You may remember we left off with Mary II and William III. They were co-rulers, but had no heirs.... when William III (Orange) died, rule then passed to a frumpy, chubby, dour woman.... Mary's little sister, Anne. Anne, or "Anna Gloriana" as she was later known, would become one of England's most powerful monarchs... a mark of a time of growing glory... but strangely, she was the final British monarch of England... the last of the Stuart line... and a personally tragic woman.
I give you, Queen Anne of not only England... but Great Britain.
-Was born in 1665, fourth child and second daughter of James Stuart (later James II.)
- All her brothers died before adulthood, leaving her and Mary the only surviving children of a man who was never expected to be king. Needless to say, Anne was never even remotely considered a candidate to the throne.
- She was a sickly child, prone to eye infections and excessive watering of the eyes. She was sent to the warmer climes of France to live, but that only lasted until her aunt, who she was living with, died. She returned to England, only to have her mother die soon after she returned.
- Her uncle, Charles II, insisted that she and her siblings be brought up Anglican. She received little in the way of education, other than Anglicanism, reading and writing, and some basic maths. She grew up into a pretty teen, but not known for her wit or charm. She was, by all accounts, mediocre in most ways.
- As a teen, she became close friends with a girl named Sarah Jennings. Sarah would go on to marry John Churchill. Sarah was intelligent in all the ways Anne wasn't. Sarah was charming, understood people, and was a good friend for the rather plain Anne. The two became nigh on inseparable, the very picture of best friends.
- Anne was closer to her father than Mary, and remained close even after James converted to Catholicism. There is every indication that Anne was close to her Catholic stepmother as well. When James had more children, Anne was quite content to be a dutiful older sister... however, all those children died too... most were stillborn.
- Many people were considered for a husband for Anne. George of Hanover (the man who would succeed her,) was briefly considered, but House Hanover had other plans in mind. Eventually, James settled on the prince of Denmark, George. He did this for one main reason... he detested the ambition of his other son-in-law, William of Orange, and sought an alliance with Denmark against the Dutch. (As we know, his suspicions were correct.)
Also, the Danes were allies with Catholic France, who supported James.
- Although the marriage was political, it seems to have grown into a loving marriage. Anne and George of Denmark got along well, Anne's friend Sarah Churchill was appointed as her lady of the bedchamber, and Anne was soon pregnant... things were happy for Anne.
- Her first child was stillborn. This saddened Anne immensely, but she soon had two more daughters, Mary and Anne Sophia.
- When her father became king, a rift started to grow between them. James II wanted Anne to become Catholic, now that Charles II was gone. He insisted she baptize her daughter into the Catholic church. Anne publicly burst into tears at the order. She refused, and soon she and her father were no longer on speaking terms. She turned to her sister, now living in the Netherlands, for moral support.
- At this point, Anne seems to have grown more bitter and hateful. She kept miscarrying, while her stepmother suddenly grew pregnant. (With James Francis, AKA the "old pretender.") Anne believed that the pregnancy of her stepmother was a lie, and that a peasant boy was brought in to be her "child." Her letters to her sister became hateful and suspicious, as if Anne were beginning to lose her mind.
- In a bit of irony, James brought together 40 witnesses to attest that his wife had brought a child to term, and the pregnancy was not false. He ordered Anne to attend the meeting to refute, if she dared. Anne refused to come, claiming she was pregnant and too sick to attend... although that was an outright lie. It is unknown if Anne was being ironic on purpose or not. When James sent the depositions to her to read for herself, she threw them away, saying it was "Unnecessary," as no matter what, little prince James was now the heir to the throne.
- Anne's own children were deeply loved, but died young. Her two daughters died ages 2 and 1 due to a smallpox outbreak. Anne would continue to feverishly try to have children... she was nearly always pregnant.
Luckily, in 1789, she had one son, William, who was a seemingly healthy little boy. Anne doted on him constantly, as he was, at the time, second in line after little prince James.
- Betrayed her father in the Glorious Revolution. When James II found out that Anne had left to join her sister and brother-in-law, he was inconsolable. "Alas, my own children forsake me!" he said. Anne had grown to detest James for his increasingly strong Catholicism and her increasingly strong paranoia.
- When she was told her father had fled and her sister had taken over, Anne nonchalantly asked to play a card game. She had no intention of fretting over politics. After all, her father had abdicated in favor of Mary, who was surely going to have a son... Anne herself had her son very soon after... and all was well... for a few weeks.
