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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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George II
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(1683–1760)
King of Great Britain and Ireland and elector of Hanover from 1727; only son of George I and Sophia Dorothea; married Caroline of Ansbach (1705).
The years preceding his inheritance of the crown were marked by prolonged hostility between himself and his father. A quarrel in 1717 over a trivial matter (the godparents of a newly born son) led to the prince's children being removed while he was confined to his house. But on his accession to the throne George retained his father's chief minister, *Walpole, whose skills over the next 15 years put the reign on a stable basis.
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The other great influence was that of his wife, Caroline, an intelligent woman who strongly supported Walpole; she died in 1737. George's own interests, like those of his father, were connected largely with the army. He was himself a keen soldier, fighting with courage and distinction in battles from Oudenarde in 1708 to *Dettingen in 1743.
George was like his father in two other respects. He was a lover of music, being in particular an enthusiastic patron of *Handel. And he detested his eldest son, Frederick Louis (1707–51), whose early death prevented his inheriting the crown. George was succeeded by his grandson, as *George III (see the *royal house).
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