182-650: The Gordon Riots of 1780 were several days of rioting in London motivated by anti-Catholic sentiment. They began with a large and orderly protest against the Papists Act 1778 , which was intended to reduce official discrimination against British Catholics enacted by the Popery Act 1698 . Lord George Gordon , head of the Protestant Association, argued that the law would enable Catholics to join
364-471: A British colony and instigated substantial immigration from England and Scotland , resulted in the country developing a predominantly Protestant religious character. Nonetheless, French bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier was able to negotiate the inclusion of a clause guaranteeing freedom of religion in some of the versions of the treaties signed and oral promises during meetings beforehand. New Zealand has had several Catholic prime ministers , which
546-565: A Catholic clerical presence until 1820, reflecting the legal disabilities of Catholics in Britain. Some of the Irish convicts had been transported to Australia for political crimes or social rebellion and authorities remained suspicious of the minority religion. Catholic convicts were compelled to attend Church of England services and their children and orphans were raised as Anglicans. The first Catholic priests to arrive came as convicts following
728-432: A London police force. There appeared painted on the wall of Newgate Prison a proclamation that the inmates had been freed by the authority of "His Majesty, King Mob" . The term " King Mob " afterwards denoted an unruly and fearsome proletariat . Edmund Burke later recalled the riots as a dangerous foretaste of the 1789 French Revolution : Wild and savage insurrection quitted the woods, and prowled about our streets in
910-546: A Nation 1707–1837 , the "defensive unity brought on by war with a Catholic French ' other ' helped transform Great Britain from a new and largely artificial polity into a nation with a strong self-image rooted in Protestantism." Catholics in Ireland gained the right to vote in the 1790s but they were politically inert for another three decades. Finally, they were mobilized by Daniel O'Connell into majorities in most of
1092-717: A Protestant who had immigrated from Ireland. In the late 19th century he mobilized the "Orange" or Protestant Irish, and fiercely fought against Irish Catholics as well as the French Catholics. He especially crusaded for the abolition of the French language in Manitoba and Ontario schools. In response to the 2021 Canadian Indian residential school gravesite discoveries , numerous churches and monuments in Western Canada have been vandalized or burned down. One of
1274-592: A State-controlled school system. Protestant Reformers , including Martin Luther , John Calvin , John Wycliffe , Henry VIII , Thomas Cranmer , John Thomas , Ellen G. White , John Knox , Charles Taze Russell , Isaac Newton , Roger Williams , Cotton Mather , and John Wesley , as well as most Protestants of the 16th–19th centuries, identified the Papacy with the Antichrist . The Centuriators of Magdeburg ,
1456-628: A chance, join forces with their co-religionists on the Continent and attack Britain. He enjoyed popularity in Scotland where he took part in a successful campaign to prevent the same legislation from being introduced into Scots law , although the Act continued in force in England and Wales and in Ireland. The success in obstructing the law in Scotland led Gordon to believe he could enjoy similar success in
1638-578: A crash be ruined." In January 1780, 7,000 British troops under General Sir John Vaughan were transported to the West Indies. Nonetheless, opposition to the costly war was increasing, and in June 1780 contributed to disturbances in London known as the Gordon riots . As late as the siege of Charleston in 1780, Loyalists could still believe in their eventual victory, as British troops inflicted defeats on
1820-720: A detachment of soldiers was summoned, and they dispersed the crowd without violence. Inside the House of Commons, the petition was overwhelmingly dismissed by a vote of 192 to 6. Once the mob around Parliament had dispersed, it seemed to the government that the worst of the disorder was over. However, the same night a crowd gathered and attacked the Roman Catholic Sardinian Embassy Chapel in Lincoln's Inn Fields . Bow Street Runners and soldiers were called out and made thirteen arrests, although most of
2002-663: A detailed depiction of the Gordon Riots with supernatural plot elements and an apocalyptic denouement. The Invisibles , a comic series by Grant Morrison features a principal character mostly known as King Mob . Mentioned by Peter O'Toole's character to Aldo Ray in The Day They Robbed The Bank of England , referencing that he and his men had been guarding the titular bank in a certain fashion since "the Gordon Riots in 1780." Anti-Catholic Anti-Catholicism , also known as Catholophobia ,
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#17327646506502184-692: A final relapse, and his eldest son, the Prince of Wales , was named Prince Regent the following year. The King died aged 81, at which time the Regent succeeded him as George IV. George III reigned during much of the Georgian and Regency eras. At the time of his death, he was the longest-lived and longest-reigning British monarch , having reigned for 59 years and 96 days; he remains the longest-lived and longest-reigning male monarch in British history. George
2366-623: A group of Lutheran scholars in Magdeburg which was headed by Matthias Flacius , wrote the 12-volume Magdeburg Centuries in order to discredit the Papacy and lead other Christians to recognize the Pope as the Antichrist. The fifth round of talks in the Lutheran–Catholic dialogue notes, In calling the pope the "Antichrist", the early Lutherans stood in a tradition that reached back into
2548-701: A hostile attitude towards the Catholic Church as an establishment and the overwhelming political, social, spiritual and religious power of the Catholic Church. Anti-clerical governments often attacked the Pope's ability to appoint bishops in order to ensure that the Church would not be independent from the State, confiscated Church property, expelled Catholic religious orders such as the Jesuits , banned Classical Christian education , and sought to replace it with
2730-530: A landing, I shall certainly put myself at the head of mine, and my other armed subjects, to repel them." After Admiral Lord Nelson 's famous naval victory at the Battle of Trafalgar , the possibility of invasion was extinguished. In 1804, George's recurrent illness returned; after his recovery, Addington resigned and Pitt regained power. Pitt sought to appoint Fox to his ministry, but George refused. Lord Grenville perceived an injustice to Fox, and refused to join
2912-577: A large territory, and his conduct was far less ruthless than contemporaneous monarchs in Europe. After Saratoga, both Parliament and the British people were in favour of the war; recruitment ran at high levels and political opponents, though vocal, remained a small minority. With the setbacks in America, Lord North asked to transfer power to Lord Chatham , whom he thought more capable, but George refused to do so; he suggested instead that Chatham serve as
3094-455: A lung injury at the age of 44, and his son George became heir apparent to the throne and inherited his father's title of Duke of Edinburgh . The King now took more interest in his grandson and created him Prince of Wales three weeks later. In the spring of 1756, as George approached his eighteenth birthday, the King offered him a grand establishment at St James's Palace , but George refused
3276-560: A majority in the House of Commons, and could not be displaced easily. He was further dismayed when the government introduced the India Bill, which proposed to reform the government of India by transferring political power from the East India Company to Parliamentary commissioners. Although George actually favoured greater control over the company, the proposed commissioners were all political allies of Fox. Immediately after
3458-707: A minister in Northern Ireland was Dr Gerard Newe , in 1971. In 1986, at the annual conference of the Democratic Unionist Party , MP for Mid Ulster William McCrea interrupted councillor Ethel Smyth when she said she regretted the death of Sean Downes, a 24-year-old Catholic civilian who had been killed by a plastic bullet fired by the RUC during an anti-internment march in Andersonstown in 1984. McCrea shouted, "No. No. I'll not condemn
3640-420: A motion condemning the influence of the monarch in parliamentary voting as a "high crime" and Temple was forced to resign. Temple's departure destabilised the government, and three months later the government lost its majority and Parliament was dissolved; the subsequent election gave Pitt a firm mandate. Pitt's appointment was a great victory for George. It proved that the King could appoint prime ministers on
3822-565: A new law that essentially forbade members of the royal family from legally marrying without the consent of the sovereign. The subsequent bill was unpopular in Parliament, including among George's own ministers, but passed as the Royal Marriages Act 1772 . Shortly afterwards, another of George's brothers, Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh , revealed he had been secretly married to Maria, Countess Waldegrave ,
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#17327646506504004-409: A number of carriages were vandalised and destroyed. Despite being aware of the possibility of trouble, the authorities had failed to take steps to prevent violence breaking out. The Prime Minister, Lord North, had forgotten to issue an order mobilising the small number of Constables in the area. Those that were present in the House of Commons were not strong enough to take on the angry mob. Eventually
4186-636: A prominent Irish merchant, James Malo, to the Lord Mayor , Brackley Kennett , no additional protection was offered to the area. During 3 June a crowd had gathered in Moorfields, and by nightfall it began to go on the rampage. Malo's house was amongst the many to be sacked and burned. Newgate Prison , where rioters arrested on 2 June were being held, was attacked and largely destroyed, as was The Clink . This allowed large numbers of prisoners to escape, many of whom were never recaptured. Severe destruction
