WI: William, Duke of Gloucester, had lived to become King?

[The Empire of AltHistory]

In actual history, Queen Anne's only child to survive infancy, William, Duke of Gloucester, died in 1700 at the age of 11. This was almost two years before the death of William III and the ascension of Anne to the British throne, and in the year before Parliament enacted the Act of Settlement. What if, however, William recovered from his "scarlet fever" or "smallpox"; or better yet, never got sick? Suppose that his mother succeeds William in 1702, and that she still dies in 1714. Being her only child to survive to adulthood, he would be her heir, and would become King of Great Britain upon her death. How does this affect British history? Will the Electors of Hanover now have any chance of ascending to the British throne? Whom would William marry and how many children would he have? How long would his reign would be and when would he die? Would the Jacobite landings of 1715 and 1745 still occur, or would that change? How would William and his successors fare in terms of their authority as King?

 

[Emperor Constantine]

In actual history, Queen Anne's only child to survive infancy, William, Duke of Gloucester, died in 1700 at the age of 11. This was almost two years before the death of William III and the ascension of Anne to the British throne, and in the year before Parliament enacted the Act of Settlement. What if, however, William recovered from his "scarlet fever" or "smallpox"; or better yet, never got sick? Suppose that his mother succeeds William in 1702, and that she still dies in 1714. Being her only child to survive to adulthood, he would be her heir, and would become King of Great Britain upon her death. How does this affect British history? Will the Electors of Hanover now have any chance of ascending to the British throne? Whom would William marry and how many children would he have? How long would his reign would be and when would he die? Would the Jacobite landings of 1715 and 1745 still occur, or would that change? How would William and his successors fare in terms of their authority as King?

The problem with this is William of Gloucester's precarious health. His health pretty much made William into an English Carlos of Spain. Maybe not as bad as that but it was still pretty damn bad. We've actually had this discussion recently (I'll see if I can find the link) and we pretty much agreed that he was unlikely to live long enough to succeed his mother, or if he did his reign would be very short. If he can father a child before his death, then the worst Britain/England will have to deal with is a fairly long regency. However, remember that the act of succession was only passed AFTER William of Gloucester's death. So if he dies in his mother's reign it everything will depend on whether or not he has children. If so, then they would be their grandmother's successors. If not, then there might be a chance of James III being appointed Anne's successor, if William dies when the Tories are in power.

 

[DrakeRlugia]

Agreed, he was a super sickly child. He had convulsions at three weeks old, along with other issues that required treatment with Jesuit's bark, and an enlarged head that was regularly pierced to drain out fluids. He couldn't walk properly, stumbled, and at age five refused to walk up stairs without two attendants, although his father birching him eventually rid him of this. He also had speech problems, as he didn't begin speaking properly until he was three, which is quite delayed. It's unknown what he died of, either Scarlett Fever or small pox, but when the autopsy was performed, it was found he still had an unusual amount of fluid in his brain, meaning he may not of been long for the world anyways and may possibly of suffered from a cerebral hemorrhage at some point had he lived longer. Still, if he can cling on for five or six more years, he could be married--assuming he sires a child and there are no issues with reproduction for him, Anne's line would be safe if he did die, just a long Regency as Constantine said.

Assuming he lived long enough to marry, who might he marry? I am partial to his aunt, Louisa Maria, the youngest daughter of James II as a way of bridging a gap between Anne and her father, but he would never countenance such a match and I imagine Parliament would be against it too assuming the Whigs are in power. I know there was some discussion in other threads before regarding his survival of the possibility of marrying Ulrika Eleonora, the sister of Charles XII of Sweden.

 

[Emperor Constantine]

Agreed, he was a super sickly child. He had convulsions at three weeks old, along with other issues that required treatment with Jesuit's bark, and an enlarged head that was regularly pierced to drain out fluids. He couldn't walk properly, stumbled, and at age five refused to walk up stairs without two attendants, although his father birching him eventually rid him of this. He also had speech problems, as he didn't begin speaking properly until he was three, which is quite delayed. It's unknown what he died of, either Scarlett Fever or small pox, but when the autopsy was performed, it was found he still had an unusual amount of fluid in his brain, meaning he may not of been long for the world anyways and may possibly of suffered from a cerebral hemorrhage at some point had he lived longer. Still, if he can cling on for five or six more years, he could be married--assuming he sires a child and there are no issues with reproduction for him, Anne's line would be safe if he did die, just a long Regency as Constantine said.

Assuming he lived long enough to marry, who might he marry? I am partial to his aunt, Louisa Maria, the youngest daughter of James II as a way of bridging a gap between Anne and her father, but he would never countenance such a match and I imagine Parliament would be against it too assuming the Whigs are in power. I know there was some discussion in other threads before regarding his survival of the possibility of marrying Ulrika Eleonora, the sister of Charles XII of Sweden.

Drake, long time no talk! Anyway, to brides for Gloucester, I agree that Louisa Maria would be both the best choice and completely off the table. As to Ulrika Eleonora, I'm unsure honestly. People have suggested it before but considering that William's health will be known to be precarious, Anne and George might try for a Carlos II/Anna Maria of Neuburg style solution, marrying him to a daughter from a very fertile family, though I'm not sure what Protestant House would fit the bill.

 

[Valena]

Drake, long time no talk! Anyway, to brides for Gloucester, I agree that Louisa Maria would be both the best choice and completely off the table. As to Ulrika Eleonora, I'm unsure honestly. People have suggested it before but considering that William's health will be known to be precarious, Anne and George might try for a Carlos II/Anna Maria of Neuburg style solution, marrying him to a daughter from a very fertile family, though I'm not sure what Protestant House would fit the bill.

Protestant rabbity brood
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henriëtte_Amalia_of_Anhalt-Dessau
Enjoy.

 

[Mikestone8]

The problem with this is William of Gloucester's precarious health. His health pretty much made William into an English Carlos of Spain.

Of course, Carlos II (I assume that's the one you mean) still managed to live to age 38. If Gloucester does the same, then he outlives his mother by a bit over a decade - and may well leave children.

 

[The Empire of AltHistory]

Alright then, so let's presume that Gloucester does manage to live to the age of 38 and dies in 1727. He marries Maria Amalia, daughter of Henrietta Amalia of Anhalt-Dessau and has a son, Edward, before he dies. If Gloucester married Henrietta Amalia in 1708 and they had Edward the following year, then perhaps Edward might be of age when Gloucester dies?

 

[JonasResende]

Agreed, he was a super sickly child. He had convulsions at three weeks old, along with other issues that required treatment with Jesuit's bark, and an enlarged head that was regularly pierced to drain out fluids. He couldn't walk properly, stumbled, and at age five refused to walk up stairs without two attendants, although his father birching him eventually rid him of this. He also had speech problems, as he didn't begin speaking properly until he was three, which is quite delayed. It's unknown what he died of, either Scarlett Fever or small pox, but when the autopsy was performed, it was found he still had an unusual amount of fluid in his brain, meaning he may not of been long for the world anyways and may possibly of suffered from a cerebral hemorrhage at some point had he lived longer. Still, if he can cling on for five or six more years, he could be married--assuming he sires a child and there are no issues with reproduction for him, Anne's line would be safe if he did die, just a long Regency as Constantine said.

Part of me wants to liken William to Charles I - another Stuart kid who didn't speak until well after the normal age, who's father forced him into lead (some sources speak of metal) boots to strengthen his legs so he could walk unaided.

And I've toyed with this idea for a while, what about Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick (OTL Holy Roman Empress)? Her sister had a dozen kids, and her parents were of seven and eight kids each, plus she was reportedly one of the great beauties of Europe's royal scene at the time. She didn't particularly want to convert to marry Karl VI (who's left holding his hat in hand), and William is at least half-Stuart, which means if he's anything like his womanizing grandfather and granduncle (and most other grandsons of Henri IV really), not to mention several relatives on the Danish side have kept and married mistresses siring large broods of half-royal children.

So, while I've never seen a portrait of Maria Amalie, Elisabeth Christine bears consideration. And also, wouldn't being at least Queen of England beat not being Queen of Spain? Sure, she'd be HREmpress, but at that point (1706-1709) was if Josef died without a son. If Wilhelmine died and Joe remarried, having (a) son(s) by that marriage, Lieschen's chances of Empress decline sharply.

 

[Valena]

Part of me wants to liken William to Charles I - another Stuart kid who didn't speak until well after the normal age, who's father forced him into lead (some sources speak of metal) boots to strengthen his legs so he could walk unaided.

And I've toyed with this idea for a while, what about Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick (OTL Holy Roman Empress)? Her sister had a dozen kids, and her parents were of seven and eight kids each, plus she was reportedly one of the great beauties of Europe's royal scene at the time. She didn't particularly want to convert to marry Karl VI (who's left holding his hat in hand), and William is at least half-Stuart, which means if he's anything like his womanizing grandfather and granduncle (and most other grandsons of Henri IV really), not to mention several relatives on the Danish side have kept and married mistresses siring large broods of half-royal children.

So, while I've never seen a portrait of Maria Amalie, Elisabeth Christine bears consideration. And also, wouldn't being at least Queen of England beat not being Queen of Spain? Sure, she'd be HREmpress, but at that point (1706-1709) was if Josef died without a son. If Wilhelmine died and Joe remarried, having (a) son(s) by that marriage, Lieschen's chances of Empress decline sharply.

Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick sounds good. And for Maria Amalia I could not find anything other that her godmother was Mary II. She can be considered if William III did not have his unfortunate...meeting with molehill.
Other than this Elisabeth Christine is awesome and has a lot of butterflies for Great Northern War.
The biggest is Peter I not having solid reason to seek the hand of Charlotte of Brunswick for Tsesarevich Alexei. With another bride (maybe a double match with Courland or something) the relations may become not that dysfunctional and Romanovs may not die out in male line.

 

[JonasResende]

Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick sounds good. And for Maria Amalia I could not find anything other that her godmother was Mary II. She can be considered if William III did not have his unfortunate...meeting with molehill.
Other than this Elisabeth Christine is awesome and has a lot of butterflies for Great Northern War.
The biggest is Peter I not having solid reason to seek the hand of Charlotte of Brunswick for Tsesarevich Alexei. With another bride (maybe a double match with Courland or something) the relations may become not that dysfunctional and Romanovs may not die out in male line.

I could be being almost deliberately obtuse, but why would a marriage of Lieschen to London hamper Peter's seeking of alliances? Yes, he needed the HRE to ally with him against the Turks, but England's king (with his blood connections to Sweden's traditional enemy Denmark) is not a bad link, IMHO. England could help with the development of Russia's navy etc.