LIST OF MONARCHS IN THE BRITISH ISLES

(Redirected from List of British monarchs)

This is a 'list of the monarchs of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom', that is, the monarchs on the thrones of some of the various kingdoms that have existed in the 'British Isles', namely:

★ The Kingdom of Scotland, from 843 up to 1707;

★ The Kingdom of England, from 871 (including Wales from the Act of Union 1536–1543) up to 1707;

★ The Lordship of Ireland, from 1199 up to 1541;

★ The Kingdom of Ireland, from 1541 up to 1801;

★ The Kingdom of Great Britain, from the Acts of Union, 1707, between England and Scotland, up to 1801;

★ The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, from the Act of Union, 1801, between Great Britain and Ireland, up to 1927;

★ The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (The UK after the Irish Free State was formed and became a separate state).
To see the rulers of certain states prior to the formation of the Kingdoms of England, Scotland and the principality of Wales, see:

★ Kings of the Britons ★ Kings of the Picts ★ Kings of the Scots (includes the Stewart succession 1603–1714 to the throne of both Scotland and England) ★ Kings of Dál Riata ★ Kings of the Isle of Man ★ Kings of the Isle of Man and the Isles ★ Kings of Strathclyde ★ Legendary Kings of Britain ★ Rulers of Wales

★ Kings of East Anglia ★ Kings of Essex ★ Kings of Kent ★ Kings of Sussex ★ Kings of Wessex ★ Kings of Mercia ★ Kings of Northumbria ★ High Kings of Ireland

Contents

Complications over title and style

Monarchs

Notes

See also

References

Complications over title and style

Royal titles are complicated because in some cases names of kingdoms are used that did not officially come into existence until later, or came into existence earlier without immediate adoption of the royal title.

★ In 1328, on the death of the French king, Charles IV, Edward III (nephew of Charles IV) claimed the French throne. While Tudor monarchs continued to claim France and not actually have this based on occupation, the British Stuarts were pensioners of the House of Bourbon just as the Scottish Stewarts were of the House of Valois in opposition to the Plantagenets' actual possession of France. This was to prove the undoing of title, since passing the Test Act and Edict of Fontainebleau revived old tensions; the British and French peace established under James Stuart and Henry Bourbon could not sustain itself. Subsequent Hanoverian monarchs until the Act of Union 1800, had no intimate dealings with the title, but were concerned with their native Brunswick. The French Revolution then rendered a rather Whiggish opinion on the Crown of France to be true, although there was a minor Tory outrage over relinquishing the traditional title. (See English claims to the French throne.)

★ Since 1559 English monarchs, and subsequently British monarchs, have also had the title Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

★ Note that the numbering of English monarchs starts afresh after 1066 (although this affects only the Edwards). The numerical system prefers the divided national approach; thus James II of England was also James VII of Scotland and William III of England was also William II of Scotland. After the Union, the ordinal has been the English number (for "George", "Edward" and "Elizabeth") and, until recently, there was no formal rule (see List of regnal numerals of future British monarchs).

★ All Scottish monarchs held the title King of Scots or Queen of Scots, with the exception of the last three: Mary II, William III and Anne I used the style "of Scotland" rather than "of Scots".

★ In October 1604, one year after James VI of Scotland had become King of England, he decreed that the Royal Title would use the term ''Great Brittaine'' to refer to the "one Imperiall Crowne" made up of England and Scotland[1]. However using that title is problematic because unified offices of state for Great Britain, were not in total cohesion until the Act of Union 1707 which established the Parliament of Great Britain. Nor was the united crown generally referred to as "imperial", but accentuated the decrees of Henry VIII who declared himself equal in deference with Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. Some historians thus refer to all monarchs up to 1707 as monarchs of England and Scotland, but for simplicity's sake, the whole realm is considered British because of the Celtic nature behind the Renaissance Tudor-Stuart Establishment and "Britannia's" empire overseas. Courtiers upon the death of Elizabeth, considered James to be a new Brutus of Troy. What further undermined this sense of "British", was separatist Jacobitism amongst the Scots until the union with Ireland. Nevertheless, people in parlance refer to rulers of Great Britain as English in reference to rebellions associated with the Scottish, Irish and Americans.

