See also: List of English consorts.

The Royal Arms of England, as introduced by King Richard the Lionheart in 1198, and before its later quarterings with other shields, additions of supporters and other embellishments

The Kings of Wessex, who conquered Kent and Sussex from Mercia in 825, became increasingly dominant over the other kingdoms of England during the 9th century. The conquest of Northumbria, East Anglia and half of Mercia by the Danes left Alfred the Great of Wessex as the only surviving English king. He successfully resisted a series of Danish invasions and brought the remaining half of Mercia under the sovereignty of Wessex. According to some sources the first ruler to assume the title King of the English is sometimes said to be Offa in 774, who had been King of Mercia since 757, but this claim is based on charters forged in the 10th century.^[1]

The continuous list of English monarchs traditionally begins with Egbert of Wessex in 829. The English kingdom was not permanently unified until 927, under Athelstan. The Principality of Wales was incorporated into the Kingdom of England under the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 and, in 1301, Edward invested his eldest son, Edward of Caernarfon, as Prince of Wales. Since that time, with the exception of Edward III, the eldest sons of all English monarchs have borne this title. After the death of Elizabeth I of England in 1603, the kingdoms of England and Scotland were united under James I and VI. By royal proclamation James titled himself 'King of Great Britain'. England underwent political union with Scotland in 1707 to form the Kingdom of Great Britain. Since that date the title King or Queen of England is incorrect, though has remained in usage to the present day. In 1801 Great Britain incorporated the Kingdom of Ireland which had been under English rule since Henry II.

English monarchs

House of Mercia

|width=auto| Offa
(+OFFA?REX+)
774-796 ||

Penny of Offa

House of Wessex

The continuous list traditionally starts with Egbert, King of Wessex from 802, the first King of Wessex to have overlordship over much of England.^[2] He defeated the Mercians and became Bretwalda in 829. However, permanent unity was not achieved until 927, under Athelstan.

|width=auto| Egbert
(Ecgberht)
829-839^[3] ||

Egbert

Ethelwulf

Coin of Ethelbert

Coin of Ethelred

Statue of Alfred the Great in Wantage

Edward the Elder

The tomb of King Athelstan in Malmesbury Abbey

Imaginary portrait of Edmund I

Imaginary line engraving of Edred made by un unknown engraver after an unknown artist

Line engraving of Edwy made by an unknown engraver after an unknown artist

King Edgar of England

St. Edward the Martyr

Image of Ethelred II with an oversize sword from the illuminated manuscript "The Chronicle of Abingdon"

Edmund Ironside

House of Denmark

England came under the rule of Danish kings following the reign of Ethelred the Unready. Some, though not all, of these were also kings of Denmark.

| Sweyn Forkbeard
(Svend Tveskæg)
25 December^[34]
1013?1014^[35] ||

Sweyn Forkbeard, from an architectural element in the Swansea Guildhall, Swansea, Wales

House of Wessex (restored)

The old West Saxon line was restored, but Edward the Confessor, who was later canonised, was more Norman than English in his sympathies.

| Saint Edward the Confessor
(Eadweard)
9 June
1042?1066^[41] ||

House of Normandy

It was only after the Norman Conquest of 1066 that monarchs took regnal numbers in the French fashion, though the earlier custom of distinguishing monarchs by nicknames did not die out immediately.

| William I the Conqueror
(Guillaume le Conquérant
ou le Bâtard)
25 December
1066?1087^[44] ||

William the Conqueror depicted at the Battle of Hastings, on the Bayeux Tapestry

William Rufus depicted in the Stowe Manuscript

Henry I

Stephen

Matilda

House of Plantagenet

The early Plantagenets ruled many territories in France, and did not regard England as their primary home until after most of their French possessions were lost by King John. This long-lived dynasty is usually divided into three houses: the Angevins, the House of Lancaster, and the House of York.

