Sophia of Hanover
1630-1714
When the House of Stuart,
which had been ruling England for several generations, ran out of
Protestant heirs, the crown was passed sideways to the House of Hanover, which
still had plenty of Protestants. Sophia was the link between the two
houses.
Sophia was the granddaughter of King James I of England. In 1658
she married Ernest Augustus of Hanover, and she eventually became the mother of
seven children. As the nearest Protestant claimant to the British
throne after Queen Anne died childless in 1702, Sophia's eldest son became King George I of England.
This
picture shows Sophia in her 30s, during the 1660s, long before she
became dynastically relevant. Sophia was 72 years old when her position in England's family tree actually became important.
SITE INDEX
