The eldest son of George III, Geroge IV (as the Prince of Wales) became notorious for his profligacy and extravagance. Despite his father's
strongly anti-Catholic views, he secretly married a Roman Catholic, Mrs. Maria Anne Fitzherbert (1756-1837) in 1785. Less than two years later, to obtain money for his debts, he allowed Parliament to declare the marriage illegal, which in fact it was by the terms of acts governing royal marriages and succession. In 1795, again to liquidate his debts, he agreed to a marriage with his cousin, Caroline of Brunswick, but he became estranged from her in 1796 after the birth of their daughter, Princess Charlotte (1796-1817). George became the Prince Regent in 1811, when his father became mentally unable to discharge his duties and succeeded to the throne in 1820.