The oldest monarch at the start of his reign was Charles III aged 73 years, 298 days when he became king in 2022. Prior to this, William IV had held this record since 1830, becoming king aged 64 years, 308 days.
The current oldest living member of the British royal family is Katharine (born 1933), who is the eleventh longest-living British royal and the current Duchess of Kent. Elizabeth II was the longest ever reigning British monarch. She died on September 8 2022, aged 96.
Queen Elizabeth II became the longest-reigning monarch in British history on 9 September 2015 when she surpassed the reign of her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria. On 6 February 2017 she became the first British monarch to celebrate a Sapphire Jubilee, commemorating 65 years on the throne.
As it happens, Prince Philip was not the oldest ever member of the Royal Family. The Guinness World Record for the Oldest Royal actually belongs to Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester. Princess Alice became the oldest known royal in history when she reached the age of 101 years and 269 days on September 20, 2003.
The coronation of King William IV and Queen Adelaide of the United Kingdom took place on Thursday, 8 September 1831, over fourteen months after he succeeded to the throne of the United Kingdom at the age of 64, the oldest person to assume the monarchy until King Charles III in 2022.
1547-1553) Edward VI became king at the age of nine upon the death of his father, Henry VIII, and a Regency was created. Although he was intellectually precocious (fluent in Greek and Latin, he kept a full journal of his reign), he was not, however, physically robust.
"Being born into or living in poverty has been shown to be one of the most important factors that shortens lifespan – and it is here that perhaps the royals have the greatest advantage," explains Olshansky. Several studies have shown this link, including a 1992 study, which focused on life expectancy in Britain.
by Ellen Castelow. Tragic Lady Jane Grey is remembered in British history as the monarch with the shortest reign… just nine days. Why was Lady Jane Grey's reign as Queen of England so short? Lady Jane Grey was the eldest daughter of Henry Grey, Duke of Suffolk and she was the great-grand-daughter of Henry VII.
The Romans ruled Britain for nearly 400 years from 43 AD to 410 AD. They left Britain to defend their homeland in Italy which was being threatened by barbarians such as the Goths and the Vandals. The Western Roman Empire collapsed in 476 AD.
Directly descended from Edward VII, Queen Elizabeth is Victoria's great-great granddaughter. In 2015, she surpassed Victoria as the longest reigning British monarch in history, and this year, becomes the country's first ever to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee.
Mary II of England - Wikipedia
, who gave birth to a stillborn child in 1678, prior to her accession, when she was just 16. The youngest mother to give birth to a monarch was Lady Margaret Beaufort, wife of Edmund Tudor, who was 13 years and almost 8 months when she gave birth to Henry VII in 1457.
The bloodline of the current royal family can be traced back some 1,209 years! This covers 37 generations and goes all the way back to the 9th century.
The first king of all of England was Athelstan (895-939 AD) of the House of Wessex, grandson of Alfred the Great and 30th great-granduncle to Queen Elizabeth II. The Anglo-Saxon king defeated the last of the Viking invaders and consolidated Britain, ruling from 925-939 AD.
1542-1567) Born at Linlithgow Palace, West Lothian on 8 December 1542, Mary became Queen of Scots when she was six days old. Her claims to the throne of England were almost as strong as her claims to the Scottish throne.
In Denmark, the monarchy goes back to the legendary kings before the 10th century and the Danish monarchy is the oldest in Europe (with the first attested historical king being Ongendus around the year 710).
Hemophilia is sometimes referred to as “the royal disease,” because it affected the royal families of England, Germany, Russia and Spain in the 19th and 20th centuries. Queen Victoria of England, who ruled from 1837-1901, is believed to have been the carrier of hemophilia B, or factor IX deficiency.
Royals have been marrying their cousins since time immemorial, traditionally as a means of strengthening political alliances. What might be surprising though is that members of the royal family have continued to marry their cousins, right up to the present day!
The Queen's funeral and Prince Charles' coronation will become national holidays. On the day of the funeral, the London Stock Exchange will close.
Henry VIII (1509-1547)
Henry VIII is undoubtedly one of the most infamous kings in English history, widely known for his ruthless ways and six wives, two of which were beheaded.
Jehoash was 7 years old when his reign began, and he reigned for 40 years. (2 Kings 12:1, 2 Chronicles 24:1) He was succeeded by his son, Amaziah of Judah.
Akbar ascended the Mughal throne when he was 13 years old.