House of Hanover

"Hanoverians" redirects here. For the college whose alumni are known as such, see Hanover College. For other uses, see Hanover House.

House of Hanover
Country	Kingdom of Great Britain, Ireland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Parent house	Este → Welf
Titles	Empress of India King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland King of Great Britain King of France King of Ireland King of Hanover Elector of Brunswick-Lueneburg Arch-Treasurer of the Holy Roman Empire Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Duke of Brunswick etc., etc., etc.
Founded	1635 - George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Current head	Ernst August, Prince of Hanover
Dissolution	United Kingdom: 1901 - Death of Queen Victoria ends the British branch in the agnatic line; semi-Salic law ends personal union of Hanover with the United Kingdom in 1837, upon death of her uncle William IV. Hanover: 1866 - George V of Hanover lost the territory to Prussia in the Austro-Prussian War Brunswick: 1918 - Ernest Augustus of Brunswick forced to abdicate after German defeat in World War I
Ethnicity	German

The House of Hanover (or the Hanoverians /ˌhænɵˈvɪəriənz/; German: Haus Hannover) is a German royal dynasty which has ruled the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg (German: Braunschweig-Lüneburg), the Kingdom of Hanover, the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It succeeded the House of Stuart as monarchs of Great Britain and Ireland in 1714 and held that office until the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. They are sometimes referred to as the House of Brunswick and Lüneburg, Hanover line.

The House of Hanover is a younger branch of the House of Welf, which in turn is the senior branch of the House of Este.

Queen Victoria was the granddaughter of George III and was an ancestor of most major European royal houses. She arranged marriages for her children and grandchildren across the continent, tying Europe together; this earned her the nickname "the grandmother of Europe". She was the last British monarch of the House of Hanover; her son King Edward VII belonged to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the line of his father, Albert, Prince Consort. Under semi-Salic law, Victoria could not inherit the Kingdom of Hanover and the Duchies unless the entire male line became extinct; those possessions passed to the next eligible male heir, her uncle Ernest Augustus I of Hanover, the Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale—the fifth son of George III.

The current head of the House of Hanover is Ernst August, Prince of Hanover.

History

Dukes and Electors of Brunswick-Lüneburg

George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, is considered the first member of the House of Hanover. When the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg was divided in 1635, George inherited the Principality of Calenberg and moved his residence to Hanover. His son, Christian Louis inherited the Principality of Lüneburg from George's brother. Calenberg and Lüneburg were then shared between George's sons until united in 1705 under his grandson, also called George, who subsequently became George I of Great Britain. All held the title Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. George died in 1641 and was succeeded by:

• Christian Louis, 1st son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg (1641–1648) and Prince of Lüneburg (1648–1665). He relinquished Calenburg when he became Prince of Lüneburg.
• George William, 2nd son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg (1648–1665) and Prince of Lüneburg (1665–1705). He relinquished Calenburg when he became Prince of Lüneburg on the death of his brother, Christian Louis.
• John Frederick, 3rd son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg (1665–1679).

• Ernest Augustus, 4th son of Duke George, Prince of Calenberg (1679–1698). He became Prince of Calenberg on the death of his brother John Frederick. He was elevated to prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire in 1692. Ernest Augustus's wife, Sophia of the Palatinate, was declared heiress of the throne of England by the Act of Settlement of 1701, which decreed Roman Catholics could not accede to the throne. Sophia was at that time the senior eligible Protestant descendant of James I of England.
• George Louis, son of Duke Ernest Augustus and Sophia, became Elector and Prince of Calenberg in 1698 and Prince of Lüneburg when his uncle George William died in 1705. He inherited his mother's claim to the throne of Great Britain when she died in 1714.

Monarchs of Great Britain and the United Kingdom and Electors and Kings of Hanover

George Louis became the first British monarch of the House of Hanover as George I in 1714. The dynasty provided six British monarchs:

Of the Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland:

• George I (r.1714–27) (Georg Ludwig = George Louis)
• George II (r.1727–60) (Georg August = George Augustus)
• George III (r.1760–1820)

Of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland:

• George III (r.1760–1820)
• George IV (r.1820–30)
• William IV (r.1830–37)
• Victoria (r.1837–1901).

George I, George II, and George III also served as electors and dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg, informally, Electors of Hanover (cf. personal union). From 1814, when Hanover became a kingdom, the British monarch was also King of Hanover.

