George I was German and before the Act of Settlement which prevented Catholics being monarchs he was only 58th in line to the throne. He was though the first protestant in line so despite never having been to England, being quite old and not speaking English he became the King. He didn’t spend much time in England and had to speak French or Latin as no one in England spoke German. He kept his wife imprisoned in a castle in Germany until she died 30 years later and their son, George II, probably never saw her from the age of 11. During his reign there were a number of times the Stuarts wanted to reclaim the throne.

George I appointed Robert Walpole as the first ‘prime minister’ and the King had less power. The government had got into trouble financially with investments in the South Sea Bubble and Robert Walpole came and restored the public’s confidence.