- Mary and William became suspicious of Anne. They feared her ability to start her own rival court, and effectively cut her and her husband off from court. This infuriated Anne, who stopped speaking to Mary. Mary refused to give Anne an allowance, and William refused to let George have an active role in anything. Anne bitterly complained, but Mary was unmoved.
- During this time, Anne and Sarah Churchill became even closer. They even called each other by pet names, "Mrs. Morley," and "Mrs. Freeman." They enjoyed card games, gambling, and tea parties together nearly every day.
- Meanwhile, Sarah had become a political rival to Mary. Mary stripped Sarah's husband of status and lands, and the Churchills were ruined. Mary told Anne to break off her friendship to Sarah Churchill, which Anne, of course, refused. Mary and Anne would not talk again, save for one sad occasion. Anne once again had miscarried... and was deathly ill. Mary arrived at her bedside... but rather than comfort Anne, she angrily berated and mocked her for still trusting in Sarah. The two would never speak again. Mary died of smallpox, leaving William III in charge.
- William and Anne reconciled, but William never trusted Anne, refusing to let her anywhere near the government, for fear of the Churchills gaining power. Even though John Churchill was given back his land and titles, he was always mistrusted by William.
- In 1700 a double disaster struck. Anne miscarried again, and her 17th pregnancy would be her last. Then, her only living child, William, died of a sudden fever at the age of 11. Anne was devastated beyond all comfort. She wailed, refused to get out of bed, and cried constantly. Her husband was a source of comfort during this time, and she resumed her duties as princess.. and now heir to the throne.
- Parliament was now in panic mode. William wasn't going to have any kids with Mary, since she was dead... and it was clear that Anne was not likely to have any kids. In 1701, Parliament declared that no Catholic, nor anyone married to a Catholic, could be the monarch of England. This meant that, after Anne, an amazing SIXTY ONE HEIRS would be passed over... next in line was Sophia, an aging Electress of Hanover. She had one son, Georg Louis. (Who had once been entertained as the husband of Anne.) Sophia was amazed, but Georg was less than interested.
- This act came just in time. In 1703, William was dead. Anne was crowned Queen of England. Now obese, and suffering from gout, and most likely diabetes and lupus, Anne had to be carried to the ceremony. Nevertheless, the people loved her, and celebrations carried on for days. Anne tried hard to be the queen the people wanted... but her health was so bad, she could do little personally except gain more weight. (which she did, constantly.) Pictures of Anne were painted off of older portraits of her. In actuality, it is said, she looked terrible.
- Up to this time, Scotland was subordinate to England, but had its own government. That government now wanted more freedom. (again.) In particular, they wanted to reinstate their own chosen royal line, since it was apparent that the Stuarts were going to die out. At first, Anne refused, but the Scottish parliament threatened embargoes and sanctions, and Anne was forced to sign. This was all Parliament needed to nail Scotland to the wall. English government demanded that Scotland either repeal this agreement, unite with England, or England would boycott SCOTLAND, instead. Scotland realized too late that while England could survive without them, Scotland could not survive economically without England. Scotland begrudgingly joined with England in 1707. Anne, for her part, was kind to the Scots, and the transition went relatively smoothly. Now the Queen of Great Britain, with only 1 great parliament to deal with, Anne's troubled life had gotten a bit easier.
- Also during this time, England's two party system was starting to really form. Anne favored the Tories, as she was fairly devout, and the Tories represented the Anglicans. However, her friend, Sarah Churchill, favored the Whig party, who generally represented business and dissenting voices in the church. Anne and Sarah's friendship, the only thing really sustaining Anne, began to disintegrate. The saw each other less, and complained at each other when they did meet.
- As Anne grew tired of Churchill and her Whig husband, the duke of Marlborough, she fell in closer to the Tory speaker of the House of Commons, Harley, and a new mistress of the bedchamber, Abigail Hill. Politics wasn't a game Anne was particularly good at, though. The Whigs threw down the gauntlet... if Anne continued to support Abigail and Harley, the Whigs would simply stop cooperating, and not come to work anymore. Faced with a government shutdown, Anne was forced to dismiss Harley.
- Anne now faced another crisis... her half brother, James the pretender, was threatening to invade. This "Jacobite Revolution" was a great fear among the English. In an effort to curtail Scotland, Anne vetoed a bill allowing a stronger militia in Scotland. This was the last time a monarch would ever exercise their right to veto a parliamentary bill.
