This table lists all monarchs of England from 946 to today.
Name | Lived | Ruled | Comments | House |
Eadred |
946- 955 |
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Eadwig ("the All Fair" |
955
|
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Edgar ("the Peacable") |
959- 975 |
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Edward II ("the Martyr") |
975-
|
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Ęthelred II ("Unręd") |
978- 1016 |
Ethelred the Unrede (Commonly pronounced "unready", but actually meaning "unwise"). | ||
Swein ("Forkbeard")
|
1014
|
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Edmund II 'Ironside' | 1016 | |||
Cnut 'the Great' | 1016- 1035 |
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Harold I 'Harefoot' | 1035- 1040 |
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Haršacnut | 1040- 1042 |
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Edward III 'the Confessor' | 1042- 1066 |
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Harold II 'Godwinsson' | 1066 | |||
William I ("William The Conqueror") | 1028- 1087 |
1066- 1087 |
2nd cousin of Edward the Confessor - King by
conquest at Battle of Hastings in 1066. Natural death. |
Norman |
William II ("William Rufus") | 1057- 1100 |
1087- 1100 |
Second surviving son of William I. Killed in a hunting accident - murder suspected but unproven. | Norman |
Henry I | 1068- 1135 |
1100- 1135 |
Fourth son of William I. Natural death, no heir. |
Norman |
Stephen | 1096- 1154 |
1135- 1154 |
Grandson of William I. Appointed King over the better claim of Henry I's daughter Matilda. Civil war followed. Natural death, succession predetermined in settlement of civil war. | Norman |
Henry II | 1133- 1189 |
1154- 1189 |
Son of Matilda. Natural death. | Angevin |
Richard I ("The Lion Heart") | 1157- 1199 |
1189- 1199 |
Son of Henry II. Died of battle wounds,
with no heir. Forget the Hollywood image - Richard spent less than 12 months in England, and would have cheerfully sold the whole country to pay for Crusades. |
Angevin |
John I | 1167- 1216 |
1199- 1216 |
Second son of Henry II. Natural death. Unpopular King, forced to sign the Magna Carta by the barons. | Angevin |
Henry III | 1207- 1272 |
1216- 1272 |
Son of John I. Succeeded at age 9. Took control from his regents in 1227. Taken prisoner by Simon de Montfort (Leicester?) and forced to set up England's first parliament. Natural death. | Plantagenet |
Edward I | 1239- 1307 |
1272- 1307 |
Son of Henry III, reformer, made law subject to parliament, expelled the Jews. Natural death. | Plantagenet |
Edward II | 1284- 1327 |
1307- 1327 |
Son of Edward I. A weak, ineffective king who was imprisoned by his wife Isabella & her lover Roger Mortimer in Berkley Castle, and killed there, skewered with a red hot spitting iron. | Plantagenet |
Edward III | 1314- 1377 |
1327- 1377 |
Son of Edward II. Executed his regent (Roger Mortimer) and took control in 1330. Sought to take the French throne, (won battle of Crecy 1346), starting the 100 years war. Ambitions failed, largely due to the Black Death killing over 1/3 of the English population. Natural death. | Plantagenet |
Richard II | 1367- 1399 |
1377- 1399 |
Grandson of Edward III. Introduced the first poll tax, causing the Peasants' revolt (lead by Wat Tyler). Murdered in Pontefract castle. | Plantagenet |
Henry IV | 1366- 1413 |
1399- 1413 |
Grandson of Edward III (cousin of Richard II) - seized the crown in 1399. Natural death (?Leprosy?). | Lancaster |
Henry V | 1387- 1422 |
1413- 1422 |
Son of Henry IV. Sought the French
throne, (won battle of Agincourt). Natural death (?Dysentery?) |
Lancaster |
Henry VI | 1421- 1471 |
1422- 1471 |
Son of Henry V. King of England and France at age 9 months. A kindly, but weak King who lost control of France, and then the Wars of the Roses. Murdered by the son of the Duke of York. | Lancaster |
Edward IV | 1442- 1483 |
1461- 1483 |
Son of the Duke of York. Drowned his own brother in a barrel of Malmsey wine. Natural death. | York |
Edward V | 1471- 1483 |
1483- 1483 |
Son of Edward IV. Believed killed (with his younger brother) by Richard III in the tower of London. | York |
Richard III | 1452- 1485 |
1483- 1485 |
Unpopular, due to the killing of the
Princes. Their sister married Henry Tudor, to seal a political
alliance to replace Richard. Killed in battle with Henry Tudor. |
York |
Henry VII | 1457- 1509 |
1485- 1509 |
Last King to seize the throne of England by force. Married Elizabeth of York to secure a political solution to the Wars of the Roses. Natural death. | Tudor |
Henry VIII | 1491- 1547 |
1509- 1547 |
Son of Henry VII. An able, clever, popular king. His determination to leave a clear succession largely lead to his six marriages, and the split with Rome needed to enable his divorces. Natural death | Tudor |
Edward VI | 1537- 1553 |
1547- 1553 |
Son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour. Succeeded at age 9, ruled by Regents. Died at age 15 (?Tuberculosis?). Named Lady Jane Grey (cousin) as heir. | Tudor |
Lady Jane Grey | 1553 | Ruled for only nine days. Displaced and later beheaded by Mary I. | Tudor | |
Mary I | 1516- 1558 |
1553- 1558 |
"Bloody Mary". The eldest child of Henry VIII, by Catherine of Aragon. Sought reversion to Catholicism, burning opponents as heretics. Died of a tumour. |
Tudor |
Elizabeth I ("The Virgin Queen") | 1533- 1603 |
1558- 1603 |
Daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Reverted kingdom to protestantism. Used her unmarried status as a weapon to secure political alliance with Spain and France - fought wars with Spain. Natural death, without heir. | Tudor |
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