Photograph of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh.
Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh

Overview

Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh KG (14 November 1743 - 25 August 1805) was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandson of George II and a younger brother of George III.

Early life

Prince William Henry was born at Leicester House, London. His father was The Prince Frederick, Prince of Wales, eldest son of King George II and Caroline of Ansbach. His mother was The Princess of Wales (née Augusta of Saxe-Gotha). He was christened at Leicester House on 25 November 1743. His godparents were William IV, Prince of Orange, The Duke of Cumberland, and Princess Amelia Sophia of Great Britain. As a grandchild of the sovereign, he was styled His Royal Highness Prince William Henry of Wales at birth. He was fourth in the line of succession at birth.

Prince William Henry later joined the British Army. His father died in 1751, leaving the Prince's elder brother, Prince George, heir-apparent to the throne. He succeeded as George III on 25 October 1760, and created William Henry Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh and Earl of Connaught on 19 November 1764. He had been made a Knight of the Garter on 27 May 1762.

Marriage

The Duke was Warden of Windsor Forest and resided at Cranbourne Lodge. He was most known for his secret marriage 1766 to Maria Walpole, the Dowager Countess of Waldegrave, an illegitimate granddaughter of Sir Robert Walpole, from nearby Frogmore House. This marriage and that of his brother prompted the passing of the Royal Marriages Act 1772. They lived at St Leonard's Hill in Clewer, near Windsor, and had three children:

*HRH Princess Sophia of Gloucester (Sophia Matilda; 29 May 1773 – 29 November 1844) *HH Princess Caroline of Gloucester (Caroline Augusta Maria; 24 June 1774 – 14 March 1775) *HRH Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (15 January 1776 – 30 November1834)

Princess Caroline died aged nine months following a smallpox inoculation, intended to protect her from the disease. As great-grandchildren in the male line of King George II, Caroline and her siblings were styled Highness from birth and used the territorial designation of Gloucester in conjunction with their princely styles. After William Frederick married his cousin Princess Mary, he and his surviving sister Sophia received the style of Royal Highness.
Illegitimate Issue
The Duke also had an illegitimate daughter by his mistress Lady Almeria Carpenter, a daughter of the Earl of Tyrconnell. *Louisa Maria La Coast (6 January 1782 Esher, Surrey - 10 February 1835 Bossall, Yorkshire), who married on 29 December 1803 in Norwich, Norfolk to Godfrey Macdonald, 3rd Baron Macdonald of Slate, later the 3rd Baron Macdonald of Slate. They had three children born before their marriage (legitimized by Scottish law, but not by Irish law) and ten children born after their marriage. (A previous marriage in Scotland was considered of doubtful validity). These children and their posterity are the only descendants of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh.

Later life

The Duke was appointed (in an honorary fashion) to Colonel of the 13th Regiment of Foot, 3rd Regiment of Foot Guards, and 1st Regiment of Foot Guards, and he became a Field Marshal on 12 October 1793.

He served as the thirteenth Chancellor of Trinity College, Dublin from 1771 to 1805.

He died at Gloucester House in London.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles
*14 November 1743–19 November 1764: His Royal Highness Prince William Henry of Wales *19 November 1764–25 August 1805: His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh

Ancestors

Footnote

Who is Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh connected to?
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This biography says:

Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh KG (14 November 1743 - 25 August 1805) was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandson of George II and a younger brother of George III.

This biography says:

Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh KG (14 November 1743 - 25 August 1805) was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandson of George II and a younger brother of George III.

This biography says:

...He was most known for his secret marriage 1766 to Maria Walpole, the Dowager Countess of Waldegrave, an illegitimate granddaughter of Sir Robert Walpole, from nearby Frogmore House. This marriage and that of his brother prompted the passing of the Royal Marriages Act 1772...

That biography says:

...1720, death date unknown); he had an illegitimate daughter, Maria Walpole, who later married into the British Royal Family, becoming the wife of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, King George III's brother....

