Charles II., who was born at St. James’s (May 29, 1630), resided at Whitehall, giving up the palace to his brother, the Duke of York (also born here, October 25, 1633), but reserving apartments for his mistress, the Duchess of Mazarin, who at one time resided there with a pension of L4,000 a year.  Here Mary II. was born, April 30, 1662; and here she was married to William of Orange, at eleven at night, November 4, 1677.  Here for many years the Duke and Duchess of York secluded themselves with their children, in mourning and sorrow, on the anniversary of his father’s murder.  Here also Anne Hyde, Duchess of York, died, March 31, 1671, asking, “What is truth?” of Blandford, Bishop of Worcester, who came to visit her.

In St. James’s Palace also, James’s second wife, Mary of Modena, gave birth to her fifth child, Prince James Edward ("the Old Pretender”) on June 10, 1688.

It was to St. James’s that William III. came on his first arrival in England, and he frequently resided there afterward, dining in public, with the Duke of Schomberg seated at his right hand and a number of Dutch guests, but on no occasion was any English gentleman invited.  In the latter part of William’s reign the palace was given up to the Princess Anne, who had been born there February 6, 1665, and married there to Prince George of Denmark July 28, 1683.  She was residing here when Bishop Burnet brought her the news of William’s death and her own accession.

George I., on his arrival in England, came at once to St. James’s.  “This is a strange country,” he remarked afterward; “the first morning after my arrival at St. James’s I looked out of the window, and saw a park with walks, and a canal, which they told me were mine.  The next day Lord Chetwynd, the ranger of my park, sent me a fine brace of carp out of my canal; and I was told I must give five guineas to Lord Chetwynd’s servant for bringing me my own carp, out of my own canal, in my own park.”

The Duchess of Kendal, the king’s mistress, had rooms in the palace, and, toward the close of his reign, George I. assigned apartments there on the ground floor to a fresh favorite, Miss Anne Brett.  When the king left for Hanover, Miss Brett had a door opened from her rooms to the royal gardens, which the king’s granddaughter, Princess Anne, who was residing in the palace, indignantly ordered to be walled up.  Miss Brett had it opened a second time, and the quarrel was at its height when the news of the king’s death put an end to the power of his mistress.  With the accession of George II. the Countesses of Yarmouth and Suffolk took possession of the apartments of the Duchess of Kendal.  As Prince of Wales, George II. had resided in the palace till a smoldering quarrel with his father came to a crisis over the christening of one of the royal children, and the next day he was put under arrest, and ordered to leave St. James’s with his family the same evening.  Wilhelmina Caroline of Anspach, the beloved queen of George II., died in the palace, November 20, 1737, after an agonizing illness, endured with the utmost fortitude and consideration for all around her.