114-679: The House of Tudor ( / ˈ tj uː d ər / TEW -dər ) was an English and Welsh dynasty that held the throne of England from 1485 to 1603. They descended from the Tudors of Penmynydd , a Welsh noble family, and Catherine of Valois . The Tudor monarchs ruled the Kingdom of England and the Lordship of Ireland (later the Kingdom of Ireland ) for 118 years with five monarchs: Henry VII , Henry VIII , Edward VI , Mary I and Elizabeth I . The Tudors succeeded
228-405: A monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics . A dynasty may also be referred to as a " house ", " family " or " clan ", among others. Historians periodize the histories of many states and civilizations , such as Ancient Iran (3200–539 BC), Ancient Egypt (3100–30 BC), and Ancient and Imperial China (2070 BC – AD 1912), using a framework of successive dynasties. As such,
342-572: A "dynast" is a family member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchy's rules still in force. For example, after the 1914 assassinations of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his morganatic wife, their son Maximilian, Duke of Hohenberg , was bypassed for the Austro-Hungarian throne because he was not a Habsburg dynast. Even after the abolition of the Austrian monarchy, Duke Maximilian and his descendants have not been considered
456-545: A Protestant, and former secretary to Lord Protector the Duke of Somerset and then to the Duke of Northumberland . Under Mary, he had been spared, and often visited Elizabeth, ostensibly to review her accounts and expenditure. Elizabeth also appointed her personal favourite, the son of the Duke of Northumberland Lord Robert Dudley , her Master of the Horse , giving him constant personal access to
570-573: A clause of the English Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time, stipulating that dynasts who marry Roman Catholics are considered "dead" for the purpose of succession to the British throne. That exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts before triggering it by marriage to a Roman Catholic. A "dynastic marriage" is one that complies with monarchical house law restrictions, so that
684-479: A companion than a king. He was tall, handsome and cultured and generous in his gifts and affection and was said to be easy to get along with. The Henry that many people picture when they hear his name is the Henry of his later years, when he became obese, volatile, and was known for his great cruelty. Catherine did not bear Henry the sons he was desperate for; her first child, a daughter, was stillborn, and her second child,
798-442: A daughter, Elizabeth , named in honour of Henry's mother. Anne had two further pregnancies which ended in miscarriage. In 1536, Anne was arrested, along with six courtiers. Thomas Cromwell , Anne's former ally, stepped in again, claiming that she had taken lovers during her marriage to Henry, including her own brother, George Boleyn , and she was tried for high treason and incest . These charges were most likely fabricated, but she
912-485: A family with influence and power in other areas, such as a series of successive owners of a major company, or any family with a legacy, such as a dynasty of poets or actors. It is also extended to unrelated people, such as major poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team. The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a "noble house", which may be styled as " imperial ", " royal ", " princely ", " ducal ", " comital " or " baronial ", depending upon
1026-460: A female. Dynastic politics has declined over time, owing to a decline in monarchy as a form of government, a rise in democracy, and a reduction within democracies of elected members from dynastic families. The word "dynasty" (from the Greek : δυναστεία , dynasteía "power", "lordship", from dynástes "ruler") is sometimes used informally for people who are not rulers but are, for example, members of
1140-555: A female. For instance, the House of Windsor is maintained through the children of Queen Elizabeth II , as it did with the monarchy of the Netherlands , whose dynasty remained the House of Orange-Nassau through three successive queens regnant . The earliest such example among major European monarchies was in the Russian Empire in the 18th century, where the name of the House of Romanov
1254-507: A flattering portrait of her. She arrived in England in December 1539, and Henry rode to Rochester to meet her on 1 January 1540. Although the historian Gilbert Burnet claimed that Henry called her a Flanders Mare , there is no evidence that he said this; in truth, court ambassadors negotiating the marriage praised her beauty. Whatever the circumstances were, the marriage failed, and Anne agreed to
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#17328520880101368-501: A foreign match with a man that she had never seen before, so that also eliminated a large number of suitors. Despite the uncertainty of Elizabeth's – and therefore the Tudors' – hold on England, she never married. The closest she came to marriage was between 1579 and 1581, when she was courted by Francis, Duke of Anjou , the son of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici . Despite Elizabeth's government constantly begging her to marry in
1482-417: A framework of successive dynasties. As such, the term "dynasty" may be used to delimit the era during which a family reigned, and also to describe events, trends and artifacts of that period (e.g., "a Ming dynasty vase"). Until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty: that is, to expand the wealth and power of his family members. Before
1596-431: A good relationship between her and Edward. Henry died on 28 January 1547. His will had reinstated his daughters by his annulled marriages to Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn to the line of succession . Edward, his nine-year-old son by Jane Seymour , succeeded as Edward VI of England . Unfortunately, the young King's kingdom was usually in turmoil between nobles who were trying to strengthen their own positions in
1710-423: A good relationship with his sister Elizabeth , who was a Protestant, albeit a moderate one, but this was strained when Elizabeth was accused of having an affair with the Duke of Somerset's brother, Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley , who had married Henry VIII's widow, Catherine Parr . Seymour had invaded Edward's apartments and had killed his dog in a scheme to forcefully gain control over him. Elizabeth
