Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany
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| Prince Frederick | |
|---|---|
| Duke of York and Albany | |
 |
|
| Spouse | Frederica Charlotte of Prussia |
| Full name | |
| Frederick Augustus | |
| Titles | |
| HRH The Duke of York and Albany HRH The Prince Frederick |
|
| Royal house | House of Hanover |
| Father | George III |
| Mother | Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz |
| Born | 16 August 1763 St. James's Palace, London |
| Died | 5 January 1827 Arlington Street, London |
| Burial | St. George's Chapel, Windsor |
The Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (Frederick Augustus) (16 August 1763 - 5 January 1827) was a member of the British Royal Family, the second eldest child, and second son of King George III. From 1820 until his death in 1827, he was the heir presumptive to his elder brother, King George IV, both to the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Hanover.
He served as the commander-in-chief of the British Army, presiding over the unsuccessful 1793-98 Flanders campaigns during the French Revolutionary Wars. He is now mainly remembered as the inspiration for the nursery rhyme, "The Grand Old Duke of York".
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[edit] Early life
Prince Frederick was born on 16 August 1763, at St. James's Palace, London. His father was the reigning British monarch, King George III. His mother was Queen Charlotte (nee Princess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz).
On 27 February 1764, when Prince Frederick was six months old, his father secured his election as Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück in Lower Saxony. He received this title because the prince-electors of Hanover (which included his father) were entitled to select every other holder of this title, and the King apparently decided to ensure the title remained in the family for as long as possible. At only 196 days of age he is therefore listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the youngest bishop in history. He was invested as Knight of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath in 1767 and as a Knight of the Order of the Garter on 19 June 1771.
[edit] Army
George III decided that his second son would pursue an army career and had him gazetted colonel in 1780. From 1781 to 1787, Prince Frederick lived in Hanover, where he attended the manoeuvres of the Austrian and Prussian armies and studied (along with his younger brothers, Prince Ernest, Prince Edward, Prince Augustus and Prince Adolphus) at the University of Göttingen. He was appointed colonel of the 2nd Horse Grenadier Guards (now 2nd Life Guards) in 1782, and promoted major-general and appointed colonel of the Coldstream Guards in 1784.
He was created Duke of York and Albany and Earl of Ulster on 27 November 1784[1] and became a member of the Privy Council. He retained the bishopric of Osnabrück until 1803, when, in the course of the secularization preceding the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, the bishopric was incorporated into Hanover.
In the summer of 1787, American newspaper accounts surfaced alleging that a government plot was under way to invite Prince Frederick to become "King of the United States". This of course never happened. On his return to Britain, the Duke took his seat in the House of Lords, where, on 15 December 1788, he opposed William Pitt's Regency Bill in a speech which was supposed to have been inspired by the Prince of Wales.
The Duke of York was his father's favorite son. He was very much in the shadow of his elder brother, the Prince of Wales, especially when the latter became Prince Regent. However, the two brothers enjoyed a close relationship.
He granted his title to the 72nd (or Duke of Albany's Own Highlanders) Regiment of Foot on 19th December 1823
[edit] Marriage
On 29 September 1791 at Charlottenburg, Berlin, and again on 23 November 1791 at Buckingham Palace, the Duke of York married his cousin Princess Frederica Charlotte of Prussia, the daughter of King Frederick William II of Prussia and Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Lüneburg. The new Duchess of York received an enthusiastic welcome in London, but the marriage was not a happy one. The couple soon separated and the Duchess retired to Oatlands Park, Weybridge, where she died in 1820. Their relationship after separation appears to have been amicable, but there was never any question of reconciliation. The Duke and Duchess of York had no children. The Duke's only known child was an illegitimate son, Charles Hesse, and even this is uncertain. There is also speculation of another illegitimate son, John Molloy.
[edit] Flanders
In 1793, the Duke of York was sent to Flanders in command of the British contingent of Coburg's army destined for the invasion of France. On his return to Britain in the following year, George III promoted him to the rank of field marshal, and on 3 April 1795, appointed him Commander-in-Chief in succession to Lord Amherst. His second field command was with the army sent to invade Holland in conjunction with a Russian corps d'armée in 1799. Sir Ralph Abercromby and Admiral Sir Charles Mitchell, in charge of the vanguard, had succeeded in capturing the Dutch ships in the Helder. However, following the Duke of York's arrival with the main body of the army, a number of disasters befell the allied forces. On 17 October, the Duke signed the Convention of Alkemaar, by which the allied expedition withdrew after giving up its prisoners.
