Egbert began the Saxons and Danes period and ruled as King of Essex from 802-839.
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Ethelwulf, the son of Egbert, reigned from 839-858 as King of Wessex, Sussex, Kent and Essex.
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Ethelbald, son of Ethelwulf, reigned from 858-860, and displaced his father as King of Wessex.
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Ethelbert, second son of Ethelwulf, reigned from 860-865, and united Kent and Wessex.
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Ethelred I, third son of Ethelwulf, reigned as King of Wessex from 865-871.
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Alfred the Great reigned as King of Wessex from 871-899. He was the fifth son of Ethelwulf and defeated the Danes after they had threatened to subdue Wessex.
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Edward the Elder was the son of Alfred and reigned from 899-924. One of the strongest rulers to date, he united England and claimed Scotland.
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Athelstan the Glorious was the son of Edward the Elder and reigned as King of Mercia and Wessex from 924-939. By his power he established himself as effectively the first King of all England.
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Edmund I, King of the English (from 939-946), was the half-brother of Athelstan. On Edmund's accession, Scandinavian forces from Northumbria, reinforced by levies from Ireland, quickly overran the E Midlands. He re-established his control over the S Danelaw (942) and Northumbria (944), and for the remainder of his life ruled a reunited England.
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Edred, the fourth son of Edward, reigned from 946-955.
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Edwy the Fair, eldest son of Edmund, reigned as King of Wessex from 955-959.
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Edgar the Peaceful was King of Mercia and Northumbria (957) and (from 959-975) king of all England, the younger son of Edmund I. He encouraged the reform of the English Church as a means of enhancing his prestige and power, though his lavish support for the monasteries caused bitterness among an important section of the nobility. In c.973 he introduced a uniform currency based on new silver pennies, whose design was subsequently altered every few years by periodic recoinages.
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Edward the Martyr, King of England (975-8), was the son of Edgar. During his reign there was a reaction against the policies in support of monasticism espoused by his father. He was murdered at Corfe, Dorset, by supporters of his stepmother, Elfrida, and canonized in 1001.
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Ethelred II, King of England (from 978-1016), was the son of Edgar. He was aged about 10 when the murder of his half-brother, Edward the Martyr, placed him on the throne. In 1002 he confirmed an alliance with Normandy by marrying as his second wife Duke Richard's daughter Emma - the first dynastic link between the two countries. Renewed attacks by the Vikings on England began as raids in the 980s, and in 1013 Sweyn Forkbeard secured mastery over the whole country, and forced Ethelred into exile in Normandy. After Sweyn's death (1014), he returned to oppose Canute, but the unity of English resistance was broken when his son, Edmund Ironside, rebelled. 'Unready' is a mistranslation of Unraed, not recorded as his nickname until after the Norman Conquest, which means 'ill advised' and is a pun on his given name, Aethelred (literally, 'good counsel').
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Edmund II, King of the English for just one year (1016), was the son of Ethelred the Unready. He was chosen king by the Londoners on his father's death (April 1016), while Canute was elected at Southampton by the Witan. Edmund hastily levied an army and attempted to raise the siege of London, but was routed at Ashingdon or possibly Ashdon, Essex (October 1016). He agreed to a partition of the country, but died a few weeks later, leaving Canute as sole ruler.
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Canute, King of England (from 1016-1035), Denmark (from 1019), and Norway (from 1028), was the younger son of Sweyn Forkbeard. He first campaigned in England in 1013, and after his father's death (1014) successively challenged Ethelred the Unready and Edmund Ironside for the English throne. He defeated Edmund in 1016 at the Battle of Assandun (possibly Ashdon, Essex), secured Mercia and Northumbria, and became King of all England after Edmund's death. In 1017 he married Emma of Normandy, the widow of Ethelred. He ruled England according to the accepted traditions of English kingship, and maintained the peace throughout his reign. The story of his failure to make the tide recede was invented by the 12th-c historian, Henry of Huntingdon, to demonstrate the frailty of earthly power compared to the might of God.
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Harold I, King of England (1037-40), was the younger son of Canute and ╞lgifu of Northampton. Canute had intended that Hardicanute, his only son by Emma of Normandy, should succeed him in both Denmark and England. But in view of Hardicanute's absence in Denmark, Harold was accepted in England, first as regent (1035-6), and from 1037 as king.
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Hardecanute, King of England (1040-1042) was Canute's only son by Emma of Normandy.
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St. Edward the Confessor, King of England (1042-66), was the elder son of Ethelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, and the last king of the Old English royal line. After living in exile in Normandy, he joined the household of his half-brother Hardicanute in 1041, and then succeeded him on the throne. Until 1052 he maintained his position against the ambitious Godwin family by building up Norman favourites, and in 1051 he very probably recognized Duke William of Normandy (later William I) as his heir. But the Godwins regained their ascendancy, and on his deathbed in London, Edward, who remained childless, nominated Harold Godwinson (Harold II) to succeed, the Norman Conquest following soon after. Edward's reputation for holiness began in his lifetime, and he rebuilt Westminster Abbey, where he was buried, in the Romanesque style. His cult grew in popularity, and he was canonized in 1161.