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  Coat of Arms of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain (1714–1801)

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  George I (1714–1727)

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  George II (1727–1760)

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  George III (1760–1820)

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  George IV (1820–1830)

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  William IV (1830–1837)

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  Victoria (1837–1901)

In 1837, however, the personal union of the thrones of the United Kingdom and Hanover ended. Succession to the Hanoverian throne was regulated by semi-Salic law (agnatic-cognatic), which gave priority to all male lines before female lines, so that it passed not to Queen Victoria but to her uncle, the Duke of Cumberland. In 1901, when Queen Victoria died, her son and heir Edward VII became the first British Monarch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Edward taking his family name from that of his father, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.

Kings of Hanover after the breakup of the personal union

British Royalty
House of Hanover
George I
George II Sophia, Queen in Prussia
George II
Frederick, Prince of Wales Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange Princess Amelia Princess Caroline Prince William, Duke of Cumberland Mary, Landgravine of Hesse-Cassel Louise, Queen of Denmark and Norway Grandchildren Augusta, Duchess of Brunswick George III Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany Princess Elizabeth of Wales Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn Princess Louisa of Wales Prince Frederick of Wales Caroline Matilda, Queen of Denmark and Norway Great-grandchildren Princess Sophia of Gloucester Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
George III
George IV Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany William IV Charlotte, Princess Royal and Queen of Württemberg Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn Princess Augusta Sophia Elizabeth, Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg Ernest Augustus I of Hanover Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh Princess Sophia Prince Octavius Prince Alfred Princess Amelia Grandchildren Charlotte, Princess Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Princess Charlotte of Clarence Princess Elizabeth of Clarence Victoria George V of Hanover Prince George, Duke of Cambridge Augusta, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck Great-grandchildren Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover Princess Frederica, Baroness von Pawel-Rammingen Princess Marie of Hanover Great-great-grandchildren Marie Louise, Princess Maximilan of Baden Prince George William of Hanover Alexandra, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Princess Olga of Hanover Prince Christian of Hanover Ernest Augustus, Prince of Hanover and Duke of Brunswick Great-great-great-grandchildren Ernest Augustus, Prince of Hanover and Hereditary Prince of Brunswick Prince George William of Hanover Frederica, Queen of the Hellenes
George IV
William IV
Victoria

After the death of William IV in 1837, the following kings of Hanover continued the dynasty:

• Ernest Augustus I (r. 1837–1851)
• George V (r. 1851–1866, deposed)

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  Coat of arms of the kingdom of Hanover 1837

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  King Ernest Augustus I of Hanover (1837–1851)

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  King George V of Hanover (1851–1866)

The Kingdom of Hanover came to an end in 1866 when it was annexed by Prussia. The 1866 rift between the House of Hanover and the House of Hohenzollern was settled only by the 1913 marriage of Princess Viktoria Luise of Prussia to Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick.

Duchy of Brunswick

In 1884, the senior branch of the House of Welf became extinct. By semi-Salic law, the House of Hanover would have acceded to the Duchy of Brunswick, but there had been strong Prussian pressure against having George V of Hanover or his son, the Duke of Cumberland, succeed to a member state of the German Empire, at least without strong conditions, including swearing to the German constitution. By a law of 1879, the Duchy of Brunswick established a temporary council of regency to take over at the Duke's death, and if necessary appoint a regent.

The Duke of Cumberland proclaimed himself Duke of Brunswick at the Duke's death, and lengthy negotiations ensued, but were never resolved. Prince Albert of Prussia was appointed regent; after his death in 1906, Duke John Albert of Mecklenburg succeeded him. The Duke of Cumberland's eldest son died in a car accident in 1912; the father renounced Brunswick in favor of his youngest son Ernest Augustus, who married the Kaiser's daughter, swore allegiance to the German Empire, and was allowed to ascend the throne of the Duchy in November 1913. He was a major-general during the First World War; but he was overthrown as Duke of Brunswick in 1918. His father was also deprived of his British titles in 1919, for "bearing arms against Great Britain".

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  Brunswick Palace

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  Wolfenbüttel Castle

Claimants

The later heads of the House of Hanover have been:

• George V (1866–1878)
• Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, 3rd Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale (1878–1923)
• Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick (1923–1953), son of the previous
• Ernest Augustus, Prince of Hanover (1953–1987)
• Ernest Augustus, Prince of Hanover (1987–present)
  • Ernest Augustus, Hereditary Prince of Hanover (heir apparent)

see Line of succession to the Hanoverian Throne

The family has been resident in Austria since 1866; it has held courtesy titles since 1919.

List of members

See List of members of the House of Hanover.