1824-506: A group of Earls led by Charles Neville , the sixth Earl of Westmorland , and Thomas Percy , the seventh Earl of Northumberland attempted to depose Elizabeth and replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots . In 1571, the Protestant-turned-Catholic Thomas Howard , the fourth Duke of Norfolk , had plans to marry Mary, Queen of Scots, and then replace Elizabeth with Mary. The plot , masterminded by Roberto di Ridolfi ,
1938-539: A marriage to an unattractive, obese man over 30 years her senior, had never wanted to marry Henry, and allegedly conducted an affair with the King's favourite, Thomas Culpeper , while Henry and she were married. During her questioning, Catherine first denied everything but eventually she was broken down and told of her infidelity and her pre-nuptial relations with other men. Henry, first enraged, threatened to torture her to death but later became overcome with grief and self-pity. She
2052-621: A moderate Protestant; she was the daughter of Anne Boleyn , who played a key role in the English Reformation in the 1520s. She had been brought up by Blanche Herbert Lady Troy . At her coronation in January 1559, many of the bishops – Catholic, appointed by Mary, who had expelled many of the Protestant clergymen when she became queen in 1553 – refused to perform the service in English. Eventually,
2166-532: A nephew of Queen Elizabeth II , is in the line of succession to the British crown , making him a British dynast. On the other hand, since he is not a patrilineal member of the British royal family, he is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor. Comparatively, the German aristocrat Prince Ernst August of Hanover , a male-line descendant of King George III , possesses no legal British name, titles or styles (although he
2280-492: A new will repudiating the 1544 will of Henry VIII. This gave the throne to his cousin Lady Jane Grey , the granddaughter of Henry VIII's sister Mary Tudor , who, after the death of Louis XII of France in 1515 had married Henry VIII's favourite Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk . Edward VI died on 6 July 1553, at the age of 15. With his death, the direct male line of the House of Tudor ended. The dying Edward VI, under
2394-421: A new, Catholic Habsburg line was finished, and her popularity further declined when she lost Calais — the last English territory on French soil — to Francis, Duke of Guise , in January 1558. Mary's reign, however, introduced a new coining system that would be used until the 18th century, and her marriage to Philip II created new trade routes for England. Mary's government took a number of steps towards reversing
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#17328520880102508-624: A peaceful annulment, assumed the title My Lady, the King's Sister , and received a large settlement, which included Richmond Palace , Hever Castle , and numerous other estates across the country. Although the marriage made sense in terms of foreign policy, Henry was still enraged and offended by the match. Henry chose to blame Cromwell for the failed marriage, and ordered him beheaded on 28 July 1540. Henry kept his word and took care of Anne in his last years alive; however, after his death Anne suffered from extreme financial hardship because Edward VI's councillors refused to give her any funds and confiscated
2622-444: A protracted legal battle followed. Wolsey fell from favour in 1529 as a result of his failure to procure the annulment, and Henry appointed Thomas Cromwell in his place as chief minister c. 1532 . Despite his failure to produce the results that Henry wanted, Wolsey actively pursued the annulment (divorce was synonymous with annulment at that time). However, Wolsey never planned that Henry would marry Anne Boleyn , with whom
2736-449: A son named Henry, Duke of Cornwall , died 52 days after birth. A further set of stillborn children followed, until a surviving daughter, Mary , was born in 1516. When it became clear to Henry that the Tudor line was at risk, he consulted his chief minister Cardinal Wolsey about the possibility of annulling his marriage to Catherine. Along with Henry's concern that he would not have an heir, it
2850-512: A successor during their own lifetime, or a member of their family may maneuver to take control of the dictatorship after the strongman's death. Treaty of Perpetual Peace The Treaty of Perpetual Peace was signed by James IV of Scotland and Henry VII of England in 1502. It agreed to end the intermittent warfare between Scotland and England which had been waged over the previous two hundred years, and, although it failed in this respect, as hostilities continued intermittently throughout
2964-509: A year. Mary married Philip at Winchester Cathedral , on 25 July 1554, and he thereby became king jure uxoris until her death. Philip found her unattractive, and only spent a minimal amount of time with her. Despite Mary believing she was pregnant numerous times during her five-year reign, she never bore children. Devastated that she rarely saw her husband, and anxious that she was not bearing an heir to Catholic England, Mary became bitter and resentful. In her determination to restore England to
3078-603: Is entitled to reclaim the former royal dukedom of Cumberland ). He was born in the line of succession to the British throne and was bound by Britain's Royal Marriages Act 1772 until it was repealed when the Succession to the Crown Act 2013 took effect on 26 March 2015. Thus, he requested and obtained formal permission from Queen Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholic Princess Caroline of Monaco in 1999. Yet,
3192-475: Is symbolised by the heraldic emblem of the Tudor rose , a combination of the white rose of York and the red rose of Lancaster. Henry VII and Elizabeth of York had seven children, four of whom survived early childhood: Henry VII's foreign policy had an objective of dynastic security: he formed an alliance with Scotland with the marriage in 1503 of his daughter Margaret to James IV of Scotland, and with Spain through
3306-806: The Auld Alliance . James was excommunicated by Pope Leo X and the English Cardinal Bainbridge for breaking his sworn treaty with England. The subsequent invasion by the Scots met defeat when James was killed on 9 September 1513 at the Battle of Flodden in Northumberland . Despite this abrogation, the Treaty of Perpetual Peace had a long-lasting effect because of the marriage between James Stewart and Margaret Tudor: their great-grandson King James VI of Scotland