4368-527: A quarter of the population of Australia were Irish Australians . Many were descended from the 40,000 Irish Catholics who were transported as convicts to Australia before 1867. The majority consisted of British and Irish Protestants. The Catholics dominated the labour unions and the Labor Party. The growth of school systems in the late 19th century typically involved religious issues, pitting Protestants against Catholics. The issue of independence for Ireland
4550-496: A relapse into his mental disorder and became dangerously ill. In his view, the malady had been triggered by stress over the death of his youngest and favourite daughter, Princess Amelia . The princess's nurse reported that "the scenes of distress and crying every day ... were melancholy beyond description." George accepted the need for the Regency Act 1811 , and the Prince of Wales (later George IV ) acted as regent for
4732-458: A result, they did not enforce the riot act. The riots were not suppressed until the Army moved in and dispersed the crowds by shooting them, killing hundreds of rioters. The violence lasted from 2 June to 9 June 1780. Public opinion, especially in middle-class and elite circles, repudiated anti-Catholicism and lower-class violence, and it also rallied behind the government of Lord North . Demands for
4914-758: A series of military conflicts involving his kingdoms, much of the rest of Europe, and places farther afield in Africa, the Americas and Asia. Early in his reign, Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years' War , becoming the dominant European power in North America and India. However, Britain lost 13 of its North American colonies in the American War of Independence . Further wars against revolutionary and Napoleonic France from 1793 concluded in
5096-768: A subordinate minister in North's administration, but Chatham refused; he died later in the same year. North was allied to the "King's Friends" in Parliament and believed that George III had the right to exercise powers. In early 1778, Louis XVI of France (Britain's chief rival) signed a treaty of alliance with the United States. The French fleet outran the British naval blockade of the Mediterranean and sailed to America. The conflict now affected America, Europe, and India. Charles III of Spain had misgivings because of his own colonies but decided to side with France in
5278-500: A suitable wife intensified: after giving consideration to a number of Protestant German princesses, George's mother sent Colonel David Graeme with, on her son's behalf, an offer of marriage to Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz . Charlotte accepted. While a royal household and staff were assembled for Charlotte in London, Lord Harcourt , the royal Master of the Horse , escorted her from Strelitz to London. Charlotte arrived in
5460-506: A time, and his vocabulary became "more complex, creative and colourful", possible symptoms of bipolar disorder. His doctors were largely at a loss to explain his illness, and spurious stories about his condition spread, such as the claim that he had shaken hands with a tree in the mistaken belief that it was the King of Prussia . Treatment for mental illness was primitive by modern standards; George's doctors, who included Francis Willis , treated
5642-596: Is hostility towards Catholics and opposition to the Catholic Church , its clergy , and its adherents. At various points after the Reformation , many majority- Protestant states, including England , Northern Ireland , Prussia and Germany , Scotland , and the United States , turned anti-Catholicism, opposition to the authority of Catholic clergy ( anti-clericalism ), opposition to the authority of
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5824-676: Is indicative of the widespread acceptance of Catholicism within the country; Jim Bolger , who lead the Fourth National Government of the 1990s, was the country's fourth Catholic prime minister; Bill English , who lead the Fifth National Government from 2016 to 2017, was the fifth and most recent. Probably the most notable of New Zealand's Catholic prime ministers was Michael Joseph Savage , an Australian -born trade unionist and social reformer who instigated numerous progressive policies as leader of
6006-861: The Sanctum Officium put Rosenberg's book on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (forbidden books list of the Church) for scorning and rejecting "all dogmas of the Catholic Church, indeed the very fundamentals of the Christian religion". George III of the United Kingdom George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 1738 – 29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Great Britain and Ireland into
6188-587: The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith , Article 26.4. In 1754, John Wesley published his Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament , which is currently an official Doctrinal Standard of the United Methodist Church . In his notes on the Book of Revelation (chapter 13), he commented: "The whole succession of Popes from Gregory VII are undoubtedly Antichrists. Yet this hinders not, but that
6370-558: The Act of Emancipation . The state of Northern Ireland came into existence in 1921, following the Government of Ireland Act 1920 . Though Catholics were a majority on the island of Ireland, comprising 74% of the population in 1911, they were a third of the population in Northern Ireland. In 1934, Sir James Craig , the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland , said, "Since we took up office we have tried to be absolutely fair towards all
6552-806: The Battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775. The Second Continental Congress sent petitions to the Crown for intervention with Parliament , but the King and Parliament ignored them. George declared the American leaders to be traitors and a year of fighting ensued. Thomas Paine 's book Common Sense referred to George III as "the Royal Brute of Great Britain". The colonies declared their independence in July 1776, listing twenty-seven grievances against
6734-568: The British Army and plot treason. The protest led to widespread rioting and looting, including attacks on Newgate Prison and the Bank of England and was the most destructive in the history of London. Violence started on 2 June 1780, with the looting and burning of Catholic chapels in foreign embassies. Local magistrates, afraid of drawing the mob's anger, did not invoke the Riot Act . There
6916-506: The Crown Estate to Parliamentary control in return for a civil list annuity for the support of his household and the expenses of civil government. Claims that he used the income to reward supporters with bribes and gifts are disputed by historians who say such claims "rest on nothing but falsehoods put out by disgruntled opposition". Debts amounting to over £3 million over the course of George's reign were paid by Parliament, and
7098-665: The Duke of Clarence , supported the efforts of the London Society of West India Planters and Merchants to delay the abolition of the British slave trade for almost 20 years. William Pitt the Younger conversely wished to see slavery abolished but, because the cabinet was divided and the King was in the pro-slavery camp, Pitt decided to refrain from making abolition official government policy. Instead, he worked toward abolition in an individual capacity. On 7 November 1775, during
7280-494: The Earl of Shelburne shocked many by proposing in parliament that Britain should consider forming a force modelled on the French police. The riots destroyed the popularity of the radical politician John Wilkes , who led citizen militia against the rioters. Many of his followers saw this as a betrayal; some of them may have been among the rioters. A pamphlet and a book of poems defending the role of Gordon were written and published by
7462-788: The English Channel . George III said that Britain was confronted by the "most serious crisis the nation ever knew". In August, 66 warships entered the English channel, but sickness, hunger, and adverse winds forced the French-Spanish armada to withdraw, ending the invasion threat. In late 1779, George III advocated sending more British warships and troops across the Atlantic to the West Indies. He boldly said: "We must risk something, otherwise we will only vegetate in this war. I own I wish either with spirit to get through it, or with
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7644-524: The English crown to be "the only supreme head on earth of the Church in England" in place of the pope. Any act of allegiance to the latter was considered treasonous because the papacy claimed to have both spiritual and political power over its followers. It was under this act that saints Thomas More and John Fisher were executed and became martyrs for the Catholic faith. Queen Mary , Henry's daughter,
7826-455: The First Labour Government of the 1930s. Unification into the German Empire in 1871 saw a country with a Protestant majority and large Catholic minority, speaking German or Polish. Anti-Catholicism was common. The powerful German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck – a devout Lutheran – forged an alliance with secular liberals in 1871–1878 to launch a Kulturkampf (literally, "culture struggle") especially in Prussia,
8008-412: The House of Commons to deliver a petition demanding the repeal of the Act. After the first march to Parliament, further riots occurred involving groups whose grievances were nationalist, economic, or political, rather than religious. Aside from the issue of Catholic emancipation, it has also been suggested that the driving force of the riots was Britain's poor economic situation: the loss of trade during
8190-459: The Intolerable Acts by the colonists: the Port of Boston was shut down and the charter of Massachusetts was altered so that the upper house of the legislature was appointed by the Crown instead of elected by the lower house. Up to this point, in the words of Professor Peter Thomas, George's "hopes were centred on a political solution, and he always bowed to his cabinet's opinions even when sceptical of their success. The detailed evidence of
