The Royal House of Windsor in Britain
The House of Windsor represents the modern phase in the long dynastic evolution of the British monarchy, reflecting how royal identity adapted to political pressure, public opinion, and national crisis. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Britain’s ruling family was dynastically German in origin, despite reigning over a global British Empire. This tension between lineage and national identity became increasingly significant as mass politics, nationalism, and total war reshaped the relationship between monarchy and society.
The transition began with Queen Victoria (reigned 1837–1901), the last monarch of the House of Hanover. Her son Edward VII (reigned 1901–1910) inherited the throne through his father, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, formally placing Britain under that German dynasty. During World War I (1914–1918), however, intense anti-German sentiment made the name politically untenable. In response, George V (reigned 1910–1936) issued a Royal Proclamation on 17 July 1917, renaming the dynasty the House of Windsor. This symbolic act severed overt German associations, reinforced loyalty to the British nation during wartime, and marked a decisive shift toward a consciously national monarchy, one defined less by dynastic inheritance and more by public legitimacy and constitutional continuity.
