GASTON D'ORLÉANS (1608-1660). Third son of Henri IV. and brother of Louis XIII. He bore the title of Duc d'Anjou till 1624 when the Duchy of Orléans was conferred upon him as an appanage. He played a sorry part in the Fronde, passing repeatedly from one side to another. He was for the rest a wit and a cultivator of literature and science. He left an only daughter, the celebrated Mademoiselle, Duchesse de Montpensier.
GAUTARD, M. de, died 1837. He possessed the Château Grenier near Bex. He was highly respected, and his death, which was due to an accident, was much regretted. The accident was caused by the explosion of some spirits of wine, the manufacture of which he was supervising.
GEORGE III., King of England (1738-1820). He ascended the throne in 1760 succeeding his grandfather George II. He extended the English conquests in India and finally united Ireland to Great Britain. His reign was marked by the loss of the American Colonies. He fought against the French Revolution with all his strength, and for ten years before his death he was out of his mind.
GEORGE IV., King of England (1762-1830). A dissipated youth, enormous debts, and his marriage with Mrs. Fitzherbert, a Catholic, alienated from him the respect of the country. In 1795 he married Caroline of Brunswick against whom he afterwards instituted scandalous proceedings. In 1811 he was made Regent by Parliament owing to his father's insanity, and he succeeded to the throne in 1820. It was to him that Napoleon wrote his letter requesting the hospitality of England after his second abdication.
GEORGE V., King of Hanover (1819-1878). He succeeded his father, King Ernest Augustus, in 1851, in spite of his blindness. In 1866 he lost his kingdom, which was absorbed in Prussia, after having absolutely refused to come to any understanding with that country.
GÉRARD, Étienne Maurice, Comte (1773-1852). He adopted the military career, and took part in all the campaigns under the Republic and the Empire. At the Restoration he retired, but in 1830 he became Minister of War, and in 1831 was made a Marshal. He commanded the Belgian Expedition, took the Citadel of Antwerp, and was made a Peer in 1832.
GESSLER, Hermann. Governed the Cantons of Schwytz and Uri for Albert I., Archduke of Austria. His cruelty caused an insurrection in the country in 1307, and, according to tradition, he perished by the hand of William Tell.
GILLES, Le Grand. A figure of farcical comedy, deriving his name from a celebrated actor of the seventeenth century.
GIRARDON, François (1630-1715). A sculptor, whose patron was the Chancellor Séguier, who sent him to study at Rome. He produced several pieces which are much admired.
GIROLET, Jean Baptiste Simon, Abbé (1765-1836). A Benedictine priest of the congregation of Saint Maur, who was forced to emigrate at the Revolution. He found a place as tutor in Poland, where he became known to the Princess Tyszkiewicz. She recommended him to the Prince de Talleyrand, who procured his appointment as Almoner to the House of Peers. He was a great friend of the Talleyrand family, and towards the end of his life established himself at Rochecotte, where he founded a school which bears his name.