Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (1773-1843)

Augustus Frederick was the 9th child of King George III of the United Kingdom and his wife, Queen Charlotte, born in 1773. He was tutored at home and then, in 1786, sent to the University of Göttingen in Germany.

In 1793, while travelling in Italy, he met and married Lady Augusta Murray, daughter of the Earl of Dunmore. On their return to England, they again married in secret, without the consent of the King. Since this was illegal under the Royal Marriages Act of 1772, the marriage was annulled by the Prerogative Court in 1794, though Augustus Frederick continued to live with Lady Augusta until 1801 and they had two children. In November 1801, he was created Duke of Sussex. In 1831, he married a second time, again without the consent of the King. This marriage was to Lady Cecilia Buggin, daughter of the Earl of Arran.

Because Augustus Frederick suffered from asthma, he did not follow his brothers in pursuing a military or naval career but showed a real enthusiasm for learning and the arts, with a particular interest in biblical studies and in Hebrew. He was elected president of the Society of Arts in 1816 and held this position till his death in 1843. Between 1830 and 1838, he was also president of the Royal Society.

He assembled an outstanding library at Kensington Palace, containing around 50,000 books and manuscripts. All were picked individually to reflect the Prince’s interests and over a quarter related to theology. After his death, the library was sold at auction by Messrs. Evans in 1844.