King of Great Britain from 1760 to 1820, and king of Hanover (Elector from 1760 to 1815), eldest son of Frederick Lewis, Prince of Wales, and grandson of preceding, born in London; in 1761 he married Princess Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, by whom he had fifteen children; more English in sentiment and education than his two predecessors, George's main interest was centred in his English kingdom, and never during his long life did he once set foot in his Hanoverian possessions; the purity of his domestic life, his devotion to England, and the pathos attaching to his frequent fits of insanity, won him the affections of his people, an affection, however, sorely tried by his obstinate blundering; the 60 years of his reign present a succession of domestic episodes, far-reaching in their consequences to England and to the civilised world; the conclusion of the Seven Years' War left England predominant in North America, and with increased colonial possessions in the West Indies, &c., but under the ill-guided and obstinate policy of Lord North she suffered the loss of her American colonies, an event which also involved her in war with France and Spain; in 1787 the famous trial of Warren Hastings (q. v .) began, and two years later came the French Revolution; the great struggle with Napoleon followed, and gave occasion for the brilliant achievements of Nelson and Wellington; during these long years of war the commercial prosperity of England never slackened, but through the inventions of Hargreaves, Arkwright, and Compton increased by leaps and bounds; freedom of the press was won by Wilkes; and in 1802 the union with Ireland took place; the majestic figure of Pitt stands out amidst a company of brilliant politicians that included Burke and Fox and Sheridan; literature is represented by a line of brilliant writers that stretches from Johnson to Keats, and includes the names of Burns, Cowper, Shelley, and Byron (1738-1820).
The Nuttall Encyclopædia: Being a Concise and Comprehensive Dictionary of General Knowledge[1] is a late 19th-century encyclopedia, edited by Rev. James Wood, first published in London in 1900 by Frederick Warne & Co Ltd.
WikipediaEditions were recorded for 1920, 1930, 1938 and 1956 and was still being sold in 1966. Editors included G. Elgie Christ and A. L. Hayden for 1930, Lawrence Hawkins Dawson for 1938 and C. M. Prior for 1956.[2]
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