George VI

**George VI** (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom from 11 December 1936 until his death on 6 February 1952. He became king when his older brother, Edward VIII, abdicated in 1936 to marry Wallis Simpson. George was married to Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon from April 1923 until his death.

George died of a coronary thrombosis caused by lung cancer in 1952 and was given a state funeral. He was 56 years old. His eldest child, Elizabeth, became Queen when he died. She took the name Elizabeth, the same as her first name, and was known as Elizabeth II. She was Queen for the longest amount of time of any British monarch: more than 70 years.

## Reign

George had a stutter. This made it very difficult for him to carry out many of the public duties of a king which required him to make speeches. He was treated by an Australian speech and language therapist called Lionel Logue. The story of this part of George's life was made into a movie in 2010 called _The King's Speech_. Colin Firth played the role of George, and Geoffrey Rush played the role of Logue.

George became a very popular king throughout the British Empire. He won admiration during World War II (19391945), in which he stayed at Buckingham Palace during the most intense months of the Blitz. The Palace was bombed more than twice but he still remained, becoming a symbol of resistance and "fighting spirit". He enjoyed a close working relationship with his wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill, inviting him to join the Royal Family on Victory in Europe Day (1945) to celebrate the defeat of the Nazis.

In 1939, George VI became the first British reigning monarch to visit the United States.

After World War II ended, his health began to decline which meant he could not do many duties as king so Princess Elizabeth took them on in his place.

### British Prime Ministers

- Stanley Baldwin (1935–1937)
- Neville Chamberlain (1937–1940)
- Winston Churchill (first term, 1940–1945)
- Clement Attlee (1945–1951)
- Winston Churchill (second term, 1951–1952)

## Family

George VI was the son of King George V and Queen Mary. He was the younger brother of Edward VIII, who gave up the throne to marry an American divorced woman, Wallis Simpson. In April 1923, George married his beloved wife Elizabeth, who later became known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. They had two children, Princesses Elizabeth (later Elizabeth II) (19262022) and Margaret (19302002).

## Death and funeral

George VI died on 6 February 1952 from a coronary thrombosis caused by lung cancer. Crowds began to gather in London in the early hours of the morning of the funeral. Thousands saw the event on television. Shortly after 9:00am, the funeral procession arrived at Westminster Hall. More than 300,000 people paid their respects to his body which lay in state for three days.

## Infobox (military person)

- **embed**: yes
- **serviceyears**: 1913–1919 (active service)
- **battles**: * World War I
**Battle of Jutland


## Infobox (royalty)

- **image**: King George VI LOC matpc.14736 (cleaned).jpg
- **caption**: Formal photograph,
- **alt**: George VI in the uniform of a field marshal
- **succession**: King of the United Kingdom
and the British Dominions
- **moretext**: (Style of the British sovereign#Styles of British sovereigns, more...)
- **reign**: 11 December 1936 –
- **coronation**: 12 May 1937
- **cor-type**: Coronation of George VI and Elizabeth, Coronation
- **predecessor**: Edward VIII
- **successor**: Elizabeth II
- **succession1**: Emperor of India
- **reign1**: 11 December 1936 –
- **predecessor1**: Edward VIII
- **successor1**: _Position abolished_
- **birth name**: Prince Albert of York
- **birth place**: York Cottage, Sandringham, Norfolk, Sandringham, Norfolk, England
- **death place**: Sandringham House, Norfolk, England
- **burial date**: 15 February 1952
- **burial place**: Royal Vault, St George's Chapel;
 26 March 1969
 King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel
- **issue-link**: #Issue
- **full name**: Albert Frederick Arthur George Windsor
- **father**: George V
- **mother**: Mary of Teck