8372-444: The Peace of Paris which ended the war, Lord Bute resigned, allowing the Whigs under George Grenville to return to power. Britain received enormous concessions, including West Florida . Britain restored to France lucrative slave-sugar islands in the West Indies , including Guadeloupe and Martinique . The treaty also ended French control over nearly all of New France ; Canada was ceded to Britain in its entirety, while Louisiana
8554-476: The Riot Act and was given a £1,000 fine. The military units which dealt with the rioters included the Horse Guards , Foot Guards , Inns of Court Yeomanry , the Honourable Artillery Company , line infantry including the 2nd (Queen's Royal) Regiment , and militia from the city and neighbouring counties. The defence of the Bank of England was conducted by the 9th Regiment of Foot under the command of Thomas Twisleton, 13th Baron Saye and Sele . The riots damaged
8736-401: The Slave Trade Act 1807 , which passed both houses of Parliament with large majorities. George was conciliatory towards Fox, after being forced to capitulate over his appointment. After Fox's death in September 1806, the King and ministry were in open conflict. To boost recruitment, the ministry proposed a measure in February 1807 whereby Roman Catholics would be allowed to serve in all ranks of
8918-426: The Stamp Act , which levied a stamp duty on every document in the British colonies in North America. Since newspapers were printed on stamped paper, those most affected by the introduction of the duty were the most effective at producing propaganda opposing the tax. Meanwhile, George had become exasperated at Grenville's attempts to reduce the King's prerogatives, and tried, unsuccessfully, to persuade William Pitt
9100-411: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , with George as its king. He was concurrently Duke and Prince-elector of Hanover in the Holy Roman Empire before becoming King of Hanover on 12 October 1814. He was a monarch of the House of Hanover , who, unlike his two predecessors, was born in Great Britain, spoke English as his first language, and never visited Hanover. George was born during
9282-413: The early modern period , the Catholic Church struggled to maintain its traditional religious and political role in the face of rising secular power in Catholic countries. As a result of these struggles, a hostile attitude towards the considerable political, social, spiritual and religious power of the Pope and the clergy arose in majority Catholic countries in the form of anti-clericalism . The Inquisition
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#17327646506509464-433: The grand strategic plan of invading from Canada and cutting off New England failed with the surrender of British Lieutenant-General John Burgoyne following the battles of Saratoga . Prime Minister Lord North was not an ideal war leader, but George III managed to give Parliament a sense of purpose to fight, and North was able to keep his cabinet together. North's cabinet ministers the Earl of Sandwich , First Lord of
9646-443: The last days even prior to the Reformation. Doctrinal works of literature which were published by the Lutherans , the Reformed churches , the Presbyterians , the Baptists , the Anabaptists , and the Methodists contain references to the Pope as the Antichrist, including the Smalcald Articles , Article 4 (1537), the Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope (1537), the Westminster Confession , Article 25.6 (1646), and
9828-453: The rebellion of 1641 , almost all of the lands which were owned by Irish Catholics were confiscated and given to Protestant settlers . Under the Penal Laws , no Irish Catholic could sit in the Parliament of Ireland , even though some 90% of Ireland's population was native Irish Catholic when the first of these bans was introduced in 1691. Tensions between Irish Catholics and Protestants have been blamed for much of " The Troubles ". During
10010-402: The religious persecution of them (frequently, they were derogatorily referred to as " papists " or " Romanists " in Anglophone and Protestant countries). Historian John Wolffe identifies four types of anti-Catholicism: constitutional-national, theological, popular and socio-cultural. Historically, Catholics who lived in Protestant countries were frequently suspected of conspiring against
10192-409: The ringleaders had managed to escape. The same night the chapel of the Bavarian Embassy in Warwick Street, Soho , was destroyed and crowds caused random violence in streets known to house rich Catholics. The area of Moorfields , one of the poorest parts of the city, was the home of many Irish immigrant workers and had a large area of open ground where crowds could assemble. Despite the appeal of
10374-629: The "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland". George used the opportunity to abandon the title "king of France", which English and British sovereigns had maintained since the reign of Edward III . It was suggested that George adopt the title " Emperor of the British Isles ", but he refused. As part of his Irish policy, Pitt planned to remove certain legal disabilities that applied to Roman Catholics . George III claimed that to emancipate Catholics would be to violate his coronation oath , in which sovereigns promise to maintain Protestantism. Faced with opposition to his religious reform policies from both
10556-456: The 1760s, a series of acts by Parliament was met with resistance in Britain's Thirteen Colonies in America. In particular they rejected new taxes levied by Parliament, a body in which they had no direct representation. The colonies had previously enjoyed a high level of autonomy in their internal affairs and viewed Parliament's acts as a denial of their rights as Englishmen . Armed conflict began between British regulars and colonial militiamen at
10738-460: The 1861 election. The Protestants narrowly elected Hugh Hoyles as the Conservative Prime Minister. Hoyles unexpectedly reversed his long record of militant Protestant activism and worked to defuse tensions. He shared patronage and power with the Catholics; all jobs and patronage were split between the various religious bodies on a per capita basis. This 'denominational compromise' was further extended to education when all religious schools were put on
10920-502: The 18th century, the Peep o' Day Boys , an agrarian association composed of Irish Protestants, engaged in numerous acts of anti-Catholic violence through County Armagh . These acts culminated in the Armagh disturbances , a period of intense sectarian conflict during the 1780's and 1790's between the Peep o' Day Boys and the Catholic Defenders . The Peep o' Day Boys would conduct early morning raids on Catholic homes to confiscate weapons, which Irish Catholics were forbidden from owning under
11102-405: The 1950s, the split in the Australian Labor Party between allies and opponents of the Catholic anti-Communist B. A. Santamaria meant that the party (in Victoria and Queensland more than elsewhere) was effectively divided between pro-Catholic and anti-Catholic elements. As a result of such disunity the ALP was defeated at every single national election between 1955 and 1972. In the late 20th century,
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#173276465065011284-412: The Act were so popular in America that statues of them both were erected in New York City . Lord Chatham fell ill in 1767, and Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton , took over the government. Grafton did not formally become prime minister until 1768. That year, John Wilkes returned to England, stood as a candidate in the general election , and came top of the poll in the Middlesex constituency . Wilkes
11466-407: The Admiralty, and Lord George Germain , Secretary of State for the Colonies, proved to lack leadership skills suited for their positions. George III is often accused of obstinately trying to keep Great Britain at war with the rebels, despite the opinions of his own ministers. In the words of British historian George Otto Trevelyan , the King was determined "never to acknowledge the independence of
11648-635: The American War of Independence, John Murray, Lord Dunmore , issued a proclamation that offered freedom to the slaves of rebel masters if they enlisted to put down the colonial rebellion. Dunmore was the last Royal Governor of Virginia , appointed by King George III in July 1771. Dunmore's Proclamation inspired slaves to escape from captivity and fight for the British. On 30 June 1779, George III's Commanding General Henry Clinton broadened Dunmore's proclamation with his Philipsburg Proclamation . For all colonial slaves who fled their rebel masters, Clinton forbade their recapture and resale, giving them protection by
11830-422: The Americans, and to punish their contumacy by the indefinite prolongation of a war which promised to be eternal." He wanted to "keep the rebels harassed, anxious, and poor, until the day when, by a natural and inevitable process, discontent and disappointment were converted into penitence and remorse". Later historians defend George by saying that, in the context of the times, no king would willingly surrender such
12012-407: The British king and legislature while asking the support of the populace. Among George's other offenses, the declaration charged, "He has abdicated Government here ... He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people." The gilded equestrian statue of the King in New York was pulled down. The British captured the city in 1776 but lost Boston, and
12194-449: The British military. Approximately 20,000 freed slaves joined the British, fighting for George III. In 1783, given British certificates of freedom, 3,000 former slaves, including their families, settled in Nova Scotia . Between 1791 and 1800, almost 400,000 Africans were shipped to the Americas, by 1,340 slaving voyages, mounted from British ports, including Liverpool and Bristol . On 25 March 1807 George III signed into law An Act for
12376-412: The British public to spurn slavery. According to the historian Andrew Roberts , "George never bought or sold a slave in his life. He never invested in any of the companies that did such a thing. He signed legislation to abolish slavery." George wrote a document in the 1750s "denouncing all of the arguments for slavery, and calling them an execration and ridiculous and 'absurd ' ", but the King and his son,
