The First Four Georges

British Monarchy

by J.H. Plumb

In this volume, the author has written a book whose value as pure history is no less than its interest as a study of four essentially ordinary people under extraordinary circumstances. He was the first to appreciate the complexity of George I, and he surveys the following three Georges with a similarly unjaundiced eye. His analysis of the four kings shows just what effect their reigns had on the history of their time. Whether or not the loss of the American colonies is generally regarded as inevitable or the fault of the crown, Professor Plumb shows that the influence of the monarchy was paramount in many other respects during the 116 years of their reigns.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, British Literature, Royalty, 18th Century

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1956

Reviews

[Jonfaith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Plumb provides the ages with a classic account of the four Hannover kings, their foibles and their legacy. This is a very warts and all inclusive sort of analysis and history has not proved to be in awe of the four gentleman nor their appearance nor their decisions. This was very much a period of augmentation and wealth so consequently the politics of the time are largely conservative as were the Prime Ministers including Sir Robert, who famously quipped I am no saint, no Spartan, no reformer.

Our beloved nemesis (in the United States) George III wound up being embraced by his people after his bouts of madness, his struggle and the convenient Reign of Terror in France. Love is fickle. Plumb broaches policy decisions and the internal dynamics making this a rather informative ingress and not simply a scandal sheet of palace intrigue.

[Nelson Wattie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This classic of British historiography was totally reliable in terms of the knowledge of its time (1957). It has probably been overtaken by more recent research but it has never gone out of print, simply because it is so readable and entertaining. When I was studying eighteenth century literature it was recommended as “background”, and was useful in that way. No doubt it still is. But beyond utility it is simply a good read and I’m glad to have re-read it some decades after the first time I encountered it.
The four Georges themselves are an entertainment, partly because of the gap between the royal functions they were expected to carry out and their limited capacities to do so. They could not be called stupid, but they were pleased to be “ordinary” in a way that would have made them function well in other roles. The conflict between the generations – each crown prince formed a centre of rebellion against his father only to find as king that his own son acted quite similarly – reveals something about human nature and a lot about the way Britain was ruled in the transition phase from royal overlordship to elective democracy. By the end of the period, the political difficulties experienced by George IV seem to have driven him into extravagance and consequent obesity – but he retained the power to commission some truly splendid works of architecture, as Plumb points out. Indeed the devotion of royalty to domesticity must have affected the flourishing of certain customs and usages in that great – Georgian – age of design and elegant portraiture. The transition from handicrafts to industrial production had little to do with the kings, but their enjoyment of fine china, furniture and its housing in fine architecture had much to do with art history.
Apart from the kings there were many other fascinating characters during that century and within the short compass of this book Plumb was able to make word-portraits of many of them, all the sharper for being condensed. Robert and Horace Walpole, Samuel Johnson and Boswell, Alexander Pope, the two Pitts, Charles Fox, the diarists Bedford and Grenville, John Nash, Daniel O’Connell, Josiah Wedgewood and others from many walks of life emerge from the stream of events and are immersed again after dazzling us with their individuality for a moment or two.
Almost sixty years after its first publication this book is as enjoyable as yesterday’s novel. Long may it go on being read!

[Michael Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This classic of historical writing and interpretation was first published in 1956, and it’s still the best single volume on the Hanoverian dynasty. Taylor trained under G. M. Trevelyan, another noteworthy narrator of history, and became an illustrious Fellow of King’s College, Cambridge. While he produced many important works in modern English history, he still is best known for his examination of the dynasty that began with the arrival in London in 1714 of George, Duke of Brunswick, successor to Queen Anne, the last Stewart monarch. He didn’t speak English and his son and successor, George II, barely could. The family has gotten bad press for generations, their reputation for loutishness and general lack of intellect perhaps being colored by American attitudes, but Plumb portrays them convincingly as ordinary human beings caught up in a series of exceptional circumstances: The rise of parliamentary power, the loss of the American colonies below Canada, the Industrial Revolution, the effects everywhere of the French Revolution, and the struggle against Napoleon. Like many others, I first read this book as an undergraduate, but I now much prefer the present, lavishly illustrated edition; the numerous political cartoons are especially useful in providing the flavor of the times.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not the book to turn to if you want a thorough, definitive explanation and description of the lives of the Hanoverian Kings of England. However, if you want a relatively brief, to the point, and sometimes poignant description of these four monarchs, this is the place to turn.

