When you think of King George III, you probably think of the "Mad King" or the guy who lost the American colonies. But there’s a much more personal, heartbreaking side to his story that usually gets skipped over in history class. It involves a toddler named Prince Alfred of Great Britain, the fourteenth child of George and Queen Charlotte.
Most people haven't heard of him. He didn’t lead armies or marry a Russian Grand Duchess. Honestly, he didn’t even make it to his second birthday. But his death, and the way it happened, basically broke the royal family. If you want to understand why George III eventually spiraled into mental health struggles, you have to look at what happened in the nursery, not just the throne room.
The "Blue Baby" of Windsor
Alfred was born at Windsor Castle on September 22, 1780. Right from the start, things weren't great. He was what doctors back then called a "blue baby," which sounds like he had a heart defect or some kind of respiratory issue. He was delicate. Fragile. Not the kind of robust royal heir the public expected.
Despite being the fourteenth kid, his parents were obsessed with him. You’d think by child number fourteen, you’d be a bit "been there, done that," but George III and Charlotte were actually very hands-on parents. They loved the domestic life. Alfred was their "little one," and because he was so sickly, they were even more protective of him.
By 1782, the family decided they needed to do something about the smallpox threat. It was the 18th century’s version of a nightmare. They chose to have Alfred inoculated. This wasn't the modern vaccine we know today; it was "variolation," where they basically gave you a tiny dose of the actual disease to hope your body learned to fight it.
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It backfired.
Prince Alfred of Great Britain and the Smallpox Tragedy
In June 1782, Alfred was taken to Deal, a town by the sea, because the doctors thought the salt air might help him recover from the inoculation. It didn't. He got worse. He had these long bouts of fever and had trouble breathing.
His nurse, Lady Charlotte Finch, reported that the poor kid was just wasting away. When he was finally brought back to Windsor in August, the doctors admitted he only had a few weeks left. He died on August 20, 1782. He was one month shy of turning two.
Here is the kicker: there was no formal mourning. In those days, the court didn't officially mourn for children under the age of seven. It sounds harsh, right? But while the court stayed "business as usual," the King and Queen were absolutely wrecked.
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"I am very sorry for Alfred; but had it been Octavius, I should have died too."
That’s a real quote from George III. Octavius was Alfred’s three-year-old brother and the King's absolute favorite. It sounds a bit mean to Alfred, but it shows just how much George was leaning on his remaining sons to get through the grief.
Then, less than a year later, Octavius died from the exact same thing—a smallpox inoculation.
The Long Shadow of a Short Life
You can’t talk about Prince Alfred of Great Britain without talking about the King’s "madness." Later in life, when George III had his famous mental breakdowns, he didn't just ramble about politics. He had hallucinations. He specifically had visions of his two youngest sons, Alfred and Octavius.
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He’d talk to them as if they were still there in the room. It’s incredibly sad when you realize that even decades later, the loss of these two little boys was still a primary fracture in his mind.
Alfred was initially buried at Westminster Abbey. But in 1820, after George III finally passed away, they moved Alfred’s remains to the Royal Vault at St. George's Chapel in Windsor. He was finally "home" with his father.
Why This Matters Now
It’s easy to look at historical figures as names on a page, but the story of Alfred reminds us that the "most powerful people in the world" were still just parents losing a child to a medical procedure they thought would save him.
If you’re researching the Hanoverian era or visiting Windsor, keep an eye out for the smaller stories. The big wars are important, sure, but the personal tragedies shaped the people who ran the world.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Visit the Royal Collection online: You can actually find miniatures of Prince Alfred. They were commissioned by the Queen because she wanted to remember his face. Look for the one often attributed to the artist Anne Mee.
- Contextualize George III: Next time you watch a documentary on his "madness," look for references to his children. It adds a whole new layer of empathy to his condition.
- Explore St. George’s Chapel: If you're ever in Windsor, remember that the Royal Vault houses more than just the "famous" kings and queens; it’s a family plot for those like Alfred who never got to grow up.