Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (30 November [O.S. 19 November] 1719 – 8 February 1772) was Princess of Wales by marriage to Frederick, Prince of Wales, eldest son and heir apparent of King George II. She never became queen consort, as Frederick predeceased his father in 1751. Augusta's eldest son succeeded her father-in-law as George III in 1760. After her spouse died, Augusta was the presumptive regent of Great Britain in the event of a regency, until her son reached majority in 1756.
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👉 Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 1738 – 29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Great Britain and Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, with George as its king. He was concurrently duke and prince-elector of Hanover in the Holy Roman Empire before becoming King of Hanover on 12 October 1814. He was the first monarch of the House of Hanover who was born in Great Britain, spoke English as his first language, and never visited Hanover.
George was born during the reign of his paternal grandfather, King George II, as the first son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Following his father's death in 1751, Prince George became heir apparent and Prince of Wales. He succeeded to the throne on George II's death in 1760. The following year, he married Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, with whom he had 15 children. George III's life and reign were marked by a series of military conflicts involving his kingdoms, much of the rest of Europe, and places farther afield in Africa, the Americas and Asia. Early in his reign, Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years' War, becoming the dominant European power in North America and India. However, Britain lost 13 of its North American colonies in the American War of Independence. Further wars against revolutionary and Napoleonic France from 1793 concluded in the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. In 1807, the transatlantic slave trade was banned from the British Empire.
In this Dossier
- ⭐ Core Definition: Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha
- 👉 Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of George III
- Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of Great Pagoda, Kew Gardens
- Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of Caroline Matilda of Great Britain
- Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany
Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of Great Pagoda, Kew Gardens
The Great Pagoda at Kew Gardens in southwest London was built in 1761 by Sir William Chambers as a present for Princess Augusta, the founder of the gardens. Constructed of grey brick, the pagoda comprises 10 storeys, totalling 163 ft (50 m) in height, with 253 steps to the viewing gallery. Closed for repairs in 2006, the pagoda was reopened in 2018 following a major programme of restoration. It is a Grade I listed building.
The ground floor roof is supported on wooden pillars. The storeys above this have arcaded balconies with Chinese Chippendale railings and curved roofs. The roofs are now of lead although they were originally covered in alternating bands of green and white tiles. The 80 restored dragons surmount each roof. Bridget Cherry, in her London 2: South volume of the Buildings of England series, describes the pagoda as "this supreme example of chinoiserie". A study of 2019, written after the restoration, ranked it as "the most important surviving chinoiserie building in Europe".
Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of Caroline Matilda of Great Britain
Caroline Matilda of Great Britain (Danish: Caroline Mathilde; 22 July [O.S. 11 July] 1751 – 10 May 1775) was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1766 to 1772 by marriage to King Christian VII.
The youngest and posthumous daughter of Frederick, Prince of Wales and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha, Caroline Matilda was raised in a secluded family atmosphere away from the royal court. At the age of 15, she was married to her first cousin, King Christian VII of Denmark and Norway, who suffered from a mental illness and was cold to his wife throughout the marriage. She had two children: the future Frederick VI and Louise Augusta; the latter's biological father may have been the German physician Johann Friedrich Struensee.
Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha in the context of Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany
Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany (Edward Augustus; 25 March 1739 – 17 September 1767) was a younger brother of George III of the United Kingdom and the second son of Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha.