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#OnThisDay King George V Was Born

george v

On this day in history in 1865, King George V was born as the second son to King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra in Marlborough House, London. He was the grandson of Queen Victoria, and a grandfather to Her Majesty, The Queen.

He was christened at Windsor Castle on 7 July 1865 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Longley. As the second son of the reigning monarch, it was not expected that he would become king. However, his older brother, Prince Albert, Duke of Clarence and Avondale passed away at the young age of 28 from pneumonia developed from the influenza pandemic that was taking place during that time.

Albert was betrothed to Princess Victoria Mary of Teck, but after his tragic passing, Queen Victoria believed the Princess would be a good and suitable match for George. A year later, they were engaged to be married. On 6 July 1893, they wed at the Chapel Royal in St. James’s Palace. Together they had six children: Edward VIII, George VI, Mary, Princess Royal, Prince Henry, Prince George, and Prince John.

He was named Prince of Wales 9 November 1901. His father wanted to fully prepare George for his future role as monarch. Therefore, he allowed George access to state documents to better prepare him for the future. On 6 May 1910, King Edward VII passed away at the age of 68. George then became King George V.

It was during his reign that World War One broke out, and in the act of appeasement toward the British nationalists, he issued a royal proclamation that changed the name of the British royal house from the German-sounding House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the House of Windsor, which is still used to this day, on 17 July 1917. He reigned as King of the United Kingdom, the British dominions, and Emperor of India until his death on 20 January 1936.

About author

Brittani is from Tennessee, USA. She is a political scientist and historian after graduating with a degree in the topics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in December 2014. She also holds a master's degree from Northeastern University. She enjoys reading and researching all things regarding the royals of the world. She's been researching, reading, and writing on royalty for over a decade. She became Europe Editor in October 2016, and then Deputy Editor in January 2019, and has been featured on several podcasts, radio shows, news broadcasts and websites including Global News Canada, ABC News Australia, WION India and BBC World News.