History of Styles and Titles, Part II: Tudor & Stuart Period.

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House of Stuart, House of Tudor, James I of England, James VI of Scotland, King Henry VIII of England, Kings and Queens of England, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, kings and queens of Scotland, Philip II of Spain, Pope Leo X, Pope Paul III, Queen Mary’s Marriage Act, styles, titles

After 1422 the royal title remained unchanged for almost a century. For these many years the title was, Rex Angliae et Franciae et Dominus Hiberniae (King of England and of France and Lord of Ireland). Numerous amendments, however, were effected during Henry VIII’s reign.

Here are the different ways Henry VIII was styled throughout his reign.

1535–1536
By the Grace of God, King of England and France, Defender of the Faith, Lord of Ireland, and of the Church of England in Earth Supreme Head.
1536–1542
By the Grace of God, King of England and France, Defender of the Faith, Lord of Ireland, and of the Church of England and of Ireland in Earth Supreme Head.
1542–1555
By the Grace of God, King of England, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, and of the Church of England and of Ireland in Earth Supreme Head.

After Henry wrote a book against the Protestant Martin Luther, Pope Leo X rewarded him by granting the title “Defender of the Faith”.

Henry VIII, King of England, France and Ireland

After disagreements with the Papacy over his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII broke away from the Roman Catholic Church, establishing the Church of England in 1533. Pope Paul III rescinded the grant of the title “Defender of the Faith”, but Henry continued to use it. In 1535 Henry added “of the Church of England in Earth, under Jesus Christ, Supreme Head” to his style in 1535; a reference to the Church of Ireland was added in 1536.

Meanwhile, advised that many Irish people regarded the pope as the true temporal authority in their nation, with the king of England acting as a mere representative, Henry VIII changed “Lord of Ireland” to “King of Ireland” in 1542. All changes made by Henry VIII were confirmed by an English Act of Parliament passed in 1544.

Mary I of England, Henry VIII’s Catholic daughter, omitted “of the Church of England and also of Ireland in Earth Supreme Head” in 1553, replacing it with “etc.”, but the phrase remained part of the official style until an Act of Parliament to the contrary was passed in 1555. In the meantime Mary had married the Spanish prince Felipe, son of King Carlos I of Spain (Holy Roman Emperor Karl V).

Mary I & Felipe II, King and Queen of England and France, Naples, Jerusalem and Ireland, Defenders of the Faith, King and Queen of Spain and Sicily

The monarchs adopted a joint style, “King and Queen of England and France, Naples, Jerusalem and Ireland, Defenders of the Faith, Princes of Spain and Sicily, Archdukes of Austria, Dukes of Milan, Burgundy and Brabant, Count and Countess of Habsburg, Flanders and Tyrol”, acknowledging both Mary’s and Felipe’s titles. Further changes were made after Felipe became King of Spain and Sicily (Felipe II) upon his father’s abdication.

England’s Parliament enacted Queen Mary’s Marriage Act to regulate the marriage. According to the Act, Felipe II was granted the title King of England and Ireland and it was stipulated that as long as their marriage lasted Felipe was considered co-sovereign along with his wife but with Mary retaining the majority of authority.

When the Protestant Elizabeth I ascended the Throne, she used the simpler “Queen of England, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc.”. The “etc.” was added in anticipation of a restoration of the supremacy phrase, which never actually occurred.

James VI-I, King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland (King of Great Britain).

After James VI, who was already King of Scotland, ascended the English Throne, the official style changed to “King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc.”; his mother Mary I, Queen of Scots, had already laid claim to these titles (in a different order, jointly with François II of France, then with the King’s father, Lord Darnley), but she was beheaded by her Protestant opponent, Elizabeth I.

In 1604 James VI made a proclamation permitting the use of “King of Great Britain” instead of “King of England and Scotland”. This new style, though commonly used to refer to the King, was never statutory; (it was never approved by Parliament) therefore, it did not appear on legal instruments. It did, however, appear on the inscriptions on coins. England and Scotland remained separate political bodies until 1707.

On this date in History: April 24, 1558, the marriage of Mary I, Queen of Scots and The Dauphin of France.

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Francis II of France, Henry II of France, House of Stewart, House of Stuart, James V King of Scots, King Henri II of France, King Henry VIII of England, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, Kings of france, Margaret Tudor, Marie de Guise, Mary I of Scots, Mary of Guise, Mary Queen of Scots, The Dauphin

Mary was born on December 8, 1542 at Linlithgow Palace, Scotland, to King James V of Scots and his French second wife, Marie de Guise. Mary was said to have been born prematurely and was the only legitimate child of James V to survive him She was the great-niece of King Henry VIII of England, as her paternal grandmother, Margaret Tudor, was Henry VIII’s sister. On December 14, 1542 six days after her birth, she became Queen of Scotland when her father died from drinking contaminated water while on campaign following the Battle of Solway Moss.

