The Hanoverian Succession : Dynastic Politics and Monarchical Culture

The Hanoverian succession of 1714 brought about a 123-year union between Britain and the German electorate of Hanover, ushering in a distinct new period in British history. Under the four Georges and William IV Britain became arguably the most powerful nation in the world with a growing colonial Empire, a muscular economy and an effervescent artistic, social and scientific culture. And yet history has not tended to be kind to the Hanoverians, frequently portraying them as petty-minded and boring monarchs presiding over a dull and inconsequential court, merely the puppets of parliament and powerful ministers. In order both to explain and to challenge such a paradox, this collection looks afresh at the Georgian monarchs and their role, influence and legacy within Britain, Hanover and beyond. Concentrating on the self-representation and the perception of the Hanoverians in their various dominions, each chapter shines new light on important topics: from rivalling concepts of monarchical legitimacy and court culture during the eighteenth century to the multi-confessional set-up of the British composite monarchy and the role of social groups such as the military, the Anglican Church and the aristocracy in defining and challenging the political order. As a result, the volume uncovers a clearly defined new style of Hanoverian kingship, one that emphasized the Protestantism of the dynasty, laid great store by rational government in close collaboration with traditional political powers, embraced army and navy to an unheard of extent and projected this image to audiences on the British Isles, in the German territories and in the colonies alike. Three hundred years after the succession of the first Hanoverian king, an intriguing new perspective of a dynasty emerges, challenging long held assumptions and prejudices.-- Provided by publisher Cover 1 Contents 6 List of Illustrations 8 Notes on Contributors 10 Acknowledgements 16 1 Introduction 18 Part I Dynastic Legacies 40 2 The Hanoverian Monarchy and the Legacy of Late Stuart Kingship 42 3 The House of Brunswick-Lüneburg and the Holy Roman Empire: The Making of a Patriotic Dynasty, 1648–1714? 60 Part II Representing Protestantism 88 4 George I, the Hanoverian Succession, and Religious Dissent 90 5 Hanover-Britain and the Protestant Cause, 1714–1760 106 6 The Hanoverians and the Colonial Churches 124 Part III Image Policies 144 7 The Hanoverian Monarchy and the Culture of Representation 146 8 ‘Every Inch Not a King’: The Bodies of the (First Two) Hanoverians 164 9 Monarchy, Affection and Empire: The Hanoverian Dynasty in Eighteenth-Century America 188 Part IV Contested Loyalties 222 11 The Hanoverian Succession and the Politicisation of the British Army 224 12 Jacobitism and the Hanoverian Monarchy 244 13 The Alternative to the House of Hanover: The Stuarts in Exile, 1714–1745 268 14 Radical Popular Attitudes to the Monarchy in Britain during the French Revolution 278 Index 296