William the Conqueror
William the Conqueror (1027-
1087) was the King of England
from late 1066 to his death.
To press his claim to the
English crown, William
invaded England in 1066,
leading an army of Normans,
Bretons, Dutchmen, and
Frenchmen to victory over the
English forces of King Harold
Godwinson (who died in the
conflict) at the Battle of
Hastings.
His reign, which brought Norman-
French culture to England, had an
impact on the subsequent course of
England in the Middle Ages.
In addition to the obvious change of
ruler, his reign also saw a
programme of building and
fortification, changes to the English
language, a shift in the upper levels
of society and the church, and
adoption of some aspects of
continental church reform.
William was the 22th King of
England and the one who built the
foundation of the Tower of London
also called ,,The White Tower.
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 1491 28 January
1547) was King of England from 21
April 1509 until his death. Henry was
the second monarch of the House of
Tudor, succeeding his father, Henry
VII.
Henry VIII was a significant figure in
the history of the English monarchy.
Although in the great part of his reign
he brutally suppressed the influence of
the Protestant Reformation in
England, a movement having some
roots with John Wycliffe in the 14th
century, he is more popularly known
for his role in the separation of the
Church of England from the Roman
Catholic Church.
Henry's struggles with Rome
ultimately led to the separation
of the Church of England from
papal authority, the Dissolution
of the Monasteries, and
establishing himself as the
Supreme Head of the Church of
England.
Henry also oversaw the legal
union of England and Wales with
the Laws in Wales Acts 15351542.
He is also noted for his six wives
(Catherine of Aragon, Anne
Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of
Cleves, Catherine Howard,
Catherine Parr), two of whom
were beheaded (Anne Boleyn,
Catherine Howard).
Queen Anne
Anne (6 February 1665 1 August
1714) became Queen of England,
Scotland and Ireland on 8 March
1702, succeeding her brother-in-law,
William III of England and II of
Scotland.
On 1 May 1707, under the Acts of
Union 1707, England and Scotland
were united as a single sovereign
state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.
Anne became its first sovereign,
while continuing to hold the
separate crown of Queen of Ireland
and the title of Queen of France.
Anne reigned for twelve years until
her death in August 1714. Because
she died without surviving issue,
Anne was the last monarch of the
House of Stuart
Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24
May 1819 22 January 1901) was the
Queen of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland from 20
June 1837, and the first Empress of
India of the British Raj from 1 May
1876, until her death. Her reign as the
Queen lasted 63 years and 7 months,
longer than that of any other British
monarch before or since, and her
reign is the longest of any female
monarch in history.
The time of her reign is known as the
Victorian era, a period of industrial,
political, scientific and military
progress within the United Kingdom.
Victoria's reign was marked by a
great expansion of the British
Empire; during this period it
reached its zenith, becoming the
foremost global power of the time.
She arranged marriages for her
nine children and forty-two
grandchildren across the
continent, tying Europe together
and earning her the nickname
"the grandmother of Europe".
She was the last British monarch
of the House of Hanover; her son
King Edward VII belonged to the
House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra
Mary; born 21 April 1926) is the
queen regnant of sixteen
independent states known
informally as the Commonwealth
realms: the United Kingdom,
Canada, Australia, New Zealand,
Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas,
Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the
Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint
Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and
Barbuda, and Saint Kitts and
Nevis. She holds each crown
separately and equally in a shared
monarchy, and carries out duties
for each state of which she is
sovereign.
Elizabeth became Queen of the
United Kingdom on 6 February
1952. Her reign of 57 years has
seen sweeping changes, including
the continued evolution of the
British Empire into the modern
Commonwealth of Nations. As
colonies gained independence
from the United Kingdom, she
became queen of 25 newly
independent countries. She is one
of the longest-reigning British
monarchs, and has been the
sovereign of 32 individual
nations, but half of them later
became republics.
Elizabeth married Prince Philip,
Duke of Edinburgh in 1947. The
couple have four children and
eight grandchildren.
