Royal History Today - February 28

1155 – Birth of Henry the Young King

     King Henry was the second of seven children born to Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine, but became his father's heir upon the death of his older brother, William. At the age of fifteen, he was crowned as a junior king in the presence of his father (in a move to avoid succession disputes), but was not given real power to exercise in his own right. The result was that he routinely rebelled against his father for more power and income from 1173 to his death in 1183. Upon his son's death, Henry II is said to have exclaimed: "He cost me much, but I wish he had lived to cost me more." 

1261 – Birth of Margaret of Scotland

     Born at Windsor Castle, Margaret was the daughter of Alexander III of Scotland and Margaret (Plantagenet) of England, the daughter of Henry III of England. At the age of 20, Margaret married 13 year old Eric II of Norway as part of a peace process between Scotland and Norway over territorial disputes. She became Queen of Norway in 1281, and gave birth to a daughter also named Margaret, but died soon afterwards. The younger Margaret would become Queen of Scots in 1286 following the death of her grandfather. 

1638 – The Scottish National Covenant is signed in Edinburgh

A replica flag of the Covenanter's at the National Museum of Scotland

     The Covenant bound the signee’s to maintain the Presbyterian doctrine as the sole form of religion in Scotland, and it was in response to Charles I attempting to introduce Anglican liturgy to the Scottish Church. Eventually, an army was raised to resist the King’s religious reforms and defeated him in the Bishop’s Wars. This was the beginning of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (the English Civil Wars, Scottish Civil Wars, and Irish Confederate Wars) of the 1640’s and early 1650’s, which eventually resulted in the execution of Charles I, the abolition of the monarchy, and the imposition of an 11 year republican regime in Britain and Ireland.


Photo Credit: Kim Traynor via Wikimedia Commons cc