The Last King of America

The Misunderstood Reign of George III

By: Andrew Roberts

Narrated by: Philip Stevens

From the New York Times bestselling author of Churchill and Napoleon

The last king of America, George III, has been ridiculed as a complete disaster who frittered away the colonies and went mad in his old age. The truth is much more nuanced and fascinating--and will completely change the way readers and historians view his reign and legacy.

Most Americans dismiss George III as a buffoon--a heartless and terrible monarch with few, if any, redeeming qualities. The best-known modern interpretation of him is Jonathan Groff's preening, spitting, and pompous take in Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway masterpiece. But this deeply unflattering characterization is rooted in the prejudiced and brilliantly persuasive opinions of eighteenth-century revolutionaries like Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson, who needed to make the king appear evil in order to achieve their own political aims. After combing through hundreds of thousands of pages of never-before-published correspondence, award-winning historian Andrew Roberts has uncovered the truth: George III was in fact a wise, humane, and even enlightened monarch who was beset by talented enemies, debilitating mental illness, incompetent ministers, and disastrous luck.

In The Last King of America, Roberts paints a deft and nuanced portrait of the much-maligned monarch and outlines his accomplishments, which have been almost universally forgotten. Two hundred and forty-five years after the end of George III's American rule, it is time for Americans to look back on their last king with greater understanding: to see him as he was and to come to terms with the last time they were ruled by a monarch.

Last King of America

I was curious about this official who served during the Revolutionary War. As Americans he is presented as a tyrant. I find from this history that he was one of England’s better rulers. I knew German soldiers fought here for England. I did not know that they made up the larger part of the army. I was also surprised how many wars were fought on so many different places. It was not surprising how ill behaved his sons conduct was and their money habits were so bad. Some things do not change through all these years. King George had good habits of the ways he spent his money, the way he treated his wife and children. His illnesses were such a trial. I am glad I spent the 40 plus hours necessary to hear the whole book.

A useful corrective

In grade school in the ‘50’s we were taught that George was a tyrant as described in our Declaration of Independence. It turns out the list of offenses was greatly exaggerated for political purposes. Here we learn that he was an intelligent and considerate man who accepted his limits as a constitutional monarch. It’s sad to read about his bipolar disease and the ineffectual efforts to treat it.

Long, sometimes dry book, but changed my opinion

This book is extremely informative. It really dives into the details to give the reader a robust understanding on this historical figure. Would recommend for people really trying to dive in and learn more, but not for someone who only wants high level details.

Narration is amazingly well done.

I am opening and enlightening, I’ve had my perspective changed

it’s an intimate portrait, detailed, and thorough, and in some ways I think I might have been happier having not heard it. The creeping suspicion that the founding myth of my country may be more complicated is suddenly brought into tight focus. A perfect opening salvo in a personal war of cognitive patriotic dissonance and yet I come out on the other end with an unexpected moral hero in George III.

Delightful

The author did a great job of distilling his massive tranche of source material. He was straightforward about his aims and largely achieved them. He noted, though underemphasized, the degree to which British reluctance for westward expansion of the colonists was a significant driver of the split.

Some of the depiction of the 1760s and 1770s was marred by needless slander and innuendo that some politicians were sexual degenerates.

The narrator was, for the most part, brilliant. His characterizations of the various European interlocutors were very enjoyable - especially the Scotsmen. The voice for Franklin was passable, but those for Adams, Jefferson, Madison, and especially Washington fell quite flat. The latter four were not from Pennsylvania, least of all its western reaches.