(1) England: Political History and Notable Political and Military Figures
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Sources: World Chronicle | Dates are based on years of relevance of figure; not lifespan or total years of holding office
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171 Terms
886 - 1013 - House of Wessex (All Facts)
First and Founding Dynasty of the Kingdom of England
They were characterized by their Anglo-Saxon heritage
927 - 939 - Athelstan (All Facts)
First King and Founder of the Kingdom of England and First King and Founder of the House of Wessex
He is widely recognized as the first King of England
He was an effective warrior, administrator, and diplomat
He unified the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms and states militaristically
He defeated Olaf and the Irish Vikings, Constantine and the Scots, and the Britons from the kingdom of Strathclyde in the Battle of Brunanburh
He brought fruition to his father and predecessor Edward the Elder’s counter-attacks against the Danes in the region
He united Wessex and Mercia and recovered Northumbria, the three remaining Heptarchy Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms, along with they key Viking center of York in Northumbria
He subjugated the Princes of Wales
He subjugated the Britons of Cornwall
Led a punitive expedition into Scottish territory
As a result of his military results, he proclaimed himself “King of the English and ruler of all Britain”
Some claimed he was even greater than his predecessor grandfather, the mighty King Alfred the Great
He unified the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms and states diplomatically
He held councils to encourage the unification of the various peoples under his rule
He unified the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms and states administratively
He issued many detailed law-codes
He divided up his kingdom into large regions administered by ealdormen, who had wide authority for the local maintenance of order
His military prowess led the kings of Francia, Germany / Holy Roman Empire, and Norway to seek alliances with him
939 - 946 - Edmund (All Facts)
2nd King of England and 2nd King of the House of Wessex
Made peace with Olaf and the Irish-Norse Vikings, who continued to be a threat to England even after his predecessor’s victory in the Battle of Brunanburh because they retook York of Northumbria from the English
Aided by Danish settlers, he recovered (some of) the land yielded to Olaf and the Irish-Norse Vikings
946 - 955 - Eadred (All Facts)
3rd King of England and 3rd King of the House of Wessex
He consolidated English territory permanently when he defeated Eric Bloodaxe and the Irish-Norse Vikings of York in Northumbria in 954, having had Eric Bloodaxe murdered
955 - 959 - Eadwig (All Facts)
4th King of England and 4th King of the House of Wessex
He left the solemn feast of his coronation to be with a married woman and her daughter (whom he later married)
When a monk named Dunstan condemned him, a furious row took place, and he had Dunstan banished
After this episode, he lost his allegiance of Mercians and Northumbrians, who followed his successor, his younger brother
When he died, the kingdom of England was reunited once again
959 - 975 - Edgar (All Facts)
5th King of England and 5th King of the House of Wessex
He was crowned at Bath on White Sunday
His coronation was delayed by division caused by the misbehavior of his predecessor and brother on his predecessor’s own co
He sailed with his fleet to Chester, where eight British kings came and swore fealty to him
To demonstrate their submission, they rowed him on the Dee River from his palace to the Church of St. John, while he held the rudder
He consolidated his rule and kingdom after his older brother and predecessor died and after the death of the last great Viking, Eric Bloodaxe, who ruled York in Northumbria
He oversaw a revival, restoration, and reform of monasticism in England, led by St. Dunstan, whom had been banished by his predecessor and thus recalled by the namesake and made Archbishop of Canterbury
978 - 1013 - Aethelred II (All Facts)
7th (and 9th) King of England and 7th King of the House of Wessex
He was nicknamed “The Unready”
His nickname derived from his ill-advised ordering of the St. Brice’s Day Massacre as well as the frequent Viking incursions that occurred under his reign
His English forces were defeated against Olaf the Norsemen and the Vikings in the Battle of Maldon, so he bought off and paid the Vikings to cease their advances into England
However, Olaf the Norsemen of the Vikings and Sweyn of Denmark ravaged throughout southern England and were paid a massive tribute by him, continuing to attack England despite failing to take London
He and his English forces were eventually defeated by Sweyn and the Danes
He fled England to join Queen Emma and their children in France, who have taken refuge with her brother who was the Duke of Normandy at the time
Most of the English population surrendered rather than resisted, since the Danes were not going to be bought off with bribes
Sweyn avenged his sister Gunnhild and his fellow Danes when they were killed by the namesake after he ordered the St. Brice’s Day Massacre
Sweyn retaliated by burning homesteads throughout southern England during his reign, years before accepting a substantial bribe to withdraw
When he broke the uneasy truce by persuading one of Sweyn’s top commanders, Thorkell the Tall, to defect to England; Sweyn invaded by landing men on Humberside before marching south, unstoppable by bribe
At the time of his death, there were fluctuating alliances between the Saxons and the Danes, many of whom had already intermarried with one another
He was thus overthrown as King of England by Sweyn Forkbeard, who usurped the throne and temporarily replaced the House of Wessex with the House of Denmark
1013 - 1014 - Sweyn Forkbeard (All Facts)
8th King of England, and First King and Founder of the House of Denmark of England
He was also King of Denmark and King of Norway
King of Denmark who was temporarily King of England after he invaded and overthrew his predecessor
He and Olaf the Norsemen of the Vikings attacked England under the reign of their King Aethelred II “The Unready,” even after Aethelred II had paid the Vikings off, ravaging throughout southern England and collecting massive tribute payments from Aethelred II
They failed to take London initially
He and his Danish forces eventually took control of all of England following the English surrender of London to them
Their King Aethelred II “The Unready” was deposed and was reported to have fled to France to join Queen Emma and their children, who have taken refuge with her brother, the Duke of Normandy
He and his forces subjugated the English forces and were not prepared or willing to take bribes from them
He planned to consolidate his hold on England as an act of revenge against Aethelred II “The Unready”
This was because he wished to avenge his sister Gunnhild and the Danes killed by Aethelred II “The Unready” in the secret St. Brice’s Day Massacre of Danes living in England which he ordered
He retaliated by burning homestead throughout southern England before accepting a substantial bribe to withdraw
However, when Aethelred II “The Unready” persuaded one of his top commanders, Thorkell the Tall, to defect, he felt he had no choice but to invade England, and he landed on Humberside and marched south
He thus became King of England for a short time, usurping the throne, overthrowing the House of Wessex and replacing it with the House of Denmark
1016 - Edmund Ironside (All Facts)
10th King of England after Aethelred II “The Unready” was reinstated following the deposition of Sweyn Forkbeard, King of Denmark, as King of England
When he died, however, England went right back into Danish control via his successor
1016 - 1042 - House of Denmark (All Facts)
2nd Dynasty of Kings of England who were Danish and who jointly ruled both Denmark and England
Founded by Sweyn Forkbeard and Canute the Great
1016 - 1035 - Canute the Great (All Facts)
11th King of England and 2nd King of the House of Denmark
He was also King of Denmark and King of Norway
He thus built a unified Danish Empire
He was the son of Sweyn Forkbeard and was offered the English throne after defeating his predecessor Edmund Ironside
The death of Harald II of Denmark enabled him to unite England and Denmark
He defeated Edmund Ironside and his English forces in the Battle of Ashingdon, and they agreed to split England in half
When Edmund Ironside was murdered soon afterwards, the namesake took the other half of England
He further consolidated his rule by eliminating potential rivals
He married Aethelred II’s widow, Emma of Normandy
He oversaw a reign distinguished by skillful statecraft and utter ruthlessness
He espoused Christianity
He established equal rights for both Danes and Englishmen
He sent most of his army back to Denmark, confident in his position as ruler
1042 - 1066 - Edward the Confessor (All Facts)
14th King of England, he temporarily restored the House of Wessex
He was heavily influenced by Godwin, the ruthless and wealthy Earl of Wessex who had arranged for his accession to the throne
He had married Godwin’s daughter Edith, though the marriage remained childless
He helplessly watched as Godwin and his family extended their estates and power throughout western England
He however consolidated his power over Godwin after he refused to have him elected as Archbishop of Canterbury by the monks of Christ Church and, infuriated, Godwin mounted an attack against him but was outnumbered and shocked by his firmness, fleeing instead
He this had Godwin, his close advisor, exiled
He instead appointed a Norman, Robert, to the position of Archbishop of Canterbury
He consecrated Westminster Abbey and was buried there
On his deathbed, he disinherited his cousin, the duke, and nominated his namesake successor instead
1020 - 1053 - Godwin, Earl of Wessex (All Facts)
Powerful noble of England appointed in the namesake position by Canute the Great
His daughter Edith married King Edward the Confessor
He heavily influenced King Edward the Confessor, who arranged King Edward the Confessor’s accession to the throne
He and his family extended their estates and power throughout western England as Edward the Confessor helplessly watched them
His power began to decline when his eldest son Sweyn outraged religious feeling by seducing the abbess of Leominster and murdering his cousin
Then, the namesake went too far when he was refused the position of archbishop of Canterbury and, along with his sons, mounted an army and fought against Edward the Confessor and the monks of Christ Church
When Edward the Confessor rallied other earls to his side, he was outnumbered, and surprised by the king’s firmness, chose to flee
1041 - 1055 - Siward, Earl of Northumbria (All Facts)
He led an English army into Scotland to support Malcolm Canmore’s right to the Scottish throne after his father Duncan had been killed by Macbeth who took the throne for himself, in which he and his English forces defeated Macbeth and his Scottish forces and reinstated Malcolm Canmore to the Scottish throne
1066 - Harold II (All Facts)
15th King of England Final King of the House of Wessex and Final Anglo-Saxon King of England
He and his English forces defeated King Harald Hardrada and the Norwegians in the Battle of Stamford Bridge, successfully preventing a Norwegian invasion of England
However, he rushed tired troops into Hastings to fight against William and the Norman-French before waiting for reinforcements, which ultimately led to he and his forces’ downfall at the hands of William and the Norman-French invaders
He and his Anglo-Saxon forces were defeated by William, Duke of Normandy, and his Norman forces, in the Battle of Hastings, failing to prevent the Norman invasion of England
Despite having lost one eye during the battle, he fought on magnificently against William and his invading Norman-French forces so much so that when his body was recovered it was virtually unidentifiable
1066 - 1135 - House of Normandy (All Facts)
Second Dynasty of the Kingdom of England
They were characterized by their Norman heritage
1066 - 1087 - William the Conqueror (All Facts)
16th King of England and First King and Founder of the House of Normandy
He was initially the Duke of Normandy
He had gone to Normandy to lead a punitive raid against the French there, but was badly hurt when his horse stumbled on the burning cinders of a town which he sacked
