Wikijunior:Kings and Queens of England
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Contents 1 Introduction 3 2 The Anglo-Saxons (871-1016) 5 2.1 Alfred the Great (871-899) ............................ 6 2.2 Edward the Elder (899-924) ........................... 8 2.3 Ethelweard (924) ................................. 9 2.4 Athelstan (924-939) ................................ 9 2.5 Edmund the Magnificent (939-946) ....................... 10 2.6 Edred (946-955) .................................. 11 2.7 Edwy the Fair (955-959) ............................. 11 2.8 Edgar the Peaceable (959-975) ......................... 12 2.9 Edward the Martyr (975-978) .......................... 12 2.10 Ethelred the Unready (978-1013, 1014-1016) . 14 2.11 Edmund Ironside (1016) ............................. 15 2.12 References ..................................... 16 3 The Danes (1016-1042) 17 3.1 Sweyn Haraldssen (1013-1014) .......................... 17 3.2 Canute the Great (1014, 1016-1035) ...................... 18 3.3 Harold Harefoot (1035-1040) ........................... 20 3.4 Harthacanute (1035-1037, 1040-1042) ...................... 21 4 The Normans (1066-1154) 23 4.1 William I (1066-1087) .............................. 23 4.2 William II (1087-1100) .............................. 26 4.3 Henry I (1100-1135) ............................... 28 4.4 Stephen (1135-1141, 1141-1154) ......................... 31 4.5 Matilda (or Maud) (1141) ............................ 33 4.6 References ..................................... 34 5 The Plantagenets (1154-1399) 35 5.1 Henry II (1154-1189) ............................... 35 5.2 Richard I (1189-1199) .............................. 37 5.3 John (1199-1216) ................................. 40 5.4 Henry III (1216-1272) .............................. 43 5.5 Edward I (1272-1307) .............................. 45 5.6 Edward II (1307-1327) .............................. 46 5.7 Edward III (1327-1377) ............................. 49 5.8 Richard II (1377-1399) .............................. 51 5.9 References ..................................... 53 III Contents 6 The House of Lancaster (1399-1461, 1470-1471) 55 6.1 Henry IV (1399- 1413) .............................. 55 6.2 Henry V (1413-1422) ............................... 56 6.3 Henry VI (1422-1461, 1470-1471) ........................ 58 6.4 References ..................................... 61 7 The House of York (1461-1470, 1471-1485) 63 7.1 Edward IV (1461-1470, 1471-1483) ....................... 63 7.2 Edward V (1483) ................................. 66 7.3 Richard III (1483-1485) ............................. 67 7.4 References ..................................... 68 8 The Tudors (1485-1603) 69 8.1 Henry VII (1485-1509) .............................. 69 8.2 Henry VIII (1509-1547) ............................. 71 8.3 Edward VI (1547-1553) ............................. 76 8.4 Mary I (1553-1558) ................................ 79 8.5 Elizabeth I (1558-1603) ............................. 81 8.6 References ..................................... 84 9 The Stuarts (1603-1649, 1660-1714) 85 9.1 James I (1603-1625) ............................... 85 9.2 Charles I (1625-1649) ............................... 87 9.3 Interregnum (1649-1660) ............................. 90 9.4 Charles II (1660-1685) .............................. 91 9.5 James II (1685-1688) ............................... 94 9.6 William III (1689-1702) and Mary II (1689-1694) . 97 9.7 Anne (1702-1714) ................................. 100 9.8 References ..................................... 102 10 The Hanoverians (1714-1901) 103 10.1 George I (1714-1727) ............................... 103 10.2 George II (1727-1760) .............................. 105 10.3 George III (1760-1820) .............................. 106 10.4 George IV (1820-1830) .............................. 109 10.5 William IV (1830-1837) ............................. 112 10.6 Victoria (1837-1901) ............................... 114 10.7 References ..................................... 118 11 The House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1901-1917) 119 11.1 Edward VII (1901-1910) ............................. 119 11.2 George V (1910-1936) .............................. 121 12 The House of Windsor (1917 onwards) 125 12.1 George V (1910-1936) .............................. 125 12.2 Edward VIII (1936) ............................... 125 12.3 George VI (1936-1952) .............................. 127 12.4 Elizabeth II (1952 onwards) . 130 IV Contents 13 Future monarchs 133 13.1 Charles, Prince of Wales ............................. 133 13.2 Prince William of Wales ............................. 135 14 Contributors 137 List of Figures 139 15 Licenses 143 15.1 GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE . 143 15.2 GNU Free Documentation License . 144 15.3 GNU Lesser General Public License . 145 1 1 Introduction Welcome to the Wikijunior book on Kings and Queens of England. In this book we start by looking at the very first Anglo-Saxon Kings of England. We then move on to show how the Crown changed hands many times as a result of conquest. We see some powerful kings and some weak ones. We see how the Crown has battled Parliament. We look at the period where power finally did transfer to Parliament through to the times of our current queen, Elizabeth II. At the end we also look at who the next kings of England may be. We will find out about eleven Kings called Edward and nine called Henry. We will find out about a nine-day queen and a King Philip, who most people have now forgotten about. But first let's start way back in 871 with the Anglo-Saxons and the only king of England to be called "Great", Alfred. 3 2 The Anglo-Saxons (871-1016) Our history of the kings of England starts with the Anglo-Saxons, at the beginning of the 9th century. Because it was so long ago, the dates, and even the years are uncertain. At this point in time, England, as you know it, doesn't exist yet. The land is divided into several small kingdoms, and the people who live there are called Anglo-Saxons. It was during this time, around the year 830, that the Vikings realized that England was a very interesting country to loot and plunder. Between 830 and 865 they came by more and more often, much to the dismay of the people living there. In 865 these Vikings formed a "Great Army". While their previous raids were aimed at looting and plundering, the Great Army was sent to actually conquer England. They were surprisingly good at that - in only three years they had conquered northern and eastern England. Even in the west, one by one the small kingdoms fell until only one of them remained independent. It was the kingdom of Wessex. It's here that we find Alfred the Great, the first of the Kings and Queens of England. 5 The Anglo-Saxons (871-1016) 2.1 Alfred the Great (871-899) Figure 1 King Alfred the Great Alfred the Great was born around 850 in Wantage, in what is now Oxfordshire. Alfred was the fourth son of King Ethelwulf of Wessex. He became king of the southern Anglo- Saxon kingdom of Wessex in 871, when his brother Ethelred I died. When the Danish Vikings had conquered most of England, they finally came to Wessex. Alfred had only just been crowned, and now had to face the invaders at his borders. During a fierce series of battles, he managed to drive them from Wessex. Defeated, the Vikings retreated and licked their wounds. However, seven years later they returned in full force. In May of 878, Alfred had to confront his enemies once more, and crushingly defeated them near Edington in Wiltshire. This victory earned him the name "the Great"—he is the only English monarch called by that name. With the Danes defeated, the way was cleared to unite England. By building a system of fortifications, the kingdom of Wessex managed to expand its borders. Alfred encouraged 6 Alfred the Great (871-899) education, was educated himself, and improved the kingdom's laws. Under his guidance, the kingdom began to prosper.