3420-554: The House of Lancaster , during the civil wars known as the Wars of the Roses . However the descent from the Beauforts did not necessarily render Henry Tudor (Henry VII) heir to the throne, nor did the fact that his paternal grandmother, Catherine of Valois , had been Queen of England due to her first marriage to Henry V (although, this did make Henry VII a nephew of Henry VI). The legitimate claim
3534-517: The House of Plantagenet as rulers of the Kingdom of England, and were succeeded by the Scottish House of Stuart . The first Tudor monarch, Henry VII, descended through his mother from the House of Beaufort , a legitimised branch of the English royal House of Lancaster , a cadet house of the Plantagenets. The Tudor family rose to power and started the Tudor period in the wake of the Wars of
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3648-605: The Tower of London saved him from the public humiliation and inevitable execution he would have suffered upon his arrival at the Tower. In order to allow Henry to dissolve his marriage and marry Anne Boleyn, the English parliament enacted laws breaking ties with Rome, and declaring the king Supreme Head of the Church of England (from Elizabeth I the monarch is known as the Supreme Governor of
3762-463: The Tower of London . Her father was pardoned, but his participation in Wyatt's rebellion led to his execution shortly after. Jane and her husband Lord Guildford were sentenced to death and beheaded on 12 February 1554. Jane was only 17 years old, and the cruel way in which her life had been lost for a throne she never desired aroused much sympathy among the public. Mary soon announced her intention to marry
3876-516: The Treaty of Perpetual Peace , paving the way for the marriage of his daughter Margaret. One of the main concerns of Henry VII during his reign was the re-accumulation of the funds in the royal treasury. England had never been one of the wealthier European countries, and after the Wars of the Roses this was even more true. Through his strict monetary strategy, he was able to leave a considerable amount of money in
3990-705: The order of succession to the Dutch throne , and consequently lost his title as a "Prince of the Netherlands", and left his children without dynastic rights. Empress Maria Theresa of the Habsburg dynasty had her children married into various European dynasties. Habsburg marriage policy amongst European dynasties led to the Pax Austriaca . Historians periodize the histories of many states and civilizations , such as Ancient Iran (3200–539 BC), Ancient Egypt (3100–30 BC) and Ancient and Imperial China (2070 BC – AD 1912), using
4104-448: The 'handmaiden of the Lord'. She never let anyone challenge her authority as queen, even though many people, who felt she was weak and should be married, tried to do so. The popularity of Elizabeth was extremely high, but her Privy Council , her Parliament and her subjects thought that the unmarried queen should take a husband; it was generally accepted that, once a queen regnant was married,
4218-642: The 16th century, it led to the Union of the Crowns 101 years later. As part of the treaty, a marriage was agreed upon between James IV and Margaret Tudor , the daughter of Henry VII. Andrew Forman and the poet William Dunbar were members of the Scottish embassy who negotiated the treaty in London. Peace between England and Scotland had already been established by the Treaty of Ayton , brokered by Pedro de Ayala in 1497. Apart from
4332-489: The 18th century, most dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally , such as those that follow the Frankish Salic law . In polities where it was permitted, succession through a daughter usually established a new dynasty in her husband's family name. This has changed in all of Europe's remaining monarchies, where succession law and conventions have maintained dynastic names de jure through
4446-412: The Beauforts legitimate by way of a papal bull the same year, confirmed by an Act of Parliament in 1397. A subsequent proclamation by John of Gaunt's son by his first wife Blanche of Lancaster , King Henry IV , also recognised the Beauforts' legitimacy but declared the line ineligible for the throne. Nevertheless, the Beauforts remained closely allied with Gaunt's descendants from his first marriage,
4560-617: The Bishops of Hereford and Worcester to Rome for the Pope's ratification. (Adrian Castellesi, Bishop of Hereford , had originally been sent from Italy to make peace between James III of Scotland and his son's supporters.) The treaty was broken in 1513 when James declared war on England in support of the French who had lately been attacked by the English. James was acting according to Scotland's obligations to France under an older mutual defence treaty,
4674-498: The Catholic faith and to secure her throne from Protestant threats, she had over 280 Protestants burnt at the stake in the Marian persecutions , between 1554 and 1558. Protestants came to hate her as "Bloody Mary." Charles Dickens stated that "as bloody Queen Mary this woman has become famous, and as Bloody Queen Mary she will ever be remembered with horror and detestation". Mary's dream of
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4788-444: The Catholic religion in England. Henry called her his "rose without a thorn", but the marriage ended in failure. Henry's infatuation with Catherine started before the end of his marriage with Anne when she was still a member of Anne's court. Catherine was young and vivacious, but Henry's age made him less inclined to use Catherine in the bedroom; rather, he preferred to admire her, which Catherine soon grew tired of. Catherine, forced into
4902-597: The Church of England ( Supreme Head , the title used by her father and brother, was seen as inappropriate for a woman ruler). These acts, known collectively as the Elizabethan Religious Settlement , made it compulsory to attend church services every Sunday; and imposed an oath on clergymen and statesmen to recognise the Church of England , the independence of the Church of England from the Catholic Church, and
5016-481: The Church of England ), thus severing the ecclesiastical structure of England from the Catholic Church and the Pope. The newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury , Thomas Cranmer , was then able to declare Henry's marriage to Catherine void . Catherine was banished from court, and she spent the last three years of her life in various English houses under "protectorship", similar to house arrest. This allowed Henry to marry Anne Boleyn. She gave birth on 7 September 1533 to