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Harold II, last Anglo-Saxon King of England (1066), was the second son of Earl Godwin. By 1045 he was Earl of East Anglia, and in 1053 succeeded to his father's earldom of Wessex, becoming the right hand of Edward the Confessor. After Edward's death (January 1066), Harold, his nominee, was crowned as king. He defeated his brother Tostig and Harold Hardrada, King of Norway, at Stamford Bridge (September 1066), but Duke William of Normandy then invaded England, and defeated him near Hastings (14 October 1066), where he died, shot through the eye with an arrow.
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William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy (1035-87) and the first Norman king of England (1066-87), was the illegitimate son of Duke Robert of Normandy. Edward the Confessor, who had been brought up in Normandy, most probably designated him as future King of England in 1051. When Harold Godwinson, despite an apparent oath to uphold WilliamÆs claims, took the throne as Harold II, William invaded with the support of the papacy, defeated and killed Harold at the Battle of Hastings, and was crowned king on Christmas Day 1066.
The key to effective control was military conquest backed up by aristocratic colonization, so that by the time of the Domesday Book (1086), the leaders of Anglo-Saxon society South of the Tees had been almost entirely replaced by a new ruling class of Normans, Bretons, and Flemings, who were closely tied to William by feudal bonds.
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William II, King of England (1087-1100), was the second surviving son of William the Conqueror. His main goal was the recovery of Normandy from his elder brother Robert Curthose, and from 1096, when Robert relinquished the struggle and departed on the First Crusade, William ruled the duchy as de facto duke. He also led expeditions to Wales (1095, 1097); conquered Carlisle and the surrounding district (1092); and after the death of Malcolm Canmore, exercised a controlling influence over Scottish affairs.
Contemporaries condemned his government of England as arbitrary and ruthless. He exploited his rights over the Church and the nobility beyond the limits of custom, and quarrelled with Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury. His personal conduct outraged the moral standards of the time, for he was most probably a homosexual. He was killed by an arrow while hunting in the New Forest. It has been supposed that he was murdered on the orders of his younger brother, who succeeded him as Henry I, but his death was almost certainly accidental.
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Henry I, King of England (1100-35) and Duke of Normandy (1106-35), was the youngest son of William the Conqueror. Under Henry, the Norman Empire attained the height of its power. He conquered Normandy from his brother, Robert Curthose, at the Battle of Tinchebrai (1106), maintained his position on the Continent, and exercised varying degrees of authority over the King of Scots, the Welsh princes, the Duke of Brittany, and the Counts of Flanders, Boulogne, and Ponthieu. His government of England and Normandy became increasingly centralized and interventionist, with the overriding aim of financing warfare and alliances, and consolidating the unity of the two countries as a single cross-Channel state.
His only legitimate son, William Adelin, was drowned in 1120, and in 1127 he nominated his daughter Empress Matilda, widow of Emperor Henry V of Germany, as his heir for both England and Normandy. But Matilda and her second husband, Geoffrey of Anjou, proved unacceptable to the King's leading subjects. After Henry's death at Lyons-la-ForΩt, near Rouen, the crown was seized by Stephen, son of his sister, Adela.
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Stephen, Last Norman king of England (1135-54), was the son of Stephen, Count of Blois, and Adela, the daughter of William the Conqueror. He had sworn to accept Henry I's daughter, Empress Matilda, as queen, but seized the English crown and was recognized as Duke of Normandy on Henry's death in 1135. Though defeated and captured at the Battle of Lincoln (February 1141), he was released nine months later after Matilda's supporters had been routed at Winchester. But Matilda strengthened her grip on the West Country; David I of Scotland annexed the N English counties by 1141; and Matilda's husband, Count Geoffrey of Anjou, conquered Normandy by 1144û5.
Stephen was also repeatedly challenged by baronial rebellions, and after 18 years of virtually continuous warfare, he was forced in 1153 to accept Matilda's son, the future Henry II, as his lawful successor. His reputation as the classic incompetent king of English mediaeval history is nevertheless undeserved. He was remarkably tenacious in seeking to uphold royal rights, and his war strategy was basically sound. His inability to defend the Norman Empire was due largely to the sheer weight of his military burdens, especially the major offensives of the Scots in the North and the Angevins in the South.
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Henry II, King of England (1154-89), was born in Le Mans, France, the son of Empress Matilda, Henry I's daughter and acknowledged heir, by her second husband Geoffrey of Anjou. Already established as Duke of Normandy (1150) and Count of Anjou (1151), and as Duke of Aquitaine by marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine (1152), he invaded England in 1153, and was recognized as the lawful successor of the usurper, Stephen. He founded the Angevin or Plantagenet dynasty of English kings, and ruled England as part of a wider Angevin Empire. He restored and transformed English governance after the disorders of Stephen's reign.
His efforts to restrict clerical independence caused conflict with his former Chancellor Thomas α Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, which was ended only with Becket's murder (1170). He led a major expedition to Ireland (1171), which resulted in its annexation. The most serious challenge to his power came in 1173-4 when his son, the young Henry, encouraged by Queen Eleanor, rebelled in alliance with Louis VII of France, William I of Scotland, and Count Philip of Flanders. All parts of the king's dominions were threatened, but his enemies were defeated. In 1189 he faced further disloyalty from his family when his sons, John and Richard, allied with Philip II of France, overran Maine and Touraine. Henry agreed a peace which recognized Richard as his sole heir for the Angevin Empire, and died shortly afterwards.
