List of British monarchs explained
Style: | width: auto; |
Above: | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
Below: | Royal coat of arms (common version on the left; Scottish version on the right) |
There have been 13 British monarchs since the political union of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland on 1 May 1707. England and Scotland had been in personal union since 24 March 1603; while the style, "King of Great Britain" first arose at that time, legislatively the title came into force in 1707.
On 1 January 1801, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged, creating first the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland upon the secession of southern Ireland in the 1920s.
Union and succession
Queen Anne became monarch of the Kingdom of Great Britain after the political union of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland on 1 May 1707. She had ruled England, Scotland, and the Kingdom of Ireland since 8 March 1702. She continued as queen of Great Britain and Ireland until her death. Her total reign lasted 12 years and 147 days. Although Anne's great grandfather, James VI and I, the monarch of the Union of the Crowns, proclaimed himself "King of Great Britain", and used it on coinage, stamps and elsewhere, the Parliament of England had refused to use that style in statutory law or address.
Anne's only children died young, so during her reign, Parliament settled the rules of succession in the Act of Settlement 1701, by defining Sophia of Hanover (granddaughter of James VI and I) and her non-Catholic descendants as the future royal heirs. The Crown passed from Queen Anne to Sophia's son, King George I, as Sophia had already died. Queen Anne and King George I were second cousins, as both were great-grandchildren of James VI and I. For a family tree that shows George I's relationship to Anne, see .
List
|-! colspan=8 style="background-color:#ccf" | House of Stuart|-| Anne[1]
–
| | |
St James's Palace
Daughter of
James VII and IIand
Anne Hyde|
George of DenmarkSt James's Palace
5 children
28 October 1708|
Kensington PalaceAged 49| Daughter of James VII and II
Bill of Rights 1689
|-! colspan=8 style="background-color:#ccf" | House of Hanover|-| George I[2]
George Louis
–
11 June 1727
| | rowspan=2 | |
Leineschloss
Son of
Ernest Augustus, Elector of Hanover,
and
Sophia of the Palatinate|
Sophia Dorothea of Brunswick-Lüneburg-CelleCelle Castle2 children
28 December 1694 |
Osnabrück CastleAged 67| Great-grandson of
James VI and I
Act of Settlement 1701
|-| George II[3]
George Augustus
–
25 October 1760
| |
Herrenhausen Palace
Son of George I
and
Sophia Dorothea of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Celle| Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach
Herrenhausen Gardens8 children
20 November 1737| 25 October 1760
Kensington Palace
Aged 76| Son of George I
|-| George III[4]
George William Frederick
25 October 1760
–
29 January 1820
| |
|
Norfolk House
Son of
Frederick, Prince of Wales,
and
Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg|
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-StrelitzSt James's Palace
8 September 1761
15 children
17 November 1818| 29 January 1820
Windsor CastleAged 81| Grandson of George II
|-| George IV[5]
George Augustus Frederick
29 January 1820
—
26 June 1830
| | rowspan=2 | | 12 August 1762
St James's Palace
Son of George III
and
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz| Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
St James's Palace
8 April 1795
1 daughter
7 August 1821| 26 June 1830
Windsor Castle
Aged 67| Son of George III
|-| William IV[6]
William Henry
26 June 1830
—
20 June 1837
| | 21 August 1765
Buckingham Palace
Son of George III
and
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz|
Adelaide of Saxe-MeiningenKew Palace13 July 1818
2 daughters| 20 June 1837
Windsor Castle
Aged 71| Son of George III
|-| Victoria[7]
Alexandrina Victoria
20 June 1837
—
22 January 1901
| | | 24 May 1819
Kensington Palace
Daughter of
Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn,
and
Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|
Albert of Saxe-Coburg and GothaSt James's Palace
10 February 18409 children
14 December 1861|
22 January 1901Osborne HouseAged 81| Niece of William IV
|-! colspan=8 style="background-color:#ccf" | House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|-| Edward VII[8]
Albert Edward
22 January 1901
—
6 May 1910
| | | 9 November 1841
Buckingham Palace
Son of Victoria
and
Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|
Alexandra of DenmarkSt George's Chapel10 March 18636 children|
6 May 1910Buckingham Palace