5130-502: The Duke of Anjou away. Elizabeth knew that the continuation of the Tudor line was now impossible; she was forty-eight in 1581, and too old to bear children. By far the most dangerous threat to the Tudor line during Elizabeth's reign was the Spanish Armada of 1588, launched by Elizabeth's old suitor Philip II of Spain and commanded by Alonso de Guzmán El Bueno , the seventh Duke of Medina Sidonia . The Spanish invasion fleet outnumbered
5244-501: The Duke of Norfolk, had lost all their power and influence. Norfolk himself was still a committed Catholic, and he was nearly persuaded to arrest Catherine for preaching Lutheran doctrines to Henry while she attended his ill health. However, she managed to reconcile with the King after vowing that she had only argued about religion with him to take his mind off the suffering caused by his ulcerous leg. Her peacemaking also helped reconcile Henry with his daughters Mary and Elizabeth and fostered
5358-554: The English cleric John Deyce and the Scottish notary Archibald Layng. The Kings then exchanged illuminated copies of the ratifications. Two of the Scottish manuscripts were painted and gilded by Sir Thomas Galbraith, a clerk of the Chapel Royal in Stirling Castle , who was given 59 shillings for materials and time. A few days later James IV gave Sir Thomas a present of 18 shillings on New Year's Day. In April 1503, Henry VII sent
5472-469: The English fleet's 22 galleons and 108 armed merchant ships. The Spanish lost, however, as a result of bad weather on the English Channel , poor planning and logistics, and the skills of Sir Francis Drake and Charles Howard , the second Baron Howard of Effingham (later first Earl of Nottingham ). Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of
5586-424: The Roses (1455–1487), which left the main House of Lancaster (with which the Tudors were aligned) extinct in the male line. Henry VII (a descendant of Edward III , and the son of Edmund Tudor , a half-brother of Henry VI ) succeeded in presenting himself as a candidate not only for traditional Lancastrian supporters, but also for discontented supporters of their rival Plantagenet cadet House of York , and he took
5700-592: The Spanish prince, Philip , son of her cousin Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor . The prospect of a marriage alliance with Spain proved extremely unpopular with the English people, who were worried that Spain would use England as a satellite, involving England in wars without the popular support of the people. Popular discontent grew; a Protestant courtier, Thomas Wyatt the younger , led a rebellion against Mary aiming to depose and replace her with her half-sister Elizabeth . The plot
5814-577: The Treasury for his son and successor, Henry VIII . Although it is debated whether Henry VII was a great king, he certainly was a successful one if only because he restored the nation's finances, strengthened the judicial system and successfully denied all other claimants to the throne, thus further securing it for his heir. The new King Henry VIII succeeded to the throne on 22 April 1509. He married Catherine of Aragon on 11 June; they were crowned at Westminster Abbey on 24 June. Catherine had previously been
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#17328520880105928-620: The Tudor era, as did the English Reformation in religion, impacting the future of the Crown. Elizabeth I was the longest serving Tudor monarch at 44 years, and her reign- known as the Elizabethan Era - provided a period of stability after the short, troubled reigns of her siblings. When Elizabeth I died childless, her cousin of the Scottish House of Stuart succeeded her, in the Union of the Crowns of 24 March 1603. The first Stuart to become King of England ( r. 1603–1625 ), James VI and I ,
6042-447: The Welsh form of Theodore , but Modern Welsh Tudur , Old Welsh Tutir is originally not a variant but a different and completely unrelated name, etymologically identical with Gaulish Toutorix , from Proto-Celtic *toutā "people, tribe" and *rīxs "king" (compare Modern Welsh tud "territory" and rhi "king" respectively), corresponding to Germanic Theodoric . Owen Tudor was one of
6156-425: The authority of Elizabeth as Supreme Governor. Elizabeth made it clear that if they refused the oath the first time, they would have a second opportunity, after which, if the oath was not sworn, the offenders would be deprived of their offices and estates. Even though Elizabeth was only twenty-five when she came to the throne, she was absolutely sure of her God-given place to be the queen and of her responsibilities as
6270-423: The bodyguards for the queen dowager Catherine of Valois , whose husband, Henry V , had died in 1422. Evidence suggests that the two were secretly married in 1428. Two sons born of the marriage, Edmund and Jasper , were among the most loyal supporters of the House of Lancaster in its struggle against the House of York. Henry VI ennobled his half-brothers: Edmund became Earl of Richmond on 15 December 1449 and
6384-521: The cheers of both the ruling class and the common people. When Elizabeth came to the throne, there was much apprehension among members of the council appointed by Mary, because many of them (as noted by the Spanish ambassador) had participated in several plots against Elizabeth, such as her imprisonment in the Tower, trying to force her to marry a foreign prince and thereby sending her out of the realm, and even pushing for her death. In response to their fear, she chose as her chief minister Sir William Cecil ,
6498-505: The chief or present title borne by its members, but it is more often referred by adding the name afterwards, as in " House of Habsburg ". A ruler from a dynasty is sometimes referred to as a "dynast", but this term is also used to describe any member of a reigning family who retains a right to succeed to a throne . For example, King Edward VIII ceased to be a dynast of the House of Windsor following his abdication. In historical and monarchist references to formerly reigning families,
6612-498: The council, led by his chief rival, John Dudley, Earl of Warwick , who created himself Duke of Northumberland shortly after his rise. Northumberland effectively became Lord Protector, but he did not use this title, learning from the mistakes his predecessor made. Northumberland was furiously ambitious, and aimed to secure Protestant uniformity while making himself rich with land and money in the process. He ordered churches to be stripped of all traditional Catholic symbolism, resulting in
