Encyclopedia
George V was the first
British monarch belonging to the
House of Windsor, as a result of his creating it from the British branch of the
House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. As well as being
King of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the
Commonwealth Realms, George was also the
Emperor of India. George reigned from 6 May 1910 through
World War I until his death in 1936.
King George V is remembered for his role in
World War I, during which he relinquished all
German titles and styles on behalf of his relatives who were British subjects; and changed the name of the royal house from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor. Another significant event in his reign was the passing of the Statute of Westminster which separated the crown so that George ruled the dominions as separate kingdoms.
Early life
George was born on 3 June 1865, at
Marlborough House,
London. His father was
The Prince of Wales , the eldest son of
Queen Victoria and
Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. His mother was The Princess of Wales , the eldest daughter of
King Christian IX of Denmark. As a grandson of Queen Victoria in the male line, George was styled
His Royal Highness Prince George of Wales at birth.
He was baptised in the Private Chapel of
Windsor Castle on 7 July 1865 and his godparents were the King of Hanover, the
Queen and
Crown Prince of Denmark,
the Prince of Leiningen, the
Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Alice and the
Earl of Tipperary.
As a younger son of the
Prince of Wales, there was no expectation that George would become King as his elder brother,
Prince Albert Victor was second in line to the throne after their father.
Education
Given that George was born only fifteen months after his brother Prince Albert Victor, it was decided to educate both royal princes together. The Queen appointed John Neale Dalton as their tutor. Given the importance of Prince Albert Victor's expected future role, both brothers were given a strict programme of study, although neither excelled intellectually.
Later the royal brothers served as Naval cadets on HMS
Bacchante, accompanied by Dalton. They toured the
British Empire, visiting the colonies in
Australia and the Far East, and also acquiring tattoos in
Japan. Between Melbourne and Sydney, Dalton records a sighting of the
Flying Dutchman . When they returned to the UK, the brothers were parted with George joining the
Royal Navy and Albert Victor attending
Trinity College, Cambridge. George served in the navy until 1891. He travelled the world and visited many areas of the
British Empire. He also acquired many tattoos, and a
parrot that he took home to
England with himself.
Marriage
As a young man destined to serve in the Navy, Prince George served for many years under the command of his uncle,
Prince Alfred, who was stationed in
Malta. There, he grew close to and fell in love with his uncle's daughter, his first cousin,
Marie of Edinburgh. His grandmother, his father and his uncle all approved the match, but the mothers, the Princess of Wales and
the Duchess of Edinburgh both opposed it. When George proposed, Marie refused, guided by her mother. She later became Queen of
Romania.
In 1891,
Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence became engaged to his
second cousin once removed,
Princess Victoria Mary of Teck , the only daughter of
Prince Francis, Duke of Teck and
Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge. However,
Albert Victor died of
pneumonia six weeks later, leaving George second in line to the throne and likely to succeed after his father.
Queen Victoria still favoured Princess May as a suitable candidate to marry a future King, so she persuaded George to propose to May. George duly proposed, and May accepted. Despite its being an arranged marriage, George and May's union was largely successful, and unlike his father, George reportedly did not take a mistress.
Later life
During and after World War I, many of the monarchies which had ruled most European countries fell. Former emperor Nicholas II of Russia was executed in 1918. The monarchies of
Austria,
Germany,
Greece, and
Spain also fell to revolution and war, although the Greek monarchy was restored again shortly before George's death. Most of these countries were ruled by relatives of George. In 1922, George sent a
Royal Navy ship to rescue his cousins,
Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and
Princess Alice of Battenberg and their children, including
Prince Philip, who would later marry George's granddaughter,
Elizabeth II. George also took an interest in the political turmoil in
Ireland, expressing his horror at government-sanctioned killings and reprisals in a letter to Prime Minister
Lloyd George.
World War I took its toll on George's health, which began to deteriorate rapidly. He had always had a weak chest, a weakness exacerbated by heavy smoking. A bout of illness saw him retire to the sea, by
Bognor Regis in
West Sussex where Queen Mary helped nurse him back to health He did live to see the silver jubilee of his reign, in 1935, by which time he had become a well-loved king.
George's relationship with his heir,
Prince Edward also deteriorated in his later years. George was disappointed in Edward's failure to settle down in life and disgusted by his many affairs with married women. He was also reluctant to see Edward inherit the crown. In contrast, he was fond of his second eldest son,
Prince Albert and doted on his eldest granddaughter,
Princess Elizabeth; he nicknamed her "Lilibet", and she affectionally called him "Grandpa England".
George was quoted as saying about his son Edward: "After I am dead the boy will ruin himself in 12 months," and later about Albert and Lilibet: "I pray to God that my eldest son Edward will never marry and have children, and that nothing will come between Bertie and Lilibet and the throne."
George died on 20 January 1936 at
Sandringham House, and is buried at
St George's Chapel,
Windsor Castle. His end was allegedly hastened by his physician, Lord Dawson of Penn, who, it has been suggested, gave him a lethal injection of
cocaine and
morphine to ease his suffering.
At the King's
lying in state in
Westminster Hall, his four surviving sons,
King Edward VIII, the
Duke of York, the
Duke of Gloucester and the
Duke of Kent, mounted the
guard at the catafalque on the night of 28 January, the day before the funeral as a mark of respect to their father.
At George's funeral procession, as the funeral cortege turned into New Palace Yard, the
Maltese Cross fell from the Crown and landed in the gutter. This was viewed as a bad omen for the new King,
Edward VIII, who would abdicate before the year was out.
Titles, Styles, Honours & Arms
Titles
- 1865-1892: His Royal Highness Prince George of Wales
- 1892-1901: His Royal Highness The Duke of York
- 1901: His Royal Highness The Duke of Cornwall and York
- 1901-1910: His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales
- 1910-1936: His Majesty King George V of the United Kingdom, Emperor of India
Issue
Legacy
George was a well-known
stamp collector, and played a large role in building the Royal Philatelic Collection into the most comprehensive collection of United Kingdom and Commonwealth stamps in the world, in some cases setting record purchase prices for items. His enthusiasm for stamps, though denigrated by the intelligentsia, did much to popularise the hobby.
Tribute
A statue of King George V was unveiled outside the Brisbane City Hall in 1938 as a tribute to the King from the citizens of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
The square on which the statue stands in front of the Brisbane City Hall, was originally called Albert Square, but was later renamed King George Square in honour of King George V.
The
King George's Fields were created as a lasting and fitting memorial by a committee in 1936 chaired by the then Lord Mayor of London. Today they are each registered charities and are under the guidance of the
National Playing Fields AssociationRechov Hamelech George Hachamishi is a major thoroughfare in
Jerusalem. It is the only street in that city named for a non-Jewish monarch.
See also
Notes and references
External links
