believed the dowager princess had found King George a bride.
King George met with Princess Augusta, telling her he was disinterested in the bride she'd found. She told him that he needed to marry to strengthen the family's position and the betrothal contract was already signed. George started to mutter to himself, so Princess Augusta cleared the room and held him. She then gathered a group of doctors to try to treat him. While the other doctors decried him as a quack, Princess Augusta chose to have John Monro treat him because tried and true treatments had failed.[2]
Wedding[]
On the day of the wedding, he overheard that his soon-to-be wife had disappeared and went out to the garden, where he found her attempting to scale a wall to get away. Not realizing he was her groom, she told him she didn't like not knowing what the king looked liked. She could handle if he was ugly, but couldn't handle not knowing. She asked him to help her over the wall, but he refused, saying he couldn't help a lady who was trying to climb a wall to avoid marrying him. Realizing he was the king, she tried to curtsey, but he stopped her, telling her he was just George to her. He complimented her beauty and asked what she wanted to know about him. When she said she wanted to know everything, he told her about his life. When her brother, Adolphus, joined them, George told him Charlotte was deciding whether or not to marry him and left the choice up to her. He said he had to get back because the guards probably thought he'd been kidnapped, but he hoped to see her in there.
Charlotte decided to go forward with the marriage and they danced together at the reception following. Then George told Charlotte he had a present for her. He took her to Buckingham House, which he'd had redesigned for her. She would live there while he returned to Kew. She was upset that they wouldn't be living in the same house and that they wouldn't even have a proper wedding night. They argued about this and he ended up leaving her there while he went to Kew as planned.[3]
Queen Charlotte became bored of spending her days alone and decided to come to Kew to see George. She found him in his observatory, looking through a telescope. She was confused as she thought he was visiting a brothel, but instead, it seemed to her that he preferred the company of the stars to her. He told her that wasn't true, but she said she wanted to spend her honeymoon with him, instead of alone in a strange countries with strange foods. He just told her to go home.[4]
After seeing how lonely Charlotte was at the palace, Reynolds encouraged King George to send her some king of gesture. He had Reynolds help him break into Monro's lab, where they stole one of his dogs and sent it to Queen Charlotte. Reynolds reported back that she likened it to a deformed bunny.[2]
Later, George went to see Charlotte. He asked to join her for a meal, which upset her. He told her she had no reason to trust him, but he asked her to give him one chance to explain himself. He took her to his observatory, where he showed her Venus through the telescope and talked to her about astronomy. Then he apologized for leaving her on their wedding night and told her he'd be coming home to Buckingham House with her.
When they got back to Buckingham House, they finally consummated their relationship. The next morning, Princess Augusta came to talk to George. They ended up arguing when she asked if he'd properly bedded his wife. He laid out all the demands she'd made of him and how he'd done all of what she'd asked. After she left, he went to join Charlotte for breakfast, only to be suddenly overcome. Reynolds called for a doctor and promised that Charlotte wouldn't know anything.[4]
King George began working with Dr. Monro. This treatment included Monro dictating all of King George's life, including dunking him in ice water, feeding him peasant food, and hitting him. Finally, King George said that they wouldn't be working together anymore.[2]
Coronation and Early Marriage[]
On Coronation Day, King George saw Dr. Monro. During the Coronation, King George and Queen Charlotte played the happy couple for the public, but as soon as they were out of the public eye, they had their servants remove their crowns and went their separate ways. Despite the conflict between them, they met up to attempt to produce an heir every even day. During one of this couplings, Queen Charlotte asked him why he'd seen a doctor on Coronation Day. He played it off as a typical examination, which she was forced to accept.
Queen Charlotte came to the king's bedchamber on an odd day, which he questioned. She said he wasn't like any king she'd ever known and asked why he didn't go out or hold court. He said he spent his days farming because he liked it.
Another day, Queen Charlotte told him she understood what it was like living for the happiness and misery of a nation and understood why he spent so much time in his garden. He told her that in his garden, he was a regular man. She told him he could be a person with her. They started kissing and she told him she didn't want even days or odd days anymore. She also said she knew he didn't like social events, but she needed him to send out a message to the ton asking them to go to the Danbury ball and telling them he'd be attending himself, to support the merging of the two sides.
At the ball, the king and queen danced, the first interracial pairing to do so. This encouraged other couples to do the same. After the ball, they went back home together.[5]
Since he was feeling better, King George went to Monro and said they wouldn't be working together anymore. Monro said he'd still be working with the queen as she was with child, though King George told him to stay away from her.[2]
In the middle of the night, King George woke up and frantically scribbled on the wall. Then he went outside nude and called out to Venus. He ignored Reynolds' attempts to get him to cover up or come back inside, but Queen Charlotte was able to get through to him by saying she was Venus.[5] Once they were back inside, Queen Charlotte and Reynolds cleaned him up.
