Moments in Royal History - January 31

1606 - Execution of Guy Fawkes

Guy Fawkes, as depicted in the 1840's

     
     During the trial at Westminster Hall for Fawkes and the other Gunpowder Plot co-conspirators (which was attended in secret by King James and his family), Fawkes declared that he was not guilty. However, the outcome was not in serious doubt: not only had Fawkes been found guarding the deadly gunpowder with a fuse in his pocket, but he and a fellow co-conspirator had confessed to the crime in their adjacent prison cells, and this was picked by a government spy. With the overwhelming evidence mounted against him, Fawkes was found guilty of treason. 

     On the day in question, he and three other co-conspirators were dragged by horse from the Tower of London to the Old Palace Yard opposite of the Houses of Parliament. Fawkes was the last to face his ultimate fate, and on the scaffold, he begged for forgiveness from the King and the state, and performed a brief Catholic ritual. He managed to avoid the agony of his sentence by falling and breaking his neck, but nevertheless, his body was hanged and quartered, and its pieces were distributed throughout the kingdom to warn of the fate for those who commit treachery.

1788 - The passing of the Young Pretender

Charles Stuart, the Young Pretender as he appeared in his later years

 
     Charles Edward Stuart was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender), who in turn was the only son of James VII & II, the last Catholic monarch of Britain, who was deposed during the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89 and replaced by his Protestant son-in-law William and daughter Mary.

     Stuart attempted to regain the British throne in the name of his father and grandfather during the Jacobite Uprising of 1745. By this time, the throne had been occupied by the Hanoverians - the German Protestant cousins of the Stuarts - for 30 years, and now they and Britain were at war with France over the issue of Austrian Succession. There were rumblings of dissatisfaction with the Hanoverian regime, and Stuart, with the backing of Louis XV of France, believed that it was the right time to retake the throne, especially with many British soldiers preoccupied with the war on the Continent. He landed in Scotland, and made some gains on his road to London, but the campaign ended in a crushing defeat at the Battle of Culloden, which was the last battle fought on British soil and effectively ended the active pursuit of the throne by the Stuarts and their descendant Jacobite claimants.

     Charles Stuart - known to history as Bonnie Prince Charlie - lived the rest of life in Rome at the grace and favor of the pope. Upon his death, he had no living legitimate children and his claims to the throne were vested in his younger brother, Henry Benedict Stuart, who was cardinal in the Church and therefore also died without an heir, thereby ending the Royal House of Stuart.

On This Day: January 8

871 - Alfred the Great leads an English army to victory over the Danes.

 

Alfred was not yet king that day, but he acted like one.

     In 871, Alfred the Great lead a West Saxon (Wessex) army to repel an invasion by the Vikings at the Battle of Ashdown. At the time, Alfred's brother Æthelred was King of Wessex, but Æthelred wanted to engage in prayer before the battle, whilst Alfred was chomping at the bit to engage with the Danes led by King Bagsecg. Alfred left the King at the church and took his men to a victory over the invaders, though with heavy casualties on both sides - including King Bagsecg and five Danish earls. The result was that the Danes were driven eastward toward London.

1107 - Edgar, King of Scots dies in Edinburgh.

Seal of King Edgar

 
     In 1107, King Edgar of Scotland died at the age of 33. He was the fourth of son of King Malcolm III, but the first to be considered eligible for the throne. His mother Margaret was a sister of Edgar the Ætheling, the last Anglo-Saxon King of England, and so Edgar was a direct descendant of Alfred the Great. King Edgar's reign is known for peace treaty with Norway, under which Norwegian claims in the west of Scotland were recognized and a boundary was settled. Following his death, King Egdar was buried at Dunfermline Abbey.

1746 - Bonnie Prince Charlie captures Stirling.

The Young Pretender, as seen in a painting by John Pettie.

 In 1746, Charles Edward Stuart and his rebel forces occupied the Scottish town of Sterling during the Second Jacobite Uprising. Charles - popularly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Young Pretender - was the grandson of the deposed James VII & II, as well as the son of James Francis Edward Stuart - the Old Pretender. He was seeking to reclaim the British throne from his German cousin, George II, whose Protestant family had reigned in Britain since 1714 in order to avoid a succession by the Catholic Stuarts. This eventually resulted in failure, and it was the last attempt by the Stuarts and their descendants to regain the throne.

1864 - Birth of Prince Eddy, the King that never was.

If this man had become King, we never would have had Elizabeth II or the House of Windsor.

 
     In 1864, Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale was born at Frogmore House in Windsor. He was the eldest son of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales and Alexandra of Denmark (the future Edward VII and Queen Alexandra), and was known as Eddy among his family. Prince Eddy served in the Royal Navy and was the second in line to throne, but predeceased his father and grandmother, Queen Victoria in 1892 due to influenza. The result was that his younger brother Prince George moved up the line of succession, and eventually became King George V. To this day, rumors and conspiracy theories have suggested that Prince Eddy was Jack the Ripper. 

2004 - The christening of a new Queen.

The Queen Mary 2 in Southampton in June 2013.

