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Lot Essay
THE ROYAL PLATE OF HANOVER
Following the death of King William IV of Great Britain and Hanover in 1837, the thrones of Britain and Hanover, untied by King George I, were divided once more. Queen Victoria succeeded her uncle to the throne of Great Britain and Ireland and the Hanover passed to her uncle, King William IV’s brother, Prince Ernst Augustus, Duke of Cumberland (1771-1851), as German Salic Law prevented a woman succeeding to the throne of Hanover. Whilst being unpopular in England, largely on account of his professed dislike of 'liberal notions', the Duke of Cumberland’s departure from Britain was seen as an opportunity for rejoicing, however, his rule of Hanover was regarded by his subjects as a considerable improvement on that of his absentee predecessors. A large quantity of Royal silver was returned to Hanover together with much other English Royal silver.
The threat of looting by Napoleon motivated King George III to transfer much of the Royal Plate of Hanover to London. Sent by way of St Petersburg, much of the silver and silver-gilt was eventually put on display in Windsor Castle. The Hanoverian plate together with the British Royal silver was the centerpiece of 'Their Majestie's Grand Fête at Windsor Castle', as described in The Gentleman's Magazine for 1805: 'This evening their Majesties gave a most magnificent entertainment at Windsor Castle. It has been in contemplation since they first went to reside in the Castle: when his Majesty was determined to have what is generally termed among good old English customs, a house warming...The assembled guests admired the new works and the wealth of riches brought from Hanover. Much comment was made of silver on show throughout the castle. "The whole service of plate displayed this night was supposed to be the most magnificent in Europe.'
The silver returned to Hanover once the threat posed by Napoleon's forces had passed. Later on, Hanover was sacked by Prussian troops, yet the Royal plate was preserved in a concealed vault camouflaged by heaps of lime rubble. King George V’s son revived the title of Duke of Cumberland and, deprived of the throne of Hanover, lived in exile at Gmunden in Austria. Towards the end of his life he was in the process of negotiation the sale of much of the Royal Hanoverian silver. The Duke died on 14 November 1923 and at some point the next year a considerable part of the Hanover silver, presumably including the present dinner plates, was purchased by the Viennese dealer Gluckselig and it appears to have been, at least in part, resold to London dealers Crichton Brothers, who opened an exhibition of The Cumberland Silver in November 1923.
Following the death of King William IV of Great Britain and Hanover in 1837, the thrones of Britain and Hanover, untied by King George I, were divided once more. Queen Victoria succeeded her uncle to the throne of Great Britain and Ireland and the Hanover passed to her uncle, King William IV’s brother, Prince Ernst Augustus, Duke of Cumberland (1771-1851), as German Salic Law prevented a woman succeeding to the throne of Hanover. Whilst being unpopular in England, largely on account of his professed dislike of 'liberal notions', the Duke of Cumberland’s departure from Britain was seen as an opportunity for rejoicing, however, his rule of Hanover was regarded by his subjects as a considerable improvement on that of his absentee predecessors. A large quantity of Royal silver was returned to Hanover together with much other English Royal silver.
The threat of looting by Napoleon motivated King George III to transfer much of the Royal Plate of Hanover to London. Sent by way of St Petersburg, much of the silver and silver-gilt was eventually put on display in Windsor Castle. The Hanoverian plate together with the British Royal silver was the centerpiece of 'Their Majestie's Grand Fête at Windsor Castle', as described in The Gentleman's Magazine for 1805: 'This evening their Majesties gave a most magnificent entertainment at Windsor Castle. It has been in contemplation since they first went to reside in the Castle: when his Majesty was determined to have what is generally termed among good old English customs, a house warming...The assembled guests admired the new works and the wealth of riches brought from Hanover. Much comment was made of silver on show throughout the castle. "The whole service of plate displayed this night was supposed to be the most magnificent in Europe.'
The silver returned to Hanover once the threat posed by Napoleon's forces had passed. Later on, Hanover was sacked by Prussian troops, yet the Royal plate was preserved in a concealed vault camouflaged by heaps of lime rubble. King George V’s son revived the title of Duke of Cumberland and, deprived of the throne of Hanover, lived in exile at Gmunden in Austria. Towards the end of his life he was in the process of negotiation the sale of much of the Royal Hanoverian silver. The Duke died on 14 November 1923 and at some point the next year a considerable part of the Hanover silver, presumably including the present dinner plates, was purchased by the Viennese dealer Gluckselig and it appears to have been, at least in part, resold to London dealers Crichton Brothers, who opened an exhibition of The Cumberland Silver in November 1923.