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Richard I (Richard the Lionheart), King of England (1189-99), was born in Oxford, Oxfordshire, the third son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Of his 10-year reign, he spent only five months in England, devoting himself to crusading, and defending the Angevin lands in France. Already recognized as an outstanding soldier, he took Messina (1190), Cyprus, and Acre (1191) during the Third Crusade, and advanced to within sight of Jerusalem.
On the return journey, he was arrested at Vienna (1192), and remained a prisoner of the German Emperor Henry VI until he agreed to be ransomed (1194). The rest of his reign was occupied in warfare against Philip II of France, while the government of England was conducted by the justiciar, Hubert Walter. Richard was mortally wounded while besieging the castle of ChΓlus, Aquitaine.
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John, King of England (1199-1216), was the youngest son of Henry II, born in Oxford, Oxfordshire. He was one of the least popular monarchs in English history. He tried to seize the crown during Richard I's captivity in Germany (1193-4), but was forgiven and nominated successor by Richard, who thus set aside the rights of Arthur, the son of John's elder brother Geoffrey. Arthur's claims were supported by Philip II of France, and after Arthur was murdered on John's orders (1203), Philip marched against him with superior forces, and conquered all but a portion of Aquitaine (1204-5).
In 1206 John refused to receive Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury, and in 1208 his kingdom was placed under papal interdict. He was then excommunicated (1209), and finally conceded (1213). His oppressive government, and failure to recover Normandy, provoked baronial opposition, which led to demands for constitutional reform. The barons met the king at Runnymede, and forced him to grant the Great Charter (Magna Carta) (June 1215), the basis of the English constitution. His repudiation of the Charter precipitated the first Barons' Wars (1215-17).
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Henry III, King of England (1216-72), was the elder son and successor, at the age of nine, of John. He declared an end to his minority in 1227, and in 1232 stripped the justiciar, Hubert de Burgh, of power. His arbitrary assertion of royal rights conflicted with the principles of Magna Carta, and antagonized many nobles. Although he failed to recover Poitou (N Aquitaine) in 1242, he accepted for his son Edmund the Kingdom of Sicily (1254), then occupied by the Hohenstaufens.
This forced him to seek the support of the barons, who under the leadership of the king's brother-in-law, Simon de Montfort, imposed far-reaching reforms by the Provisions of Oxford (1258), which gave them a definite say in government. When Henry sought to restore royal power, the barons rebelled and captured the king at Lewes (1264), but were defeated at Evesham (1265). The Dictum of Kenilworth (1266), though favourable to Henry, urged him to observe Magna Carta. Organized resistance ended in 1267, and the rest of the reign was stable. He was succeeded by his elder son, Edward I.
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Edward I, King of England (1272-1307), was born in Westminster, London, the elder son of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. He married Eleanor of Castile (1254) and later Margaret of France, the sister of Philip IV (1299). In the Barons' War (1264-7), he at first supported Simon de Montfort, but rejoined his father, and defeated de Montfort at Evesham (1265). He then won renown as a crusader to the Holy Land, and did not return to England until 1274, two years after his father's death. In two devastating campaigns (1276-7, 1282-3), he annexed N and W Wales, and ensured the permanence of his conquests by building magnificent castles.
He reasserted English claims to the overlordship of Scotland when the line of succession failed, and decided in favour of John Balliol as king (1292). But Edward's insistence on full rights of suzerainty provoked the Scottish magnates to force Balliol to repudiate Edward and ally with France (1295), thus beginning the Scottish Wars of Independence. Despite prolonged campaigning and victories such as Falkirk (1298), he could not subdue Scotland as he had done Wales. He died while leading his army against Robert Bruce.
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Edward II, King of England (1307-27), was born in Caernarfon, Gwynedd, the fourth son of Edward I and Eleanor of Castile. In 1301 he was created Prince of Wales, the first English heir apparent to bear the title, and in 1308 married Isabella, the daughter of Philip IV of France. Throughout his reign, Edward mismanaged the barons, who sought to rid the country of royal favourites and restore their rightful place in government. The Ordinances of 1311 restricted the royal prerogative in matters such as appointments to the king's household, and demanded the banishment of Piers Gaveston, who was ultimately captured and executed (1312).
Edward was humiliated by reverses in Scotland, where he was decisively defeated by Robert Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn (1314). The Ordinances were formally annulled (1322), but the king's new favourites, the Despensers, were acquisitive and unpopular, and earned the particular enmity of Queen Isabella. With her lover Roger Mortimer Earl of March (c.1287-1330), she toppled the Despensers (1326) and imprisoned Edward in Kenilworth Castle. He renounced the throne in favour of his eldest son (1327), who succeeded as Edward III, and was then murdered in Berkeley Castle, near Gloucester.
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Edward III, King of England (1327-77), was born in Windsor, Berkshire, the elder son of Edward II and Isabella of France. He married Philippa of Hainault in 1328, and their eldest child Edward, later called the Black Prince, was born in 1330. By banishing Queen Isabella from court and executing her lover, Roger Mortimer Earl of March (c.1287-1330), assumed full control of the government (1330), and began to restore the monarchy's authority and prestige. He supported the attempts of Edward Balliol (c.1250-1315) to wrest the Scots throne from David II, and his victory at Halidon Hill (1333) forced David to seek refuge in France until 1341.
In 1337, after Philip VI had declared Guyenne forfeit, he revived his hereditary claim to the French crown through Isabella, the daughter of Philip IV, thus beginning the Hundred Years' War. He destroyed the French navy at the Battle of Sluys (1340), and won another major victory at CrΘcy (1346). David II was captured two months later at the Battle of Neville's Cross, near Durham, and remained a prisoner until 1357.