This biography says:

Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh KG (14 November 1743 - 25 August 1805) was a member of the British Royal Family, a grandson of George II and a younger brother of George III.

That biography says:

*HRH Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (1743-1805) *HRH Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (1776-1834)

That biography says:

...Evans's The Ancestry of Diana, Princess of Wales, for Twelve Generations, a comprehensive account of the Princess's forebears in all lines, including: * James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn, an ancestor of Sarah, Duchess of York and Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester * Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, who secured the passage of the Reform Act of 1832 * Maria Walpole, wife of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh * Henry Paget, 1st Earl of Uxbridge, an ancestor of Sir Winston Churchill * William Anne Keppel, 2nd Earl of Albemarle, an ancestor of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall * William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire, an ancestor of Charles, Prince of Wales * Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth, an ancestor of Sophie, Countess of Wessex * John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough * Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, the first British prime minister * John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester, the Restoration poet and * Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, the favourite of Queen Elizabeth I A notable American kinsman was Revolutionary War hero Nathan Hale, a first cousin six times removed.

This biography says:

...His mother was The Princess of Wales (née Augusta of Saxe-Gotha). He was christened at Leicester House on 25 November 1743. His godparents were William IV, Prince of Orange, The Duke of Cumberland, and Princess Amelia Sophia of Great Britain. As a grandchild of the sovereign, he was styled His Royal Highness Prince William Henry of Wales at birth...

That biography says:

...Mary, however, married on 22 July 1816, to her first cousin, Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, the son of George III's brother, Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, at the Chapel Royal in St James's Palace. On their wedding day, Mary's brother, The Prince Regent, granted William the style of His Royal Highness to give him an equal rank to Mary...
How is Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh connected to William IV of the United Kingdom? Tell the world.

This biography says:

...*HRH Princess Sophia of Gloucester (Sophia Matilda; 29 May 1773 – 29 November 1844) *HH Princess Caroline of Gloucester (Caroline Augusta Maria; 24 June 1774 – 14 March 1775) *HRH Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (15 January 1776 – 30 November1834)...

That biography says:

She was born in Grosvenor Street, Mayfair. Her father was Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, the third eldest son of The Prince Frederick, Prince of Wales. Her mother was the Duchess of Gloucester, the illegitimate daughter of Edward Walpole...

This biography says:

...*HRH Princess Sophia of Gloucester (Sophia Matilda; 29 May 1773 – 29 November 1844) *HH Princess Caroline of Gloucester (Caroline Augusta Maria; 24 June 1774 – 14 March 1775) *HRH Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (15 January 1776 – 30 November1834)...

This biography says:

...He was christened at Leicester House on 25 November 1743. His godparents were William IV, Prince of Orange, The Duke of Cumberland, and Princess Amelia Sophia of Great Britain. As a grandchild of the sovereign, he was styled His Royal Highness Prince William Henry of Wales at birth...

That biography says:

subsidiary title: Earl of Connaught (in the Peerage of Ireland) *HRH Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (1743-1805) *HRH Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (1776-1834)

This biography says:

Prince William Henry was born at Leicester House, London. His father was The Prince Frederick, Prince of Wales, eldest son of King George II and Caroline of Ansbach. His mother was The Princess of Wales (née Augusta of Saxe-Gotha)...
How is Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh connected to Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester? Tell the world.
How is Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh connected to Prince Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha? Tell the world.
How is Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh connected to Charles, Prince of Wales? Tell the world.

That biography says:

Maria Walpole (10 July 1736 – 22 August 1807), the Countess Waldegrave and Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh, was a member of the British Royal Family, the wife of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh. Her marriage to the Duke without the knowledge of King George III led to the passing of the Royal Marriages Act 1772.

That biography says:

...After his death, his widow Maria married into the British Royal Family becoming the wife of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, King George III's brother...
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