6726-515: The decision to execute an anointed queen. Finally, she was persuaded of Mary's (treasonous) complicity in the plotting against her, and she signed the death warrant in 1586. Mary was executed at Fotheringhay Castle on 8 February 1587, to the outrage of Catholic Europe. There are many reasons debated as to why Elizabeth never married. It was rumoured that she was in love with Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester , and that on one of her summer progresses she had birthed his illegitimate child. This rumour
6840-479: The descendants are eligible to inherit the throne or other royal privileges. For example, the marriage of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands to Máxima Zorreguieta in 2002 was dynastic, making their eldest child, Princess Catharina-Amalia , the heir apparent to the Crown of the Netherlands. The marriage of his younger brother, Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau , in 2003 lacked government support and parliamentary approval. Thus, Prince Friso forfeited his place in
6954-469: The early years of her reign, it was now persuading Elizabeth not to marry the French prince, for his mother, Catherine de' Medici, was suspected of ordering the St Bartholomew's Day massacre of tens of thousands of French Protestant Huguenots in 1572. Elizabeth bowed to public feeling against the marriage, learning from the mistake her sister, Mary I , made when she married Philip II of Spain , and sent
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#17328520880107068-477: The elected positions of republics and constitutional monarchies . Eminence, influence , tradition , genetics , and nepotism may contribute to the phenomenon. Hereditary dictatorships are personalist dictatorships in which political power stays within a strongman's family due to the overwhelming authority of the strongman, rather than by the democratic consent of the people. The strongman typically fills government positions with their relatives. They may groom
7182-424: The first time. Had she lived a little longer, Catholicism, which she worked so hard to restore into the realm, might have taken deeper roots than it did. However, her actions in pursuit of this goal arguably spurred on the Protestant cause, through the many people she killed. Mary died on 17 November 1558 at the age of 42. Elizabeth I, who was staying at Hatfield House at the time of her accession, rode to London to
7296-614: The full union of England and the Principality of Wales in 1542 ( Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 ), and successfully asserting English authority over the Kingdom of Ireland (proclaimed by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 ). They also maintained the nominal English claim to the Kingdom of France ; although none of them made substance of it, Henry VIII fought wars with France primarily as a matter of international alliances but also asserting claim to
7410-609: The growing unpopularity of Richard III (King of England from 1483), she was able to forge an alliance with discontented Yorkists in support of her son. Two years after Richard III was crowned, Henry and Jasper sailed from the mouth of the Seine to the Milford Haven Waterway and defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field on 22 August 1485. Upon this victory, Henry Tudor proclaimed himself King Henry VII. Upon becoming king in 1485, Henry VII moved rapidly to secure his hold on
7524-494: The home of Lord Herbert , a leading Yorkist. Following the murder of Henry VI and death of his son, Edward , at the Battle of Tewkesbury in 1471, Henry became the person upon whom the Lancastrian cause rested. Concerned for his young nephew's life, Jasper Tudor took Henry to Brittany for safety. Lady Margaret remained in England and remarried, living quietly while advancing the Lancastrian (and her son's) cause. Capitalizing on
7638-562: The homes she had been given. She pleaded to her brother to let her return home, but he only sent a few agents who tried to assist in helping her situation and refused to let her return home. Anne died on 16 July 1557 in Chelsea Manor . The fifth marriage was to the young Catherine Howard , niece of the Catholic Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk . Catherine was promoted by Norfolk in the hope that she would persuade Henry to restore
7752-411: The husband would relieve the woman of the burdens of head of state . Also, without an heir, the Tudor line would end; the risk of civil war between rival claimants was a possibility if Elizabeth died childless. Numerous suitors from nearly all European nations sent ambassadors to English court to put forward their suit. Risk of death came dangerously close in 1564 when Elizabeth caught smallpox ; when she
7866-416: The illegitimate children of the 14th century English prince John of Gaunt , the third surviving son of Edward III. Beaufort's mother was Gaunt's long-term mistress, Katherine Swynford . The descendants of an illegitimate child of English royalty would normally have no claim on the throne, although Gaunt and Swynford eventually married in 1396, when John Beaufort was 25. The church then retroactively declared
7980-470: The inflation, budgetary deficits, poverty, and trade crisis of her kingdom. She explored the commercial potential of Russian, African, and Baltic markets, revised the customs system, worked to counter the currency debasements of her predecessors, amalgamated several revenue courts, and strengthened the governing authority of the middling and larger towns. Mary also welcomed the first Russian ambassador to England , creating relations between England and Russia for
8094-629: The king had become enamoured while she served as a lady-in-waiting in Queen Catherine's household. It is unclear how far Wolsey was actually responsible for the English Reformation , but it is very clear that Henry's desire to marry Anne Boleyn precipitated the schism with Rome. Henry's concern about having an heir to secure his family line and to increase his security while alive would have prompted him to ask for an annulment sooner or later, whether Anne had precipitated it or not. Only Wolsey's sudden death at Leicester on 29 November 1530 on his journey to
8208-576: The king's favour when he designed and pushed through the Laws in Wales Acts , uniting England and Wales. In 1540, Henry married for the fourth time to the daughter of a Protestant German duke, Anne of Cleves , thus forming an alliance with the Protestant German states. Henry was reluctant to marry again, especially to a Protestant, but he was persuaded when the court painter Hans Holbein the Younger showed him