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Richard II, King of England (1377-99), was born in Bordeaux, France, the younger son of Edward the Black Prince, who succeeded his grandfather, Edward III, at the age of 10. He displayed great bravery in confronting the rebels in London during the Peasants' Revolt (1381); but already parliament was concerned about his favourites, and the reign was dominated by the struggle between Richard's desire to act independently, and the magnates' concern to curb his power.
He quarrelled with his uncle, John of Gaunt, and his main supporters were found guilty of treason in the 'Merciless Parliament' of 1388. After Richard had declared an end to his minority in 1389, he built up a stronger following, and in 1397-8 took his revenge by having the Earl of Arundel executed, the Duke of Gloucester murdered, and several lords banished, the exiles including Gaunt's son, Henry Bolingbroke (later Henry IV).
His final act of oppression was to confiscate the Lancastrian estates after Gaunt's death (1399). Having failed to restrain the king by constitutional means, the magnates resolved to unseat him from the throne. Bolingbroke invaded England unopposed, and Richard was deposed in his favour (September 1399). He died in Pontefract Castle, Yorkshire, possibly of starvation.
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Henry IV, King of England (1399-1413), was the first king of the House of Lancaster, the son of John of Gaunt, who was the fourth son of Edward III. He was surnamed Bolingbroke, from his birthplace in Lincolnshire. In 1397 he supported Richard II against the Duke of Gloucester, and was created Duke of Hereford, but was banished in 1398. After landing at Ravenspur, Yorkshire, Henry induced Richard, now deserted, to abdicate in his favour.
During his reign, rebellion and lawlessness were rife, and he was constantly hampered by lack of money. Under Owen Glendower the Welsh maintained their independence, and Henry's attack on Scotland in 1400 ended in his defeat. Henry Percy (Hotspur) and his house then joined with the Scots and the Welsh against him, but they were defeated at Shrewsbury (1403). He was a chronic invalid in later years.
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Henry V, King of England (1413-22), was born in Monmouth, Gwent, the eldest son of Henry IV. He fought against Glendower and the Welsh rebels (1402-8), and became Constable of Dover (1409) and captain of Calais (1410). To this time belong the exaggerated stories of his wild youth. The main effort of his reign was his claim, through his great-grandfather Edward III, to the French crown.
In 1415 he invaded France, and won the Battle of Agincourt against great odds. By 1419 Normandy was again under English control, and in 1420 was concluded the 'perpetual peace' of Troyes, under which Henry was recognized as heir to the French throne and Regent of France, and married Charles VI's daughter, Catherine of Valois.
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Henry VI, King of England (1422-61, 1470-1), was born in Windsor, Berkshire, the only child of Henry V and Catherine of Valois. During Henry's minority, his uncle John, Duke of Bedford, was Regent of France, and another uncle, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, was Lord Protector of England. Henry was crowned King of France in Paris in 1431, two years after his coronation in England. But once the Burgundians had made a separate peace with Charles VII (1435), Henry V's French conquests were progressively eroded, and by 1453 the English retained only Calais.
Henry had few kingly qualities, and from 1453 suffered from periodic bouts of insanity. Richard, Duke of York, seized power as Lord Protector in 1454, and defeated the king's army at St Albans (1455), the first battle of the Wars of the Roses. Fighting resumed in 1459, and although York himself was killed at Wakefield (1460), his heir was proclaimed king as Edward IV after Henry's deposition (1461).
In 1464 Henry returned from exile in Scotland to lead the Lancastrian cause, but was captured and imprisoned (1465-70). Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, restored him to the throne (October 1470), his nominal rule ending when Edward IV returned to London (April 1471). After the Yorkist victory at Tewkesbury (May 1471), where his only son was killed, Henry was murdered in the Tower.
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Edward IV, King of England (1461-70, 1471-83), was born in Rouen, France, the eldest son of Richard, Duke of York. His father claimed the throne as the lineal descendant of Edward III's third and fifth sons (respectively Lionel, Duke of Clarence, and Edmund, Duke of York) against the Lancastrian King Henry VI (the lineal descendant of Edward III's fourth son, John of Gaunt.)
Richard was killed at the Battle of Wakefield (1460), but Edward entered London in 1461, was recognized as king on Henry VI's deposition, and with the support of his cousin Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, decisively defeated the Lancastrians at Towton. He threw off his dependence on Warwick, and secretly married Elizabeth Woodville (1464).
Warwick forced him into exile in Holland (October 1470), and Henry VI regained the throne. Edward returned to England (March 1471), was restored to kingship (11 April), then defeated and killed Warwick at the Battle of Barnet (14 April), and destroyed the remaining Lancastrian forces at Tewkesbury (4 May). Henry VI was murdered soon afterwards, and Edward remained secure for the rest of his reign.
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Edward V, King of England (April-June 1483), was born in Westminster, London, the son of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville. Shortly after his accession, he and his younger brother Richard, Duke of York, were imprisoned in the Tower by their uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who usurped the throne as Richard III.
The two princes were never heard of again, and were most probably murdered (August 1483) on their uncle's orders. In 1674 a wooden chest containing the bones of two children was discovered in the Tower, and these were interred in Westminster Abbey as their presumed remains.