★ In different documents, the terms ''Kingdom of Great Britain'' and ''United Kingdom of Great Britain'' feature, even documents as official as the Act of Union 1707. Most historians presume the ''United'' was meant to be descriptive, indicating a union as a form of unity by marriage rather than coercion. For clarity and because the ''United'' is far more strongly associated with the later name United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland produced in the Act of Union 1800, the 1707 Kingdom is generally referred to as the Kingdom of Great Britain.

★ Similarly, though most of Ireland ceased to be part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland when it became the Irish Free State in 1922, neither the full name of the United Kingdom nor the royal title were changed until the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927. In this instance historians generally retrospectively date the coming into being of the modern United Kingdom to December 1922, even though in this case the ''formal'' change did not occur for another five years.

★ Due to fierce dissent in Scotland over EIIR postboxes, all monarchs henceforth are numbered according to either English or Scottish reckoning, whichever was higher (per a 1953 announcement)

Monarchs

Succession to the many thrones often did not pass smoothly from parent to child; lack of heirs, civil wars, murders and invasions affected the inheritance in ways that a simple list does not show.
The relationships that formed the basis for claims to throne are noted where we know them, and the dates of reign indicated.

'Monarchs of England' 'Monarchs of Scotland' Name Reign Notes Name Reign Notes 'The West Saxons' 'The House of Alpin' Kenneth I 843–858 First King of the Picts and the Scots Donald I 858–862 Kenneth I's brother Constantine I 862–877 Kenneth I's son Alfred the Great 871–899 Recognised as leader of all free Englishmen under the Treaty of Wedmore, 878 Áed 877–878 Kenneth I's son Eochaid 878–889 Áed's nephew Jointly with Giric ? Giric 878–889 Áed's first cousin ? Donald II 889–900 Constantine I's son Edward the Elder 899–924 Alfred's son Constantine II 900–943 Áed's son Ælfweard 924 Edward's son, king of Wessex only Athelstan 924–939 Edward's son, the first ''de facto'' king of all England Edmund I 939–946 Edward's son Malcolm I 943–954 Donald II's son Edred 946–955 Edward's son Indulf 954–962 Constantine II's son Edwy the Fair 955–959 Edmund's son Edgar the Peaceable 959–975 Edmund's son Dub 962–966 Malcolm I's son Cuilén 966–971 Indulf's son Kenneth II 971–? Malcolm I's son St Edward the Martyr 975–978 Edgar's son Amlaíb ?–977 Indulf's son Kenneth II 977–995 2nd reign Ethelred the Unready 978–1013 1014–1016 Edgar's son Constantine III 995–997 Cuilén's son Kenneth III 997–1005 Dub's son Malcolm II 1005–1034 Kenneth II's son Edmund Ironside 1016 Ethelred's son 'The Danish Kings' Both the Saxon and Danish royal houses claimed the English throne, 1013 to 1016. Denmark and England had the same king from 1016 to 1042. Sweyn Forkbeard 1013–1014   Canute The Great 1016–1035 Sweyn's son Duncan I 1034–1040 Malcolm II's grandson Harold Harefoot 1035–1040 Canute's son Harthacanute 1040–1042 Canute's son Macbeth 1040–1057 Kenneth III's granddaughter's husband 'The West Saxon Restoration' St Edward the Confessor 1042–1066 Ethelred's son Lulach 1057–1058 Kenneth III's great-grandson, Macbeth's step-son and cousin 'The House of Dunkeld' Malcolm III 1058–1093 Duncan I's son Harold Godwinson 1066 Edward the Confessor's brother-in-law, also descended from Alfred's brother Ethelred Edgar the Atheling 1066 Grandson of Edmund Ironside 'The Normans' After the Norman Conquest in 1066, numbering of kings (a French tradition never used by the English prior to that date) begins. William I, the Conqueror 1066–1087 Distant kinsman of Alfred the Great William II, Rufus 1087–1100 William I's son, descendant of Alfred the Great Donald III 1093–1094 1094–1097 Duncan I's son Duncan II 1094 Malcolm III's son Edgar 1097–1107 Malcolm III's son Henry I 1100–1135 William I's son, descendant of Alfred the Great Alexander I 1107–1124 Malcolm III's son David I 1124–1153 Malcolm III's son Stephen 1135–1154 William I's grandson Malcolm IV 1153–1165 David I's