Step1
George I
Born Georg Ludwig 1660 in Hanover, Germany, reigned 1714-27. George was the grandson of James I. After the death of Britain's Queen Anne most Briton's were opposed to Anne's Catholic half-brother James Stuart taking the throne, and George was the next-closest Protestant heir.
Before taking the throne he served as Prince-Elector of Hanover, which meant he, along with other electors, got to vote for whoever was to be Holy Roman Emperor.
George proved an unpopular king. He had little grasp of the English language and spent a considerable amount of time in Germany. In fact the government was largely run by Sir Robert Peel, the First Lord of the Treasury.
George was buried in Germany and succeeded by his son, George II.
Step2
George II
Born Georg August in Germany in1683, reigned 1727-60. George had a stormy relationship with his father, and like his father, during the early years of his reign left the government largely in the hands of Robert Peel. Peel was succeeded by Robert Walpole, who was Britain's first Prime Minister.
During his reign George spent much time involved in wars on the Continent and North America, and also crushed a rebellion led by the Stuart heirs to the British throne. The American colony of Georgia was named in his honor. He was succeeded by his grandson, George III.
Step3
George III
Born George William Frederick in 1738, reigned 1760-1820. Most Americans know George III as the man who was king during the American Revolution and he is still regarded by many Americans as a tyrant. In the later years of his reign Britain was frequently at was frequently at war with Napoleon and France.
Also during his reign George III suffered from periodic bouts of mental illness, so that his eldest son George, Prince of Wales, eventually had to rule as his Regent. George III was happily married, fathered fifteen children and preferred gardening and farming to the burdens of governing. He died at the age of 81 and was succeeded by his eldest son.
Step4
George IV
Born George Augustus Frederick in 1762, reigned 1820-30. George spent most of his life, as did his equally frivolous brothers, womanizing, carousing and spending money. Yet the period of his Regency, 1811 to 1820, saw a renaissance in British art and design.
He contracted a secret marriage with a Catholic, Maria Fitzherbert, but the marriage was declared null and void and he was forced to marry the obese German Princess Caroline of Brunswick. His only daughter, Charlotte, died in childbirth in 1817, leaving George III with no legitimate grandchildren. So George III's sons had to dump their mistresses, marry and try to produce legitimate heirs. Fortunately George IV's brother Edward managed to father the future Queen Victoria.
During his reign George supported the continuation of laws that discriminated against Catholics, though Parliament voted some of these laws down. He died at the age of 67, obese and drowning in debt. He was succeeded by his brother William IV.
Step5
George V
Born George Frederick Ernest Albert in 1865, reigned 1910-36. George was the second son of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, later known as Edward VII. George's elder brother “Eddy,” was second in line for the throne. But Eddy was not very intelligent and seemed chiefly interested in fashion and hunting. There were rumors that Eddy was bisexual and even allegations, now largely proved wrong, that he was Jack the Ripper. In any case Eddy died at the age of 26 and George inherited his fiancée, Mary of Teck and his place in line for the throne.
George became King of Great Britain and Emperor of India in 1910. World War I was the dominant event in his reign. During the war George changed his family name from the German-sounding “Saxe-Coburg-Gotha” to the more English-sounding “Windsor.” He died at the age of 70 and was succeeded by his eldest son, the playboy Edward VIII.
Step6
George VI
Born Albert Frederick Arthur George in 1895, reigned 1936-52. As the second son of George V, Prince Albert, known to his family as “Bertie,” was never expected to inherit the throne. But Bertie's elder brother preferred the nightlife to being king, and he also enjoyed the company of married woman.
Edward VIII's mistress was the twice-divorced Wallis Warfield Simpson. When he told Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin he wanted to marry her Baldwin said this was impossible according to the rules of the Church of England, of which Edward was Head. It would also have been a public relations nightmare. Edward abdicated the throne and Bertie became George VI.
George was in poor health for most of his life and was a chain smoker. He also had a serious stammer and was terrified of public speaking and of taking up the duties of king. Indeed, his wife Elizabeth, the future Queen Mother, blamed the frivolous Edward for thrusting her ill-prepared husband into a stressful position that she felt led to George's early death.
Still, George fulfilled his duties admirably. During World War II his visits to bombed-out areas of London did much to boost his peoples' morale. He died at the age of 56 and was succeeded by his daughter, Elizabeth II.
Enthusiast 