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Richard III, King of England (1483-5), was born in Fotheringhay Castle, Northamptonshire, the youngest son of Richard, Duke of York. He was created Duke of Gloucester by his brother, Edward IV, in 1461, accompanied him into exile (1470), and played a key role in his restoration (1471). Rewarded with part of the Neville inheritance, he exercised vice-regal powers in North England, and in 1482 recaptured Berwick-upon-Tweed from the Scots.
When Edward died (1483) and was succeeded by his under-age son, Edward V, Richard acted first as protector; but within three months, he had overthrown the Woodvilles (relations of Edward IV's queen), seen to the execution of Lord Hastings, and had himself proclaimed and crowned as the rightful king. Young Edward and his brother were probably murdered in the Tower on Richard's orders (though not all historians agree).
He tried to stabilize his position, but failed to win broad-based support. His rival, Henry Tudor (later Henry VII), confronted him in battle at Bosworth Field, and Richard died fighting bravely against heavy odds. Though ruthless, he was not the absolute monster Tudor historians portrayed him to be. Nor is there proof he was a hunchback.
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Henry VII, King of England (1485-1509), was born at Pembroke Castle, Dyfed, the grandson of Owen Tudor and Catherine of Valois, the widow of Henry V; the founder of the Tudor dynasty. After the Lancastrian defeat at Tewkesbury (1471), Henry was taken to Brittany, where several Yorkist attempts on his life and liberty were frustrated. In 1485 he landed unopposed at Milford Haven, and defeated Richard III at Bosworth.
As king, his policy was to restore peace and prosperity to the country, and this was helped by his marriage of reconciliation with Elizabeth of York. He was also noted for the efficiency of his financial and administrative policies. He firmly dealt with Yorkist plots, such as that led by Perkin Warbeck. Peace was concluded with France, and the marriage of his heir to Catherine of Aragon cemented an alliance with Spain. He died at Richmond, Surrey, and was succeeded by his son, as Henry VIII.
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Henry VIII, King of England (1509-47), was born in Greenwich, Greater London, the second son of Henry VII. Soon after his accession he married Catherine of Aragon, his brother Arthur's widow. As a member of the Holy League, he invaded France (1512), winning the Battle of Spurs (1513); and while abroad, the Scots were defeated at Flodden. In 1521 he published a book on the Sacraments in reply to Luther, receiving from the pope the title 'Defender of the Faith'.
From 1527 he determined to divorce Catherine, whose children, except for Mary, had died in infancy. He tried to put pressure on the pope by humbling the clergy, and in defiance of the Roman Catholic Church was privately married to Anne Boleyn (1533). In 1534 it was enacted that his marriage to Catherine was invalid, and that the king was the sole head of the Church of England. The policy of suppressing the monasteries then began. In 1536 Catherine died, and Anne Boleyn was executed for infidelity.
Henry then married Jane Seymour (c.1509-37), who died leaving a son, afterwards Edward VI. In 1540 Anne of Cleves became his fourth wife, in the hope of attaching the Protestant interest of Germany; but dislike of her appearance caused him to divorce her speedily. He then married Catherine Howard (1540), who two years later was executed on grounds of infidelity (1542). In 1543 his last marriage was to Catherine Parr, who survived him. His later years saw further war with France and Scotland, before peace was concluded with France in 1546. He was succeeded by his son as Edward VI.
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Edward VI, King of England (1547-53), was born in London, the son of Henry VIII by his third queen, Jane Seymour. During his reign, power was first in the hands of his uncle, the Duke of Somerset, and after his execution in 1552, of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland.
Edward became a devout Protestant, and under the Protectors the English Reformation flourished. He died of tuberculosis in London, having agreed to the succession of Lady Jane Grey (overthrown after nine days by Mary I).
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Mary I, Queen of England and Ireland (1553-8), was born in Greenwich, Greater London, the daughter of Henry VIII by his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. A devout Catholic, during the reign of Edward, her half-brother, she lived in retirement, refusing to conform to the new religion. Despite Northumberland's conspiracy to prevent her succession on Edward's death (1553), she relied on the support of the country, entered London and ousted Lady Jane Grey.
Thereafter she proceeded cautiously, repealing anti-Catholic legislation and reviving Catholic practices, but her intention was to restore papal supremacy with the assistance of Cardinal Pole, and to cement a Catholic union with Philip II of Spain. These aspirations provoked Wyatt's rebellion, followed by the execution of Jane Grey and the imprisonment of Mary's half-sister, Elizabeth, on suspicion of complicity.
Mary's unpopular marriage to Philip (1554) was followed by the persecution of some 300 Protestants, which earned her the name of 'Bloody Mary' in Protestant hagiography, though her direct responsibility is unproven. She died broken by childlessness, sickness, grief at her husband's departure from England, and the loss of Calais to the French.
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Known as the Virgin Queen and later Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth I was Queen of England (1558-1603). The daughter of Henry VIII by his second wife, Anne Boleyn, she was born in Greenwich, London. On the death of Edward VI (1553) she sided with her half-sister Mary against Lady Jane Grey and the Duke of Northumberland, but her identification with Protestantism made Mary suspicious, and she was imprisoned for her alleged part in the rebellion of Wyatt (1554). Ascending the throne on Mary's death, she steered a skilful course in foreign affairs with the two leading Catholic powers of Spain and France, and presided over the judicious settlement of the Church of England (1559).
