An essay about the royal dynasty of England. English kings of the 16th century. Tudor dynasty. Yorks, Windsors and other dynasties

In 2066, the British Royal House will celebrate its 1000th anniversary. During this time, the fate of England and Great Britain was decided by eight dynasties of monarchs. It is surprising that, unlike many European states, the country has always been tolerant of the fair sex, who occupied the royal throne, and the change of the ruling house took place through marriage and direct blood connection. Offa first held the title of King of England in the 10th century., who, being the ruler of Mercia, through complex political decisions, united the scattered kingdoms around him. The last current British monarch is Queen Elizabeth II.

Norman dynasty

The House of Normandy began to rule England in 1066, it was from that moment that the tradition of “numbering” monarchs appeared in the country. The custom came from France and was forever entrenched in Europe as a royal feature. The first ruler of the Norman dynasty was Illegitimate William I the Conqueror. After him, in 1087, his son came to the throne Robert, who was forced to fight for the right to own the crown with his younger brother Wilhelm II the Red, ruling England until 1100. The next king of England was Henry I Beauclerk who sat on the throne until 1135. During his lifetime, his daughter was declared his direct heiress - Matilda, but the constant struggle for power allowed the empress to reign only in 1141. Simultaneously recognized himself as King of England Stephen of Blois, who sat on the throne until 1154.

Plantagenet dynasty

The Plantagenets ruled England from 1154 to 1399. The ancestor of the royal family - Gottfried Handsome, which received a prefix to the name in honor of the tradition of decorating your helmet with a branch of gorse (planta-genista). The monarch became the spouse of Matilda, and their son Henry is considered the founder of the Plantagenet dynasty, which gave the English throne 8 kings, including Henry II (1154 - 1189), Richard I, nicknamed "Lionheart" (years of reign - 1189 - 1199), John the Landless, reigning until 1216, as well as three Eduardov - I, II and III. The last of the Plantagenet family was Richard II, after which the family ended the era of his reign in 1399, giving way to the Lancasters.

Lancasters

The title "Lancaster" belonged to the earls and dukes of the side line of the previous Plantagenet dynasty, the first representative of which was Henry IV Bolingbroke(reigned until 1413). He is considered an important historical figure, since it was under him that the rights of the English Parliament were significantly expanded. After him ascended the throne Henry V, whose reign lasted until 1422. The grandson of Henry IV was king of England until his death in the Tower, and Edward, his son fell in 1471 at the Battle of Tewkesbury. After their death, the Lancaster dynasty in the male line died out, and a relative in the female branch entered the English throne in 1485 - Henry Tudor.

yorkie

The year 1461 was marked by the intensification of the conflict, which went down in history as the War of the Scarlet and White Roses, as a result of which Henry IV was overthrown by Edward York. The next dynasty of kings in England was the Yorks. This royal family name was originally a ducal title given to members of their family by English monarchs. Edward III bestowed the title of York on Edmund, his fourth son. The Yorkes ruled England from 1461 to 1485, during which time the throne saw three monarchs of this line: Edward IV, Edward V and Richard III. Subsequently, the title of Duke of York was hereditary, until until in 1767 Frederick of Wales died childless and his regalia were presented to George III. To date, the ducal title of York is held by the first son of the Prince of Wales, who is heir to the throne of Great Britain.

Tudors

The English Tudor dynasty ruled the country from 1485 to 1603. Its founder is Henry VII who married the daughter of Edward IV. After the conclusion of an alliance in the country, an end was put to the war of the Scarlet and White Roses. Owen Meredis became the ancestor of the Tudors who came from a Welsh noble family. Owen married the widow of Henry V. The Tudor reign was marked by three kings and two queens, including Mary I of Blood and Elizabeth I. The royal family did a lot for their country - the prestige of royal power rose, a radical reform of the church was carried out, as a result of which the ruler became at the same time a religious leader. At the same time, the rights of Parliament were not affected at all, and the royal power was strengthened.

Stuarts

The Stuarts belonged to an old Scottish house which succeeded the Tudors in 1603. The surname name Stuart (Scottish) belonged to the descendants of the famous Count Walter. The dynasty of kings ruled in different time Scotland, England, Ireland and the UK. The first monarch of the Stuart family was Jacob I, who ruled until 1625, when he was succeeded by his son Charles I who ruled until 1649. This year the king was executed, England became a republic, and the Commonwealth was proclaimed between Scotland and England. In 1653, the ruler of the country became Oliver Cromwell having the post of protector. Since 1653, his son became the head of the state - Richard Cromwell. Historians call the period from 1660 the time of the reconstruction of the Stuarts, who regained the throne in the person of the king Charles II. The board of the house continued until 1807, when the last representative of the family died - Heinrich Benedict.

