1An industrial city in NW Germany, on the Mittelland Canal; population 516,300 (est. 2006). It is the capital of Lower Saxony. German name Hannoverhaˈnoːfɐ.
1.1A former state and province in northern Germany. In 1714 the Elector of Hanover succeeded to the British throne as George I, and from then until the accession of Victoria (1837) the same monarch ruled both Britain and Hanover.
1.2The British royal house from 1714 to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901.