She made peace with France and Scotland, and strengthened her position by secretly helping Protestants in these countries. Following Mary, Queen of Scots' flight to England (1568) and imprisonment, Elizabeth became a target of successive conspiracies hatched by English Catholics. After the Babington plot was discovered (1586), she was reluctantly persuaded to approve Mary's execution (1587). In response to papal excommunication and Jesuit missions, she approved anti-Catholic legislation, while trying to control the Puritan wing of the Anglican Church. When Philip of Spain attempted an invasion of England, sending his 'invincible armada' (1588), her fleet under Howard of Effingham managed to repel the attack, and the weather completed its destruction.
Elizabeth had a number of favourites, but she never married, and died childless. Of all her relationships, only that with Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, touched her deeply. A strong-willed, astute, yet capricious woman who faced growing parliamentary turbulence, she was nevertheless popular with her subjects. Her reign was crowned with the maritime exploits of Hawkins, Drake, and Raleigh, the artistic genius of Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Spenser, and the musical works of Tallis and Byrd.
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James I was the first Stuart king of England (1603-25), and also King of Scotland (1567û1625) as James VI. He was born in Edinburgh Castle, the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Henry, Lord Darnley. On his mother's forced abdication, he was proclaimed king, and brought up by several regents. When he began to govern for himself, he ruled through his favourites, which caused a rebellion and a period of imprisonment. In 1589 he married Anne of Denmark.
Hating Puritanism, he managed in 1600 to establish bishops in Scotland. On Elizabeth's death, he ascended the English throne as great-grandson of James IV's English wife, Margaret. At first well received, his favouritism again brought him unpopularity.
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Charles I, King of Britain and Ireland (1625-49), was born in Dunfermline, Fife. He failed in his bid to marry the Infanta Maria of Spain (1623), marrying instead the French princess, Henrietta Maria (1609û69), and thus disturbing the nation, for the marriage articles permitted her the free exercise of the Catholic religion.
Three parliaments were summoned and dissolved in the first four years of his reign; then for 11 years he ruled without one, using instead judges and prerogative courts. He warred with France (1627-9), and in 1630 made peace with Spain, but his continuing need for money led to unpopular economic policies. His attempt to anglicize the Scottish Church brought active resistance (1639), and he then called a parliament (1640).
In 1642, having alienated much of the realm, Charles entered into the Civil War, which saw the annihilation of his cause at Naseby (14 June 1645), and he surrendered to the Scots at Newark (1646). After many negotiations, during which his attempts at duplicity exasperated opponents, and a second Civil War (1646-8), he came to trial at Westminster, where his dignified refusal to plead was interpreted as a confession of guilt. He was beheaded at Whitehall (30 January 1649).
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Oliver Cromwell, English soldier and statesman, was born in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. Educated at Huntingdon and Cambridge, he studied law in London. A convinced Puritan, he sat in both the Short and the Long Parliaments (1640), and when war broke out (1642) fought for the parliament at Edgehill. He formed his unconquerable Ironsides, combining rigid discipline with strict morality, and it was his cavalry that secured the victory at Marston Moor (1644), while under Fairfax he led the New Model Army to decisive success at Naseby (1645).
He quelled insurrection in Wales in support of Charles I, and defeated the invading army of Hamilton. He then brought the king to trial, and was one of the signatories of his death warrant (1649). Having established the Commonwealth, Cromwell suppressed the Levellers, Ireland (1649-50), and the Scots (under Charles II) at Dunbar (1650) and Worcester (1651). He dissolved the Rump of the Long Parliament (1653), and after the failure of his Barebone's Parliament, established a Protectorate (1653-58). He refused the offer of the crown in 1657.
At home he reorganized the national Church, upheld toleration, and gave Scotland and Ireland parliamentary representation. Under him the Commonwealth became the head and champion of Protestant Europe. He was succeeded by his son Richard Cromwell (1626-1712), who was forced into French exile in 1659.
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Richard Cromwell succeeded his father Oliver Cromwell as Lord protector, on the death of his father in 1658. He was forced into French exile in 1659.
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Charles II, King of Britain and Ireland (1660-85), was born in London, the son of Charles I. As Prince of Wales, he sided with his father in the Civil War, and was then forced into exile. On his father's execution (1649), he assumed the title of King, and was crowned at Scone (1651). Leading poorly organized forces into England, he met disastrous defeat at Worcester (1651).
The next nine years were spent in exile until an impoverished England, in dread of a revival of military despotism, summoned him back as king (1660). In 1662 he married the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza. It was a childless marriage, though Charles was the father of many illegitimate children. His war with Holland (1665û7) was unpopular, and led to the dismissal of his adviser, Lord Clarendon (1667), who was replaced by a group of ministers (the Cabal).
He negotiated skilfully between conflicting political and religious pressures, including the trumped-up 'Popish Plot', and refused to deny the succession of his brother James. For the last four years of his life, he ruled without parliament.
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James II, King of England and Ireland (1685-8), also King of Scotland, as James VII, was born in London, the second son of Charles I. Nine months before his father's execution he escaped to Holland. At the Restoration (1660) he was made Lord High Admiral of England, and commanded the fleet in the Dutch Wars; but after becoming a convert to Catholicism he was forced to resign his post.
The national ferment occasioned by the Popish Plot (1678) became so formidable that he had to retire to the Continent, and several unsuccessful attempts were made to exclude him from the succession. During his reign his actions in favour of Catholicism raised general indignation, and William, Prince of Orange, his son-in-law and nephew, was formally asked by leading clerics and landowners to invade. Deserted by ministers and troops, James escaped to France, where he was warmly received by Louis XIV.