He married Matilda, who became the first Norman Queen of England
He and his Norman-French forces defeated Harold II and his Anglo-Saxon forces in the Battle of Hastings, completing the Norman conquest of England and thus allowing him to rule as King of England
During his reign, he oversaw a massive castle-building program, in which he ordered the construction of 80 stone castles to be built, complementing the hundreds of wooden castles he and his barons had already built up to that point
which served as
Strategic military bases
Powerful symbols of Norman authority and Norman solidification of rule over England
Fundamental changes to England’s landscape and power structure
with the most famous being
The Tower of London (and White Tower)
Windsor Castle
Dover Castle
Colchester Castle
Pevensey Castle
Hastings Castle
During his reign, he oversaw the implementation of the “Great Survey” and compilation and completion of its results in the “Domesday Book”
He believed that he had not yet consolidated his hold on England because its feudal system was not yet harmonized with that of the Duchy of Normandy
These issues were resolved via the “Great Survey” and its record as the “Domesday Book”
Thus, the “Domesday Book” served as a wide-ranging record of social and economic life
During his reign, he introduced feudalism (as a system) into England and southern Italy
He made it so that all land in England was deemed to be held directly by the King of England or by his subjects on his behalf
He, his Queen Matilda, and his two half-brothers came to own 25% of all the land in England during his reign
Another 33% was granted to 15 comrades-in-arms from the Battle of Hastings
The remaining amount was given in the hands of the Norman barons and clergy
He presided over a tightly organized feudal system, using royal sheriffs as his administrative officials
During his reign, he
Suppressed rebellions against his rule and Normanness, like that of Hereward “The Wake,” which ultimately failed
Suppressed rebellions by English landowners, in which the then seized the land and gave it to his Norman retainers
Waged his series of military campaigns known as the “Harrying of the North”
During his reign, he retained preexisting English institutions including the sheriffs and shire courts
During his reign, he improved agriculture
During his reign, he had Bayeux Cathedral (in Normandy in France) consecrated
This cathedral is famous for its Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the Battle of Hastings and Norman Conquest of England in multiple scenes, by the namesake ruler
During his reign, he oversaw a cultural division in which
English - names were kept for bakers, smiths, salters, skinners, and craftsmen
French - names were taken by butchers, carpenters, grocers, and tailors
During his reign, he also oversaw the Norman invasion of southern Italy, which he also made into a feudal society, and thus, finally ousted the Byzantines from it
He died at Rouen
1035 - 1072 - Hereward (All Facts)
He was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman
He was nicknamed “The Wake”
He roamed “The Fens”
He led a rebellion of Danes against William, Duke of Normandy, after William had assumed the English throne, in northern England as part of the “Harrying of the North”
After the Danish fleet sent against England was bribed to depart from England, however, his revolt collapsed but the “Harrying of the North” still continued in Yorkshire in York in Northumbria
1087 - 1100 - William II / William Rufus (All Facts)
17th King of England and 2nd King of the House of Normandy
He invaded Normandy and gained an English foothold in the Duchy
He was killed in a hunting accident in the New Forest and succeeded by his brother
1100 - 1135 - Henry (All Facts)
18th King of England and 3rd and Final King of the House of Normandy
He made an alliance with his predecessor and defeated his brother Robert Curthose in the Battle of Tinchebrai, thus reuniting England and Normandy for the first time since the death of his predecessor’s predecessor
His only legitimate son for the throne, William Adelin, died, drowned in the English Channel when drunken seaman drove his boat, the White Ship, onto rocks
The Prince got away safely, but his boat foundered when he insisted on returning to the wreck to rescue his sister
Thus, he had no legitimate son to succeed him
His nephew, William Clito, was an obvious candidate for the throne, whose father lost Normandy to the namesake king
He preferred his daughter Matilda to succeed him
However, the crown was instead passed to his nephew Stephen of Blois when the namesake died
These tensions culminated in an English Civil War known as “The Anarchy”
1141 - Empress Matilda (All Facts)
Daughter of King Henry of England, her predecessor
She was the cousin of Stephen of Blois, whom she fought for the throne
She became Domina Anglorum (Lady of the English) despite her bad temper
During her 200+ day reign, England fell into anarchy
After that time, her half-brother, the earl of Gloucester, was captured and then released in exchange for Stephen of Blois, who returned to throne
1135 - 1154 - Stephen of Blois (All Facts)
19th King of England and 1st and Only King of the House of Blois
He fought for the throne with his cousin Matilda, where he and his forces were defeated, captured, and imprisoned by her and her forces, led by the earl of Chester, in the Battle of Lincoln
When forces loyal to him captured the earl of Gloucester, Matilda’s half-brother, he was released in exchange for the namesake, who returned to the throne after he was temporarily deposed by Matilda and her forces after the Battle of Lincoln
However, he was no more popular than Matilda
He quarreled with four powerful bishops, including his brother, the Bishop of Winchester
Oversaw a period of anarchy in which England’s barons robbed and burned not only villages but even abbeys
Under his reign, Oxford University was founded
The death of his son Eustace led him to recognize Matilda’s son, Henry Plantagenet, as heir to the throne
He died at Dover
1154 - 1485 - House of Plantagenet (All Facts)
Dynasty of English Kings whose origins lay in the marriage of Geoffrey V of Anjou (also known as the namesake) and his marriage to Matilda, daughter of Henry of England and widow of Holy Roman Emperor Henry V
1154 - 1189 - Henry II (All Facts)
20th King of England and 1st King of the House of Plantagenet
He and his allies did homage to his predecessor, at Winchester
He was the first known historical ruler to institute the 12-man jury, originally instituted to replace trial by combat or torture, which the defendant had to survive in order to be proven innocent
He acquired vast territories in France for England by his marriage
He added Aquitaine and Gascony to his growing empire in France
However, his sons were never satisfied with their shares
He was known for his feud with St. Thomas Becket of Canterbury
He had St. Thomas Becket installed at Canterbury, believing he was getting a docile cleric
Anything but that, Becket
Became a firm upholder of ecclesiastical privileges
Told the namesake he had no right to judge him
Publicly denounced the namesake’s having his son and heir crowned in Westminster Abbey with the assistance of six bishops, all of whom he excommunicated
In response, the namesake cried out “Who will free me from this turbulent priest?” and ordered him to be murdered by four knights of the royal household
This effectively heightened the conflict between secular and papal authority
He helped assemble troops for the Third Crusade along with Frederick Barbarossa of the Holy Roman Empire and Philip Augustus of France
He was succeeded by his son and namesake successor
His last words to his son upon dying were “God grant that I may not die till I have had a fitting revenge on you”
1189 - 1199 - Richard (All Facts)
21st King of England and 2nd King of the House of Plantagenet
He was nicknamed “Lionheart” for his military prowess, bravery, and ruthlessness and his being gloried in war
Before coming to the throne, he spent most of his life in France as the Duke of Aquitaine and ruling the land of his mother Eleanor while fighting his father Henry II and his brothers
He grew up in an atmosphere of intrigue
When his elder brother died and he became heir, his father wanted him to leave Aquitaine and come to England
Upon assuming the throne, he released his mother, who had been confined at Winchester for supporting him against her husband
He had little interest in women, but married Berengaria, the daughter of the king of Navarre
He led the English forces during the Third Crusade in which he
He raised money for an expedition to Palestine to crusade there
Seized Cyprus
Seized Acre, with the help of Philip II / Philip Augustus of France
Defeated Saladin and the Ayyubid Sultanate in the Battle of Arsuf
Seized Jaffa
Was defeated at Jerusalem in the Battle of Jerusalem
Was defeated by Saladin and the Ayyubid Sultanate, thus ending the conflict
Made a truce with Saladin and the Ayyubid Sultanate in which he
Was able to keep a few coast towns
Was able to make it so that Christians were promised free access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem
Refused to go see Jerusalem despite unarmed parties from the crusading forces visiting it after the truce was made
He nearly bankrupted England when, after returning from the Third Crusade, was captured by the duke of Austria, who, after imprisoning him in Vienna, had turned him over to Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI who demanded a ransom of 150K gold marks
Despite never being paid in full, the first installment of the ransom strained England’s resources
He was eventually freed after a large ransom was paid for him
After he was freed, he and his forces defeated Philip Augustus and his French forces in the Battle of Freteval, in which they reconquered their fiefs in Vexin, the French territory of England
The Troubadours in France loved him and he himself composed Troubadour lyrics
For seven years in a row he had not received Holy Communion and eventually called one of his chaplains and confessed about it
With his soul at peace, he directed that his body be embalmed, his brain buried in the Abbey of Charroux at Poitiers, his heart in the Normal capital of Rouen, and his corpse laid at the feet of his father in the abbey of Fontevrault
For ten years he was king of England, but spent less than 6 months in the country
He died when he was besieging the castle of a disobedient baron when a bolt from a crossbow struck him in the left shoulder
When he tried to pull it out the wood broke, leaving the iron barb embedded
He survived for 11 days
1199 - 1216 - John (All Facts)
22nd King of England and 3rd King of the House of Plantagenet
During his reign,
He had passed the Magna Carta, the “Great Charter of Liberties,” which was essentially a peace treaty between the namesake and his barons
This came after a series of lengthy negotiations at Runnymede in Surrey near London
His bargaining position was undermined by
his loss of territories in France under his reign
his highly unpopular attempt to tax lords and knights who resisted joining those costly and unsuccessful military campaigns
He thus was forced to make a significant compromise in his struggle with the nobles who threatened his rule and was forced to sign the Magna Carta, subjecting the English monarchy to the rule of law
When he submitted to Pope Innocent III, he had the Pope annul the Magna Carta
Under his reign,
He lost the fiefs within the jurisdiction of the kingdom of France (Aquitaine, Anjou, and Poitou) to King Philip II / Philip Augustus of France
In response to King Philip II / Philip Augustus’s confiscation of his fiefs, he and his forces defeated King Philip II / Philip Augustus of France and his forces in the Battle of Mirabeau
Brittany rebelled against him
Shortly before that, his own nephew Arthur of Brittany, by whom the confiscated lands were given through King Philip II / Philip Augustus of France, was arguably the rightful king of England but had vanished and was assumed to have been murdered by or on the orders of the namesake
He thus lost much of the territory corresponding to Brittany as well
He lost the duchy of Normandy to France
He and his forces were eventually defeated by Philip II / Philip Augustus and his forces in the Battle of Bouvines
All of these conflicts contributed to the lack of bargaining power he had with the nobles under him which led him to sign the Magna Carta
He opposed Pope Innocent III on his nomination for Archbishop of Canterbury
