William the First, Second, Third, and Fourth of his Name at the Same Time

William IV. of England was the third son of George III., and the brother to George IV. whom he succeeded.

The Princess Charlotte, only child of George IV., died in 1817, leaving no child; so the Duke of York, next brother to the king, became the heir-presumptive. He also died before the king, 1827, leaving no heir; and William, Duke of Clarence, became the heir-presumptive to the crown.

Mark the distinction between the heir-apparent and the heir-presumptive. The king's oldest son is an heir-apparent, because nothing but his own death can come between him and the crown; but if the king has no child, then the nearest relative to the king becomes the heir-presumptive, so called because his right may be defeated by the birth of a child to the king. On the death of George IV., the Duke of Clarence ascended the throne as William IV., and was at the same time the first William of Hanover, the second of Ireland, and the third of Scotland. He was nearly sixty years of age when he came to the throne, 1830. His reign of seven years was a very peaceful one. The celebrated Reform Bill was passed, which gave to the middle classes a larger representation in Parliament; the chief power having been up to this time in the hands of the landholding nobility.

One of the most important acts of the Reform Parliament was the abolition of slavery in the British colonies. The merit of this was mainly due to William Wilberforce, who for many years had devoted himself to the question of emancipation.

For the 800,000 slaves who received their freedom, a compensation of pound 20,000,000 was paid by the English Government to their masters, to indemnify them for their loss.

The names of two great political parties--the Whigs and the Tories--disappeared in this reign. These names originated in the reign of Charles II., succeeding the terms Cavaliers and Roundheads of the Commonwealth. The Tory party were in favor of the divine right and absolute authority of the king, while the Whig party insisted upon the rights and privileges of the people. After the Reform Bill was passed, the Tories changed their name to Conservatives, and the Whigs became known as Liberals. The Conservatives wish but few changes in the government, while the Liberals are still clamoring for reform.

William IV. died at Windsor, when seventy-two years old (June 20, 1837), and was succeeded by his niece, the present Queen Victoria. She also was an heir-presumptive, being the daughter of his brother Edward, Duke of Kent, who had died in 1820; but she reigns in undisputed right. By referring to the table of the kings of England, it will be seen that Victoria is an immediate descendant of Egbert, who, in the year 827, united the Saxon Octarchy, and became the first king of England. Her ancestors have, therefore, with but little interruption, occupied the throne for more than a thousand years. Her title is Alexandria Victoria, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, and Empress of India. She was born May 24, 1819, proclaimed Queen of England June 20, 1837, and married to her cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg Gotha, Feb. 10, 1840. The present heir-apparent to the throne is her son, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales.