WILLIAM IV, king of Great Britain and Ireland, third son of George III: b. 21 Aug. 1765; d. Windsor, 20 June 1837. From 177') to 1790 he served in the navy, and after quitting active service was raised successively to all the higher grades of naval command, becoming in 18t11 admiral of the fleet. In 178') he was raised to the peerage with the title of Duke of Clar ence. He frequently spoke in the House of Lords, and held the office of lord high-admiral (1827-28). He became heir presumptive to the throne in 1827 and succeeded his brother George IV as king 26 June 1830. On his accession he retained the ministers then in office with assur ances of his confidence in their zeal and ability. In the new Parliament, which met in November, the ministry, being left in a minority on a mo tion of Sir H. Parnell for referring the civil list to a select committee, immediately sent in their resignation; and a Whig administration was formed with Earl Grey at its head. The
great events which render his reign memorable are the passage of the reform act, the abolition of slavery in the colonies and the reform of the poor laws. N‘illiam IV married in July 1818 Adelaide, sister of the Duke of Saxe Meiningen, by whom he bad no surviving chil dren. He had, however, a large family by Mrs. Jordan, the celebrated actress, who was for many years his mistress, while Duke of Clar ence. Her liaison with the duke lasted from about 1790 till 1811, when au arrangement was made by which she and her family were pro vided for. William IV was succeeded by his niece Victoria. Consult Fitzgerald, 'Life and Times of William IV' (1884) ; Walpole, 'His tory of England from the Conclusion of the Great War in 1815' (1878-86) ; Malloy, J. F., 'The Sailor King, William IV' (1903).