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cahnSome awesome historical RPF candyheartsex stories for meeeeee (or by me, in one tiny case) with historical characters! I'm just going to note whom the stories are about here. They are all so good!!
Anne Boleyn/Catherine of Aragorn
Frances Howard and Frances Coke (or: James I's court was basically a HOTBED of scandal, omg)
And two that are also historical RPF but also consistent with the Jude Morgan novel The King's Touch, which is an excellent historical novel narrated by James ("Jemmy") Scott, Duke of Monmouth, Charles II's illegitimate son.
Princess Henrietta of England (Charles II's sister and wife of Philippe I duc d'Orleans)
James of Monmouth/William/Mary
candyheartsex stories for meeeeee (or by me, in one tiny case) with historical characters! I'm just going to note whom the stories are about here. They are all so good!!Anne Boleyn/Catherine of Aragorn
Frances Howard and Frances Coke (or: James I's court was basically a HOTBED of scandal, omg)
And two that are also historical RPF but also consistent with the Jude Morgan novel The King's Touch, which is an excellent historical novel narrated by James ("Jemmy") Scott, Duke of Monmouth, Charles II's illegitimate son.
Princess Henrietta of England (Charles II's sister and wife of Philippe I duc d'Orleans)
James of Monmouth/William/Mary
Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-05-30 04:13 pm (UTC)Well, now it turns out there is a great archive which has transcribed and digitized Georgian papers galore - heavy emphasis on G3, but they say there is a bit from G1, G2 and G4 as well. (Am very amused the various subsections bear titles from either Hamilton lyrics or from The Madness of George III (by Alan Bennett, the play) dialogue. Anyway, I've just started to explore, but there is a very touching letter by Fritz of Wales to his son written when future G3 was ten years old. (Fritz of Wales would die three years later and as this letter is a "just in case I'm not around when you reach your majority" thing, might have had an inkling he wasn't the healthiest?). The transcription is here.
Some fascinating details: G1 is referred to by Fritz of Wales as "my Grand-Father, and Best Friend", and the monarch future G3 is supposed to model himself after. Now given that Fritz of Wales actually did see his grandfather during his childhood and youth, as opposed to his parents, when growing up in Hannover because G1 went visiting ever so often, it makes sense they had a relationship, plus G1 did fight for Fritz of Wales' interests when the matter of whether or not to separate Hannover and GB and which son would get what came up. But of course the irony is that part of the reason why Fritz of Wales first had no and then a terrible relationship with G2 and Caroline was G1's fault, it was G1's idea that a seven years old child would be left behind in Hannover, after all. Anyway, this testimony to G1 being a good granddad to a legitimate offspring of his is still remarkable.
Fritz of Wales mentions he gives this letter to his wife, G3's mother, and the mention here and in other parts is always affectionate, so hopefully despite the fact he put her through a ghastly birth to annoy his parents, he otherwise proved to be an okay husband.
Breaking Fritz of Wales' spectacular breakup with Hervey in mind, this passage about friendship is interesting:
Flatterers, Courtiers or Ministers, are easy to be got, but a true Friend is difficult to be found.
The only rule I can give You to try them by is, if they will tell you the Truth, and will
venture for Your Sake that of Your Family or that if Your People (which three things I hope
you will never separate, nor ought they ever to be separate) to risk some moments of
disagreeable Contradictions to your Passions, through which they may lose Your Favour, if
You are a Weak Prince; but will settle themselves firmer in it, if you turn out that man,
which I hope God will make You.
The biggest difference between Fritz of Wales political opinions and those in the political testament of Fritz of Prussia comes when he talks about war:
If you can be without War, let not Your ambition draw you into it. A good deal of the
National Debt must be pay’d off, before England enters into a War: At the same time never
give up Your Honour nor that of the Nation. A Wide and Brave Prince, may often times,
without Armies put a Stop to the Confusion, which the Ambitious neighbours endeavour to
create. Tis not allways Armies or Fleets that will do this. Many times tis done only by the
Weight of his Authority which can be got no other way, than by a Wise Settled and Steady
Conduct.
The unsteady measures, you See, My Son, have Sullied and hurt the Reign of Your
Grandfather. Let your Steadiness retrieve the Glory of the Throne. I Shall have no regret
never to have wore the Crown, if you do but fill it worthily:
Now, quoted at the website's description of the letter already and in line with Fritz of Wales being aware that his German origins and first 20 something years in Hannover will always work against him in the minds of at least some of his British subjects is this:
Convince this nation that you are not only an Englishman born and bred, but that
you are also this by inclination, and that as You will love Your Younger Children next to the
Elder born, so you will all your other Countries, next to England.