- James the Pretender was chased away, securing Anne's place on the throne, but by now the Whigs had whipped up the fear into a frenzy, and had gained many seats in parliament. The Tories were forced to retreat and lick their wounds. Anne's support was drying up.
- To add insult to injury, Sarah Churchill turned on Anne completely. Sarah was insulted that Anne had a new "best friend" in Abigail Hill. Sarah and Anne's womanly squabbles would become the stuff of legend. Sarah, far more savvy and witty, outpaced the fat old queen at every turn.
- Sarah flew into a rage when Abigail moved into rooms that she considered "hers." (Never mind that Anne owned ALL the rooms, and that Sarah hadn't stayed in any of those rooms for years!) Sarah publicly read a poem that insinuated that Anne and Abigail were lesbian lovers, and said that she was "concerned" for the amount of power Abigail had over her "dear friend, Anne." The courts and the social elite ate this petty drama up like pudding, and it became the scandal of the time. Anne was heartbroken. (In all likelihood, Abigail was nothing more than a trusted servant, the relationship between Anne and Abigail was never as close as her relationship with Sarah had once been.)
-Sarah wasn't done yet. She gave Anne a gift of some jewelry, demanding that Anne wear it at a social event. Anne did not, and Sarah got into a shouting match with the queen in front of everyone in attendance. This argument culminated in Sarah ordering the queen to "Be quiet!" Anne left in angry tears.
- Anne and Sarah's relationship continued to deteriorate, loudly, in public... much to the delight of the high society of England. Anne needed Sarah, though... Sarah was her best adviser, and she was damned good at her job. Sarah was the queen's eyes and ears... but she was overstepping her bounds.
- Anne was further devastated by the death of her beloved husband in 1708. Sarah began to really show her ass at this point, dictating to Anne precisely HOW she was to grieve, permanently removing the picture of Anne's husband from the royal quarters, and demanding that Anne leave town for a time. Anne had had enough. She refused to let Sarah and her Whig friends put one of their own in the now vacant position of Lord of the Admiralty, insisting that she, Anne, could do it herself. This was, of course, silly, and Sarah let her know that, to her face.
- Anne eventually appointed a moderate to the post, but he was forced out within a year by the Whigs, and Anne finally put their man in the post. Sarah took this opportunity to AGAIN publicly mock Anne for her friendship with Abigail.
- Finally, Anne wrote to the Duke of Marlborough, instructing him to corral his wife and teach her to speak to the queen with some respect. There seems to be no indication that he did so. Anne suffered the constant mocking, teasing, and berating of Sarah, until she finally flipped out. Anne dismissed Sarah, responding to her protests with, "You said you did not want me to answer you, so I will not," and "Whatever you wish to say to me, put it in writing." On that note, Sarah was pushed out of the court, along with her husband.
- In her later years, Anne was vindicated. The Whigs supported a costly war (the war of Spanish Succession.) This made them massively unpopular with the people. As the Whigs began to lose their foothold, Anne was ruthless. She brought back Harley, did all she could to push the Whigs out of power, and rode a wave of popular support into the hearts of the British people. They began calling her "Anna Gloriana," and frumpy, dull, fat, old Anne was suddenly the "Mother of Britain." She gave Abigail Hill the duties that Sarah Churchill once enjoyed. The Tories easily won the majority in Parliamentary elections. Anne was once again in charge.
- By 1711, Anne was able to pull England out of the War of Spanish Succession. She had to make concessions, assigning 12 new peers to the House of Lords (an unprecedented amount,) to appease the Whig supporters there, but the House of Commons was firmly Tory. France recognized the Hanoverian succession (instead of the Jacobite Pretenders,) Anne was now massively popular, and Sarah and her husband were political pariahs. Britain was united, the economy was good, and the fleet of England was the envy of the world. Sadly, Anne didn't have long to enjoy it.
- By 1713, Anne was so fat and riddled with illness that she could no longer walk. She tried to stay involved in politics, dismissing Harley when it became apparent that he was too much of a drunkard to be trusted with the treasury. These late night Parliamentary sessions took a toll on her, and she began to turn seriously ill. In 1714, she suffered a massive stroke... she died soon after. It was said that "no traveler had grown so weary of their travels as she."
- After her death, she was widely slandered by Sarah Churchill, and the following reign of George of Hanover (his mother, Sophia, had died just before Anne did,) saw the return of the Churchills and their Whig supporters. However, she went down in history as a hard working, if not overly brilliant, queen. She attended more Parliamentary meetings than any other monarch of England, and proved to be tenacious, if not always successful. Today, she is often remembered with fondness. A statue of her sits outside St. Paul's Cathedral... but, as a minister once said, "It is fitting that she is depicted with her rump to the church, looking longingly at a wine shop."
