| Prince Augustus Frederick | |
|---|---|
| Duke of Sussex | |
 Portrait byGuy Head, 1798 | |
| Born | 27 January 1773 Buckingham House, London |
| Died | 21 April 1843(1843-04-21) (aged 70) Kensington Palace, London |
| Burial | 4 May 1843 Kensal Green Cemetery, London |
| Spouses | |
| Issue | Sir Augustus d'Este Augusta Emma Wilde, Baroness Truro |
| House | Hanover |
| Father | George III |
| Mother | Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz |
| Signature |  |
| 25th President of the Royal Society | |
| In office 1830–1838 | |
| Preceded by | Davies Gilbert |
| Succeeded by | Spencer Compton |
Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (27 January 1773 – 21 April 1843), was the sixth son and ninth child ofKing George III and hisqueen consort,Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He was the only surviving son of George III who did not pursue an army or navy career. AWhig,[1] he was known for his liberal views, which included reform ofParliament, abolition of the slave trade,Catholic Emancipation, and the removal of existing civil restrictions onJews andDissenters.[2]
Augustus Frederick was born on 27 January 1773 atBuckingham House, London. He was the ninth child and sixth son ofKing George III andQueen Charlotte.
Augustus Frederick was baptised in the Great Council Chamber atSt James's Palace, on 25 February 1773, byArchbishop of CanterburyFrederick Cornwallis. His godparents were theDuke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (his paternal first cousin once-removed, for whom theEarl of Hertford,Lord Chamberlain, stood proxy),Duke George Augustus of Mecklenburg (his maternal uncle, for whom theEarl of Bristol,Groom of the Stool, stood proxy) andPrincess Charles of Hesse-Cassel (his first cousin once-removed, for whom theViscountess Weymouth,Lady of the Bedchamber to the queen, stood proxy).[citation needed]
Augustus Frederick was tutored at home before being sent to theUniversity of Göttingen inGermany in the summer of 1786, along with his brothersPrince Ernest andPrince Adolphus.[3] Prince Augustus, who suffered fromasthma, did not join his brothers in receiving military training inHanover. He briefly considered becoming acleric in theChurch of England. In 1805, during theNapoleonic War, he served at home in Britain as Lieutenant-Colonel Commandant of the "Loyal North Britons" Volunteers regiment.[4]
While travelling inItaly, the prince metLady Augusta Murray (1768–1830), the second daughter of the4th Earl of Dunmore. The couple secretly married inRome on 4 April 1793. The King's minister of Hanover affairsErnst zu Münster was sent to Italy to escort him back to London.[5]
The couple married again without revealing their full identities atSt George's, Hanover Square,Westminster, on 5 December 1793. Both marriages took place without the consent, or even the knowledge, of his father.
In August 1794, theCourt of Arches pronounced the prince's first marriagenull and void on the grounds that it contravened theRoyal Marriages Act 1772, not having been approved by the King.[6] However, Prince Augustus Frederick continued to live with Lady Augusta until 1801, when he received a parliamentary grant of £12,000 and the couple separated, the Duke moving toGrosvenor Square.[7] Lady Augusta retained custody of their children and received maintenance of £4,000 a year. Their two children were namedAugustus Frederick d'Este andAugusta Emma d'Este, both parents being descended from the royalHouse of Este. In 1806, their mother, Lady Augusta, was given royal licence to use the surname "de Ameland" instead of Murray.[8]
Augustus Frederick was invested as aKnight of the Garter on 2 June 1786, and installed by dispensation on 28 May 1801.[9] The King created himDuke of Sussex,Earl of Inverness, andBaron Arklow in thePeerage of the United Kingdom on 24 November 1801.[10] Since he had no legitimate issue, the title became extinct on his death in 1843. In 1815 the Duke became a patron of the Jews' Hospital and Orphan Asylum, later to become the charity known today asNorwood. Royal patronage continued, with QueenElizabeth II eventually becoming Norwood's patron.
