| ← George IV | Victoria → |
Great Britain: William IV
1830 to 1837
Denomination: AR Half Crown (2 shillings & sixpence), 1836
Obverse: Bust right. "GULIELMUS IIII D:G: BRITANNIAR: REX F:D:" Reverse: Shield within crowned drapes. "ANNO 1836" Dia/Wgt: 32.1 mm/ 13.7 gm Reference: SCBC 3834 |
Denomination: AR Shilling, 1836
Obverse: Bust right. "GULIELMUS IIII BRITANNIAR: REX F:D:" Reverse: "ONE SHILLING" in wreath, crown above, date under. Dia/Wgt: 23.5 mm/ 5.4 gm Reference: SCBC 3835 |
Denomination: AR Groat (four pence), 1836
Obverse: Bust right. "GULIELMUS IIII D:G: BRITANNIAR: REX F:D:" Reverse: Britannia seated right. "Four Pence" In exergue "1836" Dia/Wgt: 16.3 mm/ 1.9 gm Reference: SCBC 3837 |
|
|
William IV (1765-1837), King of Great Britain and Ireland (House of Hanover), (26th June 1830 to 20th June 1837) and King of Hanover (1830-1837),
William was born August 21, 1765, in London. The third son of King George III and younger brother of George IV, he entered the Royal Navy in 1779, remaining in its service until 1787. He was made Duke of Clarence in 1789. About 1791 he formed a liaison with the Irish actress Dorothea Jordan, by whom he subsequently had ten children. In 1818, after he unexpectedly came into the line of succession to the throne, he married a German princess, Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, by whom he had two daughters, both of whom died in infancy. He became king in 1830, succeeding his brother. Warmhearted and well intentioned but rather eccentric, William had virtually no political judgement. The major event of his reign was the passage of the Reform Bill of 1832, which he was persuaded to support by his prime minister, Lord Grey; it was enacted after William finally agreed to create, if necessary, a sufficient number of new Whig peers to overcome the majority opposed to the bill in the House of Lords. The abolition of colonial slavery (1833), the reform of the poor laws (1834), and the Municipal Reform Act (1835) followed the 1832 reform of the franchise. William was the last British ruler to try to force parliamentary acceptance of an unpopular ministry, namely the one headed by Sir Robert Peel in 1834-1835. William was succeeded to the British throne by his niece Victoria. The throne of Hanover was inherited by his brother Ernest Augustus. |