This is a post summing up the basic facts about each of the Tudor monarchs. A future post will look at the consorts of the Tudor monarchs, including the six wives of Henry VIII, Phillip II of Spain and Elizabeth of York. Jane Grey is included.
Henry VII
Nicknames: the Huckster King, the Accountant King, the Winter King & the Usurper
Reigned: 22 August 1485 – 21 April 1509
Coronation: 30 October 1485
Born: 28 January 1457
Died: 21 April 1509
Parents: Edmund Tudor d. 1456 & Margaret Beaufort d. 1509
Surviving Siblings: None
Married: Elizabeth of York d. 1503
Children: Arthur d. 1502, Henry VIII d. 1547, Margaret d. 1541 & Mary d. 1533
Notable Executions: Edward Plantagenet (Earl of Warwick) 1499, Perkin Warbeck 1499, William Stanley 1495 & James Tuchet (Baron Audley) 1497
Notable Events: Restored the bankrupt exchequer, strengthened the English navy, introduced the Court of Star Chamber & improved trade
Henry VIII
Nicknames: Old Coppernose
Reigned: 21 April 1509 – 28 January 1547
Coronation: 24 June 1509
Born: 28 June 1491
Died: 28 January 1547
Parents: Henry VII d. 1509 & Elizabeth of York d. 1503
Surviving Siblings: Arthur d. 1502, Margaret d. 1541 & Mary d. 1533
Married: Katherine of Aragon d. 1536, Anne Boleyn d. 1536, Jane Seymour d. 1537, Anne of Cleves d. 1557, Katherine Howard d. 1542 & Katherine Parr d. 1548
Children: Mary I d. 1558, Henry d. 1536, Elizabeth I d. 1603 & Edward VI d. 1553
Notable Executions: Edward Stafford (Duke of Buckingham) 1521, Anne Boleyn 1536, Thomas Cromwell (Earl of Essex) 1540, Katherine Howard 1542 & Henry Howard (Earl of Surrey) 1547
Notable Events: The English Reformation and break with Rome 1530s, the divorce, the Pilgrimage of Grace 1536 & the Battle of the Spurs 1514
Edward VI
Nicknames: the Boy King & the Pious
Reigned: 28 January 1547 – 6 July 1553
Coronation: 20 February 1547
Born: 12 October 1537
Died: 6 July 1553
Parents: Henry VIII d. 1547 & Jane Seymour d. 1537
Surviving Siblings: Mary d. 1558, Elizabeth d. 1603 & Henry d. 1536
Married: Never
Children: None
Notable Executions: Thomas Seymour (Baron Sudeley) 1549 & Edward Seymour (Duke of Somerset) 1552
Notable Events: Protectorates of Duke of Somerset and Duke of Northumberland, introduction of the Book of Common Prayer & succession of Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey
Nicknames: the Usurper, the Nine Days Queen
Reigned: 10 July 1553 – 19 July 1553
Coronation: None.
Born: 1536/7
Died: 12 February 1554
Parents: Henry Grey Duke of Suffolk d. 1554 & Frances Grey nee Brandon d. 1559
Surviving Siblings: Katherine d. 1568 & Mary d. 1578
Married: Guildford Dudley d. 1554
Children: None
Notable Executions: None
Notable Events: Defeat by Mary I, executed a year later, only on the throne for nine days, forced into being Queen and into marrying Guildford Dudley, Wyatt’s 1554 rebellion
Mary I
Nicknames: Bloody Mary
Reigned: 19 July 1553 – 17 November 1558
Coronation: 1 October 1553
Born: 18 February 1516
Died: 17 November 1558
Parents: Henry VIII d. 1547 & Katherine of Aragon d. 1536
Surviving Siblings: Henry d. 1536, Edward d. 1553 & Elizabeth d. 1603
Married: Phillip II of Spain d. 1598
Children: None
Notable Executions: Lady Jane Grey 1554, John Dudley (Duke of Northumberland) 1553, Thomas Cranmer 1556, Henry Grey (Duke of Suffolk) 1554 & Hugh Latimer 1555
Notable Events: Restoration of papal authority, rebellion of Thomas Wyatt the Younger, imprisonment of Elizabeth I in the Tower & the quashing of Jane Grey’s rule
Elizabeth I
Nicknames: Gloriana, Good Queen Bess & the Virgin Queen
Reigned: 17 November 1558 – 24 March 1603
Coronation: 15 January 1559
Born: 7 September 1533
Died: 24 March 1603
Parents: Henry VIII d. 1547 & Anne Boleyn d. 1536
Surviving Siblings: Henry d. 1536, Edward d. 1553 & Mary d. 1558
Married: Never
Children: None
Notable Executions: Mary Queen of Scots 1587, Robert Devereux (Earl of Essex) 1601, Thomas Howard (Duke of Norfolk) 1572 & Thomas Percy (Earl of Northumberland) 1572
Notable Events: Defeat of the Spanish Armada 1588, death of Amy Robsart 1560, rebellion of the Earl of Essex 1601 & the succession crisis
Tudor Blogger 