After hearing his wife and his mother talk about his condition, King George went back to Monro to continue treatment.[2]
Ending Treatment[]
George cried out in pain often during his treatments, but Monro refused to stop them, even when Reynolds intervened. This finally ended when Queen Charlotte came in and ordered Monro's men out of the room. She told George that Venus was there, but then told him she was Charlotte and he was just George. She put his hand on her belly and told him their child was kicking and they needed him to come back to them. He finally acknowledged her and she had him bathed, clothed, and fed, then said they'd be moving to Kew.[6]
King George told Charlotte he was a madman and told her to go back to Buckingham House, far away from him. She said she'd stay and pointed out that in all his trying to get her to leave, he never said he didn't love her. She assured him that she loved him, but if he truly didn't love her, she'd go back to Buckingham House and they'd live separate lives. He told her he had loved her from the moment he saw her trying to climb the garden wall and they kissed.
As Queen Charlotte's pregnancy progressed, George spent his days farming and ignored his mother's attempts to reach him. Queen Charlotte supported him in doing this, but said he did need to address parliament, as the people needed their king.
King George wrote a speech and practiced it. While he was working on it, Queen Charlotte went into labor. Once the doctor arrived, King George tried to go into the room with her, but the archbishop and Lord Bute stopped him. Finally, Lady Danbury came out and said she was asking for him and he entered over their objections. He held her hand and told her how strong she was. When the doctor said the baby was feet-first, he said he had experience with that in animals and knew there were things the doctor could do to help.
After the baby was born, King George left Charlotte to rest and showed off the baby to Duke Adolphus and Princess Augustus. He declared the baby perfect.
King George returned to his speech preparation. He got increasingly nervous, though Queen Charlotte assured him he would be fine. On the way to parliament, he started shaking and ended up curled up on the floor of his carriage, unable to speak. He returned home, where he hid under the bed. Queen Charlotte crawled in next to him. He said he would understand if she wanted to leave, because he wasn't going to get better. She told him she loved him and she would stay. He said he didn't know how to fix what happened in parliament, so she suggested bringing parliament to him instead of the other way around. They decided to host a ball to introduce their newborn son.
At the ball, they presented the baby to the crowd and announced that he would be George IV. They danced at the ball and when he offered her a drink, she declined and told him she suspected she was pregnant again.[7]
Mental Decline[]
During a moment when he was calm and appeared lucid, George asked for his wife to come to him. She did and he asked after their children. She told him their children were not so little anymore and informed him that their daughter, Amelia, had died. He became agitated at that and insisted that he'd just seen her. He then accused her of doing something to his daughter and had to be subdued by some servants.[8]
The king's condition continued to decline, resulting in frequent tantrums,[9] making his son, Prince George, take his position as head of the state of the British Empire.
Anthony and Edwina's Wedding[]
On the day of Anthony Bridgerton and Edwina Sharma's wedding, the queen had the king's wing closed off so no one would end up in there. Even when the wedding was abruptly called off in the middle of the ceremony, the fireworks the queen had arranged were still set off. The king heard them and came to the queen, asking if she'd seen them and if there would be more. The queen had some footmen come to collect him, but he pulled away from them. Edwina stepped in to console him and encouraged him to go rest before the wedding. He let the footmen lead him away. Later, the queen came to sit by his bedside while he slept.[10]
Heir[]
Queen Charlotte came to see King George when she learned that the wife of their son Edward was pregnant, securing their family line. She told him the news as they lay together underneath his bed.[7]
Relationships[]
Romantic[]
He is married to Queen Charlotte.
Familial[]
He and his wife have fifteen children. One of them, Amelia, was ill for some time before dying.
Notes and Trivia[]
- He was born prematurely and wasn't expected to live.[3]
- He's a good fencer, but a better shot.[3]
- His favorite food is mutton and he hates fish.[3]
- He has two scars: one from falling off his horse and another from a paring knife.[3]
Gallery[]
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A more complete gallery with pictures of King George III (Netflix) can be found here. |
Memorable Quotes[]
- King George: You told me I had to wed. For the Crown. I did. You told me to charm her to make it easier for the Crown. I have done my best. You told me I could not let her know me because I must protect the secrets of the Crown. I have not. You told me to bed her. I have done so! I understand! It has been abundantly clear since my first breath that I was born for the happiness or misery of a great nation and consequently must often act contrary to my passions. I am the picture of duty. The Crown resides within me, embedded like a knife! You do not need to explain it to me, Mother. It is me![11]
Appearances[]
| Bridgerton, Season 1 | |||||
| #01 | "Diamond of the First Water" | #04 | "An Affair of Honor" | #07 | "Oceans Apart" |
| #02 | "Shock and Delight" | #05 | "The Duke and I" | #08 | "After the Rain" |
| #03 | "Art of the Swoon" | #06 | "Swish" | ||
| Bridgerton, Season 2 | |||||
| #01 | "Capital R Rake" | #04 | "Victory" | #07 | "Harmony" |
| #02 | "Off to the Races" | #05 | "An Unthinkable Fate" | #08 | "The Viscount Who Loved Me" |
| #03 | "A Bee in Your Bonnet" | #06 | "The Choice" | ||
| Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story | |||||
| #01 | "Queen to Be" | #03 | "Even Days" | #05 | "Gardens in Bloom" |
| #02 | "Honeymoon Bliss" | #04 | "Holding the King" | #06 | "Crown Jewels" |
References
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