In response, Pope Innocent III placed England under an interdict, which forbade the clergy to administer the sacraments
Eventually, the namesake was excommunicated by Pope Innocent III
He finally submitted to Pope Innocent III and offered to make England and Ireland papal fiefs, thus moving Pope Innocent III to lift the interdict
By doing this, he was able to have Pope Innocent III annul the Magna Carta
Under his reign,
The First Barons’ War occurred
This was prompted by his having Pope Innocent III annul the Magna Carta, and thus English barons under his rule opened negotiations with France for support against him, in which Philip II / Philip Augustus and his son and successor resolved to invade England under his rule as a result
He died at Newark and was succeeded by his son
1207 - 1272 - Henry III (All Facts)
23rd King of England and 4th King of the House of Plantagenet
He reigned longer than any other King of England
Assuming the throne at 9 years old, William Marshall was made regent during that time
Under his reign,
The English barons
made peace with the new regime and cut off their developed ties with France during the reign of the predecessor of the namesake
then rebelled again in the Second Barons’ War, led by Simon de Montfort, to wrest various concessions known as the “Provisions of Oxford” which the namesake king had annulled via King Louis IX of France whom he called on to arbitrate the initial dispute which triggered the revolt along with the namesake’s
foreign influence
extravagance of foreign dependents
heavy papal taxation of the church
He enacted the “Provisions of Oxford” initially with the English barons, but he eventually reneged on them
He did this by meeting with the discontented English barons in a parliament
He signed the Treaty of Paris / Treaty of Abbeville with King Louis IX of France
In it, he received the Agenais, Saintonge, and parts of Quercy, Limousin, and Perigord from King Louis IX of France
In return, he gave all claims to the Plantagenet fiefs of Normandy, Anjou, Touraine, Maine, and Poitou to King Louis IX of France
This treaty marked a turning point in European politics; leading to new political dynamics, cultural exchanges, and social changes
Under his reign,
Westminster Abbey was rebuilt with soaring columns, ribbed vaulting, huge windows, and flying buttresses
He employed Henry of Rheims to redecorate it with a rose window copied from the Basilica of Saint Denis
1239 - 1265 - Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester (All Facts)
He led the Second Barons’ War, a rebellion of English barons, against Henry III, demanding that Henry III wrest various concessions collectively known as the “Provisions of Oxford” which King Henry III had annulled via King Louis IX of France whom he called on to arbitrate the initial dispute which
triggered the revolt along with the namesake’s
Foreign influence, and a growing struggle against the king’s foreign influences, especially with King Louis IX of France
Heavy papal taxation of Church
Extravagance of the his foreign dependents
He called his own parliament, which was notable for including English knights, burgesses, and barons and did so in response to King Henry III’s parliament meeting where ultimately reneged the “Provisions of Oxford”
His Parliaments and their meetings reflected the improved status of lesser knights and townsmen in England at the time
He and his forces defeated Henry III and his royalist forces in the Battle of Lewes, having captured King Henry III and his son and successor Edward
However, the barons mistrusted the namesake’s efforts to grain broader popular support and deserted him, allowing Edward to escape
He was defeated by Edward, son and successor of King Henry III, in the Battle of Evesham and beheaded with his body delivered to the monks in Evesham
Though his family was French, he inherited the Earldom of Leicester through is mother
1272 - 1307 - Edward (All Facts)
24th King of England and 5th King of the House of Plantagenet
He was also the Duke of Aquitaine and Gascony
During his reign,
He and his forces defeated Simon de Montfort and the English Barons in the Battle of Evesham during the Second Barons’ War
He and his forces defeated Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and his Welsh forces in the Battle of Orewin Bridge
He did this after they rebelled against his rule, and thus he effectively conquered Wales
He and his forces defeated John Balliol and his Scottish forces in the Battle of Dunbar during the First War of Scottish Independence
He had initially invaded Scotland earlier that same year, which prompted the castle of Dunbar to surrender to him and his forces
He and his forces fought in the Gascon War against King Philip IV and his French forces, which ended with the retainment of Gascony by the English
He signed the Treaty of Paris with Philip IV, ending the Gascon War
He and his forces reached a truce with Sultan Baybars and the Mamelukes at Caesarea
He sought allies in the County of Flanders to rebel against their French leaders there
During his reign,
He and his forces were defeated by William Wallace and his Scottish forces in the Battle of Stirling Bridge during the First War of Scottish Independence
During his reign,
He passed the Statue of Jewry, in which he forbade Jews from practicing usury and offered them jobs as merchants, artisans, and farmers
However, the Jews mostly refused to comply with this law
He passed the Edict of Expulsion, in which he completely expelled and banned Jews from living in the country
Under law, he made Jews the “property” of the sovereign, and he then chose to banish them thereafter
He passed this law likely due to the Jews’ refusal to comply with the previous law
He died after he was on his way to his second invasion of Scotland
1307 - 1327 - Edward II (All Facts)
25th King of England and 6th King of the House of Plantagenet
He was considered weak and foolish
During his reign,
He married Isabella, daughter of Philip IV of France in order to resolve the tensions and conflicts between England and France such as the previous Gascon War
During his reign,
He and his forces were defeated by Robert the Bruce and his Scottish forces in the Battle of Bannockburn during the First Scottish War of Independence
Under his reign,
The Great Famine occurred, in which people all throughout England were starving and suffering as a result of a bad harvest due to a torrential flood
He was forced to abdicate
His fate was sealed when his wife Isabella and her lover, Roger Mortimer, landed in Essex with a band of foreign mercenaries and marched onto London
He was deposed, imprisoned and eventually executed in Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire
When his young son succeeded him, he had no real power and whose mother and the namesake’s wife ruled as regent
1308 - 1327 - Isabella (All Facts)
25th Queen of England and Queen of the Capetian Dynasty in France
She was the daughter of Philip IV of France who had her married to King Edward II of England in an alliance in order to resolve the tensions between England and France that had occurred in previous conflicts, such as the Gascon War
However, she had a love affair with a man named Roger Mortimer
She found wide support amongst the barons and bishops and may have gained the support of parliament and the people to rebel against and oust King Edward II for his weak rule, especially after his being defeated by Roger the Bruce in the Battle of Bannockburn during the First War of Scottish Independence
She and Roger Mortimer landed in Essex with a band of foreign mercenaries and marched on London to seal the fate of her husband King Edward II
Afterwards, an orgy of looting broke out in London
She ruled as regent for King Edward III of England while he was still a minor after he succeeded his father King Edward II
When King Edward III of England took power, he sent her into a nunnery and had her lover Roger Mortimer executed
1327 - 1377 - Edward III (All Facts)
26th King of England and 7th King of the House of Plantagenet
He sent his mother Isabella into a nunnery and executed her lover Roger Mortimer to consolidate his power and rule
During his reign,
He and his forces defeated the Scots in the Battle of Halidon Hill during the Second Scottish War of Independence
During his reign,
He declared war on France which essentially initiated the Hundred Years’ War against France
He claimed the French throne to be his, despite Philip VI’s (of the House of Valois) succession to the French throne, which prompted the conflict
He secured allies among German Princes including Louis of Bavaria
He and his forces defeated the French off the Flemish coast in the Battle of Sluys
The French fleet was completely destroyed and he thus gained control of the sea
He made the Truce of Esplechin with Philip VI of France during the Hundred Years’ War
He was prompted to do this because he was unable to further pay his troops
He supported John de Montfort, the half-brother of the duke of Brittany, to succeed the duke after his death against the nomination of Charles de Blois, the duke’s stepfather, by Philip VI of France, prompting the War of the Breton Succession during the Hundred Years’ War
He invaded Normandy
He and his forces defeated Philip VI and his French forces in the Battle of Crecy during the Crecy Campaign during the Hundred Years’ War
Outnumbered, he led his men to victory and left over 1,500 French troops dead
He proceeded onward to advance to Calais
He besieged the port city of Calais
In so doing, many of its citizens died of hunger
Sir Jean Vienne, governor of the city, offered to surrender to the namesake so long as he spared their lives
He agreed on the condition that six principal citizens or “burghers,” with heads and feet bare and halters round their necks, deliver to him the keys of the city and threw themselves upon his mercy
Even his own knights appealed to him for clemency which he rejected
The six burghers begged for mercy not to be killed by him and it was not until his wife Philippa sank to her knees and cried to the namesake begging him not to kill them that moved him so deeply and softened his heart, leading him to spare their lives
He signed the First Treaty of London with John II of France, in which John II of France was to be held by him until
A ransom of 4M ecus was paid by the French to the namesake, who would then release him
Extensive French territories were ceded to the namesake and the Kingdom of England
This Treaty triggered the Jacquerie Revolt in France
He signed the Treaty of Bretigny, in which John II of France was released by the namesake, allowing him to return to France
During his reign,
He withheld wool exports to Flanders in order to stir up unrest there against their French overlords
By restricting wool exports to Flanders, he sought to force up wool prices, and thus enable the Flemish population to rebel against their French count overlords
His eventual lifting of the wool blockade gave both employer and employee weavers a cause to fight for to unite Flanders against the French
Thus, his ultimate plan and goal was to ally with the Flemish to aid in the Hundred Years’ War against France while also giving the Flemish an ally to secure their freedom from France
He caused the collapse of contemporary Florentine (Italian) banking houses
He borrowed extensively from the Bardi and Peruzzi banking family houses in Italy to finance his wars against
The Scots in the Second Scottish War of Independence
The French in the Hundred Years’ War
He then repudiated the debts of 800K florins, effectively causing the imprisonment of the various banks’ agents
This caused a severe economic decline of the Bardi bankers and Italy as a whole
During his reign,
He instituted his “Order of the Garter,” an order of chivalry inspired by his much-publicized rescue of one of the countesses of Salisbury’s garters at a dance, rebuking onlookers with “Shame on whoever thinks this shameful”
He died and was succeeded by his grandson
1328 - 1369 - Philippa of Hainault (All Facts)
27th Queen of England and Queen of the Avesnes Dynasty
She was the wife and political advisor of King Edward III of England
She is famous for persuading her husband, King Edward III of England, to spare the lives of the six “Burghers of Calais” when he besieged the port city of Calais during the Hundred Years’ War with the French
When they were on the point of being put to death, she sank to her knees and cried out to Edward III saying, “My dear lord, I ask you in all humility, in the name of the Son of the Blessed Mary and by the love you bear me, to have mercy on these men”