Mary I, Queen of Scots

Since Mary was an infant when she inherited the throne, Scotland was ruled by regents until she became an adult. From the outset, there were two claims to the regency: one from Catholic Cardinal Beaton, and the other from the Protestant Earl of Arran, who was next in line to the Scottish throne. Beaton’s claim to the regency was based on a version of the King Jame V’s will that his opponents dismissed as a forgery. Arran, with the support of his friends and relations, became the regent until 1554 when Mary’s mother managed to remove and succeed him.

Henry VIII, King of England and King of Ireland.

King Henry VIII of England took the opportunity of the regency to propose marriage between Mary and his own son and heir, Edward (future Edward VI of England) seeking to unite Scotland and England. On July 1, 1543, when Mary was six months old, the Treaty of Greenwichwas signed, which promised that, at the age of ten, Mary would marry Edward and move to England, where Henry could oversee her upbringing. The treaty provided that the two countries would remain legally separate and that if the couple should fail to have children, the temporary union would dissolve. Cardinal Beaton rose to power again and began to push a pro-Catholic pro-French agenda, angering Henry, who wanted to break the Scottish alliance with France.

The French king, Henri II, desired to unite France and Scotland and proposed marrying the young queen to his three-year-old son, the Dauphin Francis. On the promise of French military help, and a French dukedom for himself, the regent Earl of Arran agreed to the marriage. In February 1548, Mary was moved, for her safety, to Dumbarton Castle. The English left a trail of devastation behind once more and seized the strategic town of Haddington. In June, the much awaited French help arrived at Leith to besiege and ultimately take Haddington. On July 7, 1548, a Scottish Parliament held at a nunnery near the town agreed to a French marriage treaty.

Mary I, Queen of Scots

With the promise of her marriage agreement in place, five-year-old Mary was sent to France to spend the next thirteen years at the French court. The French fleet sent by Henri II, commanded by Nicolas de Villegagnon, sailed with Mary from Dumbarton on August 7, 1548 and arrived a week or more later at Roscoff or Saint-Pol-de-Léon in Brittany.

At the French court, she was a favourite with everyone, except Henri II’s wife Catherine de’ Medici. Mary learned to play lute and virginals, was competent in prose, poetry, horsemanship, falconry and needlework, and was taught French, Italian, Latin, Spanish, and Greek, in addition to speaking her native Scots. Her future sister-in-law, Elisabeth of Valois, became a close friend of whom Mary “retained nostalgic memories in later life”.Her maternal grandmother, Antoinette de Bourbon, was another strong influence on her childhood, and acted as one of her principal advisors.

King Francis II and Queen Mary I of France and Scotland

Mary was eloquent and especially tall by sixteenth-century standards (she attained an adult height of 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m), while Henri II’s son and heir, Francis, stuttered and was abnormally short. Henri commented that “from the very first day they met, my son and she got on as well together. On April 4, 1558, Mary signed a secret agreement bequeathing Scotland and her claim to England to the French crown if she died without issue. Twenty days later, April 24,1558 she married the Dauphin at Notre Dame de Paris, and he became king consort of Scotland. When Henri II died on July 10, 1559 from injuries sustained in a joust, the fifteen-year-old Dauphin became King Francis II of France and sixteen-year-old Mary I, Queen of Scots became Queen of France.

Royal Ancestry of Henry VII of England: Part IV

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Countess of Richmond, Frederick Barbarossa, Henry VII of England, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Empire, House of Stuart, Joan of Kent, Kings and Queens of England, Margaret Beaufort, Margaret Holland

I want to take a step back and look at another line of ancestors of Henry VII. The line in question stems from Lady Margaret Holland, Grandmother of Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond who was the mother of King Henry VII.

Henry VII, King of England and Lord of Ireland

Margaret Holland (1385 – December 30, 1439) was a medieval English noblewoman. She was a daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, who was the son of Joan “the Fair Maid of Kent” (herself a granddaughter of Edward I of England, wife of Edward the Black Prince and mother of Richard II of England). Margaret’s mother was Alice FitzAlan, daughter of Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel and Eleanor of Lancaster.

Margaret Holland’s mother was Alice FitzAlan, daughter of Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel and Eleanor of Lancaster. Eleanor of Lancaster was a great-granddaughter of Henry III of England (1216-1272) via his second son Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster. Margaret Holland’s great-grandmother was Maria of Hohenstaufen (April 3, 1201 – March 29, 1235) she was a member of the powerful Hohenstaufen dynasty of German kings and Holy Roman Emperors which lasted from 1138 to 1254. She is also known to history as Marie of Swabia. Maria herself was a granddaughter of the great Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich I (1152-1190), also known as Frederick Barbarossa.

Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich I (1152-1190), also known as Frederick Barbarossa.

Historians consider Friedrich I among the Holy Roman Empire’s greatest medieval emperors. He combined qualities that made him appear almost superhuman to his contemporaries: his longevity, his ambition, his extraordinary skills at organization, his battlefield acumen and his political perspicacity. His contributions to Central European society and culture include the reestablishment of the Corpus Juris Civilis, or the Roman rule of law, which counterbalanced the papal power that dominated the German states since the conclusion of the Investiture Controversy (a conflict between church and state in medieval Europe over the ability to appoint local church officials through investiture. By undercutting imperial power, the controversy led to nearly 50 years of civil war in the Empire.

Margaret Holland’s Maternal grandfather, Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel, was a member of the FitzAlan family. The FitzAlan family shared a common patrilinear ancestry with the Scots, and later English, royal dynasty, the House of Stuart. They are therefore also related to the current British royal family. They were descendants of the Bretonknight Alan fitz Flaad (d. 1120) grandson of the Seneschal of the Bishop of Dol. The FitzAlans held the earldom of Arundel during the period 1267 – 1580.

A FitzAlan descendant, Alan fitz Walter (1140–1204) was hereditary High Steward of Scotland and a crusader. His son by his second marriage to Alesta, daughter of Morggán, Earl of Mar, was Walter, 3rd High Steward of Scotland, and it was he that adopted the surname Stewart and became the founder of The House of Stewart (Stuart).

Joan of Kent

Margaret Holland’s grandmother was Joan of Kent (September 29, 1328 – August 7, 1385), known to history as The Fair Maid of Kent. Joan was the daughter of Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent, and Margaret Wake, 3rd Baroness Wake of Liddell. Her father Edmund was the son of King Edward I by his second wife, Margaret of France, daughter of Philippe III of France. This brings the descendants of Edward I’s second marriage into the Ancestry of Henry VII.

The marriages of Joan of Kent is rather complicated and the topic is worthy of a separate blog post. Joan’s third husband was Edward the Black Prince, eldest son and heir to King Edward III. Two sons were born to the royal couple. The elder son, named Edward (1365 – 1370) after his father and grandfather, died at the age of six. Their younger son, Richard, became King Richard II of England when his grandfather, Edward III, died on June 21, 1377. Richard’s father, the Black Prince had died in his bed at the Palace of Westminster June 7, 1376.

Descendants of Joan of Kent through her children Lady Joan and Thomas Holland include Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby (mother of King Henry VII), and queens consort Anne Neville, Elizabeth of York, and Catherine Parr.

This concludes the MATERNAL ancestry of Henry VII of England. In the next entry in the series I will begin to examine the Royal Ancestry of Henry VII’s Paternal side, the Tudors.

The History of the titles of the Prince of Wales: Part VII

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Great Steward of Scotland, House of Hanover, House of Stewart, House of Stuart, James III of Scotland, king James I-VI of England and Scotland, Prince, Prince Charles, Prince of Scotland, Prince of Wales, Robert II of Scotland

Now that I’ve examined the origins and usage of the titles of Prince, Duke, Earl and Baron, I’ll now begin to address the the history behind the specific Dukedoms Earldoms etc that the Prince of Wales has. I’ll start with the lowest titles and work our way up. Today I start with Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.

HRH Prince of Scotland and Great Steward of Scotland

Prince of Scotland

The title of Prince of Scotland originated in a time when Scotland was a kingdom separate from England. Prior to the House of Hanover which set in stone, or legislation, the usage of titles such as Prince wasn’t universally carried by male members of the Royal Family. Prince of Scotland was a title designated solely to the heir of the Scottish throne. Prior to the English and Scottish crowns being united under James VI of Scotland (James I of England and Ireland) the title Prince of Scotland was designed to be used in much the same way the title Prince of Wales was used to designate the heir-apparent to the English throne, although the Scottish heir-apparent was addressed only as Duke of Rothesay until that time.

Principality of Scotland

We tend to think of Scotland as a Kingdom rather than a Principality, so the natural question is, what is, or where is, the Principlality of Scotland? The designation “Principality of Scotland” implied (and implies) not Scotland as a whole but lands in western Scotland, in areas such as Renfrewshire, Ayrshire and Kirkcudbrightshire appropriated as patrimony of the Sovereign’s eldest son for his maintenance. This is similar to the Duchy of Cornwall which was established to be a source of income for the English heir. The title of Prince of Scotland originated from a charter granting the Principality of Scotland to the future James I of Scotland, the then heir apparent, granted on December 10, 1404, by Robert III. During the reign of James III, permanency was enacted to the title.

