![]() ![]() Today, the English monarchy is largely symbolic. Before her, the longest reign was held by Victoria, Elizabeth II’s great-great-grandmother, from 1837 to 1901 (63 years). The longest reigning monarch is Elizabeth II, who had been on the throne for over 70 years. This was disputed and Edward VI’s half-sister, Mary I, was then crowned. Previously, King Edward VI had overruled the order of succession in naming Jane his heir. Other reigns of interest include the shortest reigning monarch, Jane, who held the throne for just nine days in 1553. That year, a coup d’état led by Oliver Cromwell ensued, leading to the eventual restoration of the monarchy in 1660, reigned by Charles II. Instead, England was ruled by Parliament in a period known as the Commonwealth of England, which lasted until 1653. One notable time frame missing is 1650–1659, which had no reigning monarch following the beheading of Charles I in 1649. Not until 2013 were these rules further updated to allow a female to inherit the throne if she is the eldest child, regardless of male heirs. Up until 1702, this order of succession only applied to male heirs, until Parliament passed the Act of Settlement which allowed women to inherit the throne if a male heir was unavailable. The English monarchy is passed from generation to generation, from parent to eldest child, a tradition that started with the sovereign William I (also known as William the Conqueror). This visualization by Neil Richards illustrates the reigns of England’s kings and queens from 1066 to 2021. However, England’s monarchy is very much present, with the most recent sovereign, Queen Elizabeth II, having reigned for over 70 years. Many countries have had monarchies at some point in history, though few are still recognized today. Visualizing 1,000 Years of England’s Kings and QueensĪs far back as the 9th century, when Athelstan, grandson of Alfred the Great, became King, England has had a ruling monarchy.
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