George II (1683-1760) - Find a Grave Memorial

British Monarch. Born George Augustus Guelph in what was at the time the Electorate of Hanover, he was the only son of George Louis, Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg (later King George I) and Sophia of Celle. He married Princess Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach on August 27, 1705, and upon the death of his father George I, he acceeded to the throne of Great Britain in 1727, and was crowned on October 11. George II had three great passions in life - the military, music, and his wife. Although often unsure of himself politically, he was a brave man who holds the distinction of being the last British monarch to personally lead his troops into battle (against the French at the Battle of Dettingen, Bavaria in 1743 during the War of the Austrian Succession). In 1745 and 1746, his royal troops suppressed the last Jacobite uprising led by Prince Charles Edward Stuart. Britain was expanding as a colonial power, and clashed with France in India, America (the French and Indian Wars) and Europe (the Seven Years War). During the latter years of his reign, George II no longer took an active part in politics and war, but the foundations of the Industrial Revolution were laid, the population was rising rapidly, and in 1752 Great Britain officially abandoned the Julian Calendar for the Gregorian. King George II died of an aortic dissection at the age of 77. He was succeeded by his grandson, George III.

Bio by: Kristen Conrad