Historically there was a feudal aspect to the title. The Prince collected feudal duties and privileges for the principality while The Crown serves this role in the rest of Scotland. However, The Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000, abolished most remaining feudal duties and privileges attached to the Principality, leaving the Prince’s status as mainly titular. Before the 2000 Act the Principality was entirely feued out to tenants and brought in a small income. All title deeds in Ayrshire and Renfrewshire required to be sealed with the Prince’s seal. Revenue gained from feudal dealings were counted as income for the Duchy of Cornwall, a more substantial estate held by the monarch’s child who is heir apparent.

Great Steward

The Great Stewardship of Scotland was granted to Walter Fitz Alan by David I, and came to the Sovereign with the accession of the last High Steward, Robert Stewart, 7th High Steward of Scotland, who inherited the throne, as King Robert II of Scotland (1371-1390). Robert II was a grandson of Robert I via his daughter Marjorie and Walter Stewart, 6th Great Steward of Scotland.

Since that date it has been enjoyed by the Sovereign’s eldest son. Thereafter the title of High Steward of Scotland has been held as a subsidiary title by the heir-apparent to the Scottish throne, then the heirs to both the Kingdoms of Scotland, England and Ireland and later the United Kingdom.

Anniversary of the birth of the Old Pretender

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Bonnie Prince Charlie, House of Stuart, James Francis Stuart, John III Sobieski of Poland, Kings and Queens of England, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, kings and queens of Scotland, The Old Pretender

James Francis Edward, Prince of Wales (June 10, 1688-January 1, 1766), nicknamed the Old Pretender, was the son of King James II and VII of England, Scotland and Ireland, and his second wife, Mary of Modena. Only months after James Francis Edward’s birth, his Catholic father was deposed and exiled in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. James II’s Protestant elder daughter, Mary II, and her husband, William III, became co-monarchs and the Bill of Rights 1689 and Act of Settlement 1701 excluded Catholics from the British throne.

James Francis Edward was raised in Continental Europe and after his father’s death in 1701, he claimed the English, Scottish and Irish crown as James III of England and Ireland and James VIII of Scotland, with the support of his Jacobite followers and his cousin Louis XIV of France. Fourteen years later, he unsuccessfully attempted to gain the throne in Britain during the Jacobite rising of 1715.

Marriage and progeny

Louise Adélaïde d’Orléans (Mademoiselle d’Orléans), daughter of Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, was at one time suggested as a wife for James Francis Edward Stuart, but nothing came of it.

In March 1717, while James was visiting Modena, he became engaged to his cousin Benedetta d’Este, but her father Rinaldo III put an end to the engagement to preserve his relations with Hanover and Great Britain.

On September 3, 1719, James Francis Edward Stuart married Maria Clementina Sobieska (1702–1735), granddaughter of King John III Sobieskiof Poland. The wedding was held in the chapel of the Episcopal Palace in Montefiascone, near Viterbo. By his wife he had two sons:

1. Charles Edward Stuart (31 December 1720 – 31 January 1788), nicknamed “Bonnie Prince Charlie”
2. Henry Benedict Stuart (11 March 1725 – 13 July 1807), a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church

Following his death in 1766, his elder son, Charles Edward Stuart, continued the claim the British crown as part of the Jacobite Succession.

Incidentally, had James Frances Edward reigned as James III-VIII, he would have reigned as one of the longest British monarchs with his reign lasting 64 years, 3 months, 16 days. This would have been about a year longer than Queen Victoria but not as long as the present Queen, Elizabeth II, who has reigned, as of today, 66 years, 4 months, 4 days.

The name Louis and the British Monarchy: II

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1745, Battle of Culloden, Bonnie Prince Charlie, Charles Stuart, Duke of Brunswick, George I of Great Britain, Holy Roman Empire, House of Hanover, House of Stuart, James I of England, John III Sobieski of Poland, King James II-VII of England and Scotland, Kings and Queens of England, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, Louis, Maria Clementine of Poland, Queen Anne of Great Britain

As we have seen, England almost had a King Louis. It is interesting to speculate how things would have turned out had King John not died when he did. Forces were working against him as Louis was gaining ground and victory seemed assured until the sudden death of King John and the reversal of the Barons revolt. If Louis had succeeded English history would have unfolded much differently.

From 1217 until the 18th Century there was no prince with the name Louis even as a secondary name. From my research and the records I have read it seems that multiple names didn’t even begin until 17th century and even then there is only one case I know of: Prince Charles James, Duke of Cornwall, son of Charles I and elder brother of Charles II and James II-VII.

One early example of Louis as a secondary name within the British Royal Family is questionable. I interrupt my strict chronological narrative of this series to include this royal prince for I feel he should be counted and considered.

