Posts Tagged ‘18th Century’

GEORGE III AND THE SEVENTY YEARS WAR, 1744–1815

As we begin to publish the main body of George III’s correspondence, we hope to provide an appropriate context for those approaching this remarkable series for the first time, reflecting the main new approaches that historians have been taking in the years since the bulk of the scholarship on George’s role in the polity was… Read More »

The 18th Century Materializes on Stage

By Karin Wulf and Arthur Burns There is so much eighteenth century on view in the much acclaimed Nottingham Playhouse staging of Alan Bennett’s The Madness of  George III.  The Georgian Papers Programme had a wonderful opportunity to host lead actor Mark Gatiss at Windsor Castle to view some of the archival materials selected to… Read More »

Musical Moments: Handel's "Messiah," Musical Patronage, and Princess Augusta

By Marie Pellissier, Omohundro Institute Apprentice, William & Mary Welcome back to our Georgian Goodies blog series, where we highlight interesting, timely, or just plain nifty documents from the Georgian Papers Programme! Handel’s oratorio “Messiah” is staple of the Christmas season, and December inevitably brings about performances of this piece. However, George Frideric Handel (1685-1759),… Read More »

Illuminating the Virtuous King George III

Cassandra Good is an assistant professor of History at Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia. She was awarded an Omohundro Institute Georgian Papers Programme fellowship in 2017. Professor Good is currently working on a study of George Washington’s family in the late eighteenth and nineteenth century, examining how the next generation shaped the family’s public image… Read More »

In God’s Hands: Inoculating the Royal Children against Smallpox

In the second of our postings linked to the first release of medical materials among the Georgian Papers, Helen Esfandiary of King’s College London considers inoculation in the royal family. ‘Queen Charlotte (1744-1818) with members of her family’, Johan Zoffany, 1771-72; Royal Collection Trust 401004: the picture includes Ernest duke of Mecklenburg to left, Lady… Read More »

The Madness of George III revisited – Sir Simon Wessely on George's illness

  Today, 20 November 2018, Britain’s National Theatre Live is screening a live relay of Alan Bennett’s now classic play, The Madness of George III from Nottingham Playhouse to cinemas across Britain, and in coming weeks the recording of that performance will also be shown in cinemas across the world (and not just in English-speaking… Read More »

Fading in to the Archives: Queen Charlotte’s (Missing) Papers

By Rachael Krier, Metadata Creator at the Royal Archives Who was Queen Charlotte? Wife of George III and mother to George IV (and many others) is only part of the answer. As with many queens in history, Queen Charlotte is often overshadowed by the larger personalities of her husband George III and her favourite son,… Read More »

Behind the Scenes in the Chapel Royal: The Chapel Royal Memorandum Book

This is a watercolor image of the interior of the Chapel Royal at Whitehall c. 1811. The Chapel Royal at Whitehall was in the former Banqueting House, which was renovated by Sir Christopher Wren after the a 1698 fire. Image courtesy of the British Library.

By Marie Pellissier, Omohundro Institute Apprentice, William & Mary Welcome back to our Georgian Goodies blog series, where we highlight interesting, timely, or just plain nifty documents from the Georgian Papers Programme! What’s so special about the Chapel Royal? That phrase refers not to the building itself, but to the group of people responsible for… Read More »

Ghosts! In the Archives! We Thought You Ought to Know

Portrait of Prince Octavius, a 1782 painting by Thomas Gainsborough, depicting a young boy with long blonde hair.

By Marie Pellissier, Omohundro Institute Apprentice, William & Mary Welcome back to our Georgian Goodies blog series, where we highlight interesting, timely, or just plain nifty documents from the Georgian Papers Programme! It’s almost Halloween! We may or may not have found some ghosts in the archives… but we shall leave the final determination about… Read More »

George III in London: What Hamilton Tells Us About the King’s Role

by Arthur Burns (King’s College London) and Karin Wulf (Omohundro Institute) [After reading this, why not visit our virtual Hamilton and George III exhibition?]   We’ve written before for the Georgian Papers Programme about King George III in American popular culture, and about the importance of Hamilton to that oeuvre.  Seeing Michael Jibson in action in… Read More »