A known mistress was Mrs. Bugge. Sir William Dillon recorded in his diary they were both present with him at a party held byEmma Hamilton (Lord Nelson's mistress) where she rented tableware for the meal but neglected to rent a carving knife, creating great difficulty in serving the Christmas dinner to her guests.[11]
In January 1813, Augustus Frederick became Grand Master of thePremier Grand Lodge of England, and in December of that year his brother,Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, became Grand Master of theAntient Grand Lodge of England. On 27 December 1813 theUnited Grand Lodge of England was constituted atFreemasons' Hall, London with Prince Augustus Frederick as Grand Master. In 1842, he founded theRoyal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
George Oliver'sSigns and Symbols Illustrated and Explained in a Course of Twelve Lectures on Freemasonry (1837) was dedicated to Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex.[12]
A year after the death of Lady Augusta D'Ameland (Lady Augusta Murray), the Duke of Sussex married a second time on 2 May 1831 (again in contravention of the Royal Marriages Act) toLady Cecilia Letitia Buggin (1793–1873), the eldest daughter ofArthur Gore, 2nd Earl of Arran, and Elizabeth Underwood, and the widow of Sir George Buggin. On the same day, Lady Cecilia assumed the surname Underwood by royal licence. She was never titled or recognized as the Duchess of Sussex. However, she was createdDuchess of Inverness in her own right by Queen Victoria in 1840.[13]
William IV appointed his younger brother Chief Ranger and Keeper ofSt James's Park andHyde Park on 29 January 1831, andQueen Victoria appointed her uncle Governor ofWindsor Castle in 1842.[14] The Duke of Sussex was elected president of theSociety of Arts in 1816 and held that post for the rest of his life. He also held the honorary posts of Colonel of theHonourable Artillery Company from 1817, and of Captain-General (at which point the posts were united) from 1837 onward.[14] He was president of theRoyal Society between 1830 and 1838, and had a keen interest inbiblical studies andHebrew.[15] His personal library contained over 50,000 theological manuscripts, some in Hebrew.[16] In 1838, he introduced in a meeting scientistJohn Herschel, and the Duke gave a speech in which he spoke about the compatibility of science and religion:
.jpg)
In making these remarks I am not presumptuous; but allow me to say, that attached as I am to science – attached as I am to religion, I am satisfied that the real philosopher is the most religious man; and it is in looking to the operations in nature that the finger of the Almighty leads us to the lesson. (16 June 1838)[17]
The Duke of Sussex was the favourite uncle of Queen Victoria. He gave her away at her wedding toPrince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in 1840.[18] The Duke of Sussex died, aged 70 oferysipelas, atKensington Palace[14] in 1843. In his will he specified that he was not to have astate funeral and was accordingly buried atKensal Green Cemetery on 4 May 1843.[19] He is buried in front of the main chapel, immediately opposite the tomb of his sisterPrincess Sophia.[20]
TheDuchess of Inverness continued to reside atKensington Palace until her death in 1873. She was buried next to Prince Augustus.
The duke held thesubsidiary titles ofEarl of Inverness andBaron Arklow.
As a son of the sovereign, the Duke of Sussex had use of the arms of the kingdom, differenced by alabel argent of three points, the centre point bearing two hearts gules, the outer points each bearing a cross gules.[24]
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ByLady Augusta Murray (married 4 April 1793; annulled) | |||
| Augustus Frederick d'Este | 13 January 1794 | 28 December 1848 | |
| Augusta Emma d'Este | 11 August 1801 | 21 May 1866 | marriedThomas Wilde, 1st Baron Truro; no issue. |
| ByLady Cecilia Underwood (married 2 May 1831) | |||
| no issue | |||
He espoused the side of the Whigs...
Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex Cadet branch of theHouse of Welf Born: 27 January 1773 Died: 21 April 1843 | ||
| Masonic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byas Acting Grand Master of the Premier Grand Lodge of England | Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England 1813–1843 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded byas Grand Master of the Antient Grand Lodge of England | ||
| Honorary titles | ||
| Vacant Title last held by The Duke of Clarence and St Andrews | Great Master of the Order of the Bath 1837–1843 | Succeeded by |
| Professional and academic associations | ||
| Preceded by | 25thPresident of the Royal Society 1830–1838 | Succeeded by |
Generations are numbered by descent fromGeorge III, firstking of Hanover | ||
| 1st generation |  | |
| 2nd generation | ||
| 3rd generation | ||
| 4th generation | ||
| 5th generation | ||
| 6th generation | ||
| 7th generation | ||
| ||
|  | |