12558-490: The Catholic Church politically suspect, and it also made the position of her Catholic subjects largely untenable if they tried to maintain both allegiances at once. The Recusancy Acts, which made worship in the Anglican Church a legal obligation, date back to Elizabeth's reign. Assassination plots in which Catholics were prime movers fueled anti-Catholicism in England. These plots included the famous Gunpowder Plot , in which Guy Fawkes and other conspirators plotted to blow up
12740-493: The Catholic Church replaced the Anglican Church as the largest single Christian body in Australia ; and it continues to be so in the 21st century, although it still has fewer members than do the various Protestant churches combined. While older sectarian divides declined, commentators have observed a re-emergence of anti-Catholicism in Australia in recent decades amid rising secularism and broader anti-Christian movements. According to New Zealand historian Michael King ,
12922-422: The Catholic policy of mandatory celibacy for priests. During the Enlightenment Era , which spanned the 17th and 18th centuries, with its strong emphasis on the need for religious toleration , the Inquisition was a favorite target of attack for intellectuals. Institutional anti-Catholicism in Britain and Ireland began with the English Reformation under Henry VIII . The Act of Supremacy of 1534 declared
13104-406: The Church even though he had been brought up in a Catholic home. The long-term aim of many Nazis was the de-Christianization of Germany and the establishment of a form of Germanic paganism which would replace Christianity. however Richard J. Evans writes that Hitler believed that in the long run National Socialism and religion would not be able to co-exist, stressing repeatedly that Nazism
13286-498: The Continental forces at the Battle of Camden and the Battle of Guilford Court House . In late 1781, the news of Lord Cornwallis 's surrender at the siege of Yorktown reached London; North's parliamentary support ebbed away and he resigned the following year. George drafted an abdication notice, which was never delivered. He finally accepted the defeat in America and authorized peace negotiations. Britain formally recognized
13468-539: The Elder to accept the office of prime minister. After a brief illness, which may have presaged his illnesses to come, George settled on Lord Rockingham to form a ministry, and dismissed Grenville. Lord Rockingham, with the support of Pitt and the King, repealed Grenville's unpopular Stamp Act. Rockingham's government was weak, and he was replaced as prime minister in 1766 by Pitt, whom George created Earl of Chatham . The actions of Lord Chatham and George III in repealing
13650-760: The English Parliament while it was in session. The fictitious " Popish Plot " involving Titus Oates was a hoax that many Protestants believed to be true, exacerbating Anglican-Catholic relations. The Glorious Revolution of 1688–1689 involved the overthrow of King James II, of the Stuart dynasty, who favoured the Catholics, and his replacement by a Dutch Protestant. For decades the Stuarts were supported by France in plots to invade and conquer Britain, and anti-Catholicism persisted. The Gordon Riots of 1780
13832-451: The English. John Wilkes , a member of parliament, published The North Briton , which was both inflammatory and defamatory in its condemnation of Bute and the government. Wilkes was eventually arrested for seditious libel but he fled to France to escape punishment; he was expelled from the House of Commons and found guilty in absentia of blasphemy and libel. In 1763, after concluding
14014-493: The Fatherland, and of serving the interests of "sinister alien forces". Adolf Hitler had some regard for the organisational power of Catholicism, but towards its teachings he showed nothing but the sharpest hostility, calling them "the systematic cultivation of the human failure": To Hitler, Christianity was a religion that was only fit for slaves and he detested its ethics. Alan Bullock wrote: "Its teaching, he declared,
14196-546: The First World War, the Irish gave support for the war effort and comprised 20% of the army in France. However, the labour unions and the Irish in particular, strongly opposed conscription, and in alliance with like-minded farmers, defeated it in national plebiscites in 1916 and 1917 . The Anglicans in particular talked of Catholic "disloyalty". By the 1920s, Australia had its first Catholic prime minister . During
14378-599: The French, and in 1802 signed the Treaty of Amiens . George did not consider the peace with France as real; in his view it was an "experiment". The war resumed in 1803, but public opinion distrusted Addington to lead the nation in war, and instead favoured Pitt. An invasion of England by Napoleon seemed imminent, and a massive volunteer movement arose to defend England against the French. George's review of 27,000 volunteers in Hyde Park, London , on 26 and 28 October 1803 and at
14560-402: The Gordon Riots amidst the political events of the 1790s. Its narrator unwittingly becomes a prominent figure in the riots, which Walker depicts as solely destructive and acquisitive. Maria Edgeworth 's 1817 novel Harrington contains a vivid evocation of the Gordon Riots, with two unsympathetic characters taken for Papists and finding refuge in the home of the rich Spanish Jew, the father of
14742-511: The House of Commons passed it, George authorised Lord Temple to inform the House of Lords that he would regard any peer who voted for the bill as his enemy. The bill was rejected by the Lords; three days later, the Portland ministry was dismissed, and William Pitt the Younger was appointed prime minister, with Temple as his secretary of state. On 17 December 1783, Parliament voted in favour of
14924-481: The Irish 1798 Rebellion . In 1803, Fr James Dixon was conditionally emancipated and permitted to celebrate Mass, but following the Irish led Castle Hill Rebellion of 1804, Dixon's permission was revoked. Fr Jeremiah Flynn , an Irish Cistercian , was appointed as Prefect Apostolic of New Holland and set out uninvited from Britain for the colony. Watched by authorities, Flynn secretly performed priestly duties before being arrested and deported to London. Reaction to
15106-695: The Irish Catholics generally supported the English language position which was advocated by the Protestants. Newfoundland long experienced social and political tensions between the large Irish Catholic working-class, on the one hand and the Anglican elite on the other. In the 1850s, the Catholic bishop organized his flock and made them stalwarts of the Liberal party. Nasty rhetoric was the prevailing style elections; bloody riots were common during
15288-500: The Irish parliamentary districts. They could only elect, but Catholics could not be seated in parliament. The Catholic emancipation issue became a major crisis. Previously anti-Catholic politicians led by the Duke of Wellington and Robert Peel reversed themselves to prevent massive violence. All Catholics in Britain were "emancipated" in the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 ; that is, they were freed from most of
15470-499: The King and the British public, Pitt threatened to resign. At about the same time, George had a relapse of his previous illness, which he blamed on worry over the Catholic question. On 14 March 1801, Pitt was formally replaced by the Speaker of the House of Commons , Henry Addington . Addington opposed emancipation, instituted annual accounts, abolished income tax and began a programme of disarmament. In October 1801, he made peace with
15652-502: The King by forcibly restraining him until he was calm, or applying caustic poultices to draw out "evil humours". In the reconvened Parliament, Fox and Pitt wrangled over the terms of a regency during the King's incapacity. While both agreed that it would be most reasonable for the Prince of Wales to act as regent, Fox suggested, to Pitt's consternation, that it was the Prince's absolute right to act on his ill father's behalf with full powers. Pitt, fearing he would be removed from office if
15834-576: The Ontario Ministry of Education that restricted the use of French as a language of instruction to the first two years of schooling. French Canada reacted vehemently and lost, dooming its French-language Catholic schools. This was a central reason for French Canada's distance from the World War I effort, as its young men refused to enlist. Protestant elements succeeded in blocking the growth of French-language Catholic public schools. However,
16016-761: The Penal Laws. This led to confrontations between them and the Defenders, which culminated in the Battle of the Diamond , a confrontation which saw six killed and many more wounded. Though the Orange Order would denounce the actions of the Peep o' Day Boys, further anti-Catholic violence would continue to erupt in Ireland in the years leading up the Irish Rebellion of 1798 . The Great Famine of Ireland
16198-494: The Prince of Wales were empowered, argued that it was for Parliament to nominate a regent, and wanted to restrict the regent's authority. In February 1789, the Regency Bill , authorising the Prince of Wales to act as regent, was introduced and passed in the House of Commons, but before the House of Lords could pass the bill, George recovered. After George's recovery, his popularity, and that of Pitt, continued to increase at
16380-534: The Queen, and their daughters the Princess Royal and Princesses Augusta and Elizabeth. It was the furthest he had ever been from London, but his condition worsened. In November of that year, he became seriously deranged, sometimes speaking for many hours without pause, causing him to foam at the mouth and his voice to become hoarse. George would frequently repeat himself and write sentences with over 400 words at
16562-463: The United States. After learning of the riots, the Spanish government pulled back from peace negotiations with Britain, concerned that the disorder would lead to a widespread collapse of the current British administration. The riots highlighted the problems Britain faced by not having a professional police force, a notion which was opposed as foreign and absolutist . The day after the riots broke out,
16744-529: The affair in Britain led to two further priests being allowed to travel to the colony in 1820. The Church of England was disestablished in the Colony of New South Wales by the Church Act of 1836 . Drafted by the Catholic attorney-general John Plunkett , the act established legal equality for Anglicans, Catholics and Presbyterians and was later extended to Methodists. By the late 19th century approximately