I give you, Queen Anne of not only England... but Great Britain.
-Was born in 1665, fourth child and second daughter of James Stuart (later James II.)
- All her brothers died before adulthood, leaving her and Mary the only surviving children of a man who was never expected to be king. Needless to say, Anne was never even remotely considered a candidate to the throne.
- She was a sickly child, prone to eye infections and excessive watering of the eyes. She was sent to the warmer climes of France to live, but that only lasted until her aunt, who she was living with, died. She returned to England, only to have her mother die soon after she returned.
- Her uncle, Charles II, insisted that she and her siblings be brought up Anglican. She received little in the way of education, other than Anglicanism, reading and writing, and some basic maths. She grew up into a pretty teen, but not known for her wit or charm. She was, by all accounts, mediocre in most ways.
- As a teen, she became close friends with a girl named Sarah Jennings. Sarah would go on to marry John Churchill. Sarah was intelligent in all the ways Anne wasn't. Sarah was charming, understood people, and was a good friend for the rather plain Anne. The two became nigh on inseparable, the very picture of best friends.
- Anne was closer to her father than Mary, and remained close even after James converted to Catholicism. There is every indication that Anne was close to her Catholic stepmother as well. When James had more children, Anne was quite content to be a dutiful older sister... however, all those children died too... most were stillborn.
- Many people were considered for a husband for Anne. George of Hanover (the man who would succeed her,) was briefly considered, but House Hanover had other plans in mind. Eventually, James settled on the prince of Denmark, George. He did this for one main reason... he detested the ambition of his other son-in-law, William of Orange, and sought an alliance with Denmark against the Dutch. (As we know, his suspicions were correct.)
Also, the Danes were allies with Catholic France, who supported James.
- Although the marriage was political, it seems to have grown into a loving marriage. Anne and George of Denmark got along well, Anne's friend Sarah Churchill was appointed as her lady of the bedchamber, and Anne was soon pregnant... things were happy for Anne.
- Her first child was stillborn. This saddened Anne immensely, but she soon had two more daughters, Mary and Anne Sophia.
- When her father became king, a rift started to grow between them. James II wanted Anne to become Catholic, now that Charles II was gone. He insisted she baptize her daughter into the Catholic church. Anne publicly burst into tears at the order. She refused, and soon she and her father were no longer on speaking terms. She turned to her sister, now living in the Netherlands, for moral support.
- At this point, Anne seems to have grown more bitter and hateful. She kept miscarrying, while her stepmother suddenly grew pregnant. (With James Francis, AKA the "old pretender.") Anne believed that the pregnancy of her stepmother was a lie, and that a peasant boy was brought in to be her "child." Her letters to her sister became hateful and suspicious, as if Anne were beginning to lose her mind.
- In a bit of irony, James brought together 40 witnesses to attest that his wife had brought a child to term, and the pregnancy was not false. He ordered Anne to attend the meeting to refute, if she dared. Anne refused to come, claiming she was pregnant and too sick to attend... although that was an outright lie. It is unknown if Anne was being ironic on purpose or not. When James sent the depositions to her to read for herself, she threw them away, saying it was "Unnecessary," as no matter what, little prince James was now the heir to the throne.
- Anne's own children were deeply loved, but died young. Her two daughters died ages 2 and 1 due to a smallpox outbreak. Anne would continue to feverishly try to have children... she was nearly always pregnant.
Luckily, in 1789, she had one son, William, who was a seemingly healthy little boy. Anne doted on him constantly, as he was, at the time, second in line after little prince James.
- Betrayed her father in the Glorious Revolution. When James II found out that Anne had left to join her sister and brother-in-law, he was inconsolable. "Alas, my own children forsake me!" he said. Anne had grown to detest James for his increasingly strong Catholicism and her increasingly strong paranoia.
- When she was told her father had fled and her sister had taken over, Anne nonchalantly asked to play a card game. She had no intention of fretting over politics. After all, her father had abdicated in favor of Mary, who was surely going to have a son... Anne herself had her son very soon after... and all was well... for a few weeks.
- Mary and William became suspicious of Anne. They feared her ability to start her own rival court, and effectively cut her and her husband off from court. This infuriated Anne, who stopped speaking to Mary. Mary refused to give Anne an allowance, and William refused to let George have an active role in anything. Anne bitterly complained, but Mary was unmoved.