Hanover

Hanoverian dynasty ruled Great Britain before 1901. The branch originates from an ancient Germanic family. The Hanoverians were foreign to the people and traditions of England, and were entitled to the crown by the 1701 Act of Succession, which excluded the right of any Catholic, especially a Stewart, to rule the British lands. This period was characterized by the strengthening of parliamentarism, the development of democratic initiatives and the weakening of the power of the king. Under Hanover, the industrial revolution took place, and the development of capitalist relations was launched. The time of change was marked by the French Revolution, the war for the right to own the American colonies, and the conquest of India. 19th century played important role in British history thanks to the famous Victorian era.

Wettins

The Wettins belong to the Saxon family of princes, who trace their origins to Count Witigizel. The name of the surname comes from the castle of the same name, which was located on the Saale River. The House of Wettin in English history was represented Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, consort of Queen Victoria. Thanks to the monarch, Great Britain received the current ruling dynasty - Windsor.

The royal title was born on the shores of Foggy Albion in the 9th century. Since then, the highest throne of the state has been occupied by representatives of various English dynasties. However, the blood relationship of the kings and queens of England was continuous.

This was due to the fact that each new royal dynasty arose from the marriage of its founder with a representative of the previous one. is a state where for 12 centuries women became the head of the country six times.

History carefully preserves the names of Mary I, Elizabeth I, Mary II, Anna, Victoria and the now living Elizabeth II.

Normans

The first kings of England were representatives of the House of Normandy. Moreover, it is interesting that at first Normandy was just a special duchy, and only then - a French province. It began with Norman raids on this northern part of France, and the invaders found refuge between their predatory attacks at the mouth of the Seine River.

In the 9th century, the ranks of the invaders were led by the son of Rognvald - Rolf (Rollon), who had previously been expelled by the Norwegian king. After winning several major battles, Rollo took root in the lands that were called the Norman Country or Normandy.

Seeing that the enemy turned out to be worthy in order to hold power, King Charles of France met with the invader and offered him a coastal part of the state on his own terms: Rollo had to recognize himself as a royal vassal and be baptized. The ambitious exile from the Norwegian kingdom not only accepted the rite of baptism, but also took Gisella, the daughter of Karl, as his wife.

Thus, the beginning of the Dukes of Normandy was laid. Rollo's great-granddaughter became the wife of King Æthelred of England (House of Saxony) and thus the Norman dukes received the official right to claim the throne of Britain. Wilhelm II did an excellent job with this task, from which the royal roots of the Normans began.

This wise leader began his reign by distributing the lands of England to his friends in arms.

Or the history of the Windsor dynasty

With the news that English royal couple William and Kate are expecting their second child, one of my colleagues asked me how long it would be for William's brother, Harry, to join the British throne. And why was their dynasty called Windsor, when there is no such designation in more old history and they are known to have a great tradition in the UK.

After the Anglo-Saxon, Danish, Norman, Plantagenet, Lancaster, Yor, Tudor, Stuart and Orange dynasties, the Hanoverian dynasty was created. Therefore, the king asked to make it clear that he felt connected to the history of the nation. It wasn't Stuart, it wasn't Gelf, it was ancient name of the Hanover family, but Queen Victoria, by virtue of the law of right, married her by marriage; from Prince Albert's father-in-law, his father was embarrassed at the history of Wettin or Wipper, and the Lords suggested Tudor-Stuart, which brought bad associations, Plantagenet, York, Lancaster, not to mention the primitive designation of George of England.

And since more and more Norman detachments continued to arrive from the north, there was no shortage of replenishment of the army of William II's associates. The new rulers of England converted to Christianity and began to speak English language, retaining, however, traces of the Scandinavian beginning in the Norman dialect. The nature of the Normans was seen in their desire to travel and conquer new countries.

After the death of William "Long Sword", the young Richard became the heir to the Norman duchy. This served as the claims of the French king, which, despite numerous intrigues, ended in nothing, and after the accession to the throne of Richard II, Normandy began to draw closer to England.

This process, not without help, ended with the installation of the new King William on the English throne. Since then, the dynasties of British kings have made repeated attempts to connect England with Normandy, but each time the matter ends only with a new strengthening of family ties.

During the reign of Henry I, new claims to the throne of England began. This time the initiative came from his daughter Matilda, who was then recognized as the legitimate heiress.

After the death of the English king Henry I, Stephen of Blois and Matilda entered into an open war. Matilda was then married for the second time, her husband was Gottfried Plantagenet of Anjou. The latter captures Normandy in 1141, and then King Louis VII recognizes his son Henry as the head of the Norman duchy.

Plantagenets

Since that time, the Plantagenet dynasty originated. They ruled England from 1154-1399. The ancestor of this royal family Gottfried received his nickname for the habit of attaching a gorse branch to his military helmet, yellow flowers which was pronounced like planta genista.

He became the husband of Matilda, from their marriage Henry was born (1133), who became, after the death of Stephen of Blois, the founder of the dynasty, that is, the man who ascended the throne of England.