     In 2004, Queen Elizabeth II christened the new Cunard liner, RMS Queen Mary 2, in Southampton. The QM2 is the world's largest ocean liner (as opposed to cruise ship), and is named for the RMS Queen Mary of 1936, which in turn is named after the reigning queen's grandmother, Queen Mary - the wife of George V.



Photo Credit: Odejea via Wikimedia Commons cc, Barry Skeates via Flickr cc

On This Day: December 22

Stephen, King of England

     On this day in 1135, Stephen of Blois became King of England. He was a nephew of Henry I, who died 21 days earlier. Henry named his daughter Matilda as his heir, but was in France, and Stephen seized the throne with the support of the nobility. Over the next two decades, Matilda would press her claim to the throne during a period of civil war known as The Anarchy. Eventually, it was agreed that Matilda's son Henry would be Stephen's heir upon his death, which occurred in 1154.

The Chelsea Pensioners taking part in the Opening Ceremony
for the 2012 London Summer Olympics.

     On this day in 1681, King Charles II issued a Royal Warrant that authorized the construction of The Royal Hospital, Chelsea. The hospital still serves as a retirement and nursing home for retired and injured British servicemen and women, who are popularly known as the Chelsea Pensioners.

James Stuart, the Old Pretender

     On this day in 1715, James Francis Edward Stuart - the only living son of the deposed Catholic king, James VII & II - arrived on British soil when he landed at Peterhead, Scotland to take the lead of the ongoing Jacobite Uprising. But the attempt to reclaim the throne from the recently-crowned German Protestant king, George I, failed and James eventually fled back to France.

Photo Credit: s*t*e*v*i*e via Flickr cc

Why Prince Charles May Become King George

Prince Charles visiting Jersey in 2012.

     In December 2005, it was reported by The Times that Prince Charles had private discussions among close friends in which he suggested the possibility of being known as King George VII, rather than King Charles III when he accedes to the throne. The Prince’s office responded to the report by saying that no decision had been made and that “it will be made at the time” of succession.

     Nonetheless, the speculation has carried on for the better part of the last eight years regarding what the future King of Great Britain and Northern Ireland wishes to be called, and such speculation was mentioned in a previous posting on this blog. It is often taken for granted that regnal (or "reign") names used by reigning monarchs are the same as their first name, but the reality is that there is past precedence for British monarchs to use a different name than the first name given at birth.

• Robert III of Scotland was born as John Stewart in 1337, and he became Earl of Carrick as the heir to his father, the first

  

  Robert III, King of Scotland.

  Stewart king of Scotland, Robert II. When he succeeded to the Scottish throne in 1390, he decided to adopt the name Robert as a tribute to his great-grandfather, Robert I (the Bruce), who defeated Edward II of England and the English army at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, and secured Scottish independence in 1328. The name “John” also drew negative connotations with John Balliol, the Scottish king who was a puppet of Edward I of England, and was then humiliated by Edward when Balliol attempted to assert his authority as an independent monarch. (The name “John” is also seen as bad luck on the English half of the monarchy. King John of England lost several military campaigns and territories to France, became unpopular with his domestic policies, battled with Pope Innocent III over the appointment of the Archbishop of Canterbury (and lost), and was forced to sign Magna Carta.)

Coronation portrait of the young Queen Victoria by George Hayter.

• Queen Victoria’s full name was Alexandrina Victoria, and throughout her childhood, she was known among family and friends as “Drina”. However, she was styled as Princess Victoria of Kent from birth, and upon her succession to the throne in 1837 following the death of her uncle, William IV, she decided to be known as queen by her middle name.

Edward VII portrayed by
Vanity Fair in 1902.

• Edward VII was named Albert Edward when he was born in 1841, and was known as such throughout his time as Prince of Wales and heir to the throne. The first name of Albert was chosen in honor of his father, Prince Albert, whilst the middle name of Edward was chosen in memory of his maternal grandfather, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent. Among family and friends, he was known as “Bertie”. Queen Victoria intended for her son to use Albert Edward as his regnal name, but upon his accession in 1901 he decided only to be known as Edward, because he wished that the name of Albert should stand alone in its reference to his father.

George VI.

• George VI was born as Albert Frederick Arthur George, and like his grandfather Edward VII, was known among family and friends as “Bertie”. As the second son of George V, he was not expected to become king, for that was a destiny reserved for his eldest brother, Edward (who was known among family and friends by one of his middle names, David). However, Edward VIII abdicated within 12 months of his accession, and Albert succeeded him as George VI in December 1936. The new king took his middle name as his regnal name so as to emphasize the sense of continuity and stability that had been established by his father (and nearly destroyed by his brother).

     So, not only is there precedence for using a regnal name that differs from the first name, but three of the last six monarchs starting with Queen Victoria have done this. 


  But why might Prince Charles choose to be George VII and not Charles III? 