She convinced the King whose heart was softened by her words, and he granted her wish to spare the six men’s lives
1330 - 1376 - Edward the Black Prince (All Facts)
Son of King Edward III of England
He oversaw a devastating raid in Languedoc in France during the Hundred Years’ War
He organized a great expedition in which he launched a series of raids across Limousin and Berry in southwestern France during the Hundred Years’ War
He did this in order to take advantage of the unrest throughout the French realm at the time
He and his forces defeated John II of France and his forces in the Battle of Poitiers during the Hundred Years’ War
After John II and the French surrendered to him, however, in a true act of chivalry, a tradition highly cultivated in England during that time, the namesake invited John II and his men to a banquet where he humbled himself by refusing to sit at the same table as his kingly opponent and left with him and his captured booty for London after the banquet
1320 - 1394 - John Hawkwood (All Facts)
English Mercenary Leader
His troops were a force to be reckoned with in the politics of northern Italy
He died and was buried in an elaborate cathedral tomb
1377 - 1399 - Richard II (All Facts)
27th King of England and 8th and Final King of the House of Plantagenet
Son of Edward the Black Prince
When he assumed the throne, he was still a child, so the Royal Council assumed power
He helped support the rebels in the Revolt of Ghent against France
Under his reign,
The Peasants Revolt had occurred, led by Wat Tyler
As London burnt around him, he parleyed with Wat Tyler, but, angered by Tyler’s attitude, her lunged at him with his sword, killed him, and displayed his head on a pole in a London field for all to see
However, he pardoned all of Tyler’s followers
He was best remembered for his courageous handling of the Peasants’ Revolt, when he set himself at the head of the rebels and persuaded them to disband
A group of his aristocratic opponents launched an attack on his friends and associates, executing eight of them and driving others into exile
Forged iron guns weighing 600 pounds were used by the namesake and his forces to defend the Tower of London
He signed a deed of abdication under pressure from a delegation of English nobles
Amongst the delegation was his successor, the earl of Hereford and son of John of Gaunt, who had promptly claimed the crown for himself and instituted the new namesake dynasty
A document of 32 articles accusing him of tyrannical rule was prepared for presentation to Parliament
The namesake king had surely had caused resentment for his
claim that the “laws of England lay in his mouth”
the wanton luxury of his court
having seized the estates of his namesake successor on the death of John of Gaunt
Thus, he was deposed and his namesake cousin succeeded him
He was eventually brought to London as a prisoner
He was thus overtaken by the English nobles initially under him of the House of Lancaster
His absolutist reign ended in disaster
1320 - 1381 - Wat Tyler (All Facts)
Leader of the Peasants’ Revolt in England during the reign of Richard II
He was killed by sword by Richard II for his supposed “arrogant attitude” with the king, who tried to parlay with him
However, Richard II pardoned all of his followers
1399 - 1413 - Henry IV (All Facts)
28th King of England and First King of the House of Lancaster
He had been living in exile in Paris, but set sail for England and landed at Ravenspur in Yorkshire
Under his reign,
The “Suppression of Heresy Act” was passed, which
Suppressed the Lollards / Lollardy Movement
Punished seditious heretics with burning at the stake
Was one of the strictest religious censorship statues ever enacted in England
During his reign,
He and Richard Beauchamp, the 5th Earl of Warwick, and their forces defeated Henry “Hotspur” Percy and the Welsh and the Scottish and their forces
He died and was succeeded by his son
1413 - 1422 - Henry V (All Facts)
29th King of England and 2nd King of the House of Lancaster
He adopted the French claims of King Edward III as his own and asserted his right to the inheritance of the House of the Plantagenets
Under his reign,
The Oldcastle Revolt occurred, in which the Lollards rebelled against his Catholic rule
He made a memorable triumphant entry into Paris in France
During his reign,
He and his English forces defeated France in the Battle of Agincourt during the Hundred Years’ War
He had not wanted the English forces to fight the French forces and had prepared to strike bargains with France to avoid it
Despite his forces being outnumbered 5-to-1, he led them to victory
Before the Battle, he and his army attended Mass and made confession
Next, he walked along their lines, talking quietly to archer, foot-soldier, and knight alike
Then, he donned his armor and a bejeweled helmet and took his position in front of his army
He conquered Normandy, with the exception of Mont. St Michel (which remained in French control)
He and his forces besieged and captured castles and walled towns
He was prompted to do this after his victory in the Battle of Agincourt
He signed a treaty of “perpetual peace” with Philip III of Burgundy of France called “The Treaty of Troyes,” in which
They brought England and France under one crown, following the namesake’s victory in the Battle of Agincourt
He agreed to marry Catherine of Valois, the daughter of King Charles VI of France at the time
He believed the agreement with bring “perpetual peace” between the two kingdoms despite the customs and kingdoms being completely separate, the union of the two crowns was to be personal
He and Philip III of Burgundy failed to tackle the question of succession as no woman could succeed to the French throne
Despite this treaty, he continued to conquer France bit by bit until he fell ill and struggled on for three months until he was to weak to ride his horse
He died at Vincennes after securing himself to be the heir designate to the kingdom of France
Initially, he was recognized as heir to the French throne
However, he died at the very moment when the crown of France was within his grasp and he was about to realize his ambition to rule over both kingdoms
He was supposed to have acted as regent and to have succeeded to the French throne on Charles VI of France’s death
His son and successor was only nine months old, so his successor was ruled over by a regent but this caused fears of collapse of English power in France
1422 - 1461 / 1470 - 1471 - Henry VI (All Facts)
30th and 32nd King of England and 3rd and 4th and Final King of the House of Lancaster
He was crowned King of France at Notre Dame by Henry Beaufort, the Bishop of Winchester
During his reign,
He founded Eton College in Buckinghamshire
Under his reign,
The English were defeated by the French in the Battle of Formigny during the Hundred Years’ War
The English were defeated by the French in the Battle of Castillon, during the Hundred Years’ War
The English were defeated by the French in the Hundred Years’ War
Jack Cade’s Rebellion against him took place due to the losses in the Hundred Years’ War and the maladministration and abuse of power of the namesake’s closest advisors
The Wars of the Roses began, in which the House of York would win out over the House of Lancaster until the two houses, branches of the House of Plantagenet, would be united via marriage under the House of Tudor, in which the Tudor Dynasty was thus established
He royalist forces were defeated by Richard Plantagenet and his forces in the Battle of St. Albans
During his reign, he suffered from multiple mental breakdowns, so Richard Plantagenet was appointed “Protector of the Realm” of England
When the namesake recovered his senses at the end of the same year he suffered from lacking them, Richard Plantagenet was dismissed as “Protector of the Realm” of England
However, he would go onto suffer more mental breakdowns and the House of York would win over him and the male line of his House (of Lancaster) would end
His reign was interrupted by the rule of his successor from the House of York
He was restored to the throne with
French aid
The Earl of Warwick
His namesake successor’s brother, the duke of Clarence
He was likely murdered in the Tower of London as his namesake successor usurped the throne of the House of Lancaster from the House of York during the Wars of the Roses
1389 - 1435 - John, Duke of Bedford (All Facts)
English Lieutenant in France
He had been the one man capable of controlling the factions within the minority government of his nephew, King Henry VI of England
His death prompted King Henry VI of England himself to take power
1382 - 1439 - Richard Beauchamp (All Facts)
English medieval nobleman and military commander
He was England’s most powerful nobleman during the reigns of Kings Henry IV, V, and VI of England of the House of Lancaster
He is considered the “Father of Courtesy” and “Father of Chivalry”
He fought in the Battle of Shrewsbury
He set out for the Holy Land
He spent six years touring the courts of Europe
On his return, he was made captain of Calais by King Henry V of England
He organized a “pas d’armes” (a series of formal personal combats, a surrogate for actual war)
King Henry V of England sent the namesake as ambassador to the general Council of Constance where the namesake met the pope and the emperor and was offered by the emperor the heart of St. George
When he declined, the emperor himself brought the heart of St. George to England
He helped arrange King Henry V of England’s marriage to Catherine of Valois, the daughter of the king of France at the time, Charles VI
He then became guardian of King Henry V of England and Catherine of Valois’s son Henry VI
This was a tribute to his chivalric preeminence
He was the 5th Earl of Warwick
He was a trusted counselor to King Henry V and King Henry VI of England
He tutored King Henry VI of England
He resided in France as lieutenant of France and Normandy
He was the English commander at Rouen during the trial of St. Joan of Arc
He died at Rouen in France
1387 - 1453 - John Talbot (All Facts)
He was the First Earl of Shrewsbury under King Henry VI of England
He was a much respected and feared general by both the English and the French during the Hundred Years’ War
He led an expeditionary force which had been welcomed into Bordeaux by its inhabitants, a welcome that cooled when it became known that three French armies were approaching
He had planned to take on all three armies in one battle
He had reckoned with neither the firepower of the 600 cannons that the French brought with them
He was killed by being pinned beneath his horse that was killed from a French cannon ball
1411 - 1460 - Richard Plantagenet (All Facts)
3rd Duke of York during the reign of King Henry VI of England
He and his forces defeated the royalist forces of King Henry VI of England in the Battle of St. Albans, which marked the beginning of the Wars of the Roses
He laid claim to the throne upon King Henry VI’s having been stricken with a mental illness
He and his forces were defeated by the forces of the House of Lancaster and he was killed in the Battle of Wakefield during the Wars of the Roses
However, his son, King Henry VI’s namesake successor, beat King Henry VI’s forces in the Battle of Towton and became King Henry VI’s successor
1461 - 1470 / 1471 - 1483 - Edward IV (All Facts)
31st and 33rd King of England and First and 2nd King of the House of York
His assumption to the English throne was secured by his supporters and forces’ of the House of York having defeated the forces of the House of Lancaster in the Battle of Towton during the Wars of the Roses
His reign was interrupted by his namesake predecessor’s brief second reign
He returned to the throne after he had his predecessor murdered, in the Tower of London, having usurped the throne of the House of Lancaster from the House of York during the Wars of the Roses
He did this with support from the Burgundians and reconciliation with his brother, the duke of Clarence, who had initially went against him by restoring the rule of his namesake predecessor
During his reign,
He and his forces of the House of York defeated King Henry VI of England and his forces of the House of Lancaster in the Battle of Towton during the Wars of the Roses
He and his forces of the House of York defeated the Earl of Warwick and his forces of the House of Lancaster in the Battle of Barnet during the Wars of the Roses
This helped secure his position on the English throne
He and his forces of the House of York defeated Prince Edward and his forces of the House of Lancaster in the Battle of Tewkesbury during the Wars of the Roses