- During this time, Anne and Sarah Churchill became even closer. They even called each other by pet names, "Mrs. Morley," and "Mrs. Freeman." They enjoyed card games, gambling, and tea parties together nearly every day.
- Meanwhile, Sarah had become a political rival to Mary. Mary stripped Sarah's husband of status and lands, and the Churchills were ruined. Mary told Anne to break off her friendship to Sarah Churchill, which Anne, of course, refused. Mary and Anne would not talk again, save for one sad occasion. Anne once again had miscarried... and was deathly ill. Mary arrived at her bedside... but rather than comfort Anne, she angrily berated and mocked her for still trusting in Sarah. The two would never speak again. Mary died of smallpox, leaving William III in charge.
- William and Anne reconciled, but William never trusted Anne, refusing to let her anywhere near the government, for fear of the Churchills gaining power. Even though John Churchill was given back his land and titles, he was always mistrusted by William.
- In 1700 a double disaster struck. Anne miscarried again, and her 17th pregnancy would be her last. Then, her only living child, William, died of a sudden fever at the age of 11. Anne was devastated beyond all comfort. She wailed, refused to get out of bed, and cried constantly. Her husband was a source of comfort during this time, and she resumed her duties as princess.. and now heir to the throne.
- Parliament was now in panic mode. William wasn't going to have any kids with Mary, since she was dead... and it was clear that Anne was not likely to have any kids. In 1701, Parliament declared that no Catholic, nor anyone married to a Catholic, could be the monarch of England. This meant that, after Anne, an amazing SIXTY ONE HEIRS would be passed over... next in line was Sophia, an aging Electress of Hanover. She had one son, Georg Louis. (Who had once been entertained as the husband of Anne.) Sophia was amazed, but Georg was less than interested.
- This act came just in time. In 1703, William was dead. Anne was crowned Queen of England. Now obese, and suffering from gout, and most likely diabetes and lupus, Anne had to be carried to the ceremony. Nevertheless, the people loved her, and celebrations carried on for days. Anne tried hard to be the queen the people wanted... but her health was so bad, she could do little personally except gain more weight. (which she did, constantly.) Pictures of Anne were painted off of older portraits of her. In actuality, it is said, she looked terrible.
- Up to this time, Scotland was subordinate to England, but had its own government. That government now wanted more freedom. (again.) In particular, they wanted to reinstate their own chosen royal line, since it was apparent that the Stuarts were going to die out. At first, Anne refused, but the Scottish parliament threatened embargoes and sanctions, and Anne was forced to sign. This was all Parliament needed to nail Scotland to the wall. English government demanded that Scotland either repeal this agreement, unite with England, or England would boycott SCOTLAND, instead. Scotland realized too late that while England could survive without them, Scotland could not survive economically without England. Scotland begrudgingly joined with England in 1707. Anne, for her part, was kind to the Scots, and the transition went relatively smoothly. Now the Queen of Great Britain, with only 1 great parliament to deal with, Anne's troubled life had gotten a bit easier.
- Also during this time, England's two party system was starting to really form. Anne favored the Tories, as she was fairly devout, and the Tories represented the Anglicans. However, her friend, Sarah Churchill, favored the Whig party, who generally represented business and dissenting voices in the church. Anne and Sarah's friendship, the only thing really sustaining Anne, began to disintegrate. The saw each other less, and complained at each other when they did meet.
- As Anne grew tired of Churchill and her Whig husband, the duke of Marlborough, she fell in closer to the Tory speaker of the House of Commons, Harley, and a new mistress of the bedchamber, Abigail Hill. Politics wasn't a game Anne was particularly good at, though. The Whigs threw down the gauntlet... if Anne continued to support Abigail and Harley, the Whigs would simply stop cooperating, and not come to work anymore. Faced with a government shutdown, Anne was forced to dismiss Harley.
- Anne now faced another crisis... her half brother, James the pretender, was threatening to invade. This "Jacobite Revolution" was a great fear among the English. In an effort to curtail Scotland, Anne vetoed a bill allowing a stronger militia in Scotland. This was the last time a monarch would ever exercise their right to veto a parliamentary bill.
- James the Pretender was chased away, securing Anne's place on the throne, but by now the Whigs had whipped up the fear into a frenzy, and had gained many seats in parliament. The Tories were forced to retreat and lick their wounds. Anne's support was drying up.