Aged 68| Son of Victoria|-! colspan=8 style="background-color:#ccf" |
House of Windsor
|-| George V[9]
George Frederick Ernest Albert
6 May 1910
—
20 January 1936
| | rowspan=3 | | 3 June 1865
Marlborough House
Son of Edward VII
and
Alexandra of Denmark|
Mary of TeckSt James's Palace
6 July 18936 children|
20 January 1936Sandringham HouseAged 70| Son of Edward VII
|-| Edward VIII[10]
Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David
20 January 1936
—
11 December 1936
(abdicated)
| | 23 June 1894
White Lodge
Son of George V
and
Mary of Teck|
Wallis SimpsonChâteau de Candé3 June 1937|
28 May 19724 route du Champ d'EntraînementAged 77| Son of George V
|-| George VI[11]
Albert Frederick Arthur George
11 December 1936
—
6 February 1952
| | 14 December 1895
York Cottage
Son of George V
and
Mary of Teck|
Elizabeth Bowes-LyonWestminster Abbey26 April 19232 daughters|
6 February 1952Sandringham House
Aged 56| Son of George V
His Majesty's Declaration of Abdication Act 1936
|-| Elizabeth II[12]
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary
6 February 1952
—
8 September 2022[13]
| | rowspan=2 | | 21 April 1926
17 Bruton Street, Mayfair
Daughter of George VI
and
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon|
Philip of Greece and DenmarkWestminster Abbey
20 November 19474 children
9 April 2021|
8 September 2022Balmoral CastleAged 96| Daughter of George VI
|-| Charles III[14]
Charles Philip Arthur George
8 September 2022[13]
—
present
| | 14 November 1948
Buckingham Palace
Son of Elizabeth II
and
Philip of Greece and Denmark| Diana Spencer
St Paul's Cathedral29 July 19812 sons
28 August 1996
Camilla Parker Bowles
Windsor Guildhall9 April 2005|
LivingAge | Son of Elizabeth II
|}
See also
Notes and References
- News: 30 December 2015 . Anne (r. 1702–1714) . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180125020033/https://www.royal.uk/anne-r-1702-1714 . 25 January 2018 . 16 January 2018 . The Royal Family. Oram . Kirsty .
- News: George I (r. 1714–1727). The Royal Family. 30 December 2015 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20160507210904/https://www.royal.uk/george-i-r-1714-1727. 7 May 2016. live. Oram . Kirsty .
- News: George II (r. 1727–1760). The Royal Family. 31 December 2015 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20160507222248/https://www.royal.uk/george-ii-r-1727-1760. 7 May 2016. live. Oram . Kirsty .
- News: George III (r. 1760–1820). The Royal Family. 31 December 2015 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180520150812/https://www.royal.uk/george-iii-r-1760-1820. 20 May 2018. live. Oram . Kirsty .
- News: King George IV (r. 1820–1830). The Royal Family. 31 December 2015 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20170819063405/https://www.royal.uk/king-george-iv-r-1820-1830. 19 August 2017. live. Oram . Kirsty .
- News: William IV (r. 1830–1837). The Royal Family. 15 January 2016 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20170921001850/https://www.royal.uk/william-iv-r-1830-1837. 21 September 2017. live. Berry . Ciara .
- News: Victoria (r. 1837–1901). The Royal Family. 31 December 2015 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180125015954/https://www.royal.uk/victoria-r-1837-1901. 25 January 2018. live. Oram . Kirsty .
- News: Edward VII (r. 1901–1910). The Royal Family. 11 January 2016 . 12 January 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180125015924/https://www.royal.uk/edward-vii-r1901-1910. 25 January 2018. live. Berry . Ciara .
- News: George V (r. 1910–1936) . The Royal Family . 12 January 2016 . 12 January 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180125020319/https://www.royal.uk/george-v-r-1910-1936 . 25 January 2018 . live . Berry . Ciara .
- Web site: Edward VIII (Jan–Dec 1936) . royal.gov.uk . 3 August 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160507221901/https://www.royal.uk/edward-viii-jan-dec-1936 . 7 May 2016 . live .
- News: George VI (r. 1936–1952) . The Royal Family . 12 January 2016 . 12 January 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171201035747/https://www.royal.uk/george-vi-r1936-1952 . 1 December 2017 . live. Berry . Ciara .
- Web site: Queen Elizabeth II's Life and Reign . royal.uk . 17 March 2024.
- News: Queen Elizabeth II has died, Buckingham Palace announces . 8 September 2022 . BBC News . 8 September 2022 . 8 September 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220908173308/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61585886 . live .
- News: 8 September 2022 . The King . 9 September 2022 . The Royal Family . 11 September 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220911230654/https://www.royal.uk/the-king . live .