During his reign,
He re-established stability after the upheavals of the War of the Roses
Under his reign,
The Treaty of Utrecht with the Hanseatic League was signed
During his reign,
He signed the “Treaty of Picquigny” with King Louis XI of France
He died at Windsor
His son and successor was only 12
1428 - 1471 - Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick (All Facts)
English military commander
He and his forces of the House of Lancaster were defeated by Edward IV and his forces of the House of York in the Battle of Barnet during the Wars of the Roses
1453 - 1471 - Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales (All Facts)
He was the son and only child of King Henry VI of England
He and his forces of the House of Lancaster were defeated by Edward IV and his forces of the House of York in the Battle of Tewkesbury during the Wars of the Roses
His death represented the end of the male line of the House of Lancaster, which was ultimately defeated by the House of York before being merged with them as the House of Tudor during the Wars of the Roses
1483 - Edward V (All Facts)
34th King of England and 3rd King of the House of York
Upon assumption to the throne, he was only 12 years old
He was the son of his namesake predecessor
Along with Richard of York, his younger brother, he disappeared and it is widely believed he was murdered, along with his younger brother Richard, on the orders of their uncle and namesake successor
He and his younger brother were put in the Tower of London before the namesake’s successor announced his own claim to the English throne
Rumors almost immediately began to circulate that he and his younger brother were dead with stores saying they had been drowned in malmsey, stabbed, poisoned, or smothered
This situation lends itself to the work corresponding to the “Princes in the Tower”
1483 - 1485 - Richard III (All Facts)
35th King of England and 4th and Final King of the House of York and Final King of the House of Plantagenet
It was widely believed that he had his predecessor and his predecessor’s younger brother Richard murdered - despite both belonging to the same house as the namesake - in order that he could obtain the English throne
The “Princes in the Tower” - his predecessor and his predecessor’s younger brother Richard disappeared upon his announcing his own claim to the throne
Rumors thus circulated that they were dead and that the namesake had them drowned in malmsey, stabbed, poisoned, and/or smothered
The beliefs in their deaths led to
the abandonment of restoring his namesake predecessor to the throne
a rebellion against the namesake, in which the English worked to find another claimant to the English throne
his namesake successor, from the House of Lancaster but exiled, whom they preferred as candidate to succeed the namesake
He and his forces of the House of York were defeated by his namesake successor and the forces of the House of Tudor in the Battle of Bosworth Field, thus ending his reign and ending the Wars of the Roses
He decided to enter the battle in person at the head of a stupendous cavalry charge due to his frustration with the Duke of Norfolk’s inability to defeat Henry Tudor’s commander, the Earl of Oxford
However, Henry Tudor stood his ground defiantly, and Lord Stanley, initially on the namesake’s side, joined the melee and defected to Henry Tudor’s side
At the battle’s end, he was forced into a swamp, unhorsed, and hacked to death by Welsh pike-men
After the battle, his coronet was received and placed on the head of Henry Tudor, his successor
His reign marked the end of the House of Plantagenet
His reign also marked the end of the Middle Ages in England
1485 - 1603 - House of Tudor (All Facts)
1485 - 1509 - Henry VII (All Facts)
36th King of England and First King and Founder of the House of Tudor
He and his forces defeated Richard III and his forces in the Battle of Bosworth Field, which ended the Wars of the Roses and secured the namesake’s assumption to the English throne
Despite being heavily outnumbered and a novice in battle, he and his forces stood defiantly against Richard III and his forces
He had Richard III’s coronet retrieved and placed on his head
He thus established royal independence from baronial support, having ended the Wars of the Roses
His original last name was Tudor, but his official name marked the continuation of the monarchical title
His family and house had influential Welsh elements
He thus brought a period of much needed political stability to his realm after ending the brutal and intermittent civil war that was the Wars of the Roses
He had crushed all of his rivals, including Perkin Warbeck and Lambert Simnel, to consolidate his power upon assuming the throne
He was considered a “just” king who used England’s legal system wisely, however some critics argued that he used the law as much for his own ends as for those that dispensed real justice
During his reign,
He sought to reduce the independence and factiousness of the powerful nobility by building a broad-based body of support among the gentry and by tying the nobles to him financially by using bonds and “recognizances”
He and Charles VIII of France signed the Peace of Etaples in which Charles VIII of France agreed to
pay the money due to England via the Treaty of Picquigny
not aid any rebels against the namesake
He gave John Cabot money from the Privy Pursue and an annuity for his expeditions to North America
He also gave John Cabot a boat to sail to Cathay (northern China)
Upon his death, his only surviving son succeeded him
1509 - 1547 - Henry VIII (All Other Facts)
37th King of England and 2nd King of the House of Tudor
He was masterful and ruthless
He was very successful in domestic affairs
He was less successful in foreign affairs
He was primarily remembered in history for six marriages
He married his first wife and former sister-in-law Catherine of Aragon, daughter of King Ferdinand of Aragon (of Habsburg Spain), whom he was married to for 20 years
Around this time, he appointed Thomas Wolsey as Lord Chancellor of England
He then later asked Pope Clement VII to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, who had borne him one daughter but no male heirs; however, Pope Clement VII refused
Moreover, he had become infatuated with Anne Boleyn, an 18 year-old Protestant girl who had a reputation as a flirt
However, his earlier liaison with Anne’s elder sister Mary raised the question of a forbidden blood link
Angered by Thomas Wolsey’s failure to secure from Pope Clement VII an annulment of his marriage, he deposed him as Lord Chancellor and installed Thomas More in his place
He then married his second wife, Anne Boleyn, secretly, thus having repudiated papal authority in England
At this time, he appointed Thomas Cranmer as Archbishop of Canterbury
He took Anne with him when he visited King Francis of France at Calais, in which her suite of room’s adjoined the namesake’s
When they eventually got back to London, Anne was pregnant
However, Anne was arrogant and mocked her husband and did not produce a male heir, and so the namesake believed the marriage was damned and ordered her to be executed and beheaded
Around this time, he appointed Thomas Cromwell as Principle Secretary
He then married his third wife, Jane Seymour, the only one of his six wives to bear him a male heir, his son and future successor
She then died of postnatal complications
He then married his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, chosen for him by Thomas Cromwell, only to divorce her half of a year later
Shortly after, his principle secretary Cromwell was beheaded by his enemies at court
He then married his fifth wife, Catherine Howard
He then had her executed for immoralities committed before she had even married him
He then married his sixth and final wife, Catherine Parr
His closest collaborators ended up beheaded in the Tower of London
He had Thomas More executed for refusing to accept and follow the English Reformation / Church of England
He had Thomas Wolsey sacked for failing to get Pope Clement VII to sanction his divorce from his first wife Catherine of Aragon but who died before he could face trial
He had Thomas Cromwell executed, despite the fact that Cromwell had masterminded his Dissolution of the Monasteries
He had Anne Boleyn executed
He had Catherine Hoard beheaded for immorality
He was friends with Desiderius Erasmus
He died and was succeeded by his son
1509 - 1547 - Henry VIII (Religious Policy)
Founder of the Church of England
During his reign, he instituted the English Reformation in which
he initiated the movement by rejecting Pope Clement VII’s denial of his annulment to divorce his first wife Catherine of Aragon and thus formally broke with the Roman Catholic Church, but which had also occurred due to the first printing of the Bible in English under his reign
The English Reformation Parliament took place, in which
the House of Commons put forth bills against abuses amongst the clergy and in the church courts of England
they passed the
Submission of the Clergy Act
Supremacy Act (in which the namesake assumed full authority over the Church of England)
Succession Act
Suppression of Religious Houses Act
Third Succession Act
the Court of Augmentations was established
he issued the “Six Articles”
he oversaw, via his Principal Secretary Thomas Cromwell, and as a result of the Suppression of Religious Houses Act, the Dissolution of Monasteries, in which he appointed a commission to report on the state of monasteries in England and had his Principle Secretary Thomas Cromwell monitor it,
which he desired in order to
acquire the wealth of the monasteries to fund
The Crown
His military campaigns
consolidate his power and authority over the Catholic Church
redistribute some of its assets
to those who supported him in order to ensure their future support
as auctions in order to build new family fortunes at the time that would base their fortune on the Dissolution of the Monasteries including the families of
William Cavendish
Richard Rich
which had the effect of having
disbanded all Catholic Church properties in England, Wales, and Ireland
seized their wealth
redistributed their wealth to the Crown of England and to fund King Henry VIII’s military campaigns
disposed of their assets
destroyed buildings and relics
dispersed or destroyed libraries
provided for their former personnel and functions
former abbots, monks, and nuns were given pensions; however clerical unemployment rose significantly during this movement
turned many of the nearly 800 church properties sold into private homes for the Gentry class
ceased the Church’s system of distributing alms, thus causing hardship amongst England’s poor
made it so that monks and abbots no longer sat in the House of Lords, having lost political power in addition to religious authority
made him the richest king in Europe
he and his royalist forces brutally suppressed Robert Aske and the Pilgrimage of Grace Catholic revolt against him and the English Reformation
he increasingly sought the support of Parliament to his need to carry public opinion with him as he attacked the Roman Catholic Church
He maintained a strict orthodox theology despite his matrimonial problems; having written “Defense of the Seven Sacraments” against Martin Luther and was named “Defender of the Faith” by Pope Leo X for doing so
1509 - 1547 - Henry VIII (Foreign Policy)
During his reign,
He was recruited by Pope Julius II as a member of the Pope’s “Holy League” against France during the Italian Wars
He and Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian and their forces defeated the French in the Battle of the Spurs during the War of the Holy League during the Italian Wars
He signed the Westminster Treaty with King Francis of France, in which he allied with France against Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and his empire
He visited and met with King Francis of France in the “Field of the Cloth of Gold” in which he displayed his opulence
He was eventually excommunicated by Pope Clement VII
He eventually violated the Westminster Treaty, in which he allied with Charles V and the Holy Roman Empire against France
He was humiliated when his finest ship, the Mary Rose, he witnessed keel over and sink with 500 men on board as 200 French ships were riding up the Solent
His war with King Francis and France during the Italian War proved enormously costly, costing over 2M euros and having emptied the royal treasury
Under his reign,