- To add insult to injury, Sarah Churchill turned on Anne completely. Sarah was insulted that Anne had a new "best friend" in Abigail Hill. Sarah and Anne's womanly squabbles would become the stuff of legend. Sarah, far more savvy and witty, outpaced the fat old queen at every turn.
- Sarah flew into a rage when Abigail moved into rooms that she considered "hers." (Never mind that Anne owned ALL the rooms, and that Sarah hadn't stayed in any of those rooms for years!) Sarah publicly read a poem that insinuated that Anne and Abigail were lesbian lovers, and said that she was "concerned" for the amount of power Abigail had over her "dear friend, Anne." The courts and the social elite ate this petty drama up like pudding, and it became the scandal of the time. Anne was heartbroken. (In all likelihood, Abigail was nothing more than a trusted servant, the relationship between Anne and Abigail was never as close as her relationship with Sarah had once been.)
-Sarah wasn't done yet. She gave Anne a gift of some jewelry, demanding that Anne wear it at a social event. Anne did not, and Sarah got into a shouting match with the queen in front of everyone in attendance. This argument culminated in Sarah ordering the queen to "Be quiet!" Anne left in angry tears.
- Anne and Sarah's relationship continued to deteriorate, loudly, in public... much to the delight of the high society of England. Anne needed Sarah, though... Sarah was her best adviser, and she was damned good at her job. Sarah was the queen's eyes and ears... but she was overstepping her bounds.
- Anne was further devastated by the death of her beloved husband in 1708. Sarah began to really show her ass at this point, dictating to Anne precisely HOW she was to grieve, permanently removing the picture of Anne's husband from the royal quarters, and demanding that Anne leave town for a time. Anne had had enough. She refused to let Sarah and her Whig friends put one of their own in the now vacant position of Lord of the Admiralty, insisting that she, Anne, could do it herself. This was, of course, silly, and Sarah let her know that, to her face.
- Anne eventually appointed a moderate to the post, but he was forced out within a year by the Whigs, and Anne finally put their man in the post. Sarah took this opportunity to AGAIN publicly mock Anne for her friendship with Abigail.
- Finally, Anne wrote to the Duke of Marlborough, instructing him to corral his wife and teach her to speak to the queen with some respect. There seems to be no indication that he did so. Anne suffered the constant mocking, teasing, and berating of Sarah, until she finally flipped out. Anne dismissed Sarah, responding to her protests with, "You said you did not want me to answer you, so I will not," and "Whatever you wish to say to me, put it in writing." On that note, Sarah was pushed out of the court, along with her husband.
- In her later years, Anne was vindicated. The Whigs supported a costly war (the war of Spanish Succession.) This made them massively unpopular with the people. As the Whigs began to lose their foothold, Anne was ruthless. She brought back Harley, did all she could to push the Whigs out of power, and rode a wave of popular support into the hearts of the British people. They began calling her "Anna Gloriana," and frumpy, dull, fat, old Anne was suddenly the "Mother of Britain." She gave Abigail Hill the duties that Sarah Churchill once enjoyed. The Tories easily won the majority in Parliamentary elections. Anne was once again in charge.
- By 1711, Anne was able to pull England out of the War of Spanish Succession. She had to make concessions, assigning 12 new peers to the House of Lords (an unprecedented amount,) to appease the Whig supporters there, but the House of Commons was firmly Tory. France recognized the Hanoverian succession (instead of the Jacobite Pretenders,) Anne was now massively popular, and Sarah and her husband were political pariahs. Britain was united, the economy was good, and the fleet of England was the envy of the world. Sadly, Anne didn't have long to enjoy it.
- By 1713, Anne was so fat and riddled with illness that she could no longer walk. She tried to stay involved in politics, dismissing Harley when it became apparent that he was too much of a drunkard to be trusted with the treasury. These late night Parliamentary sessions took a toll on her, and she began to turn seriously ill. In 1714, she suffered a massive stroke... she died soon after. It was said that "no traveler had grown so weary of their travels as she."
- After her death, she was widely slandered by Sarah Churchill, and the following reign of George of Hanover (his mother, Sophia, had died just before Anne did,) saw the return of the Churchills and their Whig supporters. However, she went down in history as a hard working, if not overly brilliant, queen. She attended more Parliamentary meetings than any other monarch of England, and proved to be tenacious, if not always successful. Today, she is often remembered with fondness. A statue of her sits outside St. Paul's Cathedral... but, as a minister once said, "It is fitting that she is depicted with her rump to the church, looking longingly at a wine shop."