     Well for starters, his name in full is Charles Philip Arthur George Mountbatten-Windsor, so he has the choice of using either

King Charles I by Daniël Mijtens.

his first name, or any of his middle names – though he is under no obligation to use any of them. He may want to avoid being Charles III because the name is seen as having an unhappy history in Britain. King Charles I remains the only reigning British monarch to have been tried and executed by his people, and his decapitation marked the beginning of the only republican period in British history. His son Charles II presided over the restoration of the monarchy, but also had the misfortune of being king during the Great Plague and Great Fire of London. He also engaged in fruitless wars against the Dutch, and battled with Parliament over the issue of excluding his brother James Stuart, Duke of York (the future James VII & II) from the succession due to his Catholicism. Charles was also known for his hedonistic and playboy lifestyle, in which he fathered at least twelve illegitimate children through several women. 

     The future king may also avoid using his first name because of

The would-be King Charles III.

sensitivities toward Jacobitism. The Jacobites (whose name is derived from the Latin form of “James”) were originally the supporters of James VII & II who believed that he was wrongly deposed in the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89 for being a Roman Catholic. Among those who pressed the Jacobite claim to the throne was James’s grandson, Charles Edward Stuart, popularly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie (the Young Pretender) and referred to as Charles III by the Jacobites. He was decisively defeated at the Battle of Culloden in 1746, which marked the final attempt by the Jacobites to reclaim the British throne, as well as the last pitched battle on British soil. Nevertheless, to this day, there is a small band of Jacobite groups in Britain who regard the official line of succession since 1689 (legislated by Parliament) as illegitimate and illegal, and recognize Duke Francis of Bavaria – the most senior Jacobite claimant – as the rightful king. 

     In contrast, the Prince of Wales may prefer becoming George VII as a tribute to his grandfather George VI, a king who endeared himself to his people for his moral leadership during World War II. King George and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) stayed in the United Kingdom during the Blitz, survived a direct air attack on Buckingham Palace, and traveled around the country to stand in solidarity with their people during the hardships and struggles on the home front. As was already said, George VI also represented the stability and continuity of the monarchy following the abdication crisis of Edward VIII. 

     In my opinion, the Prince should go ahead with using his first name as his regnal name. For one thing, the name “Charles” has not been used in over 300 years, but “George” has been used six times in since 1714. It would be nice to see this old name make an appearance (like the name “Elizabeth” being used by a reigning monarch after 349 years), so that there may be some variety in the name choices, especially given that his grandson is named George. As for the Jacobite issue, it concerns only a small group of discontented people for whom living in the past and ignoring the realities of the present – among them being that none of the Jacobite heirs since 1746 has claimed the throne – appears to be a pastime. Furthermore, since we have come to know the Prince as 

George IV's excessive self-indulgence nearly
ruined the reputation of the monarchy.

“Charles” for so long, it may be impossible for us to think of him by a different name. Also, it is not as if the name “George” has not had its own misfortunes as the name of kings in Britain. George III was the “king who lost America” and experienced bouts of apparent mental illness throughout the latter part of his reign. His son George IV was a hedonistic playboy who became massively obese (through copious amounts of food, alcohol, and drugs) and went into indebtedness to fund his lavish and expensive tastes in areas such as music, art, and architecture. Such excesses in his lifestyle helped to make George unpopular and debased the meaning of the monarchy, whose own popularity and finances did not recover until Queen Victoria and Prince Albert introduced middle-class “morality” and fiscal prudence to the institution. 

     When one thinks about it, the name “George” may have become tarnished to the extent that Victoria and Albert decided against using it as a first name for any of their sons. Their eldest son, Albert Edward (the future Edward VII), named his first son Albert Victor

The Queen's grandfather may have restored
honor to the name George during his reign.

Christian Edward, who was known as Eddy in the family, whilst his second son was named George Frederick Ernest Albert and was not expected to become king. But Prince Eddy died of influenza in 1892, and Prince George became second in line to the throne – eventually becoming King George V in 1910. Both George V and his second son Albert, who became George VI, are widely viewed as successful and beloved monarchs. Seen in this context, it would appear that the success of the last two George’s may have revived the fortunes of that name being used by members of the royal family. Perhaps something similar may same happen to the name “Charles” if the Prince of Wales decides on using it when he accedes to the throne. 

     At the end of the day, it is Charles’s decision as to what name he will take, and his alone. In fact, it is one of the first decisions that he will make in his reign. When Elizabeth II was informed of her accession in 1952, her assistant private secretary asked what she wanted to be called as monarch, and she replied, “Oh, my own name; what else?” Perhaps Charles may choose a name that has not been discussed, such as his other middle names, which would make him the first king to be named either Philip* or Arthur. Still yet, he will be within his prerogative to choose another name not given to him at birth, but this is unlikely since most precedence has been on the side of choosing a given name. The fact that such a decision has not yet been made – at least according to the Prince’s office – may indicate that Charles wants to be thoughtful in choosing a name that will set the right tone for the start of his reign, when and if that day should come.

*Philip II of Spain was King of England and Ireland, but only by right of being the husband of Queen Mary I. Such a claim to a title/office is known as jure uxoris (Latin for “by right of wife”), and his name is not always included in lists of English/British monarchs.


Photo Credit: Dan Marsh via Wikimedia Commons cc