The English defeated and killing James IV of Scotland and his forces in the Battle of Flodden during the War of the Holy League during the Italian Wars
The English defeated the Scottish in the Battle of Solway Moss, provoked by the namesake due to his desire to control Scotland during his reign, especially since their King James V refused to join in the namesake’s English Reformation
The English Parliament proposed the Greenwich Treaty with Scotland’s Parliament, but Scotland’s Parliament rejected the measure, thus initiating the “Rough Wooing” which, under his reign, included
The Burning of Edinburgh
The Battle of Ancrum Moor
The second invasion of Scotland
The Battle of Pinkie
The English allied with Charles V and the Holy Roman Empire against France during the Italian War of 1542-1546, which included
The Siege of Sant-Dizier
The Siege of Boulogne
the signing of the Treaty of Ardres
1509 - 1547 - Henry VIII (Domestic Policy)
During his reign,
He decreed a series of measures aimed at protecting peasants from the consequences of enclosure
He established the College of Physicians thanks to Thomas Lynaker
He debased England’s currency / coinage by having gold or silver coins be mixed with copper due to the increase in prices caused in part by large imports of Spanish silver from Peru at the time
Under his reign, alloying eventually became the rule for the minting of coinage
Under his reign,
English sailors complained to him about the growing number of French cod-fishermen in Newfoundland
Parliament passed the Third Succession Act, which guaranteed his daughters Mary and Elizabeth legitimacy to the English throne / Tudor line if his son and successor failed to produce a male heir
The Nonsuch Palace was built
He appointed Hans Holbein the Younger to paint portraits of him (and his administration)
The painter had sought work in England following the interruption of patronage in Basel following the Protestant Reformation, and when he had arrived he had a letter of introduction from Desiderius Erasmus to St. Thomas More
1515 - 1529 - Thomas Wolsey (All Facts)
Lord Chancellor of England under King Henry VIII
He was a Catholic Cardinal, Papal Envoy, and the Archbishop of York
He had an ambition to make England the arbiter of European affairs
He virtually controlled English domestic and foreign policy under King Henry VIII
His inability to secure an annulment for King Henry VIII of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, who had produced him no male heir, from Pope Clement VII, got him fired from his post by the King
His failure to persuade the Roman Catholic Church to allow King Henry VIII to divorce Catherine of Aragon laid the foundations for Anglicanism
He was charged by the king with abuse of power, stripped of all offices, and was demoted to Archbishop of York whom the king had him to be sent packing there, unexpected to last
He built the Hampton Court Palace for King Henry VIII as a gift for him in an attempt to save his own life, but this failed
He died at Leicester while travelling to London to answer a charge of treason
1529 - 1532 - Thomas More (All Facts)
Lord Chancellor of England under King Henry VIII
He replaced his predecessor Thomas Wolsey after King Henry VIII had deposed Wolsey for failing to secure his annulment to Catherine of Aragon with Pope Clement VII
He thus became the first layman to hold the office of Lord Chancellor in English history
He was a fierce opponent of Martin Luther and became embroiled in controversy with William Tyndale during his tenure
He resigned as Lord Chancellor the day after Parliament passed the Submission of the Clergy Act
He was imprisoned in the Tower of London, and beheaded after refusing to take the oath to Anne’s issue demanded by the Succession Act; he is thus considered a martyr in the Roman Catholic Church
1534 - 1540 - Thomas Cromwell (All Facts)
Principal Secretary of England under Henry VIII
He was described in his time as a “sacrilegious ruffian”
He was the son of a brewer in Putney
He was a Protestant
He was the leader of the English Reformation
He assisted Henry VIII of England in his marrying Anne Boleyn and repudiating papal authority
He chose Anne of Cleves for Henry VIII of England as his fourth wife
Henry VIII of England appointed a commission of England’s monasteries to be undertaken by him
He sent these commissioners storming through England interrogating monks, nuns, and friars
His commissioners claimed to have uncovered profound bawdiness, drunkenness, and “whores in feather beds”
He sought excuses for suppressing the English monasteries and confiscating their assets
His commission had it so that monastic property was put up for sale, and the proceeds went to King Henry
His commission transferred the income of nearly 800 church properties, making Henry much wealthier than he already was
He was toppled, discredited, and beheaded by his enemies at court at Tower Hill
1509 - 1533 - Catherine of Aragon (All Facts)
Queen of England for King Henry VIII
She was Henry VIII’s first wife, they were married for 20 years
She failed to produce a male heir, having produced one daughter named Princess Mary, five infants who did not survive, and several miscarriages
As a result, King Henry VIII grew impatient and decided to try and get their marriage annulled, and when Pope Clement VII refused he did it anyway, thus breaking from the Roman Catholic Church
She was the aunt of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, whom ultimately influenced Pope Clement VII to deny King Henry VIII’s annulment, especially after the Emperor had his troops in Rome
She was the widow of King Henry VIII’s older brother Arthur
She died of cancer
1533 - 1536 - Anne Boleyn (All Facts)
Queen of England for King Henry VIII
She was Henry VIII’s 2nd wife, they were married for three years
She married King Henry VIII secretly
She was eventually crowned queen at Westminster
She was Protestant
She had a reputation as a flirt, with whom King Henry VIII had become infatuated
She visited King Francis of France at Calais, in which her suite of room’s adjoined Henry VIII’s, whom took her with him there
When they eventually got back to London, she became pregnant
She died as she was beheaded in the Tower of London on the orders of the King Henry VIII
She had made a mockery of her husband and king
She was also a victim of court intrigues
She may have committed adultery, but that is highly doubtful
She gave King Henry VIII a daughter, Elizabeth, but never produced a male heir
As a result, King Henry VIII believed his marriage to her to be damned
She spoke of her “little neck” while awaiting execution
1536 - 1537 - Jane Seymour (All Facts)
Queen of England for King Henry VIII
She was Henry VIII’s 3rd wife, they were married for less than a year
She produced Henry VIII’s first and only male heir, King Edward VI
She died of birth complications, having given birth to Edward VI
1540 - Anne of Cleves (All Facts)
Queen of England for King Henry VIII
She was Henry VIII’s 4th wife, they were married for less than a year
She was chosen by Thomas Cromwell
She and him got divorced
Henry VIII had stated that he “liked her before [he] met her. [but then] like[d] her less” and had her pensioned off
1540 - 1541 - Catherine Howard (All Facts)
Queen of England for King Henry VIII
She was Henry VIII’s 5th wife, they were married for a little over a year
She was executed by Henry VIII for immoralities committed before she married him
She was formerly the duke of Norfolk’s niece at the time
1543 - 1547 - Catherine Parr (All Facts)
Queen of England for King Henry VIII
She was Henry VIII’s 6th wife, the only to have survived him
She was twice widowed before marrying Henry VIII and was widowed a third time thereafter
1517 - 1547 - Henry Howard (All Facts)
Earl of Surrey under King Henry VIII
He made a series of bitter speeches against the Earl of Hetford
He was committed to the Tower of London
He was executed on a charge of high treason
The Earl of Hetford promptly superseded him in command of the English forces in France
1500 - 1537 - Robert Aske (All Facts)
Leader of the Pilgrimage of Grace Revolt
He was executed for treason on the orders of King Henry VIII
1505 - 1557 - William Cavendish (All Facts)
Local Squire in Sussex under the reign of King Henry VIII and administration of Thomas Cromwell
He acquired three Hertfordshire manors
He eventually became a duke as a result
He was one of the many guarantors who also founded a family fortune on the basis of acquiring former Catholic Church properties in England via the Dissolution of the Monasteries
1496 - 1567 - Richard Rich (All Facts)
Helped administer the seized properties of the Catholic Church via the Dissolution of the Monasteries under King Henry VIII and Principal Secretary Thomas Cromwell
He acquired 59 manors, 31 rectories, and 28 vicarages; all former Catholic Church properties
1547 - 1553 - Edward VI (All Facts)
38th King of England and 3rd King of the House of Tudor
His mother was Jane Seymour, the third wife of his father and predecessor
His uncle, the Earl of Hetford - who superseded the Earl of Surrey just prior to the namesake’s reign as the commander of the English forces in France - was appointed lord protector and duke of Somerset, having assumed control of the government for the namesake
Edward Seymour served as Lord Protector, with real monarchical power in his hands, not the namesake’s for the first three years of the namesake’s reign
John Dudley served as Lord Protector, with real monarchical power in his hands, not the namesake’s for the last three years of the namesake’s reign
During his reign,
John Dudley and his court had abolished the trading privileges of the Hanseatic League within England
Under his reign,
Edward Seymour repealed the Six Articles passed by the namesake’s father and predecessor, only to eventually be committed to the Tower of London
The Treaty of Boulogne was signed
Under his reign, Catholics rebelled against him including in
The Prayer Book Rebellion
Kett’s Rebellion
Under his reign, Parliament issued
The 1549 Act of Uniformity
The 1552 Act of Uniformity
Under his reign,
Thomas Cramner and his committee of six issued the “42 Articles”
He assigned his crown to his namesake successor, the daughter-in-law of John Dudley
He died
1547 - 1549 - Edward Seymour (All Facts)
First Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector of King Edward VI
He played a leading part in the first half of the reign of King Edward VI as monarchical power lay in his hands, not Edward VI’s
He had repealed the Six Articles issued by Henry VIII
After having provoked aristocratic opposition, he was arrested by the Duke of Northumberland, tried on trumped up charges, and committed to the Tower of London
1550 - 1553 - John Dudley (All Facts)
First Duke of Northumberland and Lord Protector of King Edward VI
He played a leading part in the second half of the reign of King Edward VI as monarchical power lay in his hands, not Edward VI’s
He and his court had abolished the trading privileges of the Hanseatic League within England
He had his predecessor as Lord Protector arrested, tried on trumped up charges, and executed and committed to the Tower of London
When King Edward VI died, he then proclaimed his daughter-in-law Lady Jane Grey Queen of England to succeed him
He attempted to thwart Mary’s succession to Edward VI by proclaiming his daughter-in-law Lady Jane Gray as Queen of England, and was later arrested, tried for treason, and executed on the orders of Queen Mary of England
1553 - Lady Jane Grey (All Facts)
39th Queen of England and 4th Queen of the House of Tudor
She was proclaimed Queen of England by her uncle John Dudley
She had the shortest reign of any English monarch, which lasted nine days and is nicknamed “The Nine Day Queen”
She and her husband were executed in the Tower of London on the orders of Queen Mary of England
She surrendered the crown to Queen Mary of England when she demanded it from her
1553 - 1558 - Mary (All Other Facts)
40th Queen of England and 5th Queen of the House of Tudor
She was the first female monarch of England
She was nicknamed “Bloody” for her brutal persecution of Protestants during her reign
She known by some observers at the time, however, to not have been directly responsible for her namesake “persecutions”
She was the only surviving child (daughter) of King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon
She thwarted John Dudley’s plan to prevent her succession, and entered London in triumph where she was proclaimed Queen in Cambridge
