Georg Ludwig elector of Hanover became George I of England in 1714 simply because he was the Protestant heir nearest in blood to the late Queen Anne & therefore the most credible alternative to a Catholic Stuart restoration under the deposed James II. George never learned to speak English & partly because of that as well as his prioritizing Hanover over Britain, he never won the affection or even respect of the British (portrait by Sir Godfrey Kneller)
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