In 1836, at his final birthday banquet, he infamously gave a speech stating that he hoped to live until the 18th birthday of his niece and heir, Princess Victoria (later
Queen Victoria), because he distrusted Victoria's mother Victoria,
Duchess of Kent and Strathearn, and wanted to prevent her from becoming her daughter's regent, and said she was "surrounded by evil advisers" and "incompetent to act with propriety in the situation in which she would be placed." Both women were present, and Princess Victoria burst into tears while her mother sat in silence. William died a month after Victoria turned 18, avoiding a regency.