But he also pleads for Hannover not to be forgotten:
Be allways kind to the Electorate. Remember your Father, whom you love, was born there,
and was allways vastly beloved, by that poor faithfull People. A particular Mark of which
they gave me, by lending me a very considerable sum to pay off part of my Debt in England;
Which I expect for my Blessing, you will repay, whenever the Crown comes to you,
conformably to what is Solemnly Stipulated in the Instruments I have Signed and put into
the hands of the Creditors. Remember this, my son, and, if possible, pay this Sum within the
year.
Fritz of Wales also thinks that Hannover should be separated (as intended in G1's will which G2 surpressed, to the great ire also of SD, remember) from GB in the long term, i.e. specifically in the case of G3 should be ruled by one of his younger siblings, because:
When England and Hannover are joined together every malevolent Spirit in Europe, that
cannot reach England, ventures to lift up his hands against Hannover: All which will cease
the moment these Countries are separated.
Thinking of the FW/G2 almost duel here, Fritz of Wales? (He either was very recently in GB or was still in Hannover when that started, I believe.) Certainly G2 never got over his suspicion Fritz of Prussia might get grabby with Hannover one day, and there was that RP between Heinrich and AW where Heinrich played Fritz and did just that... Anyway, in rl, Hannover would not get separated from GB until Victoria became Queen, because due to the Salic law she could not become Electress of Hannover, so one of G3's still surviving sons got the job. (And promptly became the most loathed Hannover sovereign in eons by ignoring the constitution and thus incurring the protest of the "Göttingen Seven", including the brothers Grimm.) But all in all, Fritz of Wales comes across as someone who has definite ideas and ideals about how to be King who are anything but silly or frivolous; a counterpoint to his image in vengeful Hervey's memoirs, I'd say.
The letter starts: To my Son George
As I have always have had the tenderest Paternal Affection for You, I cannot give You a
Stronger proof of it, than in leaving this Paper for You in Your Mother’s hands, Who will
read it to You from time to time and will give it to you when you come of Age or when you
get the Crown.
Given that G3 kept the letter (and thus it's in his personal papers), presumably Princess Augusta did just that.
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-01 02:07 pm (UTC)as I haven't yet read a biography of G3, though I mean to in the long run.
Please do, and please summarize for salon when you do!
Fritz of Wales would die three years later and as this letter is a "just in case I'm not around when you reach your majority" thing, might have had an inkling he wasn't the healthiest?
Oof, it sounds like it. Wikipedia tells me he probably died of a pulmonary embolism, so yeah, maybe. Sad.
Some fascinating details: G1 is referred to by Fritz of Wales as "my Grand-Father, and Best Friend", and the monarch future G3 is supposed to model himself after. Now given that Fritz of Wales actually did see his grandfather during his childhood and youth, as opposed to his parents, when growing up in Hannover because G1 went visiting ever so often, it makes sense they had a relationship
It is not uncommon in dysfunctional families for people who don't get along with their parents to either get along better with their grandparents if they're alive, or to romanticize them if they're not. The lure of the alternate parental figure is strong.
Which leads me to Fritz. He may have trashed F1 in his history books and praised his father, but I'm willing to bet that if F1 had been king while Fritz was growing up, and FW had just been crown prince...F1 would have been the new SD.
Fritz of Wales mentions he gives this letter to his wife, G3's mother, and the mention here and in other parts is always affectionate, so hopefully despite the fact he put her through a ghastly birth to annoy his parents, he otherwise proved to be an okay husband.
Let's hope! Of course, deranged alcoholic Frederik V of Denmark wrote some very affectionate letters to his Moltke...
If you can be without War, let not Your ambition draw you into it. A good deal of the
National Debt must be pay’d off, before England enters into a War:
Don't worry, Fritz of Wales! Your son will learn all about the national debt thanks to the Seven Years' War (which I note that his father and his father's government were the ones who got Britain into), and attempts to pay it off will cost him and his government some colonies (thirteen, to be precise).
Also, this got me wondering what year this was written: 1748/9. So just at the end of the War of the Austrian Succession. Makes sense!
Certainly G2 never got over his suspicion Fritz of Prussia might get grabby with Hannover one day, and there was that RP between Heinrich and AW where Heinrich played Fritz and did just that...
