List of English monarchs

The King of England was the supreme head of state and head of government of the country. This is a list of the Kings and Queens of the Kingdom of England from 927 until England and Scotland joined together in 1707.

House of Wessex

Name	Portrait	Reign	Spouse	Facts	Lifespan
Athelstan		927-27 October 939	Never married	Last king of Wessex	c.894-27 October 939
Edmund I		27 October 939-26 May 946	Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury m.939-944 2 children Æthelflaed of Damerham m.944-946 childless		920-26 May 946
Edred		26 May 946-23 November 955	Never married		923-23 November 955
Eadwig the Fair		23 November 955-1 October 959	Ælfgifu m.955-957 childless		940-1 October 959
Edgar the Peacemaker		1 October 959-8 July 975	Wulfthryth of Wilton 1 child Æthelflæd Eneda m.959-963 1 child Ælfthryth of Devon m.964-975 2 children		943-8 July 975
Edward the Martyr		8 July 975-18 March 978	Never married	Canonized by the Pope as a Saint after his death	962-18 March 978
Athelred the Unready		Reign 1:18 March 978-1013 restored:3 February 1014-23 April 1016	Ælfgifu of York m.985-1001 9 children Emma of Normandy m.1002-1016 3 children		968-23 April 1016
Edmund II Ironside		23 April-30 November 1016	Edith of England m.1015-1016 2 children	Known for the Battle of Sherston, Brentford, Otford and Ashington	990-30 November 1016
Edward the Confessor		8 June 1042-5 January 1066	Edith of Wessex m.1045-1066 childless	Half brother of Edmund II	1004-5 January 1066
Edgar II Atheling		14 October-December 1066

House of Jelling

Name	Portrait	Reign	Spouse	Facts	Lifespan
Swein Forkbeard		1013-3 February 1014	Świętosława of poland Sigrid the Haughty	King of Denmark and Norway	?-3 February 1014
Cnut the Great		1016-12 November 1035	Ælfgifu of Northampton m.1014-1016 2 children Emma of Normandy m.1017-1035 2 children		990-12 November 1035
Harold I		12 November 1035-17 March 1040			1016-17 March 1040
Harthacanute		17 March 1040-8 June 1042			1018-8 June 1042

House of Godwin

Name	Portrait	Reign	Spouse	Facts	Lifespan
Harold II		5 January-14 October 1066	Edith the Fair Edith of Mercia

House of Normandy

Name	Portrait	Reign	Spouse	Facts	Lifespan
William I the Conqueror		December 1066-9 September 1087	Matilda of Flanders m.1052-1083 9 children		1028-9 September 1087
William II Rufus		9 September 1087-2 August 1100			1057-2 August 1100
Henry Beauclerc		2 August 1100-1 December 1135	Matilda of Scotland m.1100-1118 2 children Adeliza of Louvain m.1121-1135 childless		1068-1 December 1135

House of Blois

Name	Portrait	Reign	Spouse	Facts	Lifespan
Stephen		1 December 1135-25 October 1154	Matilda of Boulogne m.1125-1152 5 children	Count of Boulogne	1194-25 October 1154

House of Plantagenet

Edward III as he was portrayed in the late 16th century.

• Empress Matilda (1141)
• Henry II (1154–1189)
• Richard I, the Lionheart (1189–1199)
• John (1199–1216)
• Henry III (1216–1272)
• Edward I (1272–1307)
• Edward II (1307–1327) (deposed)
• Edward III (1327–1377)
• Richard II (1377–1399) (deposed, died 1400)

Lancastrians

• Henry IV (1399–1413)
• Henry V (1413–1422)
• Henry VI (1422–1461 and 1470–1471)

Yorkists

• Edward IV (1461–1470 and 1471–1483)
• Edward V (uncrowned) (1483) (deposed 1483 possibly assassinated)
• Richard III (1483–1485)

Tudors

The Tudors were from Wales. In 1536, Wales became part of England. England had controlled Wales since 1284.

• Henry VII (1485–1509)
• Henry VIII (1509–1547)
• Edward VI (1547–1553)
• Jane (uncrowned) (1553) (deposed, beheaded 1554)
• Mary I (1553–1558)
• Elizabeth I (1558–1603)

Stuarts

The Stuarts were also kings of Scotland, with which kingdom England was in personal, but not legal union until 1707.

• James I (1603–1625), also from 1567 King James VI of Scotland
• Charles I (1625–1649), also King of Scotland

Interregnum

The Civil War in England from 1642 until 1652 stemming from a growing enmity between King and Parliament, led to the execution of King Charles I in 1649. After the execution, England became a Commonwealth eventually led by Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector after successive interim governments failed and handed Cromwell power, and so England became a protectorate. Furthermore, both Ireland and Scotland became subjugated states under England and Cromwell at the end of the war. Cromwell died in 1658 and his son, Richard, became Lord Protector. This was short lived though as he failed to gain the support of the army and so the nation, in 1660 power was given back to the Monarchy and the King In Exile, Charles II, was invited back to England

Stuarts (restored)

• Charles II (1660–1685), also King of Scotland (backdated the start of his reign to 1649)
• James II (1685–1688) (deposed, died 1701), also King James VII of Scotland
• William III (1689–1702) and Mary II (1689–1694), as co-monarchs, also King and Queen of Scotland
• Anne (1702–1714), though the English throne was replaced with that of the United Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707

Longest To Shortest Reigning

• James VI (57 Years)
• Henry III of England (56 Years)
• Edward III of England (50 Years)
• Elizabeth I (44 Years)
• Henry VI of England (1st Reign 40 Years)
• Henry VIII (38 Years)

Related pages

• In 1707, England and Scotland joined together. For Kings and Queens after 1707, see British monarchs.