On This Day In History . 20 October 1714 . George I coronation . ◼ The new king could not speak English – & of course very few of his new courtiers could manage any German. So it was that throughout his reign George & his English subjects had to struggle with French or Latin to communicate with one another. . ◼ George was crowned by Archbishop Tenison at Westminster Abbey. A new king, & a new dynasty (House of Hanover) was in place. The power of Westminster increased, now that a non-English-speaking king had arrived who was completely ignorant of what was what or who was who in his own kingdom, the power of his advisers was visibly increasing day by day. . ◼ This coronation signalled a very different kind of monarchy, with power draining away from court & establishing itself even more firmly than ever before in parliament & its chief ministers. George could not have understood much of what was going on around him at this coronation. . ◼ The ceremonies had to be explained to him in broken French or stuttering Latin by his bishops & ministers. It was jokingly said that ‘much bad language’ passed between them. . ◼ George was crowned alone. The fact that his ex-wife, Sophia Dorothea, was still imprisoned in Ahlden Castle in Germany for alleged unfaithfulness was a cause for much scandal, especially as he had come to England accompanied by several of his mistresses. His two principal mistresses were Ermengarda Melusina von Schulenburg – extremely tall & thin – who was quickly nicknamed ‘The Maypole’ by the gossiping English court; & Sophia von Kilmansegg – prodigiously large & fat – who became known as ‘The Elephant’. . ◼ Whatever George thought of his coronation, he certainly enjoyed the banquet afterwards, in Westminster Hall. Silently & alone he sat for more than two hours steadily stuffing himself, while 17 bishops & 150 peers, grouped in order of precedence, solemnly watched him. The coronation passed off without incident. He would reign as king of Great Britain until his death in 1727 . . . #onthisdayinhistory #Thisdayinhistory #TheYear1714 #D20Oct #GeorgeI #Coronation #KingGeorgeI #HouseofHanover #History #Westminster #WestminsterAbbey #london #Royal (at Westminster Abbey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CGlO7psjW1B/?igshid=1ny21l14z0e0o