16926-564: The afternoon of 8 September 1761 and the marriage ceremony was conducted that same evening in the Chapel Royal , St James's Palace. George and Charlotte's coronation was held at Westminster Abbey a fortnight later on 22 September. George never took a mistress (in contrast with his grandfather and his sons), and the couple enjoyed a happy marriage until his mental illness struck. The King and Queen had 15 children—nine sons and six daughters. In 1762, George purchased Buckingham House (on
17108-543: The age of 10, George took part in a family production of Joseph Addison 's play Cato and said in the new prologue: "What, tho' a boy! It may with truth be said, A boy in England born, in England bred." Historian Romney Sedgwick argued that these lines appear "to be the source of the only historical phrase with which he is associated". King George II disliked Prince Frederick and took little interest in his grandchildren. However, in 1751, Frederick died unexpectedly from
17290-581: The armed forces. George instructed them not only to drop the measure, but also to agree never to set up such a measure again. The ministers agreed to drop the measure then pending, but refused to bind themselves in the future. They were dismissed and replaced by the Duke of Portland, as the nominal prime minister, with actual power being held by the Chancellor of the Exchequer , Spencer Perceval . Parliament
17472-494: The basis of his own interpretation of the public mood without having to follow the choice of the current majority in the House of Commons. Throughout Pitt's ministry, George supported many of Pitt's political aims and created new peers at an unprecedented rate to increase the number of Pitt's supporters in the House of Lords. During and after Pitt's ministry, George was extremely popular in Britain. The British people admired him for his piety and for remaining faithful to his wife. He
17654-633: The basis which the Catholics had enjoyed since the 1840s. Alone in North America Newfoundland had a state funded system of denominational schools. The compromise worked and politics ceased to be about religion and became concerned with purely political and economic issues. The presence of Catholicism in Australia came with the 1788 arrival of the First Fleet of British convict ships at Sydney. The colonial authorities blocked
17836-409: The children and parents through the protest each day. Some protesters shouted sectarian abuse and threw stones, bricks, fireworks, blast bombs and urine-filled balloons at the schoolchildren, their parents and the RUC . The "scenes of frightened Catholic schoolgirls running a gauntlet of abuse from loyalist protesters as they walked to school captured world headlines". Death threats were made against
18018-612: The citizens of Northern Ireland... They still boast of Southern Ireland being a Catholic State. All I boast of is that we are a Protestant Parliament and a Protestant State." In 1957, Harry Midgley , the Minister of Education in Northern Ireland, said, in Portadown Orange Hall, "All the minority are traitors and have always been traitors to the Government of Northern Ireland." The first Catholic to be appointed
18200-542: The civil list annuity was increased from time to time. He aided the Royal Academy of Arts with large grants from his private funds, and may have donated more than half of his personal income to charity. Of his art collection, the two most notable purchases are Johannes Vermeer 's Lady at the Virginals and a set of Canalettos , but it is as a collector of books that he is best remembered. The King's Library
18382-493: The collapse of Lord North's ministry in 1782, the Whig Lord Rockingham became prime minister for the second time, but died within months. The King then appointed Lord Shelburne to replace him. Charles James Fox , however, refused to serve under Shelburne, and demanded the appointment of William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland . In 1783, the House of Commons forced Shelburne from office and his government
18564-524: The death of John Downes [sic]. No Fenian. Never. No". In Northern Ireland and Scotland, Fenian is used by some as a derogatory word for Roman Catholics. In 2001 and 2002, the Holy Cross dispute occurred in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast . The Holy Cross school, a Catholic primary school for girls, is situated in the middle of a Protestant area. In June 2001—during the last week of school before
18746-455: The death of his fourth son Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn . His favourite son, Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany , was with him. George III lay in state for two days, and his funeral and interment took place on 16 February in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle . Over the course of George's reign, a coalition of abolitionists and Atlantic slave uprisings caused
18928-543: The defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. In 1807, the transatlantic slave trade was banned from the British Empire . In the later part of his life, George had recurrent and eventually permanent mental illness . The exact nature of the mental illness is not known definitively, but historians and medical experts have suggested that his symptoms and behaviour traits were consistent with either bipolar disorder or porphyria . In 1810, George suffered
19110-415: The defence of the colonies against native uprisings and the possibility of French incursions. The central issue for the colonists was not the amount of taxes but whether Parliament could levy a tax without American approval, for there were no American seats in Parliament. The Americans protested that like all Englishmen they had rights to " no taxation without representation ". In 1765, Grenville introduced
19292-466: The eleventh century . Not only dissidents and heretics but even saints had called the bishop of Rome the "Antichrist" when they wished to castigate his abuse of power . What Lutherans incorrectly understood as a papal claim to unlimited authority over everything and everyone reminded them of the Apocalyptic imagery of Daniel 11 , a passage that had been applied to the pope as the Antichrist of
19474-657: The establishment of a police force in London were subsequently made. Anglo-French conflicts during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , which lasted from 1793 until 1815, saw the rise of anti-Catholicism as an underlying method to unify the Protestant populations of England, Scotland and Wales. Permeating through all social classes , antagonism towards Catholicism became firmly enmeshed with British national identity . As noted by English historian Linda Colley in her seminal work Britons: Forging of
19656-497: The expense of Fox and the Prince of Wales. His humane and understanding treatment of two insane assailants, Margaret Nicholson in 1786 and John Frith in 1790, contributed to his popularity. James Hadfield 's failed attempt to shoot George in the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane , on 15 May 1800 was not political in origin but motivated by the apocalyptic delusions of Hadfield and Bannister Truelock . George seemed unperturbed by
19838-563: The first meeting between an Archbishop of Canterbury and a Pope since the Reformation when Archbishop Geoffrey Fisher visited Rome in 1960. Since then, the dialogue has continued through envoys and standing conferences. Meanwhile, both the nonconformist churches such as the Methodists, and the established Church of England, have dramatically declined in membership. Membership in the Catholic Church continues to grow in Britain, thanks to
20020-547: The government. From the beginning, the Catholic Church faced general persecution, regimentation and oppression. Aggressive anti-Church radicals like Alfred Rosenberg and Martin Bormann saw the conflict with the Churches as a priority concern, and anti-Church and anti-clerical sentiments were strong among grassroots party activists. To many Nazis, Catholics were suspected of insufficient patriotism, or even of disloyalty to
20202-483: The happiness or misery of a great nation," he wrote, "and consequently must often act contrary to my passions." Nevertheless, George and his mother resisted attempts by the King to marry George to Princess Sophie Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel . Sophie Caroline instead married Frederick, Margrave of Bayreuth . The following year, at the age of 22, George succeeded to the throne when his grandfather George II died suddenly on 25 October 1760, at age 76. The search for
20384-628: The height of anti-Catholic legislation, half of the Prussian bishops were in prison or in exile, a quarter of the parishes had no priest, half the monks and nuns had left Prussia, a third of the monasteries and convents were closed, 1800 parish priests were imprisoned or exiled, and thousands of laymen were imprisoned for helping the priests. There were anti-Polish elements in Greater Poland and Silesia. The Catholics refused to comply; they strengthened their Centre Party. Pius IX died in 1878 and
20566-500: The height of the invasion scare, attracted an estimated 500,000 spectators on each day. The Times said: "The enthusiasm of the multitude was beyond all expression." A courtier wrote on 13 November that "The King is really prepared to take the field in case of attack, his beds are ready and he can move at half an hour's warning." George wrote to his friend Bishop Hurd , "We are here in daily expectation that Bonaparte will attempt his threatened invasion ... Should his troops effect
20748-467: The illegitimate daughter of Sir Edward Walpole . The news confirmed George's opinion that he had been right to introduce the law: Maria was related to his political opponents. Neither lady was ever received at court. Lord North's government was chiefly concerned with discontent in America. To assuage American opinion most of the custom duties were withdrawn, except for the tea duty, which in George's words