Divided into five chapters - the first on situation of Georgian England, and one for each of The First Four Georges - this short book deals mostly with George III, understandable considering his reign of 60 years (minus some time for insanity, mostly at the end). The personal characteristics of these four powerful yet seemingly personally impotent men are described: how the first liked fat women, and the fourth hardly noticed a woman until she had become a grandmother. Also, the early Prime Ministers - Walpole, North, Wellington, to name three most notable, along with the two Pitts - receive some attention. The relations between father and son is described as being typically contentious, and the loss of America is briefly touched. Altogether, for so short a work, I would say that this is one rather fulfilling work, though not full by any means.

[Jodi · Rating 5 out of 5]

J. H. Plumb is one a British historian of great repute and this reviewer has always found his texts intriguing and informative. He thoroughly covers his topics, applies sophisticated historic practices to his research and always manages to put a well-supported twist to conventional interpretations. In The First Four Georges, Plumb does nothing less. Excellent historical multiple biography.

[Mike Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

George, Georges, Georg, Jorge: I find the Georgian era rather fascinating: it’s almost modern - they drank gin, went to coffee shops and read novels and newspapers. Thanks to the latter, there were celebrities and fashions. People got divorced, fell out with their families and misbehaved. The middle classes, poor loves, collected Crown Derby and Meissen - all those Staffordshire flatbacks and ginger jars, in the belief it would give them breeding. The Georges themselves - “stupid-looking buggers” - bulgy-eyed, diseased and demented - couldn’t seem to stop the juggernaut Britannia as it entered a new phase of prosperity and world domination.

And boy, did they try. Their reigns were characterised, as this elegant and icily witty little book demonstrates, by an ability to snatch farce from the jaws of dignity, the absence of any grace or style, and a complete lack of self-awareness. Whether it’s George I locking his wife up for life in a spare Schloß before carpet-bagging it to England, poor old George II who died sitting on the lav, or the fourth incarnation, with his “grotesque half-insane exhibitionism.” Imagine, if you will, the prospect of being ruled by a dynasty of Boris Johnsons for the next hundred years, four of them, and each one madder than the last. Yet somehow, the kingdom pulled through, more united, prosperous and somehow modern than ever before. So maybe there’s hope for us yet.

Plumb maintains a wry observational style that suits this most ironic of eras. His descriptions are sardonic: of George III’s plague of sons (the Duke of Cumberland, uncle of Queen Victoria- “his family spoke of him with horror...the public was convinced he had begotten a child of his sister, and murdered his valet”) and of the Prince Regent’s appalling wife (“not quite mad, but wildly eccentric in a way which is not wholly uncommon even in royal families....she was flamboyant, dirty and highly sexed”). Here began the modern royal soap opera, and it’s primetime viewing.

[Y.H.]

“It is almost impossible for a monarch to be dull, no matter how stupid. The exceptional opportunities for the untrammelled development of personal attitudes act like a powerful fertiliser on the human temperament. And the Georges, who in ordinary circumstances would have been commonplace men, become a little larger than life and impress their personalities on the course of English history.”

John H. Plumb, FBA, protege of Trevelyan, mentor to a generation of star British historians, including Linda Colley, David Cannadine and Simon Schama.

Popularisation of history done right.

[Derek Henderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic little book. Worth reading alone for the opening chapter, a conspectus of the Georgian World. Plumb certainly doesn't mince his words. Makes you want to read more about the epoch.

[Keeper of the Privy Seal · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good little book that gives you a classic description of the age and the characters involved.

[Liesje Leest · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book in 2008 or 2009 and read most of it at the time. Looking through my bookshelves for a book to read I found it again with the bookmark still in place. There where just 50 pages left to read so I decided to finish it.

I don't understand how I ever got so far through the book in the first place. The subject is interesting but the writing it really boring. I could barley finish it this time around. The book was first published in the 50's, maybe that has something to do with that. I really didn't enjoy reading this to much but I did learn quite a bit about the First Four Georges.

[Joshua Green · Rating 3 out of 5]

A concise and utterly unvarnished account of the Georgian era (1714-c. 1830). Very readable. Plumb often follows a pattern of painting a portrait of the relevant George (frequently focusing more on their personal lives and character). In so doing, Plumb frequently sidelines the Georges themselves in favour of important contemporary politicians who shaped the character of each George's era. This isn't a criticism: Plumb ably achieves something like a brief "portrait of a period".

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fifth volume of the British Monarchy series, Plumb explores the rise and reign of the Hanovers atop a kingdom and empire not at all of their making. Well done.

[Julaine]

Source: Unknown