King Henry VI began his reign at a young age and inherited both the English and French crowns. During his reign, he had periods of debilitating mental ...
King Edward VIII is far from the only monarch to reject their rule. 10 Facts About Mithradates VI, the “Poison King” of Ancient Pontus The 1st century BCE king of Pontus, a kingdom on the Black Sea coast, earned his nickname by creating poisons and antidotes—and testing them on himse...
Edward VI’s widowed stepmother Catherine Parr made a scandalous early marriage to the new king’s uncle, Thomas Seymour. However, Edward’s favor toward Catherine and Thomas let them get away with it. The king wrote a letter of approval about their marriage—though it was obviously dictated...
Churchill had a positive relationship with George VI, which came to an end in 1952 when the king died and his daughter ascended to the throne as Queen Elizabeth II. Over time, he built a good relationship with the young queen as well. However, his health began to decline, as did his ...
The royal family cares about hospitality. In fact, on Christmas Day, it's a royal tradition for guests to step on an antique scale at Sandringham (the queen's country estate) before and after the meal. The strange tradition started during the reign of King Edward VII in the early 20th ...
Henry had the scheming Boleyn beheaded in 1536 for treason and married his third wife, Jane Seymour, who finally gave him a son, Edward. Seymour insisted that the king make amends with his daughters, but he would only do so if Mary acknowledged him as head of the Church of England and ...
Thomas Penn answers the key questions about Edward IV, England's forgotten warrior king: from his turbulent rise to the throne to how he dealt with his mischievous brothers. Watch Now 4. Her husband’s rule was unpopular A breakdown in law and order, corruption, the distribution of royal la...
When King Edward VI was very ill, he put Lady Jane Grey on the throne even though she was fifth in the line. Mary Tudor, his half-sister, was supposed to be next in line; however, she was a devout Catholic. Lady Jane Grey was a Protestant, so despite being only 16 years old, sh...
King George VI allowed her to be called the Duchess of Windsor but refused her the title of Her Royal Highness. Edward’s reaction was seriously disturbing. To him, it was symbolic of what he thought his family had taken from him. He was furious and remained bitter about the “snub” ...
Anne of Cleves is famous today because she was the fourth wife of King Henry VIII of England. Anne of Cleves was the daughter of a duke in what is now part of Germany. She married Henry VIII when she was 24 years old, but the marriage was quickly annulled. Despite this, she remained...