William IV

William IV was the third son of George III and the brother of George IV. He was born on 21 August 1765 at Buckingham House, London. He joined the Royal Navy at the age of 13 and served in various naval campaigns, earning the nickname "the Sailor King". He retired from the Navy in 1790 and became Duke of Clarence in 1789. Between 1791 and 1811, he lived with his mistress, the actress Dorothea Jordan, and had ten illegitimate children with her, known as the Fitzclarences. He married Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen in 1818, but their two daughters died in infancy and Adelaide suffered three more miscarriages. William became heir presumptive to the throne at the age of 61, when his second brother, Frederick, Duke of York, died in 1827. He succeeded his elder brother George IV as King of the United Kingdom and Hanover on 26 June 1830. His reign was marked by political and social reforms, such as the passing of the Reform Act of 1832, which expanded the franchise and reduced the power of the aristocracy and the crown over the government. He also supported the abolition of slavery in the British Empire in 1833 and recognised his illegitimate children by granting them titles and pensions. William was personally opposed to parliamentary reform and often clashed with his ministers, especially Earl Grey and Lord Melbourne. He also had a strained relationship with his niece and heir presumptive, Princess Victoria, and her mother, the Duchess of Kent. He tried to assert his authority as king and prevent a regency in case he died before Victoria came of age. William died of heart failure at Windsor Castle on 20 June 1837, only a month after Victoria turned 18. He was buried in the Royal Vault at St George's Chapel on 8 July 1837. He was succeeded by Victoria in the United Kingdom and by his brother Ernest Augustus in Hanover, as Victoria was barred from inheriting that throne by Salic law.