The Hanoverian Dimension in British History, 1714-1837

Description

For more than 120 years (1714-1837) Great Britain was linked to the German Electorate, later Kingdom, of Hanover through Personal Union. This made Britain a continental European state in many respects, and diluted her sense of insular apartness. The geopolitical focus of Britain was now as much on Germany, on the Elbe and the Weser as it was on the Channel or overseas. At the same time, the Hanoverian connection was a major and highly controversial factor in British high politics and popular political debate. This volume was the first systematically to explore the subject by a team of experts drawn from the UK, US and Germany. They integrate the burgeoning specialist literature on aspects of the Personal Union into the broader history of eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century Britain. Never before had the impact of the Hanoverian connection on British politics, monarchy and the public sphere, been so thoroughly investigated.

Brendan Simms is Reader in the History of International Relations at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Peterhouse. His previous publications include The Struggle for Mastery in Germany, 1779-1850 (1998) and Unfinest Hour. Britain and the Destruction of Bosnia (2001). Torsten Riotte is a Research Fellow at the German Historical Institute in London. His research interests also cover the late nineteenth century with a focus on dynastic networks in Europe during the Victorian age.

Review of the hardback: '... successfully (re)inserts Hanover as an essential force in the formulation of British politics, culture, and foreign policy at a key stage in their developments.' H-German