20930-734: The immigration of Irish and more recently, the immigration of Polish workers. Conflict and rivalry between Catholicism and Protestantism since the 1920s, especially since the 1960s, has centered on the Troubles in Northern Ireland . Anti-Catholicism in Britain was long represented by the burning of an effigy of the Catholic conspirator Guy Fawkes during widespread celebrations of Guy Fawkes Night every 5 November. However, this celebration has lost most of its anti-Catholic connotations. According to Clive D. Field, only faint remnants of anti-Catholicism are found today. As punishment for
21112-624: The incident, so much so that he fell asleep in the interval. The French Revolution of 1789, in which the French monarchy had been overthrown, worried many British landowners. France declared war on Great Britain in 1793; in response to the crisis, George allowed Pitt to increase taxes, raise armies, and suspend the right of habeas corpus . Pitt prosecuted British radicals for treason in 1794, and in October 1795, crowds attacked George's carriage on his way to opening Parliament, demanding an end to
21294-663: The independence of the United States in the Treaties of Paris signed in 1782 and 1783. In early 1783, George III privately conceded "America is lost!" He reflected that the Northern colonies had developed into Britain's "successful rivals" in commercial trade and fishing. Up to 70,000 Loyalists fled to Canada (where they became known as the United Empire Loyalists ), the Caribbean , or England. John Adams
21476-556: The largest state in the new German Empire to destroy the political power of the Catholic Church and the Pope. Catholics were numerous in the South (Bavaria, Baden-Wuerttemberg) and west (Rhineland) and fought back. Bismarck intended to end Catholics' loyalty with Rome ( ultramontanism ) and subordinate all Germans to the power of his state. Priests and bishops who resisted the Kulturkampf were arrested or removed from their positions. By
21658-575: The last Pope in this succession will be more eminently the Antichrist, the Man of Sin, adding to that of his predecessors a peculiar degree of wickedness from the bottomless pit." Referring to the Book of Revelation, Edward Gibbon stated that "The advantage of turning those mysterious prophecies against the See of Rome , inspired the Protestants with uncommon veneration for so useful an ally." Protestants condemned
21840-611: The most controversial issues was public support for Catholic French-language schools. Although the Confederation Agreement of 1867 guaranteed the status of Catholic schools when they were legalized by provincial governments, disputes erupted in numerous provinces, especially in the Manitoba Schools Question in the 1890s and in Ontario in the 1910s. In Ontario, Regulation 17 was a regulation by
22022-399: The name of Britain." He inserted this phrase into the speech, written by Lord Hardwicke , to demonstrate his desire to distance himself from his German forebears, who were perceived as caring more for Hanover than for Britain. During George III's lengthy reign, Britain was a constitutional monarchy , ruled by his ministerial government and prominent men in Parliament. Although his accession
22204-579: The name of reform.... A sort of national convention ... nosed parliament in the very seat of its authority; sat with a sort of superintendence over it; and little less than dictated to it, not only laws, but the very form and essence of legislature itself. The stated intention of the Papists Act 1778 was, as its preamble notes, to mitigate some of the official discrimination against Roman Catholics in Great Britain. It absolved Catholics from taking
22386-553: The new ministry. Pitt concentrated on forming a coalition with Austria, Russia, and Sweden. This Third Coalition , however, met the same fate as the First and Second Coalitions, collapsing in 1805. The setbacks in Europe took a toll on Pitt's health, and he died in 1806, reopening the question of who should serve in the ministry. Grenville became prime minister, and his " Ministry of All the Talents " included Fox. Grenville pushed through
22568-521: The offer, guided by his mother and her confidant, Lord Bute , who later served as prime minister . George's mother, now the Dowager Princess of Wales, preferred to keep George at home where she could imbue him with her strict moral values. In 1759, George was smitten with Lady Sarah Lennox , sister of Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond , but Lord Bute advised against the match and George abandoned his thoughts of marriage. "I am born for
22750-708: The parents and school staff by the Red Hand Defenders , a loyalist paramilitary group. Fears of the Catholic Church were quite strong in the 19th century, especially among Presbyterian and other Protestant Irish immigrants across Canada. In 1853, the Gavazzi Riots left 10 dead in Quebec in the wake of Catholic Irish protests against anti-Catholic speeches by ex-monk Alessandro Gavazzi . The most influential newspaper in Canada, The Globe of Toronto,
22932-745: The penalties and restrictions they faced. Anti-Catholic attitudes continued, however. In 1937, ten young men and boys, aged from 13 to 23, burned to death in a fire on a farm in Kirkintilloch , Scotland. All were seasonal workers from Achill Sound in County Mayo, Ireland. The Vanguard , the official newspaper of the Scottish Protestant League , referred to the event in the following text: Since World War II , anti-Catholic feeling in England has abated somewhat. Ecumenical dialogue between Anglicans and Catholics culminated in
23114-462: The people. However, Paul Monod has argued that "no matter how much one would like to interpret the Gordon Riots ... as economically motivated, they remain fundamentally anti-Catholic in character". Shortly after the riots had broken out, the Duke of Richmond suggested that they were directly attributable to the passing of the Quebec Act six years before, which, among other provisions, removed
23296-831: The polemicist and hymn-writer Maria De Fleury . The events at the Bank of England started a tradition where a detachment of soldiers, usually from the Brigade of Guards , would march to the bank to perform security duties. Until 1963 the duty was performed by the Guards in Home Service Dress with bearskin , though tennis shoes were worn inside the bank. From that date until 31 March 1973 the detachment became more functional than ceremonial, doing their duties in service dress with automatic weapons. George Walker 's anti- Jacobin novel The Vagabond (1799) anachronistically resituates
23478-565: The pope ( anti-papalism ), mockery of Catholic rituals , and opposition to Catholic adherents into major political themes and policies of religious discrimination and religious persecution . Major examples of groups that have targeted Catholics in recent history include Ulster loyalists in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and the second Ku Klux Klan in the United States. The anti-Catholic sentiment which resulted from this trend frequently led to religious discrimination against Catholic communities and individuals and it occasionally led to
23660-474: The pope also sought to impose secular power over them in alliance with their arch-enemies France and Spain. In 1570, Pope Pius V sought to depose Elizabeth with the papal bull Regnans in Excelsis , which declared that she was a heretic and purportedly dissolved the duty of all of Elizabeth's subjects to maintain their allegiance to her. This rendered Elizabeth's subjects who persisted in their allegiance to
23842-535: The porphyria theory and contends that George's illness was psychiatric, most probably bipolar disorder . George may have had a brief episode of disease in 1765, and a longer episode began in the summer of 1788. At the end of the parliamentary session, he went to Cheltenham Spa to recuperate and in August visited the Bishop of Worcester at Hartlebury Castle and Viscount Mount Edgcumbe at Cotehele , Cornwall, with
24024-515: The protagonist Richard Sharpe's mother was killed during the riots while he was still a child. Miranda Hearn's 2003 historical novel A Life Everlasting depicts the main protagonists caught up in the riots as innocent Londoners. In the film The Great Rock'n'Roll Swindle , a scene set in 1780 refers to the Gordon Riots, showing the Sex Pistols hung in effigy. BABYLONdon , a novel by English SF/Fantasy author John Whitbourn (2020), blends
24206-409: The reference to the Protestant faith from the oath of allegiance, and guaranteed free practice of Catholicism. This view was ridiculed by many of his colleagues. Another suggested cause was Britain's weakened international position, which had arisen from the country's isolation in Europe and the disappointing news coming from the ongoing war. Some rioters were against the continuation of
24388-449: The reign of his paternal grandfather, King George II , as the first son of Frederick, Prince of Wales , and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha . Following his father's death in 1751, Prince George became heir apparent and Prince of Wales . He succeeded to the throne on George II's death in 1760. The following year, he married Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , with whom he had 15 children. George III's life and reign were marked by
24570-599: The religious oath when joining the British Armed Forces as well as granting a few and limited liberties. There were strong expedient reasons for this change. British military forces at the time were stretched very thinly in what had become a global American War of Independence, with conflicts ongoing with France, Spain, and the new United States. The recruitment of Catholics would be a significant help to address this shortfall of manpower. The 1698 anti-Catholic laws had largely been ignored for many years and were rarely enforced. Because of this, many leading Catholics were opposed to
24752-448: The remainder of the King's life. Despite signs of a recovery in May 1811, by the end of the year, George III had become permanently insane, and lived in seclusion at Windsor Castle until his death. Prime Minister Spencer Perceval was assassinated in 1812 and was replaced by Lord Liverpool . Liverpool oversaw British victory in the Napoleonic Wars. The subsequent Congress of Vienna led to significant territorial gains for Hanover, which
