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British Monarchy through history

Important facts and stories, dates and key figures to know about the British Monarchy.

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When did the Kingdom of England become the Kingdom of Great Britain

On May 1st 1707 with the Acts of Union 1707 signed by both the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England.


When was the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland formed?

On January 1st 1801 with the Acts of Union 1800 (or sometimes called Acts of Union 1801) that united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland. The United Kingdom took its final form in 1922 after the signature of The Anglo-Irish Treaty and the creation of the Irish Free State (Ireland).


When were the crowns of Scotland and England united?

On March 24th 1603
When Queen Elizabeth I of England died and James VI of Scotland succeeded her as James I of England


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Alfred the Great

King of Wessex from 871 to 899, he also became king of all England and was called "King of the English" after his army captured London in 886.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Cnut the Great

1016-1035
After he invaded England in 1015, he became King of England and also ruled Denmark for 17 years and Norway for 7 years, until his death in 1035.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

William I, the Conqueror

1066-1087
He is the one who led the Norman Conquest of England and so was the first Norman King of England.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Richard I

1189-1199
He was known as Richard the Lionheart (or Richard Coeur de Lion) because of his great reputation as a military leader and warrior. He also took part in the Crusades.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Henry V

1413-1422
Ruled England and Ireland. He took part in the Hundred Years' War and won many battles, in particular the Battle of Agincourt that led to the signature of the Treaty of Troyes by Charles VI of France.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Henry VIII

1509-1547
Ruled England and Ireland and is the one who separated the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. He is also very famous for his relationships to women and his six wives of whom two were beheaded.


When did this Queen reign? What is she known for?

Elizabeth I

1558-1603
Ruled England and Ireland. She is the daughter of Henry VII and was known as "The Virgin Queen". Her rule was marked by glorious military victories among them the defeat of the Spanish Armada. She reigned over a golden age for art and science.


Who was the Queen known as Bloody Mary and when did she reign?

Mary I
She reigned from 1553 to 1558 after removing Lady Jane Grey (known as the Nine Days' Queen) from the English throne.


When did the Houses of Lancaster and York rule?

1399 - 1485
Although thoses houses are from the Plantagenet family, they were the first to be considered as truly English rather than French Kings. Richard III is the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and of the House of York.


When did the House of Tudor rule?

1485-1603


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Edward I

1272-1307
He ruled England, Ireland and Aquitaine and also led brutal campaigns through Scotland and so was known as "Hammer of the Scots".


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

James I

1567-1625 (Scotland, as James VI) and 1603-1625 (Ireland and England)
He is known to be the first King uniting the crowns of Scotland and England and also for the Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible. Under his rule, trade through the British East India Company increased dramatically and art and literature continued to flourish.


When did this Queen reign? What is she known for?

Victoria

1837-1901
She ruled Great Britain and Ireland and her rule was the longest one in British history. The British Empire grew immensely during her reign and she is the first one to adopt the title of Empress of India. She defined an entire era through her strict standards of morality.


When did the House of Stuart rule?

from 1603 to 1649 and then from 1660 to 1714


When did the Protectorate take place? Who was ruling at that time?

1649-1660
at that time England (including Wales), Scotland and Ireland are governed by a Lord Protector, successively Olivier Cromwell (1649-1658) and Richard Cromwell (1658-1659).


Who was the first King of the House of Windsor, the current reigning house?

George V
He reigned from 1910 to 1936 and he is the one who changed the name of the British Royal House from House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the more English sounding name House of Windsor after the First World War.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Richard III

1483-1485
He is famous because of the legend of The Princes in the Tower that suggests that he would have ordered the murder of his nephew in order to seize the throne. He is also the main character of a famous play by Shakespeare. His defeat at the battle of Bosworth Field marked the end of the War of the Roses and of the Middle Ages in England.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Henry II

1154-1189
Considered nowadays as one of the ablest of English Monarchs, his long reign introduced some long-term changes, especially in matters of justice and legal changes. He is also the father of Richard the Lionheart.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

Charles II

1660-1685
He is the one who restored the Monarchy.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

George III

1760-1820
He is mostly remembered for the many conflicts (among them the American Revolution) that marked his reign and the mental illness he suffered at the end of his life. A regency was even established from 1810 to 1820.


When did this King reign? What is he known for?

George VI

1936-1952
He ascended the throne after the abdication of his elder brother the King Edward VIII who wanted to marry a divorced American woman within the year of his coronation. His reign was marked by World War II, the Independence of India and he was the first to adopt the new title of Head of the Commonwealth. He is the father of the reigning Queen, his elder daughter, Elizabeth II.


When did this Queen reign? What is she known for?

Anne

1702-1714
She is mostly known to be the first ruler of Great Britain that no longer was limited to England (already including Wales at that time).