WILLIAM IV

From 1791 William lived with an Irish actress, Dorothea Bland, better known by her stage name, Mrs. Jordan, the title Mrs. being assumed at the start of her stage career to explain an inconvenient pregnancy. William had grown up under the Royal Marriages Act 1772, which forbade descendants of George II from marrying unless they either obtained the monarch's consent or, if over the age of 25, gave twelve months' notice to the Privy Council. Several of George III's sons, including William, chose to cohabit with the women they loved, rather than seek a wife. George III accepted his son's relationship with the actress (though recommending that he halve her allowance) and in 1797, he created William Ranger of Bushy Park, which included a large residence, Bushy House, for William's growing family. William used Bushy as his principal residence until he became king.