24934-423: The repeal of these laws, fearing it would stir up anti-Catholic sentiment for little practical return. It was also pointed out that large numbers of Catholics, recruited in Ireland and the Scottish Highlands , were already serving in the military. In spite of this, the government decided to press ahead with the Bill, and had it introduced in Parliament by Sir George Savile . The Protestant Association of London had
25116-410: The reputation of Britain across Europe, where many saw British constitutional monarchy as an inherently unstable form of government. This came at a time when Britain was searching for allies, particularly Catholic Austria, in the American War of Independence to challenge the strong coalition the French had built. Britain had also initiated secret negotiations with Catholic Spain to end Spanish support of
25298-454: The rest of Britain and Ireland. Early in 1780 Gordon had several audiences with King George III but was unable to convince him of what he saw as the dangers of the act. George III initially humoured Gordon, but grew increasingly irritated with him and eventually refused any future audiences. The political climate deteriorated rapidly. On 29 May 1780, Gordon called a meeting of the Protestant Association, and his followers subsequently marched on
25480-521: The site now occupied by Buckingham Palace ) for use as a family retreat. His other residences were Kew Palace and Windsor Castle . St James's Palace was retained for official use. He did not travel extensively and spent his entire life in southern England. In the 1790s, the King and his family took holidays at Weymouth, Dorset , which he thus popularised as one of the first seaside resorts in England. George, in his accession speech to Parliament, proclaimed: "Born and educated in this country, I glory in
25662-403: The situation in New Zealand has never been as clear as in Australia. Catholics first arrived in New Zealand in 1769, and the Church has had a continuous presence in the country from the time of permanent settlement by Irish Catholics in the 1820s, with the first Maori converted to Catholicism in the 1830s. The signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, which formalised New Zealand's status as
25844-418: The south (Florida), and protect the British fur trade with the Indians. The Proclamation Line did not bother the majority of settled farmers, but it was unpopular with a vocal minority. This discontent ultimately contributed to conflict between the colonists and the British government. With the American colonists generally unburdened by British taxes, the government thought it appropriate for them to pay towards
26026-612: The state in furtherance of papal interests. Their support of the alien pope led to allegations that they lacked loyalty to the state. In majority Protestant countries which experienced large scale immigration , such as the United States and Australia , suspicion of Catholic immigrants and/or discrimination against them frequently overlapped or was conflated with nativist , xenophobic , ethnocentric and/or racist sentiments (e.g. anti-Irish sentiment , anti-Filipino sentiment , anti-Italianism , anti-Spanish sentiment , and anti-Slavic sentiment , specifically anti-Polish sentiment ). In
26208-442: The summer break—Protestant loyalists began picketing the school, claiming that Catholics were regularly attacking their homes and denying them access to facilities. The picket resumed on 3 September, when the new school term began. For weeks, hundreds of loyalist protesters tried to stop the schoolchildren and their parents from walking to school through their area. Hundreds of riot police , backed up by British soldiers , escorted
26390-412: The support of leading Calvinist religious figures, including Rowland Hill , Erasmus Middleton , and John Rippon . Lord George Gordon became its president in 1779, in an effort to force the repeal of the Papists Act. An articulate propagandist, though eccentric, Gordon inflamed the mob with fears of Papism and a return to absolute monarchical rule . He implied that Catholics in the military would, given
26572-430: The symbol of their movement. As they marched, their numbers swelled. They attempted to force their way into the House of Commons, but without success. Gordon, petition in hand, and wearing in his hat the blue cockade of the Protestant Association, entered the Commons and presented the petition. Outside, the situation quickly got out of hand and a riot erupted. Members of the House of Lords were attacked as they arrived, and
26754-404: The time, by the age of eight. He was the first British monarch to study science systematically. Apart from chemistry and physics, his lessons included astronomy, mathematics, French, Latin, history, music, geography, commerce, agriculture and constitutional law, along with sporting and social accomplishments such as dancing, fencing and riding. His religious education was wholly Anglican . At
26936-660: The view subsequently gained widespread scholarly acceptance. A study of samples of George's hair published in 2005 revealed high levels of arsenic , a cause of metabolic blood disorders and thus a possible trigger for porphyria. The source of the arsenic is not known, but it could have been a component of medicines or cosmetics. The theory was also established in the public mind through influential dramatisations, such as Alan Bennett 's play The Madness of George III , and in Nicholas Hytner 's subsequent film . From 2010, this view has been increasingly challenged, and Macalpine and Hunter's study criticised. Recent scholarship discounts
27118-417: The war and lower bread prices. In response, Parliament passed the Treason and Seditious Meetings Acts a month later. The First Coalition to oppose revolutionary France, which included Austria, Prussia, and Spain, broke up in 1795 when Prussia and Spain made separate peace with France. The Second Coalition , which included Austria, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire , was defeated in 1800. Only Great Britain
27300-435: The war had led to falling wages, rising prices, and periodic unemployment. As Rudé noted, there was no general attack on the Catholic community, "the victims of the riots" being distinguished by the fact they were "on the whole, persons of substance". Voting in parliamentary elections was restricted by a property threshold, so most Londoners were unable to vote and many hoped for reforms to make Parliament more representative of
27482-505: The war in limited fashion in 1779. One faction of the Dutch Republic aided the Americans, whereas another aided Britain, whose allies included Loyalists and German auxiliaries . Lord Gower and Lord Weymouth both resigned from the government. Lord North again requested that he also be allowed to resign, but he stayed in office at George III's insistence. During the summer of 1779, a combined French-Spanish naval fleet threatened to invade England and transport 31,000 French troops across
27664-465: The war, and many strongly supported American independence, while others were angry that Britain's war effort was being mishandled by Lord North . In many cases a mix of issues blended together and drove people to take part in the rioting. On 2 June 1780 a huge crowd, estimated at 40,000 to 60,000 strong, assembled and marched on the Houses of Parliament. Many carried flags and banners proclaiming " No Popery ", and most wore blue cockades which had become
27846-416: The years from 1763 to 1775 tends to exonerate George III from any real responsibility for the American Revolution ." Though both the Americans and older British historians characterised George as a tyrant, in these years he acted as a constitutional monarch supporting the initiatives of his ministers. The American War of Independence was the culmination of the civil and political American Revolution . In
28028-434: The young Jewish woman at the centre of the love story. Charles Dickens ' 1841 novel Barnaby Rudge is centered on a long and detailed description of the Gordon Riots and features Lord George in a prominent role. John Creasey 's 1974 novel The Masters of Bow Street depicts the Gordon Riots and the recalcitrance of Lord North to the establishment of a police force. In Bernard Cornwell 's Sharpe novels (1981–2007),
28210-408: Was "an insoluble opposition between the Christian and a heroic-German world view". Hitler's chosen deputy, Martin Bormann, was a rigid guardian of Nazi orthodoxy and saw Christianity and Nazism as "incompatible", as did the official Nazi philosopher, Alfred Rosenberg , who wrote in Myth of the Twentieth Century (1930) that the Catholic Church were among the chief enemies of the Germans. In 1934,
28392-453: Was "one tax to keep up the right [to levy taxes]". In 1773, the tea ships moored in Boston Harbor were boarded by colonists and the tea was thrown overboard, an event that became known as the Boston Tea Party . In Britain, opinion hardened against the colonists, with Chatham now agreeing with North that the destruction of the tea was "certainly criminal". With the clear support of Parliament, Lord North introduced measures, which were called
28574-412: Was a devout Catholic. She tried to reverse the Reformation during her five years as Queen (1553-1558), marrying the Catholic king of Spain and executing Protestant leaders. Protestants reviled her as "Bloody Mary". Anti-Catholicism among many of the English was not only grounded in their fear that the pope sought to reimpose religio-spiritual authority over England, it was also grounded in their fear that
28756-438: Was a favorite target of attack. After the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789, anti-clerical forces gained strength in some primarily Catholic nations, such as France, Spain, Mexico, and certain regions of Italy (especially in Emilia-Romagna ). Certain political parties in these historically Catholic regions subscribed to and propagated an internal form of anti-Catholicism, generally known as anti-clericalism, that expressed
28938-418: Was a rebellion against the natural law of selection by struggle and the survival of the fittest ". For political reasons, Hitler was prepared to restrain his anti-clericalism, seeing danger in strengthening the Church by persecuting it, but he intended to wage a show-down against it after the war. Joseph Goebbels, the Minister for Propaganda, led the Nazi persecution of the Catholic clergy and wrote that there