Patrilineal descent

Patrilineal descent, descent from father to son, is the principle behind membership in some royal houses, particularly those outside Britain. Notwithstanding that paternity was not definitively provable until 1970, some royal houses pretended this could be done, primarily through using marital presumptions, i.e. that the children of a King's wife were his biological children. Under this Agnatic Succession the house of monarchs of the House of Hanover was the House of Lucca (or Obertenghi, or Este, or Welf). In contrast, in Britain, cognatic descent (or descent through both parents, and definitively through particular females, regardless of the husband's position, such as Sophia of Hanover by the constitutional Act of Settlement 1701) has been in place since at least the War of the Roses.

This is the descent of the primary male heir. For the complete expanded family tree, see List of members of the House of Hanover.

1. Oberto I, 912–975
2. Oberto Obizzo, 940–1017
3. Albert Azzo I, Margrave of Milan, 970–1029
4. Albert Azzo II, Margrave of Milan, d.
5. Welf I, Duke of Bavaria, 1037–1101
6. Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria, 1074–1126
7. Henry X, Duke of Bavaria, 1108–1139
8. Henry the Lion, 1129–1195
9. William of Winchester, Lord of Lunenburg, 1184–1213
10. Otto I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1204–1252
11. Albert I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1236–1279
12. Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1268–1318
13. Magnus the Pious, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1304–1369
14. Magnus II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1328–1373
15. Bernard I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1362–1434
16. Frederick II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1408–1478
17. Otto V, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1439–1471
18. Heinrich, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1468–1532
19. Ernest I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1497–1546
20. William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1535–1592
21. George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, 1582–1641
22. Ernest Augustus, Elector of Hanover, 1629–1698
23. George I of Great Britain, 1660–1727
24. George II of Great Britain, 1683–1760
25. Frederick, Prince of Wales, 1707–1751
26. George III of the United Kingdom, 1738–1820
27. Ernest Augustus I of Hanover, 1771–1851
28. George V of Hanover, 1819–1878
29. Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, 1845–1923
30. Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick, 1887–1953
31. Ernest Augustus IV, Prince of Hanover, 1914–1987
32. Ernst August V, Prince of Hanover, b. 1954
33. Prince Ernest Augustus of Hanover, b. 1983

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  The Leine Palace in Hanover (Former Royal Residence of the Kingdom of Hanover)

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  Herrenhausen Castle and Gardens in Hanover (c. 1708)

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  Celle Castle

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  Marienburg Castle (Hanover), present seat of the Princes of Hanover

See also

• History of Hanover
• List of British monarchs
• Line of succession to the Hanoverian throne

Further reading

• Fraser, Flora. Princesses: The Six Daughters of George III. Knopf, 2005.
• Plumb, J. H. The First Four Georges. Revised ed. Hamlyn, 1974.
• Redman, Alvin. The House of Hanover. Coward-McCann, 1960.
• Van der Kiste, John. George III’s Children. Sutton Publishing, 1992.

Historiography

• Bultmann, William A. "Early Hanoverian England (1714–1760): Some Recent Writings," in Elizabeth Chapin Furber, ed. Changing views on British history: essays on historical writing since 1939 (Harvard University Press, 1966), pp 181–205
• Snyder, Henry L. "Early Georgian England," in Richard Schlatter, ed., Recent Views on British History: Essays on Historical Writing since 1966 (Rutgers UP, 1984), pp 167 – 196, historiography

External links

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• (German) Official website of the House of Welf
• Succession laws in the House of Welf
• British German Royal Heritage Route 2014
• House of Hanover Archive.org
• House of Hanover Royalty.nu

Royal house House of Hanover Cadet branch of the House of Welf
New title Duchy created from the stem duchy of Saxony	Ruling house of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg 1235–1692	Duchy raised to Electorate by Emperor Leopold I for aid given in the Nine Years' War
New title Duchy raised to Electorate	Ruling house of the Electorate of Hanover 1692–1803	Electorate abolished  Occupied by France in the Napoleonic Wars
Preceded by House of Stuart	Ruling house of the Kingdom of Great Britain 1714–1800	Kingdoms merged by Acts of Union 1800
	Ruling house of the Kingdom of Ireland 1714–1800
New title Union of Great Britain and Ireland	Ruling house of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801–1901	Succeeded by House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
New title Electorate raised to Kingdom at the Congress of Vienna	Ruling house of the Kingdom of Hanover 1814–1866	Kingdom abolished  Annexed by Prussia in the Austro-Prussian War