Prince Charles Edward Stuart

The person in question is Prince Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, and known to history as “Bonnie Prince Charlie,” the elder son of Prince James Francis Edward Stuart, Prince of Wales and the grandson of James II-VII and after 1766 the Stuart claimant to the throne of Great Britain.* I question if this is an example of the name “Louis” in the British Royal Family because during his lifetime he technically was not a member of the Royal Family since the House of Hanover was on the throne at this time. However, for the sake of this discussion, I will overlook this technicality and include him as a prince of Britain to carry the name Louis. Also, I am not aware of any legal restrictions of the title of prince placed on the exiled Stuart line and most historians do view the exiled Stuarts as being British princes.

In full his name was Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart (December 31, 1720 – January 31, 1788). Besides being known as Bonnie Prince Charlie, during his lifetime he was also known as “The Young Pretender” or “The Young Chevalier” and to his supporters he was King Charles III of England, Scotland and Ireland. He is best remembered for his role in the 1745 uprising and defeat at the Battle of Culloden in April 16, 1746 to unseat the House of Hanover and place himself on the throne. The loss at Culloden effectively ended the Stuart cause against the House of Hanover and the subsequent attempts at a planned French invasion in 1759 failed to materialize. Prince Charles’ dramatic escape from Scotland after the failed uprising led him to be portrayed as a romantic figure of heroic failure in later representations of stories and songs.

* During Prince Charles life time the kingdom he tried to rule over was the Kingdom of Great Britain which came into being with the Act of Union of 1707 which united the crowns of England and Scotland into one nation. However, many Jacobites (the supporters of the the exiled Stuart line) did not recognize this union and still considered the three kingdoms as being separate.

Prince Charles string of names does highlight his heritage. The name Casimir denotes the Polish heritage of his mother, Maria Clementina Sobieska, the granddaughter of John III Sobieski of Poland. The name Louis stems from their cousin Louis XIV and Louis XV of France. Louis XIV was the first cousin to Prince Charles’ grandfather, James II-VII, who first gave the Stuarts support in exile and Louis XV also gave financial support to the exiled Stuarts.

In this blog I try my best to use the names of these individuals in their native tongue. For example, I never call the last German Emperor by the English translation of his name, William II, I call him by the German translation, Wilhelm II. However, for this series, I will render all German names in their English translation.

King George I of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Prince-Elector of the Holy Roman Empire.

The first member of the British Royal Family with the secondary name of Louis was King George I of Great Britain (May 28, 1660 – June 11, 1727). His name in English was George-Louis. In German it was Georg-Ludwig. He was the eldest son of Ernest-Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, and his wife, Sophia of the Palatinate. Sophia was the granddaughter of King James I-VI of England, Scotland and Ireland through her mother, Elizabeth of Bohemia. George-Louis’ father died on January 23, 1698, leaving all of his territories and titles to George-Louis with the exception of the Prince-Bishopric of Osnabrück, an office he had held since 1661. George-Louis thus became Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (also known as Hanover, after its capital) as well as Archbannerbearer and a Prince-Elector of the Holy Roman Empire. In his German lands this new Elector of Hanover was known by his double names, Georg-Ludwig.

George-Louis’ mother, the Electress Sophia of Hanover, was the designated hier to the British throne according to the Act of Settlement of 1701. She was selected as heiress to the British throne in order to exclude the Catholic line of the House of Stuart from the succession. She was the nearest descendent of James I-VI that was Protestant. However, she never became Queen of Great Britain, She died on May 28, 1714 at the age of 83….it was her son, George-Louis’ 54th birthday. The Electress Sophia had collapsed in the gardens at Herrenhausen after rushing to shelter from a shower of rain. George-Louis was now Queen Anne’s heir presumptive.

Queen Anne herself shortly thereafter suffered a stroke, which left her unable to speak, and she died on August 1, 1714. Elector George-Louis of Hanover was proclaimed King of Great Britain and Ireland. Instead of being King George-Louis of Great Britain the name Louis was dropped from his official name and title in Great Britain.

Stay Tuned next week for part III.

Death of King Robert III of Scotland.

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David II of Scotland, Duke of Albany, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Henry IV, Henry IV of England, House of Stuart, James I of Scotland, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, Robert III of Scotland, Robert the Bruce

On this date in History. April 4, 1406. Death of King Robert III of Scotland.

Robert III (c.1337/40 – April 4, 1406), born John Stewart, was King of Scots from 1390 to his death. He was known primarily as John, Earl of Carrick before ascending the throne. He was the eldest son of Robert II and Elizabeth Mure and was legitimated with the marriage of his parents in 1347.

