Queen Charlotte

At age 17, Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1744-1818) in Germany became the bride of England's King George III. Queen Charlotte bore 15 children, including George IV, who succeeded his father to the throne. 

In 1762, settlers in the Carolina colony honored the king's new wife by naming a newly formed county for her homeplace. They called it Mecklenburg. When a town was established within the county in 1768, founders named it Charlotte Town in an attempt to win favor with the crown.She never visited the town named for her.

Today, Charlotte is still called the Queen City. Within it are Queens College, Queens Road, and numerous other places that have queen as part of their names. A portrait of Mecklenburg's namesake hangs in the Mint Museum of Art. There are also two statues of the queen, one at Charlotte-Douglas airport and one downtown.