grandson 'The Angevins or Plantagenets' The Royal House name changed to reflect Matilda's marriage to Geoffrey Plantagenet. Matilda (Empress Maud) 1141 Henry I's daughter, Edmund Ironside's great-great-granddaughter Henry II 1154–1189 Matilda's son William I 1165–1214 David I's grandson Richard I, the Lionheart 1189–1199 Henry II's son 'Monarchs of England and Ireland' In 1199, John, already Lord of Ireland, inherited the English throne. The title "Lord of Ireland" was used until it was replaced by "King of Ireland" in 1542. John "Lackland" 1199–1216 Henry II's son Alexander II 1214–1249 William I's son Henry III 1216–1272 John's son Alexander III 1249–1286 Alexander II's son Edward I "Longshanks" 1272–1307 Henry III's son Margaret 1286-1290 Alexander III's granddaughter, never inaugurated 'The House of Balliol' When Margaret died in 1290 there was no clear heir. King Edward I of England adjudged the claims of Robert Bruce, 5th Lord of Annandale and John Balliol in Balliol's favour. John 1292–1296 David I's great-great-great-grandson 'The House of Bruce' When John Balliol rebelled, the Wars of Scottish Independence commenced, during which Robert the Bruce became King. Robert I 1306–1329 David I's great-great-great-great-grandson Edward II 1307–1327 Edward I's son Edward III 1327–1377 Edward II's son David II 1329–1371 Robert I's son 'The House of Balliol' For a period of time, both Edward Balliol and David II claimed the throne. Edward Balliol 1332–1336 John Balliol's son 'The House of Stuart' Engaged to the Dauphin at age five, Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots was thus brought up in the French court where she became "Marie Stuart, Reine de l'Écosse," etc., to render the sound of 'Stewart' into French as accurately as possible. Mary kept the French spelling on her return to Scotland in 1560. Robert II 1371–1390 Robert I's grandson Richard II 1377–1399 Edward III's grandson Robert III 1390–1406 Robert II's son 'The House of Lancaster' Henry Bolingbroke deposed Richard II, and the Royal House name came to reflect Henry's father's title, Duke of Lancaster. Henry IV 1399–1413 Edward III's grandson James I 1406–1437 Robert III's son Henry V 1413–1422 Henry IV's son Henry VI 1422–1461 1470–1471 Henry V's son James II 1437–1460 James I's son James III 1460–1488 James II's son 'The House of York' The Houses of Lancaster and York had fought the Wars of the Roses, and the Yorkists took the throne. Edward IV 1461–1470 1471–1483 Edward III's great-great-grandson Edward V 1483 Edward IV's son Richard III 1483–1485 Edward IV's brother 'The House of Tudor' The Lancastrian Henry Tudor reclaimed the throne from the Yorkists. Henry VII 1485–1509 Edward III's great-great-great-grandson James IV 1488–1513 James III's son Henry VIII 1509–1547 Henry VII's son, Edward IV's grandson James V 1513–1542 James IV's son Mary I 1542–1567 James V's daughter Edward VI 1547–1553 Henry VIII's son ''Jane'' ''1553'' ''Henry VII's great-granddaughter. Not generally noted as officially queen''[1][2] Mary I 1553–1558 Henry VIII's daughter Elizabeth I 1558–1603 Henry VIII's daughter James VI 1567–1625 Mary I's son 'Monarchs of England, Scotland, and Ireland' In 1603, James VI of Scotland inherited the English throne upon the death of Elizabeth I in what is known as the Union of the Crowns. From then until 1707, England, Scotland, and Ireland had shared monarchs. 'The House of Stuart' Name Reign Notes James I (England) James VI (Scotland) 1603–1625 Son of Mary, Queen of Scots; great-great-grandson of Henry VII of England; first to be styled "King of Great Britain" (1604) Charles I 1625–1649 James VI & I's son 'The Period of Interregnum, (Commonwealth and Protectorate)' England had no king from 1649 to 1660, but the constitutional status of the government was never clear. For example, the Long Parliament, up until its dissolution on 20 April 1653, was commonly recognised as a Republic. It, however, styled itself as a Commonwealth. Following the dissolution of the Rump, a Nominated Assembly was formed. Not until Cromwell accepted the Instrument of Government on 15 December 1653 did the constitutional status of the regime change. From then on Oliver Cromwell was styled as Lord Protector, ruling through two Protectorate