In 1368 David II, King of Scots created John Earl of Carrick. His father became king Robert II in 1371 after the unexpected death of the childless King David II. Robert II’s claim to the throne of Scotland was as the nephew of David II and also as a grand son of Robert I (Robert the Bruce). Robert II was the son of the son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland and of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of the Scottish king Robert the Bruce by his first wife Isabella of Mar. This made Robert II the first Scottish king of the House of Stewart (Stuart)*

John Stewart, Earl of Carrick was influential in the government of the kingdom but became progressively more impatient at his father’s longevity. The Earl of CarrickRobert II died at Dundonald Castle in Ayrshire on April 19, 1390 and was buried at Scone on April 25. The Earl of Carrick was 53 years old when he ascended the Scottish throne.

In May 1390 the Scottish Parliament granted John permission to change his regnal name to Robert III probably in part to maintain the link back to Robert I but also to disassociate himself from unpopular King John Balliol.

In 1367 Robert III, then Earl of Carrick, married Annabella Drummond the daughter of Sir John Drummond, 11th Thane of Lennox and Mary Montifex, daughter of Sir William Montifex. They had seven children. The heir to the throne was David Stewart (24 October 1378 – 26 March 1402). He was the first Duke of Rothesay from 1398. He was named after his great-great-uncle, David II of Scotland, and also held the titles of Earl of Atholl (1398–1402) and Earl of Carrick (1390–1402).

In late February 1402, while travelling officially to St Andrews, David was arrested just outside the city at Strathtyrum in a sting operation which had been arranged by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany (c. 1340 – 3 September 1420), the younger brother of Robert III, King of Scots a ruthless politician. The Duke of Albany, at that time in complicit alliance with Archibald, fourth Earl of Douglas. (David’s father-in-law, the highly influential third Earl, had died two years before, in 1400.) concocted the pretext for David’s arrest was that his lieutenancy had expired. He was initially held captive in St Andrews Castle, and soon afterwards taken to Falkland Palace, Albany’s residence in Fife. At Falkland David remained a prisoner and shortly died there, reputedly of starvation. A few weeks later, in May 1402, a public enquiry into the circumstances of David’s death exonerated Albany of all blame.

Following David, the Duke of Rothesay’s death, and with the restoration of the lieutenancy to Albany and the Scottish defeat at the battle of Humbleton, Robert III experienced almost total exclusion from political authority and was limited to his lands in the west.

By October 28, 1405 Robert III had returned to Dundonald Castle in Ayrshire. With the king’s health failing, it was decided in the winter of 1405–6 to send the young prince James, now heir to the throne after his brothers death, to France out of the reach of the Duke of Albany. On March 22, 1406 the ship was taken by English pirates off Flamborough Head, who delivered James to King Henry IV of England. Robert III had moved to Rothesay Castle where, after hearing of his son’s captivity, died on April 4, 1406, and was buried in Paisley Abbey, which had been founded by the Stewarts.

James Stewart, succeeded Robert III as James I, King of Scots (although at that time remaining uncrowned and in captivity in England) while the Duke of Albany secured himself as de facto ruler of Scotland.

* Stewart was the original spelling for the name of the Royal House. It was after the reign of Mary I, Queen of Scots and her time in France did the spelling of the Royal House change to Stuart, the French form of the name.

This date in History: House of Stewart ascends the Scottish throne.

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David II of Scotland, House of Bruce, House of Stewart, House of Stuart, Kingdom of Scotland, Robert I, Robert II of Scotland, Robert the Bruce

On this date. In History, February 22, 1371: David II, King of Scots died and was succeed by his nephew as Robert II, King of Scots, first monarch of the House of Stewart (Stuart).

David II (March 5, 1324 – February 1371) was King of Scots from 1329 until his death, and the last male of the House of Bruce. Although David spent long periods in exile or captivity, he managed to resist English attempts to annex the Scottish kingdom, and left the monarchy in a strong position for his nephew.

David II was the elder and only surviving son of Robert I of Scotland and his second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh. He was born on March 5, 1324 at Dunfermline Abbey, Fife. His mother died in 1327. In accordance with the Treaty of Northampton’s terms, David II was married on July 17, 1328 to Joan of the Tower, daughter of Edward II of England and Isabella of France, at Berwick-upon-Tweed. They had no issue.

David II died unexpectedly and at the height of his power in Edinburgh Castle on February 22, 1371. He was buried in Holyrood Abbey. At the time of his death, he was planning to marry his mistress, Agnes Dunbar(niece of Agnes Randolph, also known as “Black Agnes of Dunbar”). He left no children and was succeeded by his nephew, Robert II, the son of David’s half-sister Marjorie Bruce. He was the last male of the House of Bruce.

Robert II (March 2, 1316 – April 19, 1390) reigned as King of Scots from 1371 to his death as the first monarch of the House of Stewart. He was the son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland and of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of the Scottish king Robert the Bruce by his first wife Isabella of Mar.