8322-546: The kingdom by using the Regency in their favour. Although Henry had specified a group of men to act as regents during Edward's minority, Edward Seymour , the young king's uncle, quickly seized control and created himself Duke of Somerset on 15 February 1547. His domination of the Privy Council , the king's most senior body of advisers, was unchallenged. Somerset aimed to unite England and Scotland by marrying Edward to his cousin,
8436-478: The last attempt a female made at ruling in her own right had resulted in disaster when Henry II's mother, Empress Matilda , and her cousin, Stephen of Blois , fought bitterly for the throne in the 12th century. Dukes (except Aquitaine ) and Princes of Wales are noted, as are the monarchs' reigns. † =Killed in action; [REDACTED] =Executed See also Family tree of English monarchs Sources: Henry Tudor had, however, something that
8550-474: The line of succession. Dynasties lasting at least 250 years include the following. Legendary lineages that cannot be historically confirmed are not included. There are 43 sovereign states with a monarch as head of state , of which 41 are ruled by dynasties. There are currently 26 sovereign dynasties. Though in elected governments , rule does not pass automatically by inheritance, political power often accrues to generations of related individuals in
8664-534: The marriage of his son Arthur to Catherine of Aragon , cementing an alliance with the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile . The newlyweds spent their honeymoon at Ludlow Castle , the traditional seat of the Prince of Wales . However, four months after the marriage, Arthur died, leaving his younger brother Henry as heir apparent. Henry VII acquired a papal dispensation allowing prince Henry to marry Arthur's widow; however, Henry VII delayed
8778-403: The marriage, the treaty sought to outline various rules and processes for administering the English and Scottish borders and prevent local cross-border conflicts from escalating to war. The treaty was signed at Richmond Palace on 24 January 1502 by Robert Blackadder , Archbishop of Glasgow , Patrick Hepburn , Earl of Bothwell and Andrew Forman. James IV gave his oath on 10 December 1502 at
8892-677: The marriage. Henry VII limited his involvement in European politics. He went to war only twice: once in 1489 during the French–Breton War and the invasion of Brittany, and in 1496–1497 in revenge for Scottish support of Perkin Warbeck and for the Scottish invasion of northern England. Henry VII made peace with France in 1492 and the war against Scotland was abandoned because of the Cornish rebellion of 1497 . Henry VII made peace with James IV in 1502 with
9006-537: The mayor. The rebellion worried Somerset, now Lord Protector , and he sent an army to impose a military solution to the rebellion. The rebellion hardened the Crown against Catholics. Fear of Catholicism focused on Edward's elder half-sister, Mary , who was a pious and devout Catholic. Although called before the Privy Council several times to renounce her faith and stop hearing the Catholic Mass, she refused. Edward had
9120-518: The news, was made queen on 10 July. However, despite the efforts of the Duke of Northumberland and Jane's father, the Duke of Suffolk, the public's support was with Lady Mary, the rightful heir according to Henry VIII's will. On 19 July Suffolk persuaded his daughter to relinquish the throne, which she had never wanted, to Mary. Mary's supporters joined her in a triumphal procession to London, accompanied by her younger sister Elizabeth . Lady Jane and her father were arrested for high treason and imprisoned in
9234-783: The others did not. He had an army which defeated the last Yorkist king, Richard III , in the field of battle and the support of powerful nobles to take the crown by right of conquest . Richard III's accession to the throne had proved controversial, even among the Yorkists. Henry Tudor, as Henry VII, and his son by Elizabeth of York, Henry VIII eliminated other claimants to the throne, including his first cousin once removed, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury , and her son Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu , as well as Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter . On 1 November 1455, John Beaufort's granddaughter, Margaret Beaufort , married Henry VI 's maternal half-brother Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond . It
9348-484: The pressure of John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, named his cousin and Northumberland's daughter-in-law, Lady Jane Grey , as his successor due to her Protestant beliefs. Edward's reluctance to follow the line of succession, which named his half-sister Mary as next in line, stemmed from his knowledge that Mary, firmly Catholic, would restore England to the Vatican. Lady Jane Grey was consistently at court after her father
9462-488: The queen. Elizabeth had a long, turbulent path to the throne. She had a number of problems during her childhood, the main one being after the execution of her mother, Anne Boleyn . When Anne was beheaded, Henry declared Elizabeth illegitimate and she would, therefore, not be able to inherit the throne. Henry returned her to the line of succession in the Third Succession Act of 1543. After the death of her father, she
9576-535: The relatively minor Bishop of Carlisle , Owen Oglethorpe , performed the ceremony; but when Oglethorpe attempted to perform traditional Catholic parts of the coronation, Elizabeth got up and left. Following the coronation, two important acts were passed through Parliament: the Act of Uniformity 1558 and the Act of Supremacy 1558 , establishing the Protestant Church of England and creating Elizabeth Supreme Governor of
9690-415: The right hand of the high altar of Glasgow Cathedral to keep to the terms of the treaty. The ceremony had to be repeated as the word "France" had been accidentally inserted into the text of the King's oath instead of "England". The English witnesses at Glasgow were Sir Thomas Darcy , Captain of Berwick , Sir Richard Hastyng, and Dr. Henry Babington, a professor of theology. The two attempts were recorded by
