King George vents over paper’s ‘madness’ claim

The King is understood to have told the government that Sunday newspapers are abusing the freedom of the press and that ministers should put a stop to “indecent” and “ridiculous” caricatures of him that are widely available in London.

The monarch’s fury, voiced in a letter to the Home Secretary, Robert Peel, seems to have been sparked by a story in The Sunday Times in early February. The paper, which only began publishing last November, said the “melancholy truth” was that the King’s current medical problems were hereditary.

The Sunday Times then made clear that it was referring to the mental health issues that afflicted his father, King George III, being transmitted to descendants. Others were concealing the truth about the King’s disorder, said the paper.

This magazine has seen a copy of the King’s letter, which reveals his anger at the newspapers in very clear terms. One observer says the King has been “shaken by such malicious insinuation; he had been hurt long enough by the jibes and caricatures of the Press”.

In the letter, King George says “steps should be taken” against Sunday newspapers and he asks ministers to consider legal action by the Attorney-General against The Sunday Times. It is understood that this has already been discussed by the Cabinet.

However, ministers are believed to be sceptical about the chances of a jury in London or Middlesex convicting a newspaper of, presumably, libel.

King George has put forward the idea of trebling the duty paid by Sunday papers, a step similar to those taken by this government in the ‘Six Acts’ passed after the Peterloo massacre in 1819. This would likely have the effect of reducing circulation and readership, and threaten the finances of some publications.

Sources at Carlton House, the King’s London residence, say George reads all newspapers, and feel it is his duty to do so. But he believes there is mischief as a result of abuses by the press of their freedom.

King George’s anger is directed too at what he feels are obscene caricatures of him. His letter warns that “there is scarcely a shop in London that deals in such trash in which the King is not exposed in some indecent, ridiculous manner. This is now become a constant practice, and it is high time that it should be put a stop to.” o