His military failures led to his immortalisation in the rhyme:
- The grand old Duke of York,
- He had ten thousand men.
- He marched them up to the top of the hill
- And he marched them down again.
- And when they were up, they were up.
- And when they were down, they were down.
- And when they were only halfway up,
- They were neither up nor down.
[edit] Later life
The Duke of York carried out many reforms in the army which would lead to subsequent successes in the Napoleonic Wars. He resigned as commander-in-chief of the army on 25 March 1809 as a result of a scandal caused by the activities of his mistress, Mary Anne Clarke. A select committee was appointed by the House of Commons to inquire into the matter. The full house acquitted the Duke of having received bribes by 278 votes to 196. He nevertheless resigned because of the high vote against him. Two years later, on 29 May 1811, after it was revealed that Mrs Clarke had received payment from his chief accuser, the Prince Regent reappointed the exonerated Duke of York commander-in-chief, a post he held until his death, and created him Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order.
Following the death of his niece Princess Charlotte of Wales in 1817, the Duke of York became second in line to the throne, with a serious chance of inheriting it, and heir presumptive when George III died in 1820. However, he pre-deceased his elder brother, George IV, dying at the home of the Duke of Rutland on Arlington Street, London. He was buried at St. George's Chapel, Windsor.
[edit] Titles, styles, honours and arms
[edit] Titles
- 1763-1784: His Royal Highness The Prince Frederick
- 1784-1827: His Royal Highness The Duke of York and Albany
[edit] Honours
[edit] Legacy
Fredericton, the capital of the Canadian province of New Brunswick, was named after Prince Frederick. The city was originally named "Frederick's Town".
Fredericksburgh Township, now part of Greater Napanee, Ontario, was named after the Duke of York.
When Toronto was re-founded to be the capital of Upper Canada in 1793, it was named York after Prince Frederick. Although the city's name was changed back to Toronto in 1834, many surrounding localities still bear the name of York.
The Duke of York Column on The Mall, London was completed in 1834 as a memorial to Prince Frederick. It was paid for by the soldiers of the British Army who each gave up one day's wages to pay for the column.
A statue to Fredrick's honour is in Edinburgh, the inscription reads in main, "Field Marshal His Royal Highness Frederick Duke Of York and Albany KG Commander in Chief of the British Army".
The Duke of York's Royal Military School 1803, now known as the Royal Hospital Chelsea since relocation of the school to Dover in 1909. Originally named the Duke of York's Royal Military Asylum. Set up to look after orphans of military families. Now co-educational and still exclusive to military children
[edit] See also
| Honorary Titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Vacant |
Great Master of the Order of the Bath 1767–1827 |
Succeeded by HRH The Duke of Clarence and St. Andrews |
| Preceded by The Prince of Wales (afterwards George IV) |
President of the Foundling Hospital 1820–1827 |
Succeeded by Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge |
| Military Offices | ||
| Preceded by The Lord Amherst |
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces 1795–1809 |
Succeeded by Sir David Dundas |
| Preceded by Vacant |
Captain-General 1799–1809 |
Succeeded by Office Abolished |
| Preceded by Sir David Dundas |
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces 1811–1827 |
Succeeded by The Duke of Wellington |
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
| Preceded by New Creation |
Duke of York and Albany 1784–1827 |
Succeeded by Extinct |
Edmund of Langley (1384–1402) · Edward of Norwich (1402–1415) · Richard Plantagenet (1415-1460) · Edward IV (1460-1461) · Richard of Shrewsbury (1474-1483) · Henry VIII (1494-1509) · Charles I (1605-1625) · James II (1633/1644-1685) · Ernest Augustus (1716-1728) · Prince Edward Augustus (1760-1767) · Prince Frederick (1784-1827) · George V (1865-1910) · George VI (1920-1936) · HRH The Duke of York (1986-)
Categories: English and British princes | House of Hanover | Dukes of York and Albany | Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars | British commanders of the Napoleonic Wars | British Field Marshals | Earls in the Peerage of Ireland | Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath | Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order | Knights of the Garter | Royal Fellows of the Royal Society | People from Westminster | Duellists | 1763 births | 1827 deaths
