George III of Great Britain: Popular with the people, but not in ParliamentAlthough history has labeled King George III of Great Britain primarily as the "madman" responsible for America's loss, a closer look at the 1780s, the heart of his reign, shows that George III was a particularly effective monarch rather than the bungling idiot that some scholars have dubbed him. George III's effectiveness, during the 1780s, stemmed from his immense popularity with the common people, which was in direct contrast to his lack of popularity with Parliament. The popularity George III enjoyed among the masses was largely due to his personal integrity and moral character, and his lack of popularity with Parliament was the result of his desire to reclaim the monarchical power lost during the reigns of George I and II. George III held with the masses should first be considered in the light of his Hanoverian predecessors. Neither George I nor George II held the British throne in high regard. Indeed, George I, the first of the Hanoverian monarchs, regarded his accession to the British throne as little more than an opportunity to "enhance his prestige among the other Electors of the Holy Roman Empire" (Clark and Ridley 13). He also saw England as a means, with considerable resources, to ensure the security of his beloved Hanover. This attitude of ambivalence led George Is to leave the task of governing Britain to Parliament while the king acted as little more than a figurehead. George II acted similarly, leaving the main government of Great Britain to Parliament and failing to be a truly active monarch, instead devoting his attentions to wine and women rather than the politics of the day. It goes without saying that George III's wish... middle of paper... is a private funeral. And “shops throughout England, Scotland and Wales closed for the occasion which spawned a vast array of sermons and homilies on the 'holy remains of our dear king'” (Colley 94). King George III died a beloved and respected monarch whose popularity was unmatched in his time. Works Cited Bloy, Marjie. "The Age of George III." A web of English history. July 2003. November 10, 2003 .Brooke, John. King George III. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1972. Clarke, John and Jasper Ridley. The houses of Hanover and Saxe-Coburg Gotha. Los Angeles: Cassell & Co, 2000. Colley, Linda. “The Apotheosis of George III: Loyalty, Kingship and the British Nation 1760-1820.” Past and Present No. (February 1984), 94-129.White, R.J. The Age of George III. New York: Walker and Company, 1968.