England/Catalogs/Kings and Queens
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The English monarchy is usually regarded as beginning with Egbert. The Anglo-Saxon kingdoms had acknowledged one among their number as overlord in some sense. Egbert of Wessex displaced the Mercian overlordhsip. Over the next century, the Vikings conquered most of England, destroying all the other kingdoms in the process, and Wessex then reconquered their territory. When Athelstan completed this process, he was effective king of all England, not just an overlord of independent kingdoms.
Saxons
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 829-839 | Egbert | |
| 839-855 | Ethelwulf | abdicated |
| 855-860 | Ethelbald | |
| 860-865 | Ethelbert | |
| 865-871 | Ethelred | |
| 871-899 | Alfred | the Great |
| 899-924 | Edward | the Elder |
| 924-939 | Athelstan | |
| 939-946 | Edmund | |
| 946-955 | Edred | |
| 955-959 | Edwy | |
| 959-975 | Edgar | |
| 975-978 | Edward | the Martyr |
| 978-1016 | Ethelred | the Unready |
| 1016 | Edmund | Ironside |
Danish rulers
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1017-1035 | Canute | |
| 1035-1040 | Harold I | Known as Harefoot |
| 1040-1042 | Hardicanute |
Saxons
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1042-1066 | Edward | The Confessor |
| 1066-1066 | Harold II |
House of Normandy
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1066-1087 | William I | |
| 1087-1100 | William II | |
| 1100-1135 | Henry I | |
| 1135-1154 | Stephen |
House of Plantagenet
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1154-1189 | Henry II | |
| 1189-1199 | Richard I | |
| 1199-1216 | John | |
| 1216-1272 | Henry III | |
| 1272-1307 | Edward I | Known as Longshanks and as 'Hammer of the Scots' |
| 1307-1327 | Edward II | |
| 1327-1377 | Edward III | |
| 1377-1399 | Richard II |
House of Lancaster
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1399-1413 | Henry IV | |
| 1413-1422 | Henry V | |
| 1422-1461 | Henry VI |
House of York
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1461-1483 | Edward IV | |
| 1483-1483 | Edward V | |
| 1483-1485 | Richard III |
House of Tudor
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1485-1509 | Henry VII | |
| 1509-1547 | Henry VIII | |
| 1547-1553 | Edward VI | |
| 1553-1558 | Mary I | |
| 1558-1603 | Elizabeth I |
House of Stuart
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1603-1625 | James I | James VI of Scotland |
| 1625-1649 | Charles I |
Commonwealth/protectorate
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1649-1653 | Commonwealth | |
| 1653-1658 | Oliver Cromwell | Lord Protector |
| 1658-1659 | Richard Cromwell | Lord Protector |
House of Stuart restored
| Date of Reign | Name | Comment | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1660-1685 | Charles II | ||
| 1685-1688 | James II | James VII of Scotland | |
| 1689-1694 | William and Mary | jointly | |
| 1694-1702 | William III | sole ruler; William II of Scotland | |
| 1702-1714 | Anne |
Notes
The 16-day "reign" of Elfweard in 924 is usually ignored.
The Danish Sweyn Forkbeard seized the throne for about 6 weeks in 1013-1014.
After King Harold was killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the Witan elected Edgar Atheling as king. He was never crowned, and submitted to William shortly after. He is sometimes included in the list of monarchs.
In 1141, the Church declared King Stephen deposed, but then restored and recrowned him.
In 1216, rebel barons proclaimed the future Louis VIII of France as King of England in London. His "reign" did not last long, and he is not usually included in lists of monarchs.
Although Henry VI was deposed in London in 1461, he remained king in parts of the country till 1465. He was restored for 6 months in 1470-71.
After the death of Edward VI, the Council in London, and the local authorities in King's Lynn and Berwick-upon-Tweed, proclaimed Lady Jane Dudley (née Grey) as queen. The rest of the country supported Mary, and Jane was deposed after 9 days. She is sometimes included in the list of monarchs.
When Queen Mary married Philip of Spain in 1554 he was given the title of King. Subsequent Acts of Parliament, charters and coins were issued under the joint names of the king and queen, and official documents were dated by both their regnal years. However, he is not normally included in lists of monarchs.
After the execution of Charles I a republic ("commonwealth") was proclaimed. The Cromwells were given the title of Lord Protector. Charles II dated his reign from the day of his father's execution, but was recognized at the time in only a few small areas of England, which were soon conquered by Commonwealth forces. After his restoration he continued to date his reign as if he had been king all along.
Faced with invasion and rebellion, James II fled the country in 1688. Parliament, meeting the following year, deemed him to have abdicated at that point.
The first English monarch known to have used a number is Henry III (on some coins). The numbering of earlier monarchs is retrospective. His son called himself Edward the First after the Conquest, establishing the conventional starting point of the numbering. However, monarchs do not usually call themselves "the First", such designations being added retrospectively when another monarch of the same name succeeds. Another exception is James I, who sometimes used the number to balance his Scottish title James VI.
Spellings of some early monarchs have been modernized.