Edward Bruce, younger brother of Robert the Bruce, was named heir to the throne but he died without legitimate children on December 3, 1318 in a battle near Dundalk in Ireland. Marjorie by this time had died in a riding accident – probably in 1317. Parliament decreed her infant son, Robert Stewart, as heir presumptive, but this lapsed on March 5, 1324 on the birth of a son, David, to King Robert and his second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh. Robert Stewart inherited the title of High Steward of Scotland on his father’s death on April 9, 1326, and a Parliament held in July 1326 confirmed the young Steward as heir should Prince David die without a successor. In 1329 King Robert I died and the six-year-old David succeeded to the throne with Sir Thomas Randolph, Earl of Morayappointed Guardian of Scotland.

David was buried at Holyrood Abbey almost immediately but an armed protest by William, Earl of Douglas delayed Robert II’s coronation until March 26, 1371. The reasons for the incident remain unclear but may have involved a dispute regarding Robert’s right of succession, or may have been directed against George Dunbar, Earl of March and the southern Justiciar, Robert Erskine. It was resolved by Robert giving his daughter Isabella in marriage to Douglas’s son, James and with Douglas replacing Erskine as Justiciar south of the Forth. Robert’s accession did affect some others who held offices from David II. In particular, George Dunbar’s brother John Dunbar, the Lord of Fife who lost his claim on Fife and Sir Robert Erskine’s son, Sir Thomas Erskine who lost control of Edinburgh Castle.

Survival of Monarchies: England Part III

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English Civil War, France, Glorious Revolution, House of Stuart, King James II-VII of England and Scotland, Kings and Queens of England, William III and Mary II, William III of England and Scotland

The Glorious Revolution of 1688 was when Parliament became supreme and limited the power of the Crown. Although the Glorious Revolution did limit the powers of the monarch it would take a few hundred years until the monarchy became the constitutional and symbolized figurehead monarchy we see today. It has been this gradual limiting of the powers of the crown that has allowed the British monarchy to survive, and thrive, to this very day.

The Revolution resolved the struggle between Crown and Parliament and it also helped settle the religious struggles within the country. Basically at its heart it was a revolution that deposed King James II-VII of England and Scotland. In 1679 Parliament wanted to exclude James from the succession due to his Catholicism. To be Catholic in a Protestant England at that time was troublesome even if you were the king. During his reign James did not do what others feared, nor what his predecessor Mary I did, and tried to revive Catholicism and make it the official religion of England. No, James did what his brother Charles II did and promoted religious tolerance. Sadly these enlightened kingly brothers were way ahead of their times. England had little tolerance for religious tolerance if that religious tolerance included acceptance of Catholics.

What kept James II-VII on his throne was the knowledge that eventually his Protestant daughter, Princess Mary, would succeed him. Mary was married to her first cousin Prince Willem III of Orange, who was next in line to the throne after Mary and her sister, Princess Anne. Prince Willem III of Orange was the Stadholder of the Netherlands and the son of Willem II of Orange and his wife, Princess Mary of England and Scotland, daughter of Charles I of England and Scotland. Willem II was in constant battle with the Catholic King of France, Louis XIV, who also happened to be the first cousin to King James II-VII.

In 1673 as the Duke of York, James married his second wife, Mary Beatrice d’Este of Modena, the elder child of Alfonso IV, Duke of Modena, and his wife, Laura Martinozzi. The new Duchess of York was a devout Catholic and numerous pregnancies ended in either miscarriages or sickly children that did not live long which seemed to assure a Protestant succession. However, after James came to the throne Mary-Beatrice delivered a healthy son, Prince James Francis Edward, shortly thereafter created Prince of Wales. This solidified the fact that the successor to James II-VII would be another Catholic king. This was not acceptable to many people including Parliament and Prince Willem III of Orange himself who was considerably anti-Catholic and did not want to see his wife’s chance on the throne (and his) slip away.

It is interesting to note that historians greatly debate whether or not the birth of a Catholic Prince of Wales was the reason for James being overthrown. The truth it seems is that James was so unpopular that Willem III of Orange was planning to invade England prior to the birth of the Catholic heir. Willem did not want to be seen as an invader and therefore asked members of Parliament to conduct an act of treason by inviting him to come to England and take the throne. When seven brave members of Parliament achieved this honor, Willem began assembling his fleet and waited for the right moment to invade. When France was engaged in a battle in Germany Willem sailed his fleet to England and came ashore on 5/15 November 1688. James II-VII showed little resistance and on December 10, 1688 the king, queen and Prince of Wales fled to France.

With James II-VII now exiled in France Willem took control of the provisional government and called for a Conventional Parliament. His legal right to do so was questionable but this was a time of revolution. This new Parliament consisted of many loyal monarchists who had sat in Parliament under Charles II. The English Convention Parliament was very divided on the issue of who should wear the crown. The radical Whigs in the Lower House proposed to elect Willem as a king (meaning that his power would be derived from the people); the moderates wanted an acclamation of William and Mary together; the Tories wanted to make him regent only and acclaim Mary as Queen.

