The Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge (Adolphus Frederick; 24 February 1774 – 8 July 1850), was the tenth child and seventh son of
George III and
Queen Charlotte. He held the title of
Duke of Cambridge from 1801 until his death. He also served as
Viceroy of
Hanover on behalf of his brothers
George IV and
William IV. His granddaughter,
Mary of Teck was the
Queen consort of
George V.
Early life
Prince Adolphus was born at
Buckingham Palace, the tenth child and seventh son of
George III and
Queen Charlotte, as well as being the youngest son to survive infancy. He was tutored at home before being sent to the
University of Göttingen in Germany in summer 1786, along with his brothers
Prince Ernest (created
Duke of Cumberland in 1799) and
Prince Augustus (created
Duke of Sussex in 1801).
thumb|left|Prince Adolphus aged four, with his two younger sisters Mary and
Sophia in 1778
On 24 March 1774, the young prince was christened in the Great Council Chamber at
St. James's Palace by
Frederick Cornwallis,
The Archbishop of Canterbury. His godparents were
Prince John Adolphus of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (his great-uncle, for whom the
Earl of Hertford,
Lord Chamberlain, stood proxy),
Landgrave Charles of Hesse-Kassel (his first cousin once-removed, for whom the
Earl of Jersey, Extra
Lord of the Bedchamber, stood proxy) and
The Princess of Orange (the wife of his first cousin once-removed, for whom the
Dowager Countess of Effingham, former
Lady of the Bedchamber to
The Queen, stood proxy)
Military career
In 1791, he and Prince Ernest went to Hanover to receive military training under the supervision of the Hannoverian commander Field Marshal von Freytag. He rose to the ranks of colonel in 1794, to lieutenant general in 1798. In 1800 - stationed in the
Electorate of Hanover - he attended the foundation of a village in the course of the cultivation and colonisation of the
moorlands in the north of Bremen and named the municipality after himself Adolphsdorf (since 1974 a component locality of
Grasberg).
In the course of the
War of the Second Coalition against France (1799–1802) he travelled to
Berlin in 1801, in order to prevent the impending
Brandenburg-Prussian occupation of the Electorate. France demanded it, as it was stipulated in the
Treaty of Basel (1795), obliging Brandenburg-Prussia to ensure the
Holy Roman Empire's neutrality in all the latter's territories north the demarcation line of the river
Main, including Hanover. Regular Hanoveran troops therefore had been commandeered to join the multilateral so-called Demarcation Army. His efforts were in vain. Also the following plan failed, to recruit additional soldiers in Hanover to be commanded by the Prince. 24,000 Brandenburg-Prussian soldiers invaded and he could only flee the capitulation by conveying the command to his paternal uncle General
Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden-Gimborn.
In 1803 he was appointed as commander-in-chief of the new founded
King's German Legion and in 1813 he became field marshal. George III appointed Prince Adolphus a
Knight of the Garter on 6 June 1786 and created him
Duke of Cambridge,
Earl of Tipperary, and
Baron Culloden on 17 November 1801.
The Duke served as colonel-in-chief of the Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards (Coldstream Guards after 1855) from September 1805 and as colonel-in-chief of the 60th (The Duke of York's Own Rifle Corps) Regiment of Foot from January 1824. In his time as Hanoveran Viceroy the Duke became name-giving for the Hanoveran Regiment of the Cambridge-
Dragoons (), stationed in
Celle, where the
Bundeswehr used their baracks, the
Cambridge-Dragoner Kaserne, until 1995. The
march of the Hannoversches Cambridge-Dragoner-Regiment is part of the Bundeswehr's traditional music repertoire.
Marriage
After the death of
Princess Charlotte in 1817, the Duke was set the task of finding a bride for his eldest unmarried brother, the Duke of Clarence (later
William IV) in the hope of securing heirs to the throne—Charlotte had been the only legitimate grandchild of
George III, despite the fact that the King had twelve surviving children. After several false starts, the Duke of Cambridge settled on Princess
Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen. The Duke of Clarence agreed with alacrity, and the way was cleared for the Duke of Cambridge to find a bride for himself.
The Duke of Cambridge was married first at
Kassel,
Hesse on 7 May and then at Buckingham Palace on 1 June 1818 to his second cousin
Augusta (25 July 1797 – 6 April 1889), the third daughter of
Prince Frederick of Hesse. Although he did have legitimate children, they were so far down in the line of succession that his elder brothers also thought it necessary to find brides.
He was, as is shown in the list of issue below, the maternal grandfather of
Mary of Teck, consort of
George V. This makes Adolphus the great-great-grandfather of the present British monarch,
Elizabeth IIViceroy
From 1816 to 1837, the Duke of Cambridge served as
viceroy of the
Kingdom of Hanover on behalf of his elder brothers,
George IV and later
William IV. When his niece, Queen
Victoria succeeded to the British throne on 20 June 1837, the 123-year union of the crowns of Great Britain (the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1801) and Hanover ended. The Duke of Cumberland became King
Ernest Augustus I of Hanover and the Duke of Cambridge returned to Britain.
Later life
The Duke of Cambridge died on 8 July 1850 at
Cambridge House,
Piccadilly, London, and was buried at Kew. His remains were later removed to
St. George's Chapel, Windsor. His only son, Prince George, succeeded to his peerages.
Titles, styles, honours and arms
thumb|Arms of Prince Adolphus, Duke of CambridgeTitles and styles
- 24 February 1774–17 November 1801: His Royal Highness The Prince Adolphus
- 17 November 1801–8 July 1850: His Royal Highness The Duke of Cambridge
His full style at death was
Field Marshal His Royal Highness The Prince Adolphus Frederick, Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Tipperary, Baron Culloden, Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Member of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic OrderHonours
British HonoursArms
The Duke's arms were the
Royal Arms of the House of Hanover, with a three point label of difference. The first and third labels containing two hearts, and the centre label bearing a red cross. His arms were adopted by his youngest daughter, Princess Mary Adelaide and her heirs included them in their arms impaled with the arms of the Duke of Teck.
Issue
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had three children:
Ancestors
See also
