| Prince George | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duke of Cambridge | |||||
 The Duke of Cambridge,c. 1900 | |||||
| Born | Prince George of Cambridge 26 March 1819 Cambridge House,Hanover | ||||
| Died | 17 March 1904(1904-03-17) (aged 84) Gloucester House,London | ||||
| Burial | 22 March 1904 | ||||
| Spouse | [a] | ||||
| Issue | George FitzGeorge Adolphus FitzGeorge Augustus FitzGeorge | ||||
| |||||
| House | Hanover | ||||
| Father | Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge | ||||
| Mother | Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel | ||||
| Signature |  | ||||
| Military career | |||||
| Allegiance | United Kingdom | ||||
| Branch | British Army | ||||
| Rank | Field marshal | ||||
| Commands | Commander-in-Chief of the Forces | ||||
Prince George, Duke of Cambridge (George William Frederick Charles; 26 March 1819 – 17 March 1904) was a member of theBritish royal family, a grandson of KingGeorge III and cousin ofQueen Victoria. The Duke was an army officer by profession and served asCommander-in-Chief of the Forces (military head of theBritish Army) from 1856 to 1895, and was raised to the rank offield marshal in 1862. He succeeded to the title ofDuke of Cambridge in 1850 upon the death of his fatherPrince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge. Deeply devoted to the old Army, he worked with Queen Victoria to defeat or minimise every reform proposal, such as setting up ageneral staff. His Army's weaknesses were dramatically revealed by the poor organisation at the start of theSecond Boer War.
George was born on 26 March 1819 at Cambridge House, Hanover.[1][2] His father wasPrince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, the seventh son of KingGeorge III andQueen Charlotte.[2] His mother was the Duchess of Cambridge (néePrincess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel).[1]
He was baptised at Cambridge House in Hanover on 11 May 1819, by the Reverend John Sanford, his father'sDomestic Chaplain. His godparents were thePrince Regent (represented by theDuke of Clarence and St Andrews), theDuke of Clarence and St Andrews (represented by the4th Earl of Mayo) and theDowager Queen of Württemberg (represented by the Countess of Mayo).[3]
Following his father's death in 1850, he was granted an annuity of £12,000 from the Civil List.[4][5]
George of Cambridge was educated inHanover and from 1830 in England by the Rev. J. R. Wood, a canon ofWorcester Cathedral.[1] Like his father, he embarked upon a military career, initially becoming a colonel in theHanoverian Army and then, on 3 November 1837, becoming abrevet colonel in the British Army.[6] He was attached to the staff atGibraltar from October 1838 to April 1839.[2] After serving in Ireland with the12th Royal Lancers (Prince of Wales's), he was appointed substantive lieutenant-colonel of the8th Light Dragoons on 15 April 1842[7] and colonel of the17th Lancers on 25 April 1842.[2]
From 1843 to 1845 he served as a colonel on the staff in theIonian islands,[2] then was promotedMajor-General on 7 May 1845.[8] He succeeded to his father's titles ofDuke of Cambridge,Earl of Tipperary, andBaron Culloden on 8 July 1850.[2]
The Duke of Cambridge became Inspector of the Cavalry in 1852.[2] In February 1854, at an early stage in theCrimean War of 1853–1856, he received command of the1st Division (Guards and Highland brigades) of the British army in the East.[9] On 19 June 1854, he was promoted to the rank oflieutenant-general.[10]
He was present at the battles of theAlma (September 1854),[9]Balaclava (October 1854) andInkerman (November 1854),[9] and at theSiege of Sevastopol (1854–1855).[1]
In December 1854, owing to illness, theEarl of Cardigan returned first to Malta and then to England: before the conclusion of the Crimean campaign he was back in London.[11] Meanwhile,Lord Raglan died at 9.30 pm on 28 June 1855 from dysentery;General Simpson succeeded Raglan in commanding in the Crimea, followed byGeneral Codrington. Field MarshalViscount Hardinge, the servinggeneral commanding-in-chief since 1852, was forced to resign in July 1856 on grounds of ill-health.[12] (The Crimean War had ended in March 1856.)