On January 28 a committee of the whole House of Commons promptly decided by acclamation that James II-VII had broken “the original contract” had “abdicated the government” and had left the throne “vacant.” The House of Lords rejected the wording of the acclimation and what followed were weeks of debate on the wording of the acclimation and who should be the monarch. Princess Anne, next-in-line after her sister, declared that she would temporarily waive her right to the crown should Mary die before William. Mary, for her part, refused to be made queen without William as king by her side, paving the way for the inevitable mounting of the throne of Willem III of Orange onto the English & Scottish thrones. The Lords on February 6 changed their minds and avoiding a possible civil war now accepted the words “abdication” and “vacancy.” in the House of Commons acclimation. On February 13, 1689 Willem III of Orange along with his wife were offered the Crown by Parliament and then became joint sovereigns as King William III and Queen Mary II of England and Scotland.

Parliament had decided the succession and the power to name the monarch and regulate the succession has been in their hands ever since. The next step was to limit the power of the Crown and this was through the establishment of the Bill of Rights which I will examine next week.

Titles, Titles, Titles

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2012. Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Elizabeth II, England, House of Stuart, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, Ireland, King Charles I of England and Scotland. King Henri IV of France. The princess of Wales, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Princess Royal, Scotland, Wales

As I have stated in this blog in the past many people mistakenly call Queen Elizabeth II the “Queen of England.” It is a pet peeve of mine. Her actual title is Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. However, I do miss the old titles of King/Queen of England and King/Queen of Scots. Changes are happening within the UK that will affect the titles of the monarch. With the change in succession laws there will need to be changes in the title of the heir to the throne. Also with states within the UK seeking greater autonomy could we possibly see a return to the old titles of of King/Queen of England and King/Queen of Scots?

Issue #1. When Britain changes to cognatic primogeniture where the eldest child will inherit the throne regardless of gender what will happen to these titles of Prince/Princess of Wales and Princess Royal. Right now the title of Princes of Wales has gone to the senior male heir to the throne and the title Princess of Wales has never been given in its own right and has traditionally gone to the wife of the Prince of Wales. For example, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, wife of the current Prince of Wales, is technically and legally HRH The Princess of Wales. She just doesn’t use the title out of respect fro Diana. 

The title of Princess Royal is relatively new. It was first given to Princess Mary of England and Scotland (1630-1661) of the Royal House of Stuart. Mary’s mother, Queen Henrietta Maria (1609-1669), daughter of Henri IV, King of France, and wife of King Charles I of England and Scotland (1600-1649), wanted to imitate the way the eldest daughter of the King of France was styled “Madame Royale”. The style is granted by Royal Warrant.

Will an eldest daughter be given the title Princess of Wales in her own right? Will there be a Princess Royal only when there is a male heir?

Personally I think the current holder of the title Princess Royal, Princess Anne, will be the last. If the eldest daughter can be eligible for the throne ahead of her brother then this title becomes pointless. One solution, which is what I think will happen, is that the title of Princess of Wales will be given in its own right. I am not sure what the husband of a Princess of Wales will be called. It may not seem fair that the husband should not share his wife’s titles…but having a husband of the Princess of Wales being called Prince of Wales when he is not the heir goes against the tradition. I know, I know there is a double standard.

The other option, which I actually like better, is to return the title of Prince/Princess of Wales to the Crown (see issue #2) and have the heir to the throne titled Duke/Duchess of Cornwall while in England and Duke/Duchess of Rothesay while in Scotland. This has some precidence since the current Prince of Wales is known as the Duke of Rothesay whenever he is in Scotland.

Issue #2. In 2014 there will be a referendum on Scottish independence. I am not sure how it will go. What I think this issue does raise is the need for greater political autonomy within the UK. I don’t necessarily want to see the UK dismantled, but I would like to see each state have more autonomy. If that were to happen then I would like to see the title of the monarch reflect that position. I think the precedence for the titles can be found in Spain.

Although it was correct to call the monarch the King/Queen of Spain in the past, their official title never was simply the King/Queen of Spain. Instead, prior to 1931 the title of the Spanish monarch was officially His Catholic Majesty, the King of Spain [the Spains], King of Castile, of León, of Aragon, of the Two Sicilies, etc. Therefore if England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland were to have greater autonomy I would like to see, in the next reign more likely, Charles III be called King of the United Kingdom, King of England, King of Scots, King of Ireland and Prince of Wales. If Wales has equal autonomy within the UK then the title “Prince of Wales” should represent the Head of State of that nation instead of being reserved for the heir to the Head of State.

I do not know if any of this will come to pass but I do think some changes will occur in the future with these royal titles. It is fun to speculate about them and it will be fun to watch what happens.