The British royal family came from Hanover, but why didn't they stop Prussia from annexing Hanover?

In 1714, Queen Anne of England was innocent after her death, because the top 50 heirs of the British throne were Catholics. Therefore, the British Parliament finally selected the German Hanover Granite George Ludwig (the mother is the granddaughter of King James I of England) as the King of England, for George I, thus creating Hanover in British history. Dynasty (1714 - 1901).

After George I entered the United Kingdom, the United Kingdom and Hanover formed a common federation. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars, in order to enhance the British right to speak in German affairs, Hanover's electoral state was promoted to the kingdom. Until 1837, Queen Victoria succeeded to the throne (1837 - 1901), due to the ban on women's succession in the German region ("Sali Code"), the Hanover throne was made by Victoria's uncle, the Duke of Cumberland (Ernsteo) Gust I) inheritance. At this point, the United Kingdom and Hanover have ended the history of the Commonwealth.

However, it has been less than 30 years since the end of the United Kingdom and Hanover. The Kingdom of Hanover was annexed by Prussia and became a province of the Kingdom of Prussia. When Prusss annexed Hanover, it was in the most brilliant Victorian era in British history. As the number one hegemon in the world at that time, why did the United Kingdom fail to prevent Pruss from annexing Hanover?

First of all, although Britain was the number one hegemon in the world at the time, the monarchical power had already declined, and the interests of the monarch could not dominate the country's strategic direction.

Since the Glorious Revolution (1688), the British Parliament enacted the Bill of Rights (1689), which restricted the kingship, and laid the constitutional foundation for the British king to "unify and rule." Since then, the British state power has gradually shifted from the king to the parliament. Therefore, the British royal family at this time originated from Hannover, but it was no longer able to involve the British in the war against Prussia for the benefit of the British royal family, as in the English-French Hundred Years War (the origin of the war was also due to the quest for the French throne).

The United Kingdom has already learned the lesson from the British-French Hundred Years' War (the United Kingdom and France have lived together for more than 100 years, but have lost their European territories. This incident has had a profound impact on Britain's national strategy and foreign policy, and it completely abandoned its operations. The idea of ​​Continental has turned to full operation overseas, and this has made it impossible for the empire to fall. For the interests of the British royal family, and fighting with Prussian does not meet the interests of the United Kingdom and the strategic direction of the country.

Moreover, although the United Kingdom was the number one hegemon of the world at the time, the power on the ground was a short board, and fighting with Prussia did not have an absolute advantage.

The strength of the United Kingdom lies in its naval power, and its land power has always been a short board. Prussia was the most ardent country in the European continent and defeated Austria. If the United Kingdom does not have the support of other European powers and fights with Prussian, there is actually no big chance of winning.

Third, the German nation hopes to reunify, and it is difficult for Britain to go against the trend.

In the late 19th century, the German nation increasingly hoped that the country would be unified. Especially in the North German region, Prussia has a great influence. Many people in the state have placed their expectations of unifying Germany on Prussia. Although the monarchs of the German states are not willing to give up power and interests. However, with the economic development and the awakening of democratic consciousness in various regions of Germany, the underlying forces in the German region are growing stronger. The underlying power is to hope that Germany will be unified, which is reflected in the Franco-Prussian War. Although the South German princes were very disgusted with Prussia. However, when the Franco-Prussian War started, the people in the South German region joined the army and supported Prussia to fight against France.

If the United Kingdom is engaged in war with Prussia for Hanover, it is actually difficult for Hannover to support it. Instead, it will promote the patriotic enthusiasm of the German nation. When the German nation looked forward to the reunification of Germany, especially in the North German region where Prussia had great influence. It is also difficult for the United Kingdom to counter the trend and prevent Prussia from annexing Hanover.