On 5 July 1856, the Duke was appointedgeneral commanding-in-chief of the British Army,[9] a post that was re-titledfield marshal commanding-in-chief on 9 November 1862 andcommander-in-chief of the forces byLetters Patent on 20 November 1887.[13] In that capacity he served as the chief military advisor to theSecretary of State for War, with responsibility for the administration of the army and the command of forces in the field. He was promoted to the rank ofgeneral on 15 July 1856[14] and to the rank offield marshal on 9 November 1862.[15]
The Duke of Cambridge served as commander-in-chief for 39 years.[9] Early in his term he encouraged the army to trial variousbreech-loadingcarbines for the cavalry, one of which—theWestley Richards—proved so effective that it was decided to investigate the possibility of producing a version for the infantry. In 1861, 100 were issued to five infantry battalions; in 1863 an order of 2,000 was placed for further trials.[16] The Duke was also involved in the formation of theStaff College and of theRoyal Military School of Music, and became governor of theRoyal Military Academy, Woolwich:[17] he further sought to improve the efficiency of the army by advocating a scheme of annualmilitary manoeuvres.[1] In 1860 he introduced a new system to restrict corporal punishment: soldiers became eligible for flogging only in cases of aggravatedmutinous conduct during wartime, unless they committed an offence serious enough to degrade to the second class and make them once again subject to corporal punishment. A year's good behaviour would return them to the first class, meaning that only a hard core of incorrigible offenders tended to beflogged.[18]
Under the Duke's command, the British Army became a moribund and stagnant institution. He allegedly rebuked one of his more intelligent subordinates with the words: "Brains? I don't believe in brains! You haven't any, I know, Sir!" He was equally forthright on his reluctance to adopt change: "There is a time for everything, and the time for change is when you can no longer help it."[19]
In the wake of the Prussian victories in the 1870–71Franco-Prussian War, theLiberal Party government of Prime MinisterWilliam Ewart Gladstone andSecretary of State for WarEdward Cardwell called for the Army to undergo major reforms.[20] Cardwell succeeded in pushing througha number of reforms, including one that made thecommander-in-chief nominally report to thesecretary of state for war.[21]
The Duke opposed most of the reforms because they struck at the heart of his view of the Army. According toTheo Aronson, he "stoutly resisted almost every attempt at reform or modernization."[22] He feared that the newly created force ofreservists would be of little use in a colonial conflict, and thatexpeditionary forces would have to strip the most experienced men from the home-based battalions in order to fill the gaps in their ranks.[1] His fears seemed to be confirmed in 1873, whenWolseley raided battalions for the expedition against theAshanti. In 1881, when the historic numbers of regiments were abolished andfacing colours standardised for English, Welsh, Scottish, and Irish regiments, the Duke protested that regimental spirit would be degraded; the majority of facing colours were restored by the time ofWorld War I, although the numbers of regiments were not.[1]
The reforming impetus, however, continued.Parliament passed theWar Office Act 1870, which formally subordinated the Commander-in-Chief of the Forces to the Secretary of State for War and in 1871 Cardwell abolished the custom ofpurchasing an office which had done much to instil elitism in the form of discipline and training. The Duke of Cambridge strongly resented this move, a sentiment shared by a majority of officers, who would no longer be able to sell their commissions when they retired.[1]
Pressures for reform built up as the Duke of Cambridge aged; his strongest ally was his cousin, Queen Victoria. While the Queen insisted on reform, she was also protective of theHousehold brigades and their long association and traditions. An 1890 royal commission led byLord Hartington (later the 8th Duke of Devonshire) criticised the administration of theWar Office and recommended the devolution of authority from the Commander-in-Chief to subordinate military officers.[1] A number of reformers opposed to the Duke banded together, includingHenry Campbell-Bannerman andLord Lansdowne, the Liberal and Conservative Secretaries for War between 1892 and 1900. The leading generals eager to replace the Duke were Wolseley,Buller (1802–1884),Roberts (1832–1914), and theDuke of Connaught (1850–1942). The Duke of Cambridge was forced to resign his post on 1 November 1895, and was succeeded by Lord Wolseley.[23] On his resignation he was given the title of honorary colonel-in-chief to the Forces.[24]
During the Duke's long career he helped to further the career progress ofDouglas Haig, a talented and able young officer, who succeeded throughStaff College to gain promotion. As Commander-in-Chief, the Duke was able to admit any candidate to the college so long as they passed three out of eight of the tests. Haig, who was also acquainted with SirEvelyn Wood, left for India in 1893 knowing that the Duke had also made a friend of Henrietta Jameson (née Haig), his older sister. The Duke's nomination was made in 1894 and 1895, but Haig did not take up the place until 15 January 1896 under Army Regulations Order 72 (1896). The Duke, who was replaced byLord Wolseley, after 32 years was not the only patron of preferment. The Staff College was not intended to educate aGeneral Staff until much later in its historical development. However the traditional system of informal patronage was gradually giving way to more than gifted amateurs.[25]
On 22 November 1909 the reforms to which Haig, as Director of Staff Duties was a part, abolished the post of Commander-in-Chief which the Duke had made his own. In setting up theArmy Council, with its head being called theChief of the General Staff by Order in Council, the Liberal government separated the army from the monarchy.[26]
