What does "Pretender to the Throne" mean?
Someone who thinks they ought to be monarch, or at least the next monarch, but doesn't actually have a proper claim. In UK history the most famous ones were James Francis Edward Stuart, son of James II, and his son Charles Edward, better known as Bonnie Prince Charlie.James II had got the boot in the Glorious Revolution and Parliament had passed a law to ban Catholics from being monarch. This made James' Protestant daughter Mary and her line the legal monarchs, leading to the Hanoverian dynasty in 1714. James II son, James Francis Edward, 'the Old Pretender', had a go at taking the throne anyway, resulting in the 1715 Jacobite rebellion. Bonnie Prince Charlie, 'the Young Pretender' tried again in 1745.
Why do pretenders to the British throne have to be descendants of Sophia of Hanover? She was never Queen of anything, was she?
Sophia of Hanover was a Stuart. This was the link whereby George of Hanover was invited to be the Protestant King of the UK.James II (Stuart) was overthrown by his daughter Mary and her husband (who was also her first cousin) William of Orange. These two had equal claims to the British Crown BUT James II was the rightful king. The UK government called this act the Glorious Revolution. The last Stuart Monarch was Queen Anne (another daughter of James II). Queen Anne endured multiple miscarriages and children dying young. When Anne died there was no heir. James tried to make a comeback in 1715 but parliament would not have it. James was popular in Scotland and Ireland but he would not renounce his Catholicism. This is why Protestant George was supported by the English.Bonnie Prince Charlie had another uprising in 1745. We know how that turned out too.
Why doesn't Scotland have a king or queen, despite being one of the kingdoms that make up the UK?
It does.When Queen Elizabeth I of England died childless in 1603, her crown passed to King James VI of Scotland. Under James, the Scottish and English crowns effectively merged into one, and that remains the case to this day.Hence why the Royal Coats of Arms feature a lion (the national animal of England) and a unicorn (the national animal of Scotland).The first version above is the Royal Coat of Arms used by the British Sovereign (currently Elizabeth II) in England, with the lion on the right, in pride of place. The second is the Royal Coat of Arms used by the Sovereign in Scotland, with the unicorn in pride of place. In each, the lion and unicorn flank a shield displaying the Royal Standards of the United Kingdom: the three lions (or ‘leopards’) of England, the lion rampant of Scotland and the gold harp of Ireland (which now represents Northern Ireland alone).*Elizabeth II is as much Queen of Scotland as she is Queen of England, though she’s irritatingly called only the latter by many (looking at you, America). It’s more accurate to call her Queen of the United Kingdom, which is less of a mouthful than her full title:Queen Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain** and Northern Ireland, and of her other realms and territories.In fact, as a Scottish king united the thrones of Scotland and England, it may be more accurate to say England is without a king/queen! ;-)*As an English principality, Wales was represented by England’s Royal Standard.**Great Britain = Scotland, England and Wales
Do the Plantagenet descendents still have claim to English throne?
I'm a direct (not illegitimate) descendent from the Plantagenet's. Here is my line: Charles Eulice Smith Ella Avaline Beason Curtis Jasper Beason James Harkey Beason Curtis Grubb Beason Edward Beeson Benjamin Beeson Charity Grubb Francis Vane Francis Wray Sir. Christopher Wray Frances Drury Elizabeth Strafford Dorothy Stafford Ursula Pole Princess Margaret Plantagenet George Plantagenet Richard Plantagenet Richard Plantagenet (Was stripped of all titles and rights and beheaded, this is where our family loses royalty) Edmund King Edward III (born @ Windsor Castle) Edward II Edward I Henry III John of England Richard I of England Henry the Young King Henry II of England So, researching, I have found that even though Margaret Plantagenet-Pole was the "last Plantagenet heir to the throne", BUT...Ursula, Dorothy, and Elizabeth all had a "claim" to the English throne. So, I suppose my question is this: Do direct descendents of the Plantagenet throne still have a claim to the English throne? (I get that it will never be recognized, taken into action, etc. I'm just geniunely curious) Thank you all and God bless!!!
Is this true? "Queen Elizabeth II is twice descended from Brian Boru" The latter was a native Irish King of Ireland back in the 11th century?
Came across this in another question and answer, here https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index... Find it hard to believe, very, very interesting if true. Someone called Isabella de Clare was mentioned? Thanks.
Who had a longer reign Queen Elizabeth or King James?
QE II Currently the third longest-reigning English monarch, she would overtake King George III in 2012. On Sept. 9, 2015 she would pass Queen Victoria, who ruled for almost 64 years, as the longest-reigning. Oh crap! Did you mean QE I ? Sorry!
If Scotland became an independent country, could they have their own monarchy?
Elizabeth Queen of the ScotsAs counter intuitive as it sounds, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea all have their “own” monarchies. The title “Queen of Canada” is a “distinct constititional personality” of Elizabeth II. I think that if Scotland declares independence, it will have a separate monarchy too, so to speak, but it would be the same ruling family as in Canada and the rest.Allowing the Queen to have separate “constitutional personalities” was a clever British way of preserving the British monarchy as an institution throughout the old Commonwealth and also the Caribbean Commonwealth countries that had less ill feeling toward the empire after independence, such as Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Belize. I think it has served these countries’ needs because it is flexible and practical. It keeps the monarch from being an oppressive figure (she has no actual power), yet she represents historical ties with Britain, and her status supports the legal and political traditions that Britain bequeathed its former colonies.Still, it seems to have no basis in commonsense or indeed any historical grounds. How does the Queen of the United Kingdom maintain propriety when her different realms have disagreements?The Scottish say they like the Queen in opinion polls. I think she would be kept as the Scottish head of state. During the 2014 independence referendum, the Scottish National Party indicated they had no plan to declare a republic.The monarch would, however, have a further divided legal personality. It would put to the test the device of having distinct constitutional personalities. The royal family is in part directly Scottish, and they would actually reside there part of the year in Balmoral. Therefore, it would be at least slightly different from Canada, Jamaica, Australia, and the rest of the Queen’s “Commonwealth realms.”Would they have a Scottish governor-general? I don’t know. In light of history, it seems likely that some creative British legal framework would be invented so that it would appear to make historical sense even though it would be totally novel.