Bridgerton spin-off Queen Charlotte is overshadowed by the idea of death – the death of King George III, to be precise – but Queen Charlotte’s own death is an important background detail. Given the prequel’s changes to the true story, including casting Golda Rosheuvel, who is a lot younger than the real Queen was in 1815, when it’s partly set, the question of how old Queen Charlotte was when she died looms large.

Bridgerton introduced Rosheuvel’s fabulous, big-haired queen alongside James Fleet’s initially hidden King George, revealing a tragic love story torn apart by King George’s terrible mystery illness. It’s only in Queen Charlotte that the true depth of both that romance and the illness that defined it is really shown, with India Amarteifio’s young Queen first meeting Corey Mylchreest’s enchanting but enigmatic young King. Through their betrothal and fiery romance, Queen Charlotte‘s audience are given a torturous love story that speaks to endurance, and which explains why the Queen is so obsessed with asking if George is dead in Bridgerton. She has already mourned him for decades, after all.

How Old Was Queen Charlotte When She Died?

King George III eventually died at the age of 81 on January 29, 1820, just over 60 years into his reign, making him the third longest ruler in Britain’s history (after Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Victoria – whose birth is set up at the end of Queen Charlotte). Queen Charlotte died aged 74, in November 1818, before her King. After Bridgerton season 2, she is 52 in 1815, thanks to Queen Charlotte‘s changed timeline, and King George is just 57 or 58, so both have a considerable amount of time to live and should presumably return in Bridgerton season 3 and beyond.

Queen Charlotte’s Death Hides The Biggest Tragedy Bridgerton Has Left To Tell

The biggest tragedy of Queen Charlotte’s death is that King George III outlived her. Queen Charlotte sets up the titular character as a sort of ghost, haunted by her husband’s illness and granted only fleeting moments of happiness thanks to his occasionally lucidity. She is profoundly lonely, obsessing with her social events and engagements, and clearly replacing her own romance with her quests for a seasonal Incomparable or Diamond. Her constant requests to know if King George is dead are a desperate plea for her freedom, but thanks to the tragedy of Queen Charlotte‘s real life story, that respite will never come. Queen Charlotte, it seems, is destined to live in the shadow of her husband’s illness, dying before him in Bridgerton’s final tragedy.