9804-409: The rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position. The term "dynast" is sometimes used only to refer to agnatic descendants of a realm's monarchs, and sometimes to include those who hold succession rights through cognatic royal descent. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people. For example, David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon ,
9918-532: The simplicity often seen in Church of England churches today. A revision of the Book of Common Prayer was published in 1552. When Edward VI became ill in 1553, his advisers looked to the possible imminent accession of the Catholic Lady Mary, and feared that she would overturn all the reforms made during Edward's reign. Perhaps surprisingly, it was the dying Edward himself who feared a return to Catholicism, and wrote
10032-523: The term "dynasty" may be used to delimit the era during which a family reigned. Before the 18th century, most dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally , such as those that follow the Frankish Salic law . In polities where it was permitted, succession through a daughter usually established a new dynasty in her husband's family name. This has changed in all of Europe's remaining monarchies, where succession law and conventions have maintained dynastic names de jure through
10146-529: The throne by right of conquest . Following his victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field (22 August 1485), he reinforced his position in 1486 by fulfilling his 1483 vow to marry Elizabeth of York , daughter of King Edward IV and the heiress of the Yorkist claim to the throne, thus symbolically uniting the former warring factions of Lancaster and York under the new dynasty (represented by the Tudor rose ). The Tudors extended their power beyond modern England, achieving
10260-428: The throne, he had very little interest in actually ruling; rather, he preferred to indulge in luxuries and to partake in sports. He let others control the kingdom for the first two years of his reign, and then when he became more interested in military strategy, he took more interest in ruling his own realm. In his younger years, Henry was described as a man of gentle friendliness, gentle in debate, and who acted as more of
10374-422: The throne. On 18 January 1486 at Westminster Abbey , he honoured a pledge made three years earlier and married Elizabeth of York , daughter of King Edward IV. They were third cousins, as both were great-great-grandchildren of John of Gaunt. The marriage unified the warring houses of Lancaster and York and gave the couple's children a strong claim to the throne. The unification of the two houses through this marriage
10488-546: The title. After him, his daughter Mary I lost control of all territory in France permanently with the Siege of Calais in 1558. In total, the Tudor monarchs ruled their domains for 118 years. Henry VIII ( r. 1509–1547 ) was the only son of Henry VII to live to the age of maturity, and he proved a dominant ruler. Issues around royal succession (including marriage and the succession rights of women) became major political themes during
10602-458: The wife of Henry's older brother Arthur (died 1502); this fact made the course of their marriage a rocky one from the start. A papal dispensation had to be granted for Henry to be able to marry Catherine, and the negotiations took some time. Despite the fact that Henry's father died before he was married to Catherine, he was determined to marry her anyway and to make sure that everyone knew he intended on being his own master. When Henry first came to
10716-403: The young Mary, Queen of Scots , and aimed to forcibly impose the English Reformation on the Church of Scotland . Somerset led a large and well equipped army to Scotland, where he and the Scottish regent James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran , commanded their armies at the Battle of Pinkie on 10 September 1547. The English won the battle, and after this Queen Mary was smuggled to France, where she
10830-459: Was a great-grandson of Henry VII's daughter Margaret Tudor , who in 1503 had married James IV of Scotland in accordance with the 1502 Treaty of Perpetual Peace . A connection persists to the present 21st century, as Charles III is a ninth-generation descendant of George I , who in turn was James VI and I's great-grandson. The Tudors descended from King Edward III on Henry VII 's mother's side from John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset , one of
10944-399: Was a talented writer. She was supposedly a very skilled musician as well, in both singing and playing the lute. After the rebellion of Thomas Wyatt the Younger in 1554, Elizabeth was imprisoned in the Tower of London . No proof could be found that Elizabeth was involved and she was released and retired to the countryside until the death of her half-sister, Mary I of England . Elizabeth was
11058-564: Was accused of treason and was executed on 13 February 1542, destroying the English Catholic holdouts' hopes of a national reconciliation with the Catholic Church. Her execution also marked the end of the Howard family's power and influence within the English court. By the time Henry conducted another marriage with his final wife Catherine Parr in July 1543, the old Roman Catholic advisers, including
11172-468: Was also obvious to his court that he was becoming tired of his aging wife, who was six years older than he was. Wolsey visited Rome, where he hoped to get the Pope's consent for an annulment. However, the Holy See was reluctant to rescind the earlier papal dispensation and felt heavy pressure from Catherine's nephew, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor , in support of his aunt. Catherine contested the proceedings, and
11286-492: Was betrothed to the Dauphin , the future King Francis II of France . Despite Somerset's disappointment that no Scottish marriage would take place, his victory at Pinkie made his position appear unassailable. Edward VI was taught that he had to lead religious reform. In 1549, the Crown ordered the publication of the Book of Common Prayer , containing the forms of worship for daily and Sunday church services. The controversial new book
11400-407: Was declared illegitimate after her parents' marriage was annulled , Mary was the strongest legitimate claimant. Despite this, Elizabeth would not name Mary her heir; as she had experienced during the reign of her predecessor Mary I, the opposition could flock around the heir if they were disheartened with Elizabeth's rule. Numerous threats to the Tudor line occurred during Elizabeth's reign. In 1569,