He made an ineffectual attempt to regain his throne in Ireland, which ended in the Battle of the Boyne (1690), and remained at St Germain until his death.
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William III, Stadholder of the United Provinces (1672-1702) and King of Great Britain (1689-1702), born in The Hague, the son of William II of Orange by Mary, the eldest daughter of Charles I of England. In 1677 he married his cousin, Mary (1662-94), the daughter of James II by Anne Hyde.
Invited to redress the grievances of the country, he landed at Torbay in 1688 with an English and Dutch army, and forced James II to flee. William and Mary were proclaimed rulers early the following year. He defeated JamesÆs supporters at Dunkeld (1689) and at the Boyne (1690), then concentrated on the War of the League of Augsburg against France (1689-97), in which he was finally successful.
In later years, he had to withstand much parliamentary opposition to his proposals, and there were many assassination plots. He died in London, childless, the crown passing to MaryÆs sister, Anne.
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Mary II, the daughter of James II, ruled together with William III from 1689 until her death in 1694.
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Anne, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland (1702-14), was born in London, the second daughter of James II, and the last Stuart sovereign. In 1672 her father became a Catholic, but she was brought up in the Church of England. In 1683 she married Prince George of Denmark (1653-1708); and Sarah Jennings (1660-1744), the wife of Lord Churchill (afterwards Duke of Marlborough), was appointed a lady of her bedchamber.
Lady Churchill speedily acquired supreme influence over her, which she exerted in favour of her husband. In their correspondence, Anne went by the name of Mrs Morley, and Lady Churchill by that of Mrs Freeman. During her father's reign, Anne lived in retirement, taking no part in politics, but was later drawn into intrigues for the restoration of her father, or to secure the succession for his son. She was herself childless when she succeeded to the throne in 1702. She bore 17 children, but only William, Duke of Gloucester (1689-1700), survived infancy.
The influence of Marlborough and his wife was powerfully felt in all public affairs during the greater part of her reign, which was marked by the union of England and Scotland (1707), and the long struggle against Louis XIV of France known as the War of the Spanish Succession. Towards the end of her reign she quarrelled with the Marlboroughs who, with Godolphin, headed the Whig Party. Anne found a new favourite in Abigail Masham, and under her influence appointed a Tory government (1710); but quarrels between the new ministers prevented her securing the succession for her brother.
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George I, King of Great Britain and Ireland (1714-27), was born in Osnabrⁿck, Germany, the great-grandson of James I of England, and proclaimed king on the death of Queen Anne. Elector of Hanover from 1698, he had commanded the Imperial forces in the Marlborough wars.
He divorced his wife and cousin, the Princess Dorothea of Zell, imprisoning her in the castle of Ahlde, where she died (1726). He took relatively little part in the government of the country. His affections remained with Hanover, and he lived there as much as possible.
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George II, King of Great Britain and Ireland (1727-60), and Elector of Hanover, was born at Herrenhausen, Hanover, the son of George I. In 1705 he married Caroline of Anspach (1683-1737). Though he involved himself more in the government of the country than his father had, the policy pursued during the first half of the reign was that of Walpole.
In the War of the Austrian Succession, he was present at the Battle of Dettingen (1743), the last occasion on which a British sovereign commanded an army in the field. His reign also saw the crushing of Jacobite hopes at the Battle of Culloden (1746), the foundation of British India after the Battle of Plassey (1757), the beginning of the Seven Years' War, and the capture of Quebec (1759).
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George III, King of Great Britain and Ireland (1760-1820), Elector (1760-1815) and King (from 1815) of Hanover, was born in London, the eldest son of Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales (1707-51). His father predeceased him, and he thus succeeded his grandfather, George II. Eager to govern as well as reign, he caused considerable friction. With Lord North he shared in the blame for the loss of the American colonies, and popular feeling ran high against him for a time in the 1770s.
In 1783 he called Pitt (the Younger) to office, which brought an end to the supremacy of the old Whig families. In 1810 he suffered a recurrence of a mental derangement, and the Prince of Wales was made regent. He died at Windsor, Berkshire, insane and blind.
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George IV, King of Great Britain and Hanover (1820-30), was born in London, the eldest son of George III. He became prince regent in 1810, because of his father's insanity. Rebelling against a strict upbringing, he went through a marriage ceremony with Mrs Fitzherbert, a Roman Catholic, which was not recognized in English law.
The marriage was later declared invalid, and in 1795 he married Princess Caroline of Brunswick, whom he tried to divorce when he was king. Her death in 1821 ended a scandal in which the people sympathized with the queen.
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William IV, King of Great Britain and Ireland, and King of Hanover (1830-7), was born in London, the third son of George III. He entered the navy in 1779, saw service in the USA and the West Indies, became an admiral in 1811, and Lord High Admiral in 1827-8. His elder brother having died, he succeeded George IV in 1830.
Widely believed to have Whig leanings to his accession, he developed Tory sympathies, and did much to obstruct the passing of the first Reform Act (1832). He was the last monarch to use prerogative powers to dismiss a ministry with a parliamentary majority when he sacked Melbourne in 1834 and invited the Tories to form a government. He was succeeded by his niece, Victoria.
