George William (German: Georg Wilhelm; 26 January 1624, Herzberg am Harz – 28 August 1705, Wienhausen) was duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and ruled first over the Calenberg subdivision of the duchy, then over the Lüneburg subdivision.
George William was the second son of George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. In 1648, he received Calenberg from his elder brother Christian Louis when Christian Louis inherited Lüneburg. On Christian Louis' death in 1665, George William inherited Lüneburg, and gave Calenberg to his next brother, John Frederick.
George William had remained unmarried, but his desire to improve the status of his mistress Eleanor, Countess of Williamsburg, (whom in spite of his promise he married in 1676) and of their daughter Sophia Dorothea, greatly alarmed his relatives, as these proceedings threatened to hinder the contemplated union of the Lüneburg territories. However, in 1682, the difficulty caused by George William's having a family and heirs of his own was bridged over by the marriage of his daughter with his nephew, George Louis (who later became King George I of Great Britain), son of George William's younger brother Duke Ernest Augustus, who became elector in 1692.
References
| Preceded by Christian Louis |
Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Prince of Calenberg 1648–1665 |
Succeeded by John Frederick |
| Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Prince of Lüneburg 1665–1705 |
Succeeded by George Louis |
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| Preceded by Julius Francis |
Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg 1689–1705 |
