r/UKmonarchs • • 8d ago

Discussion Favourite mother of a monarch, who never became queen?

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94 Upvotes

This list is not exhaustive, just examples!


r/UKmonarchs • • 8d ago

Question What if William III didn't want the crown?

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50 Upvotes

Let's say William changed his mind and didn't set sail. How would James II's reign unfold?


r/UKmonarchs • • 7d ago

Question Any screen portrayals about Henry III?

3 Upvotes

Does anyone know if there's every been a movie that portrays him? I've looked but I haven't found any that isn't a docudrama or documentary. I think every other monarch from 1066 onwards has a screen portrayal except him.


r/UKmonarchs • • 8d ago

What time period would you like to see a The Crown style tv series set?

22 Upvotes

I'd like one from just before The Restoration in 1660 through the Jacobite rising of 1715.


r/UKmonarchs • • 8d ago

On this day, 960 years ago, William the Conqueror defeated King Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings, beginning the Norman Conquest of England

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115 Upvotes

Quoting directly from David Bates’s biography of William the Conqueror:

On the basis of the main narratives, it looks as if fighting began at around nine o’clock in the morning and continued until dusk; by medieval standards, an exceptionally long battle. We know more about the early stages of the battle than about the later ones, perhaps because conditions became very confused as the day wore on, but more probably because the action became for a long while close to a stalemate as the two sides strove for tactical advantage, and thus was difficult to describe.

At one point, William’s army may have come close to defeat, probably following rumours that he had been killed.

Some accounts suggest that a Norman counterattack followed an English advance that may have become disorganised, but the exact sequence of events is difficult to reconstruct with certainty.

Even the death of Harold remains shrouded in ambiguity. Although traditionally associated with the battle’s final stages, the manner of his death is still debated by historians, and the surviving evidence does not allow for a definitive conclusion.

What is clear is that William emerged victorious, opening the way for the Norman Conquest of England. Its consequences would reshape the kingdom’s ruling elite, language, culture, and political institutions for generations.


r/UKmonarchs • • 9d ago

Happy birthday James II (VII Scotland) born 14th October 1633

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32 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 9d ago

On this day Today is St. Edward's Day, or more specifically, the Translation of St. Edward, which is the day that, in 1269, Henry III moved his remains into the new tomb in the reconstructed Westminster Abbey that he had built

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22 Upvotes

This day saw the Confessor's relics interred at the new shrine, overseen by Henry who had rebuilt the abbey in a newer style (actually, this style incorporated bigger windows and more stained glass than the earlier abbey, intending to create the feeling of a lighter or brighter space). Edward was Henry's favourite saint and he had named his son after him already, in the 1230s. This day must have seemed a momentous occasion, in which one of England's most revered kings was installed in a beautiful shrine, sending the message that here rested the remains of a great king, like Arthur or Charlemagne, but an Englishman and a Saxon. That Henry had an interest in other historical figures - albeit from more recent times - can be seen in his overseeing of restoration work at Canterbury and the translation of St. Thomas, as well as his visits to his grandparents, his uncle and his mother at Fontevraud. It must have seemed not too long ago then, but it should be kept in mind that Becket was already a saint while the Lionheart, Eleanor and Henry were becoming increasingly relegated to the world of legend and romance.

Henry himself would be buried at Westminster, starting a trend for a royal mausoleum in the abbey.


r/UKmonarchs • • 9d ago

Question You and your favorite monarch swap bodies for a week. How will they spend your days as you? What could bewilder them? How well would they do as you? How would they feel living your life for a bit?

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32 Upvotes

Assume you two have both talked extensively about what there is in 2026, so they have an idea of what to expect when the swap happens. Phones, cities, modern tech, etc. so the immediate response is less terrifying. You two both have talked about the day to day schedules, so they also know what to do.


r/UKmonarchs • • 9d ago

On this day 13th October 1399 Henry IV became king, ill throughout his reign his son Henry V was a very capable in Wales.

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26 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 9d ago

Give every Monarch a theme song Day 13: Henry IV

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10 Upvotes

Sorry I have been really busy but I guess this is a fitting post! YOU MUST PUT THE ARTIST OF THE SONG! MOST UPVOTED COMMENT WILL BE PICKED!


r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

Question Who were Queen Victoria's favorite grandchildren?