She sought to restore Catholic rule and papal authority over the Church of England for many reasons, but one was very personal which was that doing so would allow her birth to become legitimate
She lacked experience in governing, as her father, her predecessor King Henry VIII had banished her from his court and listened instead to her cousin, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who had persuaded her to marry his son King Philip II, which she did
When she thought she was pregnant, she ordered thanksgiving services in London; but there happened to be no child
A few months before her death, she said she was pregnant; one of her courtiers sardonically observed that she had better hurry, as it was eight months since she had last seen her husband, King Philip II of Spain, who rarely ever visited England himself
However, their union was widely unpopular and led to mass uprisings, including Wyatt’s Rebellion
1553 - 1558 - Mary (All Other Policies)
During her reign, she
Declared war on France, initiating the Anglo-French War of 1557-1559, during the Italian War of 1551-1559, in which she sought to support her new Catholic husband at the time, King Philip II of Spain
However, the English were defeated by the French and lost their only foothold on continental Europe in the Siege of Calais
The namesake once said that “When I am dead and opened, you shall find Calais engraved on my heart”
During her reign, she
Had chartered the Muscovy Company, England’s first joint-stock company, founded by Richard Chancellor
Under her reign, Protestants rebelled against her including in
Wyatt’s Rebellion
Under her reign,
Pope Julius III appointed Reginald Pole to be Archbishop of Canterbury
1553 - 1558 - Mary (Religious Policy)
During her reign, she initiated the Catholic Counter Reformation in England, reversing the English Reformation of her predecessors in which she
Had Protestant bishops arrested (and many executed via burning at the stake)
Had Roman Catholic bishops restored
Married the Catholic King Philip II of Spain (the heir and son of Catholic Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the time)
Had Parliament repeal all the religious laws passed under her Protestant predecessors
Had Roman Catholicism reestablished as the state religion
Had the Pope’s authority recognized by the state
Had essentially persuaded Parliament to abandon the independence of the Church of England and to submit to papal authority
Had executed 300 Protestant men and women during her namesake “persecutions” in which secret meetings of the English Protestants had been taking place in towns and villages across southern England under her reign including
John Dudley; whom she arrested, tried for treason, and executed on her orders for his attempt to thwart her succession in order to consolidate her power
Lady Jane Grey and her husband; whom she had executed on her orders due to her fearing that the Protestant noblewoman and Queen might serve as a rallying point for a Protestant rebellion against her fierce Catholic rule
Nicholas Ridley, an English Protestant bishop, executed and burnt at the stake
Hugh Latimer, an English Protestant bishop, executed and burnt at the stake
Thomas Cramner, the English Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury, imprisoned for heresy and later executed and burnt at the stake
1521 - 1554 - Sir Thomas Wyatt (All Facts)
He was the leader of his namesake Protestant Rebellion against Queen Mary of England
He led 3,000 men from Kent to march on London, unsuccessfully, to try to stop Queen Mary’s marriage to Philip II of Spain
He surrendered to government forces in London after leading his rebellion, which was prompted by Queen Mary of England’s proposed marriage to King Philip II of Spain
1558 - 1603 - Elizabeth (Biographical Facts)
41st Queen of England and 6th and Final Queen of the House of Tudor
She was the longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor
She was nicknamed “The Virgin Queen” due to her unmarried status and her self-described “marriage to England”
More than once she had been heard to say that she would “live and die a virgin”
However, London society gossip had it either
that a physical defect had kept her from sex and marriage
that she used her sex and good looks to manipulate her advisors
it was said she had a deeply emotional relationship with her advisor, William Cecil
Whether she was truly a virgin is debated heavily amongst historians
She was the half-sister of her predecessor
She was the daughter of Anne Boleyn (and King Henry VIII)
She was Protestant and her reign confirmed England’s Protestantism
She overcame the handicap of being a woman in male-dominated Tudor society
One of her ruling cotemporaries in Ireland disparaged her saying she was “base, bastard, and a pissing kitchen woman”
She, to her subjects, was England personified
She once said before the defeat of the Spanish Armada, “let tyrants fear. I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and a king of England too; and think foul scorn that any prince of Europe should dare invade the borders of my realm”
Her bad habits of swearing, spitting, and beer-drinking did not lose her the affection of those who served her
She died at Richmond in England
1558 - 1603 - Elizabeth (Consolidation of Power and Bureaucratic Maintenance of Rule)
She
assumed the throne of England in which the land was ride with religious division, war with France, and heavily indebted to the bankers of Antwerp
appointed William Cecil as her Chief Secretary of State, Lord High Treasurer, and Advisor
He and Parliament made it so that the Church of England was reestablished and her predecessor’s policies were repealed or reversed including the repudiation of papal authority in England
appointed Matthew Parker as Archbishop of Canterbury, whom reinstituted Anglican church services throughout England
imprisoned Queen Mary of Scotland when Queen Mary fled to England after escaping captivity after the Battle of Langside
invested privately in John Hawkins’ slave-trading ventures despite her “official” disapproval of slave trading
was excommunicated by Pope Pius V, who released those subjects of the namesake who were still loyal to the Roman Catholic Church from all duty of obedience to the English crown
had Queen Mary of Scotland executed for conspiring in the Babington Plot (and likely for her prominent Catholic influence)
had Anthony Babington and his five associates executed for organizing the Babington Plot (and likely for their threatening reinstitution of Catholicism)
had refused to marry contrary to the advice of much of her advisors, in order to produce an heir to the throne
accepted that she had a duty to marry, but her courtships were no more than diplomatic dances with French and Austrian princes
made it known to ministers of Parliament that she does not wish for them to override her in religious or foreign affairs and that she felt it necessary to remind them of her right to “assent to or dissent from anything done in Parliament”
found it difficult to get on with her Parliament
offered to provide stability and unity in cooperation with Parliament which would give her support in return
strengthened the notion that the sovereign power in the land was the “Monarch-in-Parliament”
pardoned Hugh O’Neill (of Ireland) for his rebellious activities against England
sent Robert Devereux to put down the Nine Years’ War revolt in Ireland
left the throne to her successor to which she bequeathed an exchequer, which, for all her parsimony, was still nonetheless drained by rebellion in Ireland and support for the Dutch in the Eighty Years’ War against Spain in the Netherlands
named King James VI of Scotland as her successor, having (temporarily) united the English and Scottish thrones
1558 - 1603 - Elizabeth (Cultural Developments)
Under her reign, the English Renaissance took place in which
Many explorers discovered new lands and even fought against the Spanish during the Anglo-Spanish War including Francis Drake, John Hawkins, Martin Frobisher, Humphrey Gilbert, Richard Grenville, Walter Raleigh, Thomas Lancaster, Thomas Cavendish, Thomas Gresham, Ralph Lane, John White, and John Davis
Many writers wrote new works, poems, and plays including William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, Edmund Spenser, Ben Jonson, and Thomas Kyd
Many buildings in the namesake style were built including the Longleat House, the Holdenby / Holmby House, Theobalds House, Wollaton Hall, and Hardwick Hall
Many economic organizations and developments had taken place including the establishment of (inauguration of) the Royal Exchange, the East India Company (to which she granted a charter of incorporation), the Eastland Company (meant to outcompete the Hanseatic League), and the Levant Company (meant to establish trade relations with the Ottoman Empire)
Many theaters were built and maintained to stage the plays of English Renaissance playwrights including the Theater, the Curtain Theater, the Blackfriars Theater, the Swan, and the Globe
Many schools were founded including Trinity College in Ireland (which was founded in an attempt to pacify the Irish with an English education after the Nine Years’ War)
Many scientists flourished including William Gilbert
1558 - 1603 - Elizabeth (Economic Developments)
Under her reign, England’s newly-prosperous (at the time) middle classes were represented in Parliament and asserted themselves
Families grew wealthier and prospered from
rising prices
royal service
the dissolution of the monasteries
England’s first crop of domestically-grown tomatoes is produced and eaten
1558 - 1603 - Elizabeth (Domestic and Religious Policy)
Under her reign, Parliament issued
The 1559 Act of Supremacy
The 39 Articles
The 1563 Statute of Artificers
The 1585 Jesuits, etc. Act
The 1592 Religion / Seditious Sectaries Act
The 1597 Vagabonds Act
The 1601 Poor Relief Act / namesake Poor Law
The namesake’s reign was marked by genuine concern for the poor, partly because she feared that population growth, economic recession, and consequent poverty could lead to widespread unrest
The 1603 Union of England and Scotland Act
anti-Catholic policies including
an act which heavily increased the fines for English Catholics who refused to attend Church of England services, required by law
an act which made it illegal to attend Catholic worship services
During her reign,
She had (continued to have, since her predecessor) heretics burnt at the stake
1558 - 1603 - Elizabeth (Foreign Policy)
Under her reign, rebellions occurred against her administration including
The Second Desmond Rebellion in Ireland
The Babington Plot in England
The Nine Years’ War in Ireland
The Battle of the Yellow Ford
Under her reign,
England went to war with Spain in the Anglo-Spanish War
Lord Charles Howard of Effingham and his English forces defeated Philip II’s Spanish Armada during the Anglo-Spanish War
Francis Drake and his English forces defeated the Spanish in the Singeing of the King of Spain’s Beard during the Anglo-Spanish War
Sir Richard Grenville and his English forces and Revenge ship were defeated by the Spanish in the Battle of Flores during the Anglo-Spanish War
England supported the Dutch against Spain in the Eighty Years’ War via the Treaty of Nonsuch
Parliaments successively beseeched God “to incline [the namesake’s] heart to marriage, that we may see the fruit and child that may come thereof”
This was in response to her refusal to marry
1554 - 1586 - Philip Sydney (All Facts)
English Soldier
He fought for the Dutch against Spain during the Eighty Years’ War
In the Battle of Zutphen, he charged recklessly with 500 English horsemen against 3,000 Spanish cavalry
Struck in the thigh by a bullet, he managed to ride back to camp where he called for water
When he saw a dying foot-soldier brought in, he handed him the bottle of water saying “thy necessity is yet greater than mine”
Elegies were written for him by English poets due to his heroics
1561 - 1586 - Anthony Babington (All Facts)
He was the leader of his namesake plot, in which he and his five associates planned to
assassinate Queen Elizabeth of England
free Queen Mary of Scotland from her captivity in England
rally support among English Roman Catholics for a Spanish invasion of England
His plot failed, however, and he, along with his five associates and Queen Mary of Scotland were all executed on the orders of Queen Elizabeth
1564 - 1588 - Robert Dudley (All Facts)
He was the First Earl of Leicester
He was sent by Queen Elizabeth to head an army to support the Netherlands against Spain in the Eighty Years’ War
