William IV of the United Kingdom

William IV (William Henry) (21 August 1765–20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death. William, the son of King George III and younger brother and successor of King George IV, was the penultimate monarch of the House of Hanover. During his youth, he served in the Royal Navy; he was afterwards nicknamed the Sailor King. His reign was one of several reforms: the poor law updated, municipal government democratised, child labour restricted and slavery abolished throughout the British Empire. The most important reform legislation of William IV's reign was the Reform Act 1832, which refashioned the British electoral system. William did not meddle in politics as much as either his brother or his father, though he did prove to be the last monarch to appoint a Prime Minister contrary to the will of Parliament (in 1834).

References

• Farnborough, T. E. May, 1st Baron. (1896). Constitutional History of England since the Accession of George the Third, 11th ed. London: Longmans, Green and Co.
• "William IV." (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed. London: Cambridge University Press.
• Plumb, J.H., and Huw Weldon. (1977). Royal Heritage. London: British Broadcasting Corporation.