''The First Gentleman'' is a 1948 British

historical History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Alberto Cavalcanti Alberto de Almeida Cavalcanti (February 6, 1897 – August 23, 1982) was a Brazilian-born film director and producer. He was often credited under the single name "Cavalcanti". Early life Cavalcanti was born in Rio de Janeiro, the son of a p ...

, and starring

Jean-Pierre Aumont Jean-Pierre Aumont (born Jean-Pierre Philippe Salomons; 5 January 1911 – 30 January 2001) was a French film and theatre actor. He was a matinée idol and a leading man during the 1930s, but his burgeoning career was interrupted by the Second ...

Joan Hopkins Joan Hopkins (31 August 1915 – 27 December 2002) was a British stage and film actress. During the late 1940s she appeared in starring roles in several productions, including Princess Charlotte in '' The First Gentleman'' and as Helen in the b ...

, and

Cecil Parker Cecil Parker (born Cecil Schwabe; 3 September 1897 – 20 April 1971) was an English actor with a distinctively husky voice, who usually played supporting roles, often characters with a supercilious demeanour, in his 91 films made between 1 ...

. It portrays the relationships and marriage of George, Prince Regent and his tense dealings with other members of his family such as his only child

Princess Charlotte Princess Charlotte may refer to: People * Charlotte of the United Kingdom (disambiguation), various princesses ** Princess Charlotte of Wales (born 2015), granddaughter of King Charles III and only daughter of William, Prince of Wales * Charlott ...

and his younger brother

Frederick, Duke of York Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (Frederick Augustus; 16 August 1763 – 5 January 1827) was the second son of George III, King of the United Kingdom and Hanover, and his consort Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. A soldier by professi ...

. It was also released as ''Affairs of a Rogue''.The film is based on a play, '' The First Gentleman'' by Norman Ginsbury, which was staged in London in 1945, starring

Robert Morley Robert Adolph Wilton Morley (26 May 1908 – 3 June 1992) was an English actor who enjoyed a lengthy career in both Britain and the United States. He was frequently cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment, often in ...

as the Prince Regent and

Wendy Hiller Dame Wendy Margaret Hiller (15 August 1912 – 14 May 2003) was an English film and stage actress who enjoyed a varied acting career that spanned nearly 60 years. Writer Joel Hirschorn, in his 1984 compilation ''Rating the Movie Stars'', describ ...

as Princess Charlotte. The film title is taken from the Prince Regent's nickname, the ''First Gentleman of Europe''.

Plot

The film traces the reign of the Prince Regent and his initial attempts to marry off his unruly daughter Charlotte to a number of acceptable nobles, attempts that fail because she falls for

Leopold Leopold may refer to: People * Leopold (given name), including a list of people named Leopold or Léopold * Leopold (surname) Fictional characters * Leopold (''The Simpsons''), Superintendent Chalmers' assistant on ''The Simpsons'' * Leopold B ...

, a poverty-stricken German prince living in England. Charlotte's eventual marriage to Leopold is a happy one until their child is stillborn and she then dies, but at the film's conclusion his niece Victoria is born, stabilising the royal line of succession. The film begins in

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

in 1810, with physicians telling the Queen that King

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

will not recover his sanity. They inform Prince George that he is to become Regent. The Prince Regent plans to marry his only daughter Princess Charlotte to Prince William of Orange and their engagement is announced. However, Charlotte shows more interest in Prince Leopold. The Prince Regent tries to force his opinion upon her. He himself is estranged from his wife Caroline and in a relationship with

Isabella Isabella may refer to: People and fictional characters * Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Isabella (surname), including a list of people Places United States * Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpo ...

, his longstanding mistress. Charlotte leaves to visit her mother Caroline at Connaught House without permission.

John Fisher John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 – 22 June 1535) was an English Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Rochester from 1504 to 1535 and as chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He is honoured as a martyr and saint by the Catholic Chu ...

Bishop of Salisbury The Bishop of Salisbury is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. The Episcopal see, see is in the Salisbur ...

is sent to retrieve her. Henry Brougham, a government advisor, is also sent to assist. They all persuade her to go back to Windsor Castle and stay with her grandmother, Queen Charlotte, for at least 18 months. Meanwhile travelling on the continent, Prince Leopold meets Prince William of Orange, who informs him that the engagement to Charlotte was broken off a long time before. Prince Leopold therefore returns to England. The Prince Regent is hosting a dinner at the newly completed

Brighton Pavilion The Royal Pavilion (also known as the Brighton Pavilion) and surrounding gardens is a Grade I listed former royal residence located in Brighton, England. Beginning in 1787, it was built in three stages as a seaside retreat for George, Prince o ...

when a crowd begins to gather. They cheer Charlotte when she goes to the window to look at the fireworks but boo the Regent when he appears. His advisors tell him that if he were to let Charlotte marry Leopold he would be cheered. The Prince Regent is then persuaded by Charlotte to allow the marriage, but says that as the state would have to support Prince Leopold he would be better placed as ruler of Hanover: but Charlotte insists that she and Leopold will live in England. The Prince Regent decides to send abroad for Leopold's return, and it is then revealed that Leopold is already waiting in the wings. Leopold and Charlotte marry and the Prince Regent buys them

Claremont House Claremont, also known historically as 'Clermont', is an 18th-century Palladian mansion less than a mile south of the centre of Esher in Surrey, England. The buildings are now occupied by Claremont Fan Court School, and its landscaped gardens ar ...

as a wedding present. Charlotte soon becomes pregnant but their son is

stillborn Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can often result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. T ...

and Charlotte becomes immediately ill, dying shortly before her father arrives. He is devastated, saying "Two generations gone in a moment". Grieving, he organises a funeral fit for a queen. 18 months later he is at the christening of his brother Prince Edward's daughter. They debate calling her either Alexandrina or Charlotte, but fix upon

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

as a suitable royal name.

Cast

Production

Vernon Sewell wanted to make the film but Morley refused to appear in it. "He would sell the rights but he wouldn't make the film. Without Bob the thing was worth nothing."

Critical reception

*''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...

'' called it "a poorly mounted costume drama with a complicated script that moves at a snail's pace" *

Allmovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was ...

wrote, "Swamped in period costumes and decor, Affairs of a Rogue is consistently good to look at, even when the plotline begins to drag."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:First Gentleman, The 1948 films 1940s biographical drama films British biographical drama films Films directed by Alberto Cavalcanti Cultural depictions of George IV Films set in 1810 Columbia Pictures films Films set in London 1940s historical drama films British historical drama films British films based on plays British black-and-white films 1948 drama films 1940s English-language films 1940s British films Cultural depictions of William IV Films scored by Lennox Berkeley Cultural depictions of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Cultural depictions of Frederick, Duke of York and Albany Cultural depictions of Leopold I of Belgium Cultural depictions of William II of the Netherlands English-language biographical drama films English-language historical drama films