Charlotte, Princess Royal
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The Princess Charlotte, Princess Royal (Charlotte Augusta Matilda; later Queen Charlotte of Württemberg; 29 September 1766 – 5 October 1828) was a member of the British Royal Family, the eldest daughter of George III. She was later the Queen consort of Frederick I of Württemberg. Charlotte was the third holder of the title Princess Royal.
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[edit] Early life
Princess Charlotte was born on 29 September 1766 at Buckingham Palace, London. Her father was the reigning British monarch, George III. Her mother was Queen Charlotte (née Duchess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz). She was christened on 27 October 1766 at St James's Palace, by The Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Secker, and her godparents were The King and Queen of Denmark (her paternal aunt and her husband, for whom The Duke of Portland and The Dowager Countess of Effingham stood proxy, respectively) and Princess Louisa (her paternal aunt).[1]
As the daughter of the British monarch, Charlotte was styled HRH The Princess Charlotte at birth. She was styled HRH The Princess Royal from October 1766 and officially designated as such on 22 June 1789. Until she was married, Charlotte was always called "Royal", instead of her given name. Like her siblings, the Princess Royal was educated by tutors and spent most her childhood at Buckingham Palace, Kew Palace, and Windsor Castle.
[edit] Marriage
On 18 May 1797, the Princess Royal was married at the Chapel Royal, St. James's Palace, London to The Hereditary Prince Frederick of Württemberg, the eldest son and heir apparent of Duke Frederick II Eugene of Württemberg and his wife, Margravine Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt.
The younger Frederick succeeded his father as the reigning Duke of Württemberg on 22 December 1797. Duke Frederick II had two sons and two daughters by his first marriage to the late Princess Augusta (3 December 1764 – 27 September 1788), the daughter of Duke Karl II of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Princess Augusta Charlotte of Wales (the elder sister of George III) and the elder sister of Caroline of Brunswick, the estranged wife of the future George IV (then Prince of Wales). The marriage between Duke Frederick and the Princess Royal produced one child: a stillborn daughter on 27 April 1798.
[edit] Württemberg
In 1800, the French army occupied Württemberg and the Duke and Duchess fled to Vienna. The following year, Duke Frederick concluded a private treaty ceding Montbeliard to France and receiving Ellwanger in exchange two years later. He assumed the title Elector of Württemberg on 25 February 1803. In exchange for providing France with a large auxiliary force, Napoleon recognized the Elector as King of Württemberg on 26 December 1805. Electress Charlotte became Queen when her husband formally ascended the throne on January 1, 1806 and was crowned as such on the same day at Stuttgart, Germany. Württemberg seceded from the Holy Roman Empire and joined Napleon's short-lived Confederation of the Rhine. However, the new elevated king's alliance with France technically made him the enemy of his father-in-law, George III. George III, incensed by his son-in-law's assumption of the title and his role of one of Napoleon's most devoted vassals, accordingly refused to address his daughter as "Queen of Württemberg" in correspondence. In 1813, King Frederick changed sides and went over the Allies, where his status as the brother-in-law of The Prince Regent (later George IV) helped his standing. After the fall of Napoleon, he attended the Congress of Vienna and was confirmed as King. He died in October 1816.
[edit] Dowager Queen
The Dowager Queen of Württemberg continued to live at the Ludwigsburg Palace, Stuttgart and received visits from her younger siblings, the Duke of Kent, the Duke of Sussex, the Duke of Cambridge, the Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg (née Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain), and Princess Augusta of Great Britain. She was a godmother (by proxy) at the christening of her niece, Princess Victoria of Kent (the future Queen Victoria), in 1819. In 1827, she returned to Britain for the first time since her wedding in 1797 in order to have surgery for dropsy. She died at Ludwigsburg Palace the following year and is buried there in the royal vault.
[edit] Titles, styles, honours and arms
[edit] Titles and styles
- 29 September 1766 – 22 June 1789: Her Royal Highness The Princess Charlotte
- 22 June 1789 – 18 May 1797: Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal
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- In use practically from birth October 1766
- 18 May 1797 – 22 December 1797: Her Royal Highness The Hereditary Princess of Württemberg[2]
- 22 December 1797 – 25 February 1803: Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Württemberg
- 25 February 1803 – 1 January 1806: Her Royal Highness The Electress of Württemberg
- 1 January 1806 – 30 October 1816: Her Majesty The Queen of Württemberg
- 30 October 1816 – 5 October 1828: Her Majesty Queen Dowager Charlotte of Württemberg
[edit] Arms
As a daughter of the sovereign, Charlotte had use of the arms of the kingdom, differenced by a label argent of three points, the centre point bearing a rose gules, the outer points each bearing a cross gules.[3]
[edit] Ancestors
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[edit] References
- ^ Yvonne's Royalty Home Page: Royal Christenings
- ^ The London Gazette 23 May 1797
- ^ Marks of Cadency in the British Royal Family
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Charlotte, Princess Royal
Cadet branch of the House of Este
Born: 29 September 1766 Died: 5 October 1828 |
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| British royalty | ||
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| Vacant
Title last held by
Princess Anne |
Princess Royal 1766 – 1828 |
Vacant
Title next held by
Princess Victoria |
| German royalty | ||
| Preceded by Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt |
Duchess Consort of Württemberg 1797 – 1803 |
Succeeded by Herself as Electress of Württemberg |
| Preceded by Herself as Duchess of Württemberg |
Electress Consort of Württemberg 1803 – 1805 |
Succeeded by Herself as Queen of Württemberg |
| Preceded by Herself as Electress of Württemberg |
Queen Consort of Württemberg 1805 – 1816 |
Succeeded by Catherine Pavlovna of Russia |
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