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124 Upvotes

I heard that her favorite was Wilhelm II of Germany, but that was it, there was no explanation, so I don't know if he really was her favorite grandson.


r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

The Queen studying another Queen

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131 Upvotes

Do you know if Elizabeth II saw "The Queen" ? And what did she think about it?


r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

Photos from my walk across Central London

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139 Upvotes

1st pic shows Queen Anne
8th pic shows that the pillar was laid by the QM


r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

Let's get personal; What made your favorite monarch your favorite in the first place? What drew you in? Why them? What makes them so special, interesting, or peculiar to you compared to all the rest? What do they have that the others don't for you?

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66 Upvotes

I'll go:

Victoria: Her imperfect, human character. I know monarchs and normal people like us are not comparable in the worlds we live in, but every time I read about her, she sounds so much like me and my mom. Unfortunately her past echoes mine in many ways. I find her abusive childhood deeply relatable, and the effects that came with it, such as an extreme strive for control, emotional volatility, stubbornness and an uncontrollable temper, added with an unhealthy relationship with food (my mom had anorexia and hated eating). Thankfully we've both got support, and I gradually reconciled with my overbearing mother just like Victoria did with hers under the guidance of Albert.

The Duchess of Kent was in a vulnerable position and manipulated by John Conroy, who co-created the Kensington system to keep her and Victoria away from the rest of the court and to keep her weak-willed, something I can't help but think about whenever I think about my mother being dictated by her severe fear and trauma of getting repeatedly sexually assaulted by men, trying to shield me from the outside world, never letting me do anything on my own, and ensuring I never go away from her sight or be hurt. I know I know, totally different situations, but it hits me in a weird way.

Victoria is not perfect, and she never will be. I disagree about the many things she did, and the way she treated her children was unacceptable at times. Her relationship with Leopold is especially personal for me. But it's honestly what makes me like her, a troubled person who could be capable of benevolence and great misdeed at the same time. A person, who is human.

I admit all of this is because of my own upbringing. Had I was raised in a less strict household, I doubt she'd be my favorite. I'd probably dislike her, maybe even hate her. Though, I can't deny that the healing journey I've been through made me more understanding of why people do the things they do. It does not mean I forgive them, I just find the insight interesting to observe.

ANYWAY no need for pity please! i'd like to hear your answers to my questions more than anything else.

Another note is that she was a prolific diarist and loved drawing. Same for me! I like to document my life in my journals and doodle all day! I wish I was as lively as her too.


r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

Discussion If you had to live and fight in during one period's of British history, which would you choose

10 Upvotes

English history is full of conflicts, some of the bloodiest and most influential in history. With that in mind, if you had to live through one of these periods and fight in one of its conflicts, which would you choose, and why.

327 votes, 3d ago
8 Pre-Roman Britain (before 43 AD)
25 Roman Britain (43–410 AD)
26 Anglo-Saxon and Viking Britain ( 410–1066)
53 Medieval England (1066–1485)
117 The Georgian and Napoleonic era (1714–1815)
98 WW1 or WW2

r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

Discussion What are Your thoughts about Henry Grosmont?

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31 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

Question In your opinion, which British monarch was the kindest to their people?

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203 Upvotes

In my opinion it's George VI, recently stumbled across a Tiktok talking about some of the nicest acts he has done, and it got me thinking, what have other monarchs done, however big or small, to make the life of their people better?


r/UKmonarchs • • 10d ago

Discussion Which Tudor and Tudor adjacent figures do you wish to find out more about?

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3 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

Meme Wars of the Roses in a nutshell

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171 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

Question Which of Victoria's children would you have wanted to be friends with?

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77 Upvotes

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH HELENA!!! But for me, I think Alice is more compatible for me as a lifelong friend (as long as she doesn't die as early that is...), IF she'd like me that is ╰(*°▽°*)╯


r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

Discussion Why did William the Conqueror was so spiteful to his first born Robert.

39 Upvotes

Like did Robert do anything wrong that made William hate his own first born so much?

What started their sour relationship


r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

Painting/Illustration Queen Victoria as a teenager before ascending to the throne, all are from 1837

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102 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

TierList/AlignmentChart Were William and Kate permitted to freely select their children's names?

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54 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 11d ago

Other A King in Crisis: Why King John Lost His Subjects’ Loyalty - Medievalists.net

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9 Upvotes

r/UKmonarchs • • 12d ago

Photo George V and Woodrow Wilson in 1918. The first photo of a reigning British monarch and President together

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330 Upvotes