Essay "The Hanoverian Georges".

 THE HANOVERIAN GEORGES

 Queen Anne´s death put an end to the House of Orange’s reign, which was replaced by the dynasty of Hanover from Germany.  George I came to the throne at the age of fifty four and he showed some similarities with his successor George II. George III brought a real change in the way in which Britain was being ruled.

  The three monarchs had solid personalities that influenced their policies over the management of the country. Unlike George III, George I and George II showed no interest in cultural aspects such as science, literature and art. George I kept his wife in prison for thirty years and he frequently argued with his son. George II also had quarrels with his son but he and George III were devoted husbands. The first two George were not capable of speaking a single word in English and during their reigns they did not try to learn the language of the country they had under their control. This was certainly due to their lack of interest in accomplishing their duties as kings. However, George III demonstrated a different attitude since he made an effort to communicate inn English despite his ungrammatical speech and he was also determined to revive the power of the Crown.

  In Britain there were two major political parties that influenced the kings. They Whigs dominated the Parliament during the first two reigns whereas the Tories supported George III. George I´s reign was the most corrupt since the members of the Parliament were chosen from the same party. Besides, people had the possibility of buying seats in Parliament and support to a particular party was well rewarded. There were two Prime Ministers who played a key role in each reign. In George I´s reign, Walpole, the skillful financer, managed to reduce the National Debt that the South Sea Company had brought to the country. He focused mainly on economy.  Pitt, the elder, took wise decisions while leading the country during the Seven Years War. Yet he changed his attitude when George III came to the throne because he disagreed with the monarch´s intention to revive the power of the crown.

   There were significant events in Britain´s history, which took place during these three reigns. George I´s reign was not marked by any relevant event. However, George II had to face and assume responsibilities due to Britain´s involvement in the Seven Years War. Pitt contributed to expand to British worldwide empire since he won some colonies from France. All the effort was ruined by George III´s policy. He wanted to impose a high taxation on colonies and restrict the trade of American products, which had to be supervised by Britain according to the Navigation Act. Those conditions ended up in USA´s declaration of Independence causing a loss of American colonies.

  Although George I and George II had no intention of improving Britain, their policies and decision taken by Parliament caused some beneficial effects to the nation. In spite of George III´s efforts to revive the crown, he took wrong decisions that led to the reduction of Britain´s territory. Most British point back at him as the one who lost the thirteen colonies that Britain used to dominate. 

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