29120-456: Was a secular ideology, founded on modern science: "Science, he declared, would easily destroy the last remaining vestiges of superstition". Germany could not tolerate the intervention of foreign influences such as the Pope and "Priests, he said, were 'black bugs', 'abortions in black cassocks ' ". Nazi ideology desired the subordination of the Church to the State and could not accept an autonomous establishment, whose legitimacy did not spring from
29302-460: Was a violent anti-Catholic riot in London against the Papists Act of 1778 . Passed by Parliament , the new law was supposed to reduce official discrimination against British Catholics . Lord George Gordon , head of the Protestant Association, warned that the law would enable Catholics who were serving in the British Army to become a dangerous threat. The protest evolved into riots and widespread looting . Local magistrates feared reprisals and as
29484-406: Was again expelled from Parliament. He was re-elected and expelled twice more, before the House of Commons resolved that his candidature was invalid and declared the runner-up as the victor. Grafton's government disintegrated in 1770, allowing the Tories led by Lord North to return to power. George was deeply devout and spent hours in prayer, but his piety was not shared by his brothers. George
29666-408: Was appalled by what he saw as their loose morals. In 1770, his brother Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn , was exposed as an adulterer. The following year, Henry married a young widow, Anne Horton . The King considered her inappropriate as a royal bride: she was from a lower social class and German law barred any children of the couple from the Hanoverian succession. George insisted on
29848-425: Was appointed American minister to London in 1785, by which time George had become resigned to the new relationship between his country and the former colonies. He told Adams, "I was the last to consent to the separation; but the separation having been made and having become inevitable, I have always said, as I say now, that I would be the first to meet the friendship of the United States as an independent power." With
30030-462: Was at first welcomed by politicians of all parties, the first years of his reign were marked by political instability, largely as a result of disagreements over the Seven Years' War . George came to be perceived as favouring Tory ministers, which led to his denunciation by the Whigs as an autocrat . On his accession, the Crown lands produced relatively little income; most revenue was generated through taxes and excise duties. George surrendered
30212-418: Was born in Norfolk House in St James's Square , London, on 4 June 1738. He was a grandson of King George II and the eldest son of Frederick, Prince of Wales , and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha . As he was born two months prematurely, and thought unlikely to survive, he was baptised the same day by Thomas Secker , who was both Rector of St James's Church, Piccadilly , and Bishop of Oxford . One month later, he
30394-437: Was called out on 7 June and given orders to fire upon groups of four or more who refused to disperse. About 285 people were shot dead, with another 200 wounded. Around 450 of the rioters were arrested. Of those arrested, about twenty or thirty were later tried and executed. Gordon was arrested and charged with high treason but was acquitted. Brackley Kennett, the Lord Mayor, was convicted of criminal negligence for not reading out
30576-427: Was dismayed and disappointed. By this time, George's health was deteriorating. He had a mental illness characterised by acute mania . Until the mid-20th century, the King's illness was generally considered to be psychological. In 1966, a study by Ida Macalpine and Richard Hunter suggested that the illness was physiological, caused by the liver disorder porphyria . Although meeting with some contemporary opposition,
30758-402: Was dissolved, and the subsequent election gave the ministry a strong majority in the House of Commons. George III made no further major political decisions during his reign; the replacement of Portland by Perceval in 1809 was of little real significance. In late 1810, at the height of his popularity, King George, already virtually blind with cataracts and in pain from rheumatism , suffered
30940-433: Was divided in two, with the eastern half (from the Allegheny Mountains to the Mississippi River ) ceded to Britain and the western half, plus the city of New Orleans , ceded to Spain. Later that year, the Royal Proclamation of 1763 placed a limit upon the westward expansion of the American colonies and created an Indian reserve . The Proclamation aimed to divert colonial expansion to the north (to Nova Scotia ) and to
31122-423: Was edited by George Brown , a Presbyterian immigrant from Ireland who ridiculed and denounced the Catholic Church, Jesuits , priests, nunneries, etc. Irish Protestants remained a political force until the 20th century. Many belonged to the Orange Order , an anti-Catholic organization with chapters across Canada that was most powerful during the late 19th century. A key leader was Dalton McCarthy (1836–1898),
31304-496: Was elevated from an electorate to a kingdom . Meanwhile, George's health deteriorated. He developed dementia , and became completely blind and increasingly deaf. He was incapable of knowing or understanding that he was declared King of Hanover in 1814, or that his wife died in 1818. At Christmas 1819, he spoke nonsense for 58 hours, and for the last few weeks of his life was unable to walk. He died of pneumonia at Windsor Castle at 8:38 pm on 29 January 1820, six days after
31486-568: Was exacerbated by the imposition of anti-Catholic laws. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the penal laws prohibited Irish Catholics from either purchasing or leasing land, from voting, from holding political office, from living either within 5 miles (8 km) away from a corporate town, from obtaining an education, from entering a profession, and doing many of the other things which a person needed to do in order to succeed and prosper in society. The laws had largely been reformed by 1793, and in 1829, Irish Catholics could again sit in parliament following
31668-403: Was fond of his children and was devastated at the death of two of his sons in infancy, in 1782 and 1783 respectively. Nevertheless, he set his children a strict regimen. They were expected to attend rigorous lessons from seven in the morning and to lead lives of religious observance and virtue. When his children strayed from George's principles of righteousness, as his sons did as young adults, he
31850-493: Was inflicted on Catholic churches and homes and chapels on the grounds of several embassies, as well as on New Prison , Fleet Prison , and the house of the Lord Chief Justice, William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield . On 7 June, called "Black Wednesday" by Horace Walpole , the riot reached its climax. An attempt on the Bank of England was narrowly averted when a combination of the London Military Association and regular troops repulsed rioters, resulting in heavy casualties. The army
32032-403: Was left fighting Napoleon Bonaparte , the First Consul of the French Republic . A brief lull in hostilities allowed Pitt to concentrate effort on Ireland, where there had been an uprising and attempted French landing in 1798. In 1800, the British and Irish Parliaments passed an Act of Union that took effect on 1 January 1801 and united Great Britain and Ireland into a single state, known as
32214-452: Was long a sore point, until the matter was resolved by the Irish War of Independence . Limited freedom of belief is protected by Section 116 of the Constitution of Australia , but sectarianism in Australia was prominent (though generally nonviolent) in the 20th century, flaring during the First World War , again reflecting Ireland's place within the Empire, and the Catholic minority remained subject to discrimination and suspicion. During
32396-495: Was no repression until the government finally sent in the army, resulting in an estimated 300–700 deaths. The main violence lasted until 9 June 1780. The riots occurred near the height of the American War of Independence , when Britain, with no major allies, was fighting American rebels, France, and Spain. Public opinion, especially in middle-class and elite circles, repudiated anti-Catholicism and lower-class violence, and rallied behind Lord North's government . Demands were made for
32578-403: Was open and available to scholars and was the foundation of a new national library. In May 1762, the incumbent Whig government of Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle , was replaced with one led by Lord Bute, a Scottish Tory. Bute's opponents worked against him by spreading the calumny that he was having an affair with the King's mother, and by exploiting anti-Scottish sentiment amongst
32760-671: Was publicly baptised at Norfolk House, again by Secker. His godparents were King Frederick I of Sweden (for whom Lord Baltimore stood proxy), his uncle Frederick III, Duke of Saxe-Gotha (for whom Lord Carnarvon stood proxy), and his great-aunt Sophia Dorothea, Queen in Prussia (for whom Lady Charlotte Edwin stood proxy). George grew into a healthy, reserved and shy child. The family moved to Leicester Square , where George and his younger brother Edward (later Duke of York and Albany ) were educated together by private tutors. Family letters show that he could read and write in both English and German, as well as comment on political events of
32942-400: Was replaced by more conciliatory Pope Leo XIII who negotiated away most of the anti-Catholic laws beginning in 1880. Bismarck himself broke with the anti-Catholic Liberals and worked with the Catholic Centre Party to fight Socialism. Pope Leo officially declared the end of the Kulturkampf on 23 May 1887. The Catholic Church faced repression in Nazi Germany (1933–1945). Hitler despised
33124-424: Was replaced by the Fox–North Coalition . Portland became prime minister, with Fox and Lord North, as foreign secretary and home secretary respectively. The King disliked Fox intensely, for his politics as well as his character: he thought Fox unprincipled and a bad influence on the Prince of Wales. George III was distressed at having to appoint ministers not of his liking, but the Portland ministry quickly built up
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