Angevins

| Henry II
(Henri Court-mantel)
19 December
1154?1189^[49] ||

Henry II

Richard the Lionheart, an illustration from a 12th century codex

Tomb effigy of John

The effigy of Henry III in Westminster Abbey

Modern depiction of Edward II

The effigy of Edward III in Westminster Abbey

Richard II, by André Beauneveu, 1390s

House of Lancaster

| Henry IV Bolingbroke
30 September
1399?1413^[56] ||

Henry IV

Henry V

Henry VI

House of York

| Edward IV
4 March 1461 –
3 October, 11 April 1470 1471?1483^[59] ||

Edward IV

Edward V

Richard III

House of Tudor

The Tudors were of Welsh ancestry, and in 1536 Wales was fully incorporated into the English state (having been under English control since 1284). With Henry VIII's break from the Roman Catholic Church, the monarch became the Supreme Head of the Church of England. Elizabeth I's title became the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

| Henry VII
22 August
1485?1509^[64] ||

Henry VII, by Michel Sittow, 1505

Henry VIII, by Hans Holbein, c.1536

Edward VI, by Hans Eworth

Mary I, by Antonius Mor, 1554

Elizabeth I, by Darnley

House of Stuart

Following the death of Elizabeth I in 1603 without issue, the Scottish king, James VI, succeeded to the English throne as James I in what became known as the Union of the Crowns. In 1604 he adopted the title King of Great Britain, although the two kingdoms remained separate.

| James I
24 March
1603?1625^[69] ||

James I, by Paulus van Somer

Charles I, by Anthony van Dyck

Commonwealth

There was no reigning monarch between the execution of Charles I in 1649 and the Restoration of Charles II in 1660. Despite this, from 1653 the following individuals held power as Lords Protector, during the period known as the Protectorate.

| Oliver Cromwell
("Old Ironsides")
16 December
1653?1658^[71] ||

Oliver Cromwell, an unfinished portrait miniature by Samuel Cooper

Richard Cromwell, c.1650

House of Stuart (restored)

Although the monarchy was restored in 1660, no stable settlement proved possible until the Glorious Revolution of 1688, when parliament finally asserted the right to choose whomsoever it pleased as monarch.

| Charles II
8 May
1660?1685^[76] ||

England and Scotland entered into legislative and governmental union on 1 May 1707 under the Acts of Union 1707, though retained separate legal systems and other attributes thereafter. For the continuation of this list, therefore, go to List of British monarchs.

Titles

The standard title for all monarchs from Alfred the Great until the time of King John was Rex Anglorum ("King of the English"). In addition, many of the pre-Norman kings assumed extra titles, as follows:

• Alfred the Great: Rex Angulsaxonum and Rex Anglorum et Saxonum
• Athelstan: Rex Anglorum per omnipatrantis dexteram totius Bryttaniæ regni solio sublimatus
• Edmund the Magnificent: Rex Britanniae and Rex Anglorum caeterarumque gentium gobernator et rector
• Edred: Regis qui regimina regnorum Angulsaxna, Norþhymbra, Paganorum, Brettonumque
• Edwy the Fair: Rex nutu Dei Angulsæxna et Northanhumbrorum imperator paganorum gubernator Breotonumque propugnator
• Edgar the Peaceable: Totius Albionis finitimorumque regum basileus
• Canute: Rex Anglorum totiusque Brittannice orbis gubernator et rector and Brytannie totius Anglorum monarchus

In the Norman period Rex Anglorum remained standard, with occasional use of Rex Anglie ("King of England"). Matilda styled herself Domina Anglorum ("Lady of the English"). From the time of King John onwards all other titles were eschewed in favour of Rex Anglie, or Regina Anglie ("Queen of England") if female. In 1604 James I, who had inherited the English throne the previous year, adopted the title (now usually rendered in English rather than Latin) King of Great Britain. The English and Scottish parliaments, however, did not recognise this title until the Acts of Union of 1707 under Queen Anne (who was of course Queen of Great Britain rather than king).^[82]

Notes

See also

• List of British monarchs
• List of monarchs in the British Isles
• List of Scottish monarchs
• Line of succession to the British Throne (a list of people)
• Succession to the British throne (historical overview and current rules)
• Alternate successions of the English crown
• List of monarchs of the British Isles by cause of death
• Demise of the Crown
• Mnemonic verse of monarchs in England

External links

• English Monarchs - A complete history of the Kings and Queens of England
• Britannia: Monarchs of Britain
• Archontology
• Kings of England

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