A bit about Britain’s history – a full set of timelines from the prehistoric to the present, articles about events and themes from all periods of British history, a complete list of Britain’s kings and queens. You’ll also find separate pieces on particular events and a summary of anniversaries for the current year.
Hedonism, big hair and the end of Popery Negotiations with the exiled Charles II in March 1660 resulted in the Declaration of Breda, in which the king promised a general pardon for those that had participated in the war, a degree of religious toleration, acceptance of the supremacy of Parliament and the settlement of soldiers’ […]
Restoration and Glorious Revolution Read More »
Two immovable objects collide – the monarch and parliament James Stuart, the new King James I of England in 1603, had been King James VI of Scotland since 1567. And he had a pretty good pedigree: as well as being the great-grandson of James IV and Margaret Tudor, he was the direct descendent of Robert
The Stuarts and the Republic of Britain Read More »
The roots of modern Britain Somehow, Elizabethan England has a very different atmosphere to any previous period in British history. Queen Elizabeth I succeeded to the throne on the death of her elder Catholic half-sister ‘Bloody’ Mary in 1558. She was twenty-five. Her 45 year rule is popularly seen as heralding a new age for
The fate of a nation decided on a king’s whim – or his desire for a male heir No challenge blighted Henry VIII’s accession to the English throne. The country was at peace and it seemed to be a golden age. In contrast to the ailing, bloated, tyrant he was to become, the youthful king
Losing our religion – how Henry VIII changed the world and his wife Read More »
New dynasty, fresh start? There was by no means unanimous agreement that the new Tudor King, Henry VII, had the best claim to the throne of England in 1485. In fact, depending on your point of view, his claim could be considered quite flimsy. Henry was the son of a formidable mother, Margaret Beaufort, and
The victor of Bosworth Read More »
Something was wrong with the English monarchy; the only answer seemed to be war English history in the second half of the 15th century is scarred by civil war – the Wars of the Roses – a label which became popular in Victorian times based on the red and white roses of the rival houses
A violent royal soap opera Read More »
The only defence was to run away – if you could The ‘Black Death’ or ‘Great Pestilence’ swept through Europe between around 1346–1353, where it eventually killed between 30-60% of the population – maybe 25 million people, though some historians estimate twice that figure. The disease originated ‘somewhere in the east’ and arrived in southern
When death walked the land Read More »
Problems with close neighbours You may have noticed that France isn’t part of Britain. But at one time the Kings of England ruled enormous chunks of what is now France. The French Connection all began when Duke William of Normandy became King William I of England in 1066. Under his great-grandson, Henry II (1133-1189), the
Why France isn’t part of Britain Read More »
Wales is conquered and becomes an English colony Wales, like Scotland, was not a unified political entity in the early Middle Ages. It consisted of a number of kingdoms, the largest of which were Gwynedd in the north west, Deheubarth in the south west and Powys in between the two. It was ruled by kings
Whatever happened to Wales? Read More »
Scotland manages to create itself – with a little help from the King of England In the 9th century, Kenneth MacAlpin (Cionnaith mac Ailpin) merged Dalriada or Dál Riata, the Kingdom of the Scoti, with the Kingdom of the Picts. The new kingdom, known as Alba, would eventually become Scotland and Kenneth MacAlpin is traditionally
How Scotland was born Read More »
The medieval roots of modern British government Most people know that the ancient Greeks invented democracy (demos – ‘the people’ and kratia – ‘power’). But we Brits like to imagine it was us – Westminster is “the mother of parliaments”, and all that. In fact, Iceland’s Althing and Sweden’s Jamtamot date back to the 10th
Brits invent parliamentary democracy Read More »
The Normans crushed the Saxons and a hybrid culture evolved that became uniquely British Britain changed forever on 14 October 1066. In fact, the defeat of the English (Saxons) under King Harold, by the bastard Duke William of Normandy and his invaders at the Battle of Hastings is one of those events that came to
How the Normans shaped world history Read More »
People talk of a north-south divide in Britain, but it was once even more serious than it is now It’s all a matter of power and geography. The Danes had defeated the old Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Northumbria, East Anglia and Mercia. If the Danes had beaten Alfred of Wessex too, maybe the capital of Britain
Why London is the capital of Britain Read More »
Terrible portents appeared over Northumbria and miserably frightened the inhabitants: there were exceptional flashes of lightning, and fiery dragons were seen flying in the air. A great famine followed these signs; and a little after that, in the same year on 8 June, the harrying of the heathen miserably destroyed God’s church in Lindisfarne by
Newsflash – Vikings murder defenceless monks Read More »