Yep, that's a significant theme in 1750s foreign policy! At one point in 1752, G2 was giving his troops orders about what to do in case of a Prussian invasion. And even in the 1760s, Fritz is supposed (according to Joseph) to have told Joseph that they didn't need to worry about Britain, because Hanover could always be invaded at need.
Our gangster with good PR.
But all in all, Fritz of Wales comes across as someone who has definite ideas and ideals about how to be King who are anything but silly or frivolous; a counterpoint to his image in vengeful Hervey's memoirs, I'd say.
Indeed! Thank you for sharing.
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-04 02:15 pm (UTC)You know, I think you're right. A living F1 would have been just the type to be an indulgent grandfather. At the very least he'd have offered a court where interest in literature, languages and music would have been regarded as cool and very becoming a prince, not shameful and effeminate.
Would have been a true test to FW's "A father is always right!" principle, though. I mean, he could chew SD out, but hardly his father and King. Might he have modified his principle to "a father is always right... except mine" like his cousin G2 did, or would he have gritted his teeth and endured HIS OLDEST SON returning from Grandpa with a silver flute and wearing the latest French fashion?
Don't worry, Fritz of Wales! Your son will learn all about the national debt thanks to the Seven Years' War (which I note that his father and his father's government were the ones who got Britain into), and attempts to pay it off will cost him and his government some colonies (thirteen, to be precise).
*snorts* Yankee Taxdodgers were not among the dangers Fritz of Wales could warn his son about. Alas.
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-11 04:13 am (UTC)Yeah, I'm betting on this one. Pretty common for people to be hypocritical about this -- such and such should always be the case, unless of course it inconveniences ME or (as mildred has told me many times sets off stress reactions) messes with MY worldview!
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-11 12:35 pm (UTC)On a related note: arguably FW's (in)famous remark to Fritz that if his father had ever treated him the way he, FW, was treating Fritz, he'd have killed himself, is of course in itself telling: F1 (son of a harsh Dad who increasingly loathed him) would never have treated FW this way.
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-13 04:25 am (UTC)On a related note: arguably FW's (in)famous remark to Fritz that if his father had ever treated him the way he, FW, was treating Fritz, he'd have killed himself, is of course in itself telling: F1 (son of a harsh Dad who increasingly loathed him) would never have treated FW this way.
:( Poor Fritz.
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-13 05:30 am (UTC)Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-20 04:40 am (UTC)except for the part where F1 made FW wear an exact copy of the Dauphin‘s wedding outfit for his marriage to SD
Heeee. Yes, not really the same :P (But I'm going to laugh at it.)
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-04 05:29 am (UTC)so hopefully despite the fact he put her through a ghastly birth to annoy his parents, he otherwise proved to be an okay husband.
We can hope!
If you can be without War, let not Your ambition draw you into it.
Aw, yeah.
But all in all, Fritz of Wales comes across as someone who has definite ideas and ideals about how to be King who are anything but silly or frivolous; a counterpoint to his image in vengeful Hervey's memoirs, I'd say.
I really like this letter! I'm glad you told us about it.
Given that G3 kept the letter (and thus it's in his personal papers), presumably Princess Augusta did just that.
Awwwww. (And I am leaning like you to thinking, or hoping, that he was an okay husband, since it seems like she did do that!)
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-04 01:51 pm (UTC)I immediately liked it as well. This in general seems to be an excellent source for Georgian material, with its scans of the original letters and the transcriptions. Including schoolboy essays by future G3 and remarks on history books by his wife Queen Charlotte.
G3 - as mentioned previously, the first Hannover King to be born in GB and grow up with English as his first language, who famously said "I glory in the name of Briton" and didn't visit Hannover, nonetheless did care for the Electorate (this I knew, he continued financing the university of Göttingen which had been a G2 foundation and during G3's reign became THE leading university for German science until the Nazis arrived - it still boasts of more Noble prize winners among its students than any other), spoke German as a second language (this I didn't) and in his own remarks and essays on German subjects wrote those in German. And on French subjects in French. I'm just saying, your discarded King comes across as a well educated multilingual fellow, American Colonists!
Re: Fritz of Wales to G3
Date: 2024-06-11 04:12 am (UTC)Oh cool, I didn't know that!
your discarded King comes across as well educated multilingual fellow, American Colonists!
I didn't really know that! I knew he was called "Farmer George" and while now that I think about it having an interest in agriculture is for a king probably a sign of intelligence and education, of course in the modern US (with our pioneer heritage of farmers trying to scratch out livings in the Midwest) the connotations are somewhat different...