Parliaments. In 1659, Richard Cromwell abdicated, returning power to Parliament until the Stuart Restoration in 1660. Name Reign Notes Oliver Cromwell 1653–1658   Richard Cromwell 1658–1659 Oliver Cromwell's son 'The House of Stuart' (restored) Name Reign Notes Charles II 1660–1685 England 1649-1651 and 1660–1685 Scotland (1649–1685 ''de jure'') Charles I's elder son (crowned at Scone, in Scotland, 1651). He officially dated his reign from his father's death James II (England) James VII (Scotland) 1685–1689 Charles I's younger son Mary II 1689–1694 James II's elder daughter Joint sovereign with her husband, William III, II and I William III (England) William II (Scotland) William I (Ireland) 1689–1702 Charles I's grandson Jointly with his wife, Mary II Anne 1702–1707 (full reign: 1702–1714) James II's daughter 'Monarchs of Great Britain and Ireland' In 1707, the Act of Union merged the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain. 'The House of Stuart' (continued) Name Reign Notes Anne 1707–1714 (full reign: 1702–1714) James II's daughter 'The House of Hanover' Under the Act of Settlement 1701, the English (thus, the successor British) throne could only be held by a Protestant. Sophia of Hanover, the nearest such relative, thus became statutorily designated as the next heir. She died shortly before Anne, and her place was taken by her son, who thus founded the House of Hanover (aka Guelph and Brunswick). George I 1714–1727 James I's great-grandson George II 1727–1760 George I's son George III 1760–1801 (full reign: 1760–1820) George II's grandson 'Monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland' In 1801, the Act of Union combined the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into the United Kingdom. 'The House of Hanover' (continued) Name Reign Notes George III 1801–1820 (full reign: 1760–1820) George II's grandson George IV 1820–1830 George III's son William IV 1830–1837 George III's son Victoria 1837–1901 George III's granddaughter; William IV's niece 'The House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha' The Royal House name was changed to reflect Victoria's marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, but she herself remained a member of the House of Hanover. Edward VII 1901–1910 Victoria's son George V 1910–1917 (full reign: 1910–1936) Edward VII's son 'The House of Windsor' The name of the Royal House changed from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor in 1917 due to anti-German sentiments during World War I. George V 1917–1927 (full reign: 1910–1936) Edward VII's son 'Monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland' In 1922, the Irish Free State left the United Kingdom. The name of the Kingdom was amended in 1927 to reflect the change. Between 1927 and the passage of the Republic of Ireland Act in 1949 George V, Edward VIII, and George VI were also styled "King of Ireland". 'The House of Windsor' (continued) Name Reign Notes George V 1927–1936 (full reign: 1910–1936) Edward VII's son Edward VIII 1936 George V's son; abdicated George VI 1936–1952 Edward VIII's brother (and George V's son) Elizabeth II 6 February 1952- George VI's daughter; also queen of 15 other sovereign kingdoms.

Notes

1. Proclaimed Queen on 10 July 1553, but deposed by Mary I 9 days later.
2. Lady Jane is commonly listed as House of Tudor, despite her surname not being Tudor


★ A mnemonic verse lists the Kings and Queens of England then Great Britain then the United Kingdom.

See also

★ British monarchy

★ Bretwalda

★ List of UK monarchy records

★ List of British monarchs by longevity

★ List of longest reigning Monarchs of the UK

★ List of monarchs of the British Isles by cause of death

★ List of regnal numerals of future British monarchs

★ Other lists of incumbents

★ UK topics

★ British monarchs family tree

★ English monarchs family tree

★ Scottish monarchs family tree

★ Style of the British Sovereign

★ Line of succession to the British Throne

★ Emperor of India

★ Genealogy of the British Royal Family

★ Direct descent from William I to Elizabeth II

★ Mnemonic verse of monarchs in England

★ Burial places of monarchs in the British Isles

References

★ The official website of the British Monarchy

★ Britannia.com