Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn
Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn KG PC KP GCB GCH (born November 2, 1767 in London , † January 23, 1820 in Sidmouth , Devon ) was the fourth son of King George III. from Great Britain, Ireland and Hanover, and from Queen Charlotte . He was the father of Queen Victoria and came from the House of Hanover .
Military career
Edward was born in 1767 at Buckingham Palace as Edward Augustus of Hanover, in 1799 he received the title Duke of Kent and Strathearn. From 1785 he served in the army. He received his military training in the Electorate of Hanover and in Switzerland.
After a command in Gibraltar he was stationed in North America in 1791. Most recently he was there from 1791 commander in chief of all British troops in Canada with headquarters in Halifax , which he expanded into a fortress. Because of his extreme demands on the discipline of the troops, he was very unpopular with them. Subsequently he was stationed in Gibraltar for a few years from 1802. There he was supposed to restore the discipline of the stationed troops as governor . But he covered this in such a way that the units mutinied . Thereupon Edward Augustus was withdrawn from there, but remained formally governor until his death. As compensation he was promoted to field marshal at the same time .
marriage
Edward Augustus remained unmarried until the question of the British succession to the throne was open again in November 1817 following the death of King George III's granddaughter, Charlotte Auguste , who was second in line to the throne at the time. The heir to the throne Georg himself had no further children, his brother Wilhelm and the other siblings also had no legitimate descendants. Edward had lived with his French lover Julie de Saint-Laurent for years . However, he had long thought about getting married to a suitable candidate to improve his tight financial situation.
On May 29, 1818 married Edward in Coburg , the widowed Princess Victoire of Leiningen , born Princess of Saxe-Coburg, who already had two children. Both lived in a palace belonging to the Princes of Leiningen , the Thalheimschen Haus in Eberbach am Neckar , in 1818/19 . On May 24, 1819, the only child from this connection, Alexandrina Victoria , was born. The couple had specially traveled to Great Britain for this event, as Edward wanted the child - as the likely heir to the throne - to be born in Great Britain. For this trip and the befitting furnishing of the rooms in Kensington Palace , where the child was finally born, the duke went even deeper into debt.
The couple lived relatively modestly in Sidmouth on the Devonian coast until the Dukes' death, who died of pneumonia in 1820 . The reason for this was the fact that the duke had considerable financial liabilities, as the parliament, contrary to his expectations, had not increased his allowance even after his marriage. His debts were not to be paid in full by his daughter until 1839, long after his death (each recipient also received a silver plate from Victoria).
Edward died before his father and three older brothers, but since none of them had legitimate descendants, his daughter Victoria became queen after the death of Wilhelm IV.
Honors
According to him, Prince Edward Iceland in Canada and Prince Edward Island named in South Africa.
See also
Web links
- Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (English)
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Edward August, Duke of Kent and Strathearn |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | fourth son of King George III. of Great Britain and Ireland and the father of Queen Victoria |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 2, 1767 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | London |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 23, 1820 |
| Place of death | Sidmouth |