11514-726: Was discovered and Howard was beheaded . The next major uprising was in 1601, when Robert Devereux , the second Earl of Essex , attempted to raise the city of London against Elizabeth's government. The city of London proved unwilling to rebel; Essex and most of his co-rebels were executed. Threats also came from abroad. In 1570, Pope Pius V issued a Papal bull , Regnans in Excelsis , excommunicating Elizabeth, and releasing her subjects from their allegiance to her. Elizabeth came under pressure from Parliament to execute Mary, Queen of Scots, to prevent any further attempts to replace her; though faced with several official requests, she vacillated over
11628-465: Was discovered, and Wyatt's supporters were hunted down and killed. Wyatt himself was tortured, in the hope that he would give evidence that Elizabeth was involved so that Mary could have her executed for treason. Wyatt refused to implicate Elizabeth, and he was beheaded in April 1554. Elizabeth spent two months imprisoned at the Tower of London , and then was placed under house arrest at Woodstock Palace for
11742-462: Was due to disagreements over how to choose a non German house. In Limpopo Province of South Africa , Balobedu determined descent matrilineally , while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mother's dynasty when coming into her inheritance. Less frequently, a monarchy has alternated or been rotated, in a multi-dynastic (or polydynastic) system—that is, the most senior living members of parallel dynasties, at any point in time, constitute
11856-503: Was found guilty and executed in May 1536. Henry married again, for a third time, to Jane Seymour , the daughter of a Wiltshire knight, and with whom he had become enamoured while she was still a lady-in-waiting to Queen Anne. Jane became pregnant, and in 1537 produced a son, who became King Edward VI following Henry's death in 1547. Jane died of puerperal fever only a few days after the birth, leaving Henry devastated. Cromwell continued to gain
11970-400: Was his father, Owen Tudor ( Welsh : Owain ap Maredudd ap Tudur ap Goronwy ap Tudur ap Goronwy ap Ednyfed Fychan ), who abandoned the Welsh patronymic naming practice and adopted a fixed surname. When he did, he did not choose, as was generally the custom, his father's name, Maredudd, but chose that of his grandfather, Tudur ap Goronwy , instead. This name is sometimes given as Tewdwr ,
12084-417: Was interviewed by one of Edward's advisers, and she was eventually found not to be guilty, despite forced confessions from her servants Kat Ashley and Sir Thomas Parry . Thomas Seymour was beheaded on 20 March 1549. Lord Protector Somerset was also losing favour. After forcibly removing Edward VI to Windsor Castle , with the intention of keeping him hostage, Somerset was removed from power by members of
12198-507: Was just one of many that swirled around the two's long-standing friendship. However, more important to focus on were the disasters that many women, such as her mother Anne Boleyn , suffered due to being married into the royal family. Her sister Mary's marriage to Philip brought great contempt to the country, for many of her subjects despised Spain and Philip and feared that he would try to take complete control. Recalling her father's disdain for Anne of Cleves , Elizabeth also refused to enter into
12312-496: Was made Duke of Suffolk in October 1551. Her mother, Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk , was the daughter of Mary Tudor , the sister of Henry VIII. On 21 May 1553, Jane was married to Northumberland's son, Lord Guildford Dudley . This was a political move organised by the Duke to ensure that Protestantism stayed the national religion if Jane were to become queen. Edward died on 6 July 1553 and 16-year-old Jane, who fainted when she heard
12426-455: Was maintained through Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna . This also happened in the case of Queen Maria II of Portugal , who married Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry , but whose descendants remained members of the House of Braganza , per Portuguese law; in fact, since the 1800s, the only female monarch in Europe who had children belonging to a different house was Queen Victoria and that
12540-448: Was married to Lady Margaret Beaufort , the great-granddaughter of John of Gaunt, the progenitor of the house of Lancaster; Jasper became Earl of Pembroke on 23 November 1452. Edmund died on 3 November 1456. On 28 January 1457, his widow Margaret, who was only 13 at the time, gave birth to a son, Henry Tudor, at her brother-in-law's residence at Pembroke Castle . Henry Tudor, the future Henry VII, spent his childhood at Raglan Castle ,
12654-485: Was most at risk, she named Robert Dudley as Lord Protector in the event of her death. After her recovery, she appointed Dudley to the Privy Council and created him Earl of Leicester , in the hope that he would marry Mary, Queen of Scots . Mary rejected him, and instead married Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley , a descendant of Henry VII , giving Mary a stronger claim to the English throne. Although many Catholics were loyal to Elizabeth, many also believed that, because Elizabeth
12768-552: Was not welcomed by either reformers or Catholic conservatives; it was especially condemned in Devon and Cornwall , where traditional Catholic loyalty was at its strongest. In Cornwall at the time, many of the people could only speak the Cornish language , so the uniform English Bibles and church services were not understood by many. This caused the Prayer Book Rebellion , in which groups of Cornish non-conformists gathered round
12882-573: Was raised by his widow, Catherine Parr and her new husband Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley . Seymour may have groomed and sexually abused her, but their relationship was seen instead as an affair and caused scandal. During the interrogations, she answered truthfully and boldly and all charges were dropped. Seymour, however, was executed on 20 March 1549. Elizabeth was an excellent student, well-schooled in Latin, French, Italian, and somewhat in Greek, and
12996-409: Was that of Henry Tudor's wife, Elizabeth of York , as daughter to Edward IV, and descendant of the second son of Edward III, Lionel, Duke of Clarence , and also his fourth son, Edmund, Duke of York . As she had no surviving brothers , Elizabeth had the strongest claim to the crown as de facto heiress of the House of York , but while she became queen consort , she did not rule as queen regnant ; for
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