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Victoria, Queen of Great Britain (1837-1901) and (from 1876) Empress of India, was born in London, the only child of George III's fourth son, Edward, and Victoria Maria Louisa of Saxe-Coburg, sister of Leopold, King of the Belgians. Taught by Lord Melbourne, her first prime minister, she had a clear grasp of constitutional principles and the scope of her own prerogative, which she resolutely exercised in 1839 by setting aside the precedent which decreed dismissal of the current ladies of the bedchamber, thus causing Peel not to take up office as prime minister.
In 1840 she married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and had four sons and five daughters. Strongly influenced by her husband, with whom she worked in closest harmony, after his death (1861) she went into lengthy seclusion, neglecting many duties, which brought her unpopularity and motivated a republican movement. But with her recognition as Empress of India, and the celebratory golden (1887) and diamond (1897) jubilees, she rose high in her subjects' favour, and increased the prestige of the monarchy.
She had strong preferences for certain prime ministers (notably Melbourne and Disraeli) over others (notably Peel and Gladstone), but following the advice of Albert did not press these beyond the bounds of constitutional propriety. At various points in her long reign she exercised some influence over foreign affairs, and the marriages of her children had important diplomatic, as well as dynastic implications in Europe. She died at Cowes, Isle of Wight, and was succeeded by her son as Edward VII.
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Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom (1901-10), was born in London, the eldest son of Queen Victoria. He studied at Edinburgh, Oxford, and Cambridge, and in 1863 married Alexandra (1844-1925), the eldest daughter of Christian IX of Denmark. They had three sons and three daughters: Albert Victor (1864-92), Duke of Clarence; George (1865-1936); Louise (1867-1931), Princess Royal; Victoria (1868-1935); Maud (1869-1938), who married Haakon VII of Norway; and Alexander (born and died 1871).
As Prince of Wales, his behaviour led him into several social scandals, and the Queen excluded him from affairs of state. As king, he carried out several visits to Continental capitals which strove to allay international animosities.
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George V, King of the United Kingdom (1910-36), was born in London, the second son of Edward VII. He served in the navy, travelled in many parts of the Empire, and was created Prince of Wales in 1901. His reign saw the Union of South Africa (1910), World War 1, the Irish Free State settlement (1922), and the General Strike (1926).
His consort, Mary (1867-1953), formerly Princess Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes of Teck, was born in London, and married Prince George in 1893. She organized women's war work (1914-18), and continued with many public and philanthropic activities after the death of her husband. They had five sons and one daughter.
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Edward VIII, King of the United Kingdom (January-December 1936), was born in Richmond, Greater London, the eldest son of George V. He studied at Oxford, joined the navy and (in World War 1) the army, travelled much, and achieved considerable popularity. He succeeded his father in 1936, but abdicated (11 December) in the face of opposition to his proposed marriage to Wallis Simpson, a commoner who had been twice divorced. He was then given the title of Duke of Windsor, and the marriage took place in France in 1937.
They lived in Paris, apart from a period in the Bahamas (1940-5), where Edward was governor. He died in Paris. His wife, the Duchess of Windsor (1896-1986) was born Bessie Wallis Warfield at Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania. She married (1916-27) Lieutenant E W Spencer of the US Navy, then (1927-36) Ernest Simpson, a US-born Englishman.
Well known in London Society, she met the Prince of Wales at a country house party. After her husband's death, she lived in seclusion, and was in ill health for many years before she died, also in Paris. She was buried beside her husband at Windsor Castle.
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Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom (1952- ) and head of the Commonwealth, was born in London, the daughter of George VI. Formerly Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, she was proclaimed queen on 6 February 1952, and crowned on 2 June 1953. Her husband was created Duke of Edinburgh on the eve of their wedding (20 November 1947), and styled Prince Philip in 1957.
They have three sons, Charles (Philip Arthur George) (14 November 1948), Andrew (Albert Christian Edward) (19 February 1960), and Edward (Anthony Richard Louis) (10 March 1964), and a daughter, Anne (Elizabeth Alice Louise) (15 August 1950).
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Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom (1952) and head of the Commonwealth, was born in London, the daughter of George VI. Formerly Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, she was proclaimed queen on 6 February 1952, and crowned on 2 June 1953. Her husband was created Duke of Edinburgh on the eve of their wedding (20 Nov 1947), and styled Prince Philip in 1957.
They have three sons, Charles (Philip Arthur George) (14 November 1948), Andrew (Albert Christian Edward) (19 February 1960), and Edward (Anthony Richard Louis) (10 March 1964), and a daughter, Anne (Elizabeth Alice Louise) (15 August 1950).
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George VI, King of the United Kingdom (1936-52), was born at Sandringham, Norfolk, the second son of George V. He studied at Dartmouth Naval College and at Cambridge, and served in the Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland (1916). In 1920 he was created Duke of York, and was married in 1923. He played at Wimbledon in the All-England tennis championships in 1926.
After ascending the throne (on the abdication of his elder brother, Edward VIII), during World War 2 he continued to reside in bomb-damaged Buckingham Palace, visited all theatres of war, and delivered many broadcasts, for which he mastered a speech impediment. His wife, Elizabeth (1900- ), was born Lady Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon at Waldenbury, Hertfordshire. They had two children: Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) and Princess Margaret. During the War she paid many visits to hospitals, civil defence centres, and women's organizations.
In her later years, she has continued to undertake a heavy program of royal engagements at home and overseas.