This dynasty lasted for the reign of eight kings. These were Henry II, Richard I, John Landless, Henry III, Edward I, Edward II, Edward III and Richard II. Edward III became the ancestor of the next dynasty - the Lancasters.

Lancasters

This branch comes from the same house as the Plantagenets.

The first representative of the Lancastrian branch to officially ascend the royal throne was Henry IV.

And his father - John of Ghent - was the son of King Edward III. However, the genealogy introduced its reading into this alignment: John of Ghent was the third son of King Edward III, and his second son was Lionel of Clarensky, whose descendant in the person of Edmond Mortimer had more preferable chances for the royal crown.

From the same very prolific King Edward III, another royal branch of England, the York dynasty, also originates. She comes from Edmund, the fourth son of King Edward III.

Lancasters were holders of the titles of earls and dukes. Henry III Plantagenet became the parent of Edmund, it was younger son king and bore the modest title of count. His grandson Henry became, through the efforts of Edward III, who ascended the throne in those days, a duke.

Henry's daughter, Blanca, became the wife of Edward III's son, John Plantagenet, who was later elevated to the Duke of Lancaster. The eldest son of John and Blanca became the founder of the dynasty, it was Henry IV.

This royal house stood from 1399 to 1461, not for long. And all because the grandson of Henry IV - Henry VI - died on the battlefield, just like the son of Henry VI - Edward. Twenty-four years after this surname representing the dynasties of England died out, the throne was headed by Henry from the Tudor family - relatives of the Lancasters in the female line.

Tudors

The history of this royal house is very interesting. It originates from Wales, it is a branch of the Coilchen family, and any member of this family automatically has the right to own England. Owen Tudor's son, Maredud, married Henry V's widow, Catherine of France.

The sons of these Tudors, named Edmund and Jasper, were half-brothers of Henry IV. Having ascended the throne, this king of England granted earls to the sons of the Tudor family.

Thus Edmund became Earl of Richmon and Jasper became Earl of Pembroke. After this, the family ties of Lancaster and Tudor were sealed once again. Edmund took to wife Marguerite Beaufort.

She was the great granddaughter of the founder of the Lancastrian branch, John of Gaunt Plantagenet. Moreover, this happened thanks to the legitimized line, which included the descendants of John's mistress - Katherine Swynford, who previously could not claim the highest throne of England. From the marriage of Edmund and Margaret Beaufort, the future King of England, Henry VII, was born.

The fading branch of the Lancasters provided significant assistance to the Tudor dynasty, supporting Henry Tudor, despite the fact that the notorious Duke of Buckingham was also among the Beaufort relatives.

Power in England was seized by Richard III, but he could not hold it, and then Henry ascended the throne, marrying Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV and initiating the unification of the Lancaster dynasty with the Yorks.

The royal Tudor dynasty after the death of Henry VII continued with the reign of Henry VIII. He had three children. It was they who headed the high throne of England after his death. These were representatives of the Tudor branch, King Edward VI and queens - Mary I "Bloody" and Elizabeth I.

After the death of Elizabeth I, the Tudor dynasty died out. The closest of the surviving relatives was the Scottish King James VI, who was the son of Mary Stuart, the daughter of James V. He, in turn, was born into the world of Margaret Tudor, the sister of Henry VIII. Thus began a new royal dynasty - the Stuarts.

Stuarts

The Stuart dynasty came to the throne in 1603. This surname belongs to the descendants of Walter, who rose to prominence under Malcolm III (XI century). Since then, the glorious dynasty has known many heroes, victories and downfalls.

There is a lot of French blood in the Stuart branch (Magdalene of Valois, Mary of Guise and other royal names).

Mary Stuart, mother of James V, was an orphan and ended up entirely in the hands of Elizabeth I. She deposed the Scottish heiress from the throne and executed her in England. The surviving son of Mary - James VI - united England, Scotland and Ireland, although he ruled for only 22 years.

In general, historians speak of the rule of the Stuarts unfriendly. Representatives of this dynasty are Charles I, James II, Mary Stuart, Anna Stuart and James III. This branch died out with the death of Henry Benedict, who was the grandson of James II.

Hanover

These royal dynasty ruled England from 1714-1901. They originate from the German Welfs. They ascended the throne due to the fact that Catholics, close in kinship to the Tudors, were cut off from the opportunity to take control of the country in their own hands.

The first Hanoverian king did not speak English at all. Historians believe that we are talking about the Regency, which was replaced by the Victorian era. Ruling persons: George III, George IV, William IV and Victoria. Another branch of this dynasty is the Dukes of Cambridge.

Yorks, Windsors and other dynasties

The list of names included in the royal dynasties would be incomplete without the Yorks, whose reign was minimal (Edward IV, Edward V and Richard III), the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha dynasty (Edward VII and George V), as well as ruling dynasty Windsors (George V, Edward VIII, George VI and Elizabeth II).