Major Monarchs of Europe (15th - 18th century) <Europe Final Project> - Who's Your Favorite?-
By bohyunahn
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Period: Jan 1, 1401 to
15th - 18th CENTURY
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Sep 1, 1442
King Henry VI of England
September 1, 1442 - March 4, 1461
- only English monarch to also have been crowned King of France
- timid, shy, passive, well-intentioned, and averse to warfare and violence
- ineffective reign --> gradual loss of the English lands in France
- In 1590, Willam Shakespeare wrote about Henry VI
- married Margaret of Anjou & had 1 child Edward of Westminster -
Mar 4, 1461
King Edward IV of England
March 4, 1461 - October 3, 1470
- central figure in the Wars of the Roses (series of English civil wars for control of the throne of England)
- never defeated on the field of battle
- restoration of law and order in England
- lacked foresight
- ten children by Elizabeth Woodville -
Jun 11, 1488
King James IV of Scotland
June 11, 1488 - September 9, 1513
- regarded as the most successful of the Stewart monarchs of Scotland
- Saw the importance of building a fleet that could provide Scotland with a strong maritime presence
- established good diplomatic relations with England
- reign ended in a disastrous defeat at the Battle of Flodden
- last monarch from the island of Great Britain to be killed in battle
- married Henry VII's daughter Margaret Tudor (had one son --> King James V) -
Apr 22, 1509
Henry VIII of England
April 22, 1509 - January 28, 1547
- six marriages
- English Reformation
- Appointed himself Supreme Head of the Church of England and dissolved convents and monasteries
- excommunicated by the pope
"the father of the Royal Navy"
- invested heavily in the navy and established the Navy Board
- radical changes to the English Constitution (divine right of kings) -
Jan 1, 1515
Francis I of France
January 1 1515 - March 31, 1547
- Son of Charles, Count of Angouleme
- succeeded his first cousin
- promoted the emergent French Renaissance by attracting many Italian artist to work for him (e.g. Leonardo da Vinci)
- crucial cultural changes
- growth of central power
spread of humanism and Protestantism
- Exploration of the New World
- married Claude (the daughter of King Louis XII and had 7 children -
Jun 28, 1519
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
June 28, 1519 - August 27, 1556
- Holy Roman Emperor, King of Spain, Archduke of Austria, Spanish and Habsburg empire
- one of the most powerful European rulers
- reigned over territories in Europe and the Americas
- Struggled to hold his empire together against the growing forces of Protestantism, increasing Ottoman and French pressure
- had to deal with the challenges of religious conflicts between Catholicism and Protestantism
- Married Isabella of Portugal
- Had 10 children -
Oct 12, 1576
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor
October 12, 1576 - January 20, 1612
Father of Scientific Revolution
- Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary & Croatia, King of Bohemia, and Archduke of Austria
- member of the House of Habsburg
- promoted the arts and sciences
- mistakes led directly to the Thirty Years' War
- had several illegitimate children by his mistress Catherina Strada
- astrology and alchemy -
Philip III of Spain
September 13, 1598 - March 31, 1621
Philip the Pious
- King of Spain
- also Philip II, King of Portugal, Naples, Sicily and Sardinia and Duke of Milan 1598 - 1621
- negative political reputation
- economic difficulties
- temporary peace with the Dutch
- Thirty Years' War
- married Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain
- 12 children -
Elizabeth I of England
November 17, 1558 - March 24, 1603
- Queen of England and Ireland
- economic prosperity
- relative peace
- stable, functioning government
- unified a Protestant England against the Catholic Spanish and defeated the Spanish armada
- Engish exploration of the New World -
Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden
October 30, 1611 - November 6, 1632
Gustavus Adolphus the Great
- credited for the rise of Sweden as a great European power
- primary military forces in Europe during the Thirty Years' War
- one of the greatest military commanders in modern history
- "father of modern warfare"
- reformation of the administrative structure (Parish Registration)
- Married Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg; had 1 child -
Louis XIV of France
May 14, 1643 - September 1, 1715
Louis the Great (Louis le Grand) / the Sun King (le Roi soleil)
- longest - reigning monarch of a sovereign country in the history of Europe
- France emerged as the most dominant European monarchy
- palace at Versailles
- annexed key territories
- ushered in a golden age of art and literature
- approved French military support for the American colonies
--> the expense nearly bankrupted the country
- married twice (Maria Mancini & Maria Teresa)
- 17 children -
Charles II of England
May 28, 1660 - February 6, 1685
The Merry Monarch
- King of Scotland, Ireland, & England
- restored to the throne after years of exile during the Puritan Commonwealth
- Restoration period
- English parliament
- rise of colonization and trade in India
- Founded the Royal Society in 1660
- seven mistresses
- married Catherine of Braganza
- 19 children -
Peter I of Russia
May 7, 1682 - February 8, 1725
Peter the Great
- ruled the Tsardom of Russia
- modernization
- led a cultural revolution that replaced some of the traditionalist and medieval social and political systems with ones that were westernized and based on the Enlightenment
- Tsar --> Emperor
- found the city of Saint Petersburg (capital of Russia until 1918)
- two wives & 14 children -
George I of Great Britain
August 1, 1714 - June 11, 1727
- king of Great Britain & Ireland
- first British monarch of the House of Hanover
- directed British foreign policy
- focused on peace, stability, and prosperity
- contributed to the creation of the Triple Alliance
- married Sophia Dorothea of Celle (2 children - George II & Sophia (married Frederick William of Prussia / mother of Frederick the Great)) -
George III of the United Kingdom
October 25, 1760 - January 29, 1820
King of Great Britain and of Ireland
- longest-lived and longest-reigning king in British history
- founded and paid the initial costs of the Royal Academy of Arts
- led England's successful resistance to Revolutionary and Napoleonic France
presided over the loss of the American Revolution
- suffered from an unknown illness
- married Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (15 children in cluding George IV) -
Louis XVI of France
May 10, 1774 - September 21, 1792
- last king of France before the fall of the monarchy
- reform the French government
- effort to abolish serfdom, remove land tax etc.
- Married Marie Antoinette of Austria (5 children)