His expedition to the Netherlands to aid the Dutch against the Spanish in the Eighty Years’ War failed, and he returned to England
1587 - 1590 - Virginia Dare (All Facts)
First (English) child born in the New World on Roanoke Island, named after the colony in which she was born and (the virgin) Queen Elizabeth under whose reign she was born
She was born to her parents Ananias and Eleanor
She disappeared by the age of 3, along with many of the other colonists on Roanoke Island at the time
1572 - 1598 - William Cecil (All Facts)
He was the First Baron Burghley, Chief Secretary of State, and Lord High Treasurer of England and served as Chief Advisor of foreign and domestic affairs during the reign of Queen Elizabeth
His first bills were emasculated in the Lords
His bill repealing Queen Mary of England’s heresy laws went lost
He introduced important financial reforms to England
He built three magnificent mansions including Theobalds House, Burghley House, and his namesake house
He baited Catholic members of England’s Privy Council until they walked out
He tackled Parliament again and got his bills through by agreeing that Queen Elizabeth should be the Church of England’s “supreme governor,” not “supreme head”
He discovered a Catholic plot to murder Queen Elizabeth and replace her with Queen Mary of Scotland and executed one of the plot’s English conspirators, the duke of Norfolk
1576 - 1601 - Robert Devereux (All Facts)
He was the 2nd Earl of Essex and Governor-General of Ireland during the reign of Queen Elizabeth
He was a favorite amongst the Queen
He and his combined English and Dutch forces defeated Alonzo de Guzman and his Spanish forces in the Capture of Cadiz during the Anglo-Spanish War and Eighty Years’ War
He led an expedition to the Azores to intercept a Spanish treasure fleet, but it ended in failure
He made a truce with Hugh O’Neill of Ireland after having been sent by Queen Elizabeth to put down the revolt in Ireland that was the Nine Years’ War
He returned to England in defiance of Queen Elizabeth’s orders
He attempted to capture London and the Tower of London while pretending to protect Queen Elizabeth from a Spanish conspiracy, aided by his own supporters and those of King James VI of Scotland, but failed in hatching such a plot and was beheaded on the orders of the Queen as a result
1599 - 1601 - Anthony Shirley (All Facts)
English Safavid Ambassador to Europe
He developed an English alliance with Shah Abbas of the Safavid Empire
He became ambassador after he achieved a favored position at the Persian court after he had reached Kazvin with 26 followers and presented gifts of jewels to the Shah Abbas
He returned to England as ambassador and had tried to win European support for a European-Safavid alliance against the Ottoman Turks
1584 - 1603 - Walter Raleigh (All Facts)
English Statesman and Soldier during the reign of Queen Elizabeth
He and his combined English and Dutch forces defeated Alonzo de Guzman and his Spanish forces in the Capture of Cadiz during the Anglo-Spanish War and Eighty Years’ War
He was executed to appease Spain
1570 - 1605 - George Clifford (All Facts)
He was the 3rd Earl of Cumberland
1560 - 1609 - Francis Vere (All Facts)
English Military Officer and Politician during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James
He and his combined English and Dutch forces defeated Alonzo de Guzman and his Spanish forces in the Capture of Cadiz during the Anglo-Spanish War and Eighty Years’ War
1536 - 1624 - Charles Howard (All Facts)
He was the First Earl of Nottingham during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James
He and his English forces defeated Alonso de Guzman and his Spanish “Armada” during the Anglo-Spanish War
He and his combined English and Dutch forces defeated Alonzo de Guzman and his Spanish forces in the Capture of Cadiz during the Anglo-Spanish War and Eighty Years’ War
1603 - 1625 - James (All Facts)
42nd King of England and First King and Founder of the House of Stuart
He was known as the namesake in England (rather than the VI in Scotland)
He assumed the throne of England as the most powerful Protestant sovereign in Europe
He was the son of Queen Mary of Scotland
He was welcomed by the English, though some found his brusque manner and Scottish accent disconcerting and none of the English found his talk of the “divine right of kings” pleasing
He described the habit of tobacco-smoking as “vile and stinking” and “dangerous”
He
pardoned Hugh O’Neill and Rory O’Donnell, earls of Catholic Ireland, for their rebellions against England after they both were defeated in battle and submitted to England; and he restored their lands
had overseen the replacement of feudal Ireland with its powerful Gaelic clan chiefs with English-style sheriffs and counties
had offered Hugh O’Neill to try his case in London over his feudal rights which became disputed, but to which O’Neill avoided out of fear of arrest by the namesake for O’Neill’s Catholicism
committed Thomas Overbury to the Tower after he refused a diplomatic appointment abroad in order to replace his influence with that of the Viscount of Rochester; his new favorite politician at the time
he later made George Villiers, the Earl of Buckingham, his favorite
sat with Pocahontas and John Rolfe at a Ben Jonson masque, whom had aided the colony of Jamestown / Virginia
made Ben Jonson England’s first “poet laureate”
executed Walter Raleigh to appease Spain
issued a book in favor of games which may be played after church on Sundays, enraging Puritans in England under his reign
denied Frederick V’s request (the elector of Palatine) to mediate in his foreign affairs; his mind on other things, notably his ambition of a “Spanish match” for his son and successor
Under his reign, colonization efforts in North America expanded in which
The Virginia Company of London was chartered
When the Royal Commission reported on disasters which killed 3K of the Virginia Company of London’s colonial settlers in 15 years, the namesake revoked the charter and chartered it again as a royal province
The Plymouth Company was chartered
The Jamestown (Virginia) Colony was founded
He granted the Second Virginia Charter
He then granted Virginia to be a Royal Charter
The Popham Colony was founded
He granted the New Hampshire Charter to John Mason
He
presided over the Hampton Court Conference in which he debated Henry Jacob and the Puritans after being given their Millenary Petition which resulted in
The revision of the original and publication of the new Book of Common Prayer
The publication of his namesake version of the Holy Bible (KJV)
Thus, during his reign, he authorized the publication of his namesake Holy Bible, or KJV translation, as a concession to these demands of Protestant clergy for reform
He did this also because he believed there were seditious comments in the popular version at the time, the Geneva Bible
Anxious to have an English Bible that was equally grand, he pushed the project ahead despite the lack of enthusiasm among bishops of the Church of England at the time
These were the only concessions the namesake made to the Puritans, having dashed Puritan hopes that he would reform the Church of England along the lines suggested by the Millenary Petition
asked the MPs (ministers of Parliament) to grant him benevolences (free gifts to the crown)
arrested and imprisoned in the Tower all those MPs who spoke out against him for doing this
tried, subsequently, for six years, to govern without Parliament, but which left him short of funds
resigned himself to another parliament, faced with the prospect of war in Europe
dissolved Parliament after only two sessions
authorized and initiated the penal colony system, in which convicted criminals in England were transported overseas to colonies as indentured servants
banned tobacco production in England, which virtually gave Jamestown / Virginia / the Virginia Company of London / of Plymouth a monopoly in exchange for tax of one shilling per pound of tobacco
authorized the licensing of certain members of the Stationers’ Company to issue coranto pamphlets on a regular basis
it was under his authority that all printing was carried out
granted a charter to John Mason of Hampshire to establish territory that would become the colony of New Hampshire
arranged a deal with Cardinal Richelieu of France in which
his son and successor would be married off to the French Catholic Henrietta Maria in order to enhance his image as a European peacemaker
England would suspend its anti-Catholic laws
England would provide / lease to France a warship and seven merchant vessels for their use against the rebellious Protestant Huguenots in La Rochelle in France
the deal was not at all popular in Protestant Britain, but to which the namesake disliked those who rebelled against kings and so designed it anyway, and thus was another contributing cause to the future English Civil War
authorized the Privy Council’s orders for the kidnapping and exporting of orphans from the streets of London to the colony of Virginia, since which criminals had cashed in on the plentiful labor force of children
more than 1,500 children were kidnapped and exported and arrived in Virginia
Under his reign,
London suffered from an outbreak of plague that killed around 20% of the population
England overtook the Portuguese and rivaled the Dutch in India via the English (British) East India Company
England formed an alliance with the United Provinces / the Netherlands against Spain
The Plantations of Ulster, in which a systematic colonization of Ireland by English and Scottish Protestant immigrants took place, occurred and was directed by the namesake
Khoisan herders were taken from the Cape of Good Hope to England by traders in order for the English to learn the Khoisan language and culture
The Privy Council ordered all exports from colonies to have customs paid in England
England aided Abbas of the Safavid Empire in driving the Portuguese out of Hormuz Island
English settlers arrived on the island of St. Christopher (St. Kitts)
He died and was succeeded by his son
1572 - 1605 - Robert Catesby (All Facts)
Leader of the Catholic Gunpowder Plot against Protestant King James of England
The plot failed, and he three others died resisting arrest
He was from Warwickshire
He was a zealous Catholic
He had been involved in many plots against Queen Elizabeth
He and his fellow plotters were revealed by Guy Fawkes, under severe torture by King James, to have held a hunting party as a cover for a bid to kidnap the daughter of King James once Fawkes had succeeded
This was before he was apprehended in the Gunpowder Plot against King James
1750 - 1606 - Guy Fawkes (All Facts)
Member of a group of provincial English Catholics involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot against Protestant King James of England
He was from Yorkshire
He converted to Catholicism after formerly being a Protestant
He served with the Spanish forces in the Netherlands during the Eighty Years’ War
He was apprehended in the cellars under the Houses of Parliament with 20 barrels of gunpowder
He confessed to plotting to blow up the House of Lords when King James, his Queen, and Prince Henry were assembled for Parliament’s opening; having done so under severe torture
He initially refused to reveal his accomplices, but King James ordered the torture to continue indefinitely and he eventually named the leader of the Gunpowder Plot, Robert Catesby
He was eventually executed, along with six other members of the Gunpowder Plot
1594 - 1612 - Henry (All Facts)
He was the Prince of Wales
He was the eldest son of King James of England (and Scotland)
He was the hope of the English Protestant party because of his violent dislike of popery
He died of a fever
1596 - 1612 - Robert Cecil (All Facts)
He was the Chief Minister of King James of England
He was the First Earl of Salisbury
He had the cellars underground below England’s Parliament searched, in which Guy Fawkes and others were apprehended and the Gunpowder Plot failed
1581 - 1613 - Thomas Overbury (All Facts)
He was committed to the Tower for refusing a diplomatic appointment abroad during the reign of King James
It was concluded that King James wished to put an end to the namesake’s influence over King James’ favorite Viscount of Rochester
1609 - 1613 - William Hawkins (All Facts)
Representative of the English East India Company who arrived at Surat
He travelled to Agra and met the Mughal Emperor Jahangir, having negotiated with him on behalf of the East India Company
Speaking fluent Turkish, he was able to talk and drink with Jahangir, leaving a mixed impression of his countrymen behind him