It is believed, according toRoger Fulford, thatWilliam IV, who had been his godfather when Duke of Clarence, had George brought up atWindsor in hope of an eventual marriage to his cousinPrincess Victoria of Kent, who was two months younger. This prospective match was favoured by George's own parents, but was forestalled by Victoria's maternal uncleLeopold I of Belgium. He secured Victoria's betrothal to his nephew,Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, which became formal after she acceded to the British throne. In 1839 Queen Victoria wrote to Albert about George's father: "The Duke toldLord Melbourne he had always greatly desired our marriage, and never thought of George: but thatI don't believe."[27] George was one of a range of suitors considered by Victoria, the most prominent of whom,Prince Alexander of the Netherlands, was openly favoured by William.[28]
The Duke of Cambridge made no secret of his view that "arranged marriages were doomed to failure." He married privately, without seeking Queen Victoria's consent, atSt John Clerkenwell, London, on 8 January 1847 toSarah Fairbrother (1816 – 12 January 1890), the daughter of John Fairbrother, a servant in Westminster. Sarah Fairbrother (whose stage name was Louisa)[29] had been an actress since 1827, performing atDrury Lane, theLyceum, andCovent Garden Theatre. Without the Queen's consent, the wedding ceremony was in contravention of the 1772Royal Marriages Act, rendering the marriagevoid.[30] This meant the Duke's wife was not titled Duchess of Cambridge or accorded the styleHer Royal Highness, while the son born after the marriage was illegitimate and ineligible to succeed to the Duke's titles. Indeed, Sarah's very existence was ignored by the Queen. Instead, Sarah called herself "Mrs. Fairbrother" and later "Mrs. FitzGeorge". The Duke was a very weak man where women were concerned, and it seems likely that he had been cajoled into marriage by Sarah (then pregnant for the fifth time), she herself obtaining the licence. Legend has created for the couple an ideal relationship that is far from the reality; the Duke having other affairs.[31]From 1837 the Duke had known Louisa Beauclerk,[32] third daughter ofSir George Wombwell, 2nd Baronet, whom he later described as "the idol of my life and my existence." He saw much of her in 1847, and she was his mistress from at least 1849 until her death in 1882. As early as 1849 he had decided that he would be buried near Beauclerk and it was solely on her account that Sarah Fairbrother and he were deposited in the mausoleum inKensal Green Cemetery, west of the main chapel, about sixty feet away from Beauclerk's grave.[33]
The Duke of Cambridge served as colonel-in-chief of the17th Lancers,[34]Royal Artillery[35] andRoyal Engineers;[35]The Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own)[36] andKing's Royal Rifle Corps;[37] colonel of theGrenadier Guards;[38] honorary colonel of the10th (Duke of Cambridge's Own) Bengal Lancers,[39] 20thDuke of Cambridge's Own Punjabis,[40] 4 BattalionSuffolk Regiment,[41] 1stCity of London Volunteer Brigade[42] and theScots Fusilier Guards.[43] He became the Ranger ofHyde Park andSt. James's Park in 1852,[44] and ofRichmond Park in 1857; governor of theRoyal Military Academy in 1862,[17] and its president in 1870.[45] He was the patron of theOxford Military College from 1876 to 1896.[46]
Cambridge's strength and hearing began to fade in his later years. He was unable to ride at Queen Victoria's funeral and had to attend in a carriage.[47] He paid his last visit to Germany in August 1903.[1] He died of a haemorrhage of the stomach in 1904 atGloucester House,Piccadilly, London.[1] His remains were buried five days later next to those of his wife inKensal Green Cemetery, London.[1]
In 1904, his estate was probated at under £121,000.[48]
The Duke is commemorated by anequestrian statue standing onWhitehall in centralLondon; it is positioned outside the front door of the War Office that he so strongly resisted.[49] He is also commemorated by two street names inKingston Vale andNorbiton, in southwest London, George Road and Cambridge Road; the Duke inherited much of the land in the area from his father in 1850.[50]Cambridge Military Hospital inAldershot was built during his time as Commander-in-Chief.[51]
As the male-line grandson of aKing of Hanover, Prince George of Cambridge also bore the titles of 'Prince of Hanover' and 'Duke of Brunswick and Lüneburg'.
His title, 'Duke of Cambridge', became extinct upon his death. It was revived 107 years later, whenElizabeth II (Prince George's great-great-niece through his sisterPrincess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge) awarded the title to her grandson,Prince William, on 29 April 2011, the day of his wedding.[52][53]
The Duke of Cambridge and Mrs. FitzGeorge had three sons, two of whom were born before their marriage in contravention to theRoyal Marriages Act 1772,[72]and all of whom pursued military careers.
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| George FitzGeorge | 24 August 1843 | 2 September 1907 | m.Rosa Baring, daughter of William Baring of Norman Court, Hants., by Elizabeth Hammersley; had issue |
| Adolphus FitzGeorge | 30 January 1846 | 17 December 1922 | m. (1) Sofia Holden; had issue (Olga FitzGeorge); (2) Margaret Watson; no issue |
| Augustus FitzGeorge | 12 June 1847 | 30 October 1933 | Col Sir Augustus FitzGeorge,KCVO,CB; no marriage or issue |
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Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Cadet branch of theHouse of Welf Born: 26 March 1819 Died: 17 March 1904 | ||
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Colonel of the17th Regiment of (Light) Dragoons (Lancers) 1842–1852 | Succeeded by Thomas William Taylor |
| Preceded by | Colonel of theScots Fusilier Guards 1852–1861 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander-in-Chief of the Forces 1856–1895 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Colonel of theGrenadier Guards 1861–1904 | Succeeded by |
| Other offices | ||
| Preceded by | President of the Foundling Hospital 1851–1904 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Grand Master of the Order of St Michael and St George 1850–1904 | Succeeded by |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Duke of Cambridge 4th creation 1850–1904 | Extinct Title next held by Prince William |
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