| | '''George III''' (George William Frederick; June 4, 1783 – January 29, 1820) was king of Great Britain and Ireland and elector of Hanover for 60 momentous years (1760-1820), and was insane off and on after 1788. His son and successor [[George IV]] acted as regent during the insane years. A mediocre king, George III's reign is noted for losing the first [[British Empire]] with a defeat in the [[American Revolution]], the building of a second empire based in India, Asia and Africa, the beginnings of the [[industrial revolution]] that made Britain an economic powerhouse, and above all the life and death struggle with the French, 1793-1815, which ended with the defeat of [[Napoleon]] in 1815. | | '''George III''' (George William Frederick; June 4, 1783 – January 29, 1820) was king of Great Britain and Ireland and elector of Hanover for 60 momentous years (1760-1820), and was insane off and on after 1788. His son and successor [[George IV]] acted as regent during the insane years. A mediocre king, George III's reign is noted for losing the first [[British Empire]] with a defeat in the [[American Revolution]], the building of a second empire based in India, Asia and Africa, the beginnings of the [[industrial revolution]] that made Britain an economic powerhouse, and above all the life and death struggle with the French, 1793-1815, which ended with the defeat of [[Napoleon]] in 1815. |
| − | He was the last powerful king in Britain. He was a mediocre figure with limited skills and weak understanding of issues great or small. He misused his powers to promote incompetent favorites and interfere with the politicians trying to run the government and the [[British Empire]]. After he lapsed into insanity, and was followed by several debauched incompetents, there was no one who wanted a king to be make any serious decisions. The Crown was an a glittering ornament, the centerpiece of increasing elaborate ceremonies. | + | He was the last powerful king in Britain. He was a mediocre figure with limited skills and weak understanding of issues great or small. He misused his powers by bribing politicians, promoting incompetent favorites such as Lord Germain, and interfering with the politicians trying to run the government and the [[British Empire]]. After he lapsed into insanity, and was followed by several debauched incompetents, there was no one who wanted a king to be make any serious decisions. George III did help make the Crown into a glittering ornament, the centerpiece of increasing elaborate ceremonies and today the basis of a major tourism industry. |