Thursday 29 September 2016

The Kings and Queens of Britain

The Kings and Queens of Great Britain


James gave himself the title "King of Great Britain" but it wasn’t until 1707 when the title “King of England” was truly granted

From King Offa in 747 until Elizabeth II over One thousand two hundred and sixty-three years, Britain has been a Kingdom, well that is apart from the 11 Cromwell years when it became a republic.
Britain has had forty-one Kings and Queens. Some were known as King or Queen of England some as King or Queen of Scotland or both.

Offa was a King of a region rather than the whole island Others had the title of Kings of Great Britain and of Ireland and so on, including Emperor or Empress of India. Anne has the unusual distinction of having been both Queen of England and of Scotland until 1707 and of Great Britain subsequently.

Britain’s Kings and leaders are as follows

1066 The End of the Anglo-Saxon rule and the beginning of Norman rule

The Normans influence on Britain still remains today, from its Art, Language, and Architecture

Edward VIII Abdicates for his love of Mrs Simpson

  • George II The last British monarch to have been born outside Great Britain
  • George III American colonies were soon lost in the American War of Independence, which led to the establishment of the United States of America
  • George IV
  • William IV
  • Edward VII
  • George V
  • Edward VIII He remains the only British monarch to have voluntarily renounced the throne since the Anglo-Saxon period
  • George VI

From Mary up to today's Elizabeth here are the nine Queens

  1. Mary 1516 – 1558
  2. Elizabeth I 1533-1603
  3. Lady Jane Grey 1537-1554
  4. Mary Stuart, 1542-1587 Mary Mary quite contrary See my piece on this
  5. Elizabeth Stuart 1596-1662
  6. Mary II.1662-1694
  7. Anne1664-1714
  8. Victoria 1819-1901
  9. Elizabeth II 1926-

The eight Queens of Kings were

  1. Matilda, Queen of William the Conqueror 1053 -1083
  2. Margaret of Anjou, Queen of Henry VI. 1425-1482
  3. Elizabeth Grey, Queen of Edward IV. 1464-1483
  4. Catherine of Aragon, Queen of Henry VIII. 1483-1536
  5. Anne Boleyn, Queen of Henry VIII. 1507-1536
  6. Catherine Parr, Queen of Henry VIII. 1512-1548
  7. Anne of Cleves, wife of Henry VIII. 1515-1557
  8. Henrietta Maria, Queen of Charles I. 1609-1669

Ok here's a little bit of a history lesson for you

After King Offa took the title Rex Anglorum “King of the English” The king of Wessex, Egbert took Kent and then conquered Sussex (That's where I live, my name is an old Anglo-Saxon name ) in 829 to take the title “King of the English”

Next Egbert in 829 followed by Alfred the great, (he’s the one who burnt the cakes)
He helped to defend the south of England from the Vikings and has the honour to be the only King to be accorded the title “The Great” (I should think so too, those Vikings were a mean lot)

Alfred’s son Edward the elder (He was known as the first King of the Anglo-Saxons) came next, quickly followed by Athelstan he was the last to adopt the title Rex Anglorum, with Henry II in 1154 the title became Rex Angliae (King of England).

Wales joined, or should I say was “Incorporated” into the Kingdom of England and in 1301 Edward I eldest son was made the Prince of Wales. the title is currently held by Prince Charles.

After Elizabeth, I of England in 1603 the crowns of England and Scotland were united under James I of England.

The Kingdom of Great Britain

King Jimmy one, gave himself the title "King of Great Britain" but it wasn’t until 1707 when the title “King of England” became a reality and then the “United Kingdom of Great Britain”
Now we getting a bit more up to the present day and in 1801 it became the “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland” after 1922 the title as we know today “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”

I hope you got all that? because I will be asking a question about it later !

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