He is best remembered for being the father of King George III, but Frederick, Prince of Wales was an interesting character for several reasons. Born in Germany in 1707, Frederick was a divisive figure who feuded with his parents, encouraged his wife to behave incorrectly and died before he could succeed his father.

As he was heavily in debt, Frederick made it clear that he would marry any bride that his father, King George II, decided was suitable for him. This stemmed from a wish to obtain an additional allowance from Parliament to be financially independent of his father.

He married 16-year-old Princess Augusta in 1763, and what followed was nothing short of unbelievable.

Due to her young age and inexperience, Princess Augusta could regularly be seen playing with her dolls in the window of her residence. Taking advantage of her youth, Frederick had his mistress at the time, Lady Archibald Hamilton, installed as his wife’s First Lady of the Bedchamber.

While Frederick and Augusta would have nine children, the last of which was not born until after the prince died over 270 years ago on March 31, 1751, the birth of their first child, Princess Augusta, was eventful.

It took place at St James’s Palace after the Princess of Wales was forced by Frederick to travel from Hampton Court Palace while she was in labour, to not allow his parents to be present at the birth after his mother, Queen Caroline, had said she wished to witness the birth to ensure the new arrival was genuine.

The baby’s arrival was traumatic as St James’s Palace was not ready to receive the royal couple, and there were no beds prepared. As a result, so Augusta was forced to give birth on a tablecloth.

There were several other examples of Frederick giving his young wife strange instructions. Not only would he instruct her to snub the King and Queen when she saw them, he was force her to arrive after the Queen to public events – a clear breach of protocol as the most senior guests always arrive last.

On watching how her son treated Augusta, Queen Caroline once said of her daughter-in-law: “Poor creature, were she to spit in my face, I should only pity her for being under such a fool’s direction, and wipe it off.”

When Frederick died unexpectedly, Augusta was the mother of eight—soon to be nine—young children: Augusta, George (the future King George III), Edward, Elizabeth, William, Henry, Louisa, Frederick, and Caroline.

She relied upon the pity and mercy of her father-in-law, who had not been left emotional following the death of his son. While she largely retreated from public life, when she did appear, she was granted a senior place near the King and the Queen and was put forth as a potential regent for her son, George, if he had succeeded to the throne before the age of 18.

George became King following the death of his grandfather in 1760 and Augusta had a great deal of political influence over her son. She also had a difficult relationship with her daughter-in-law, Queen Charlotte, and made it very difficult for her to establish her place within the court.

Augusta died at the age of 52 of throat cancer at Carlton House and is buried in Westminster Abbey. Her character is played by Michelle Fairley in Netflix‘s Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story.