British Monarchy – Page 5

On this day in history….2nd August 1100

On this day in history : 2nd August 1100 – King William II of England is killed by an arrow while hunting in the New Forest – after supposedly being mistaken for a deer….

William was the third son of William the Conqueror and was often known as William Rufus on account of his ruddy complexion and red hair…. He was not a popular king; as well as levying heavy taxes on his subjects he was considered as a harsh, severe and ruthless monarch….a barbarian, with no respect for his people…. He wasn’t on particularly good terms with the Church either….

The story goes, according to Malmesbury in his circa 1128 book ‘Chronicle of the Kings of the English’, something like this…. William had an ominous dream, which filled him with trepidation…. But nevertheless, the following afternoon he went into the forest, near to Brockenhurst, on a hunting expedition…. Whilst most of the party went on the chase William remained, attended by Frenchman Walter Tyrrell, Lord of Poix…. As the sun began to go down a stag ran through the trees nearby – the King took up his bow and fired an arrow – but only managed to slightly wound the stag…. As the King stood, with his hand shielding his eyes against the sun to watch the stag run, Walter attempted a shot…. But the arrow struck William – and Walter jumped on his horse and fled….

Whilst it had always been widely accepted that William’s death was an accident there has also always been the niggling question as to whether he was actually assassinated…. Some believe Walter was acting on behalf of William’s younger brother, Henry, who had a wish to claim the throne….

Indeed, when looking at the story that emerges from what the historians have pieced together, it does seem to be a little more than simply a tragic accident…. The hunting party consisted of William Rufus, Walter Tyrrell, Gilbert and Roger de Clare and William’s younger brother Henry…. The party divided into two groups in order to chase the deer and wild boar…. Walter, who was the King’s best archer, paired with the King – and it does appear that he fired the fatal arrow…. Some accounts say he saw a movement in the trees and fired, thinking it to be a deer…. Others say he fired an arrow to finish off the stag that the King had wounded – only for it to hit an oak tree, bounce back and strike William in the chest, piercing his lung…. By breaking off the arrow William managed to speed up his own death…. Walter, fearing the consequences, fled to France never to return….

Death of William II – Lithograph 1895 – Public domain

Henry’s reaction was a little suspicious…. Instead of claiming his brother’s body he dashed off to the Treasury at Winchester to declare himself the new King of England…. The de Clares, being loyal supporters of Henry, were rewarded handsomely for their loyalty…. Nobody went after Walter…. William Rufus’s body was found by a charcoal burner – and it was he who carried the dead king back to Winchester….

In recent years there has been some doubt cast on the exact location of William’s death – some think it may have actually happened in the Beaulieu area…. But at the place where legend says it occurred stands the Rufus Stone….and inscribed upon it….

‘Here stood the oak tree, on which the arrow shot by Sir Walter Tyrrell at a stag, glanced and struck King William the Second, surnamed Rufus, on the breast, of which he instantly died, on the second day of August, anno 1100’….

A mature oak tree stands alongside….not the original one of course – but perhaps from one of its acorns?

The Rufus Stone – Image credit : David Hunt – own work – Public domain

On this day in history….17th July 1917

On this day in history : 17th July 1917 – The Royal family adopts the name ‘Windsor’ in a proclamation by King George V, in place of the official name ‘Saxe-Coburg-Gotha’….

The proclamation stated that the name of the Royal House and all British descendants of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert via the male line were to bear the name Windsor – women who married into other families would take that name….

“Now, therefore, We, out of Our Royal Will and Authority do hereby declare and announce that as from the date of this Our Royal Proclamation Our House and Family shall be styled and known as the House and Family of Windsor, and that all the descendants in the male line of Our said Grandmother Queen Victoria who are subjects of these Realms, other than female descendants who may marry or may have married, shall bear the said Name of Windsor”….

In 1901 the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha had succeeded the House of Hanover in the British Monarchy, with King Edward VII, son of Victoria and Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, coming to the throne…. Because of anti-German feelings during World War One it was felt necessary to change the name of the Royal family…. ‘Windsor’ was chosen because of the family association with Windsor Castle and the town of Windsor…. George V’s German cousin, Emperor Wilhelm II joked that he was going to the theatre to see the play ‘The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha’ in reference to Shakespeare’s ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’….

‘A Good Riddance’ – cartoon from ‘Punch’, June 1917 – Public domain

British History

On this day in history….1st July 1969

On this day in history : 1st July 1969 – Prince Charles is invested Prince of Wales by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at Caernarfon Castle, in North Wales….

Caernarfon Castle prepared for the Investiture

Prince Charles had been created the Prince of Wales on the 26th of July 1958, when he was just 9-years-old – but it was 11 years later, when he was 20, that his investiture took place…. It is a title traditionally given to the eldest son of the reigning monarch…. Prince Charles is the longest serving Prince of Wales in British history, making him the longest waiting heir ever to become monarch….

The tradition began in 1301, when King Edward I of England gave the title to his son, Prince Edward (later to become King Edward II)…. It was after deposing the last native Prince of Wales, Llewelyn ap Gruffudd, following the conquering of Wales….

Millions of people watched the investiture of Prince Charles on television and huge crowds were attracted to Caernarfon – and to the castle which had seen the investiture in 1911 of Edward VIII before him….

Image credit : Journalist Geoff Charles – National Library of Wales CC0

The centuries old custom involved the Secretary of State for Wales, who read the Letters Patent in Welsh…. The Queen then bestowed upon Charles a sword, coronet, ring, the gold rod and the kingly mantle…. Prince Charles then took his oath….

“I, Charles, Prince of Wales, do become your liege man of life and limb and of earthly worship and faith and truth I will bear unto thee to live and die against all manner of folks”….

He then gave a speech in both Welsh and English….

British History

On this day in history….28th June 1838

On this day in history : 28th June 1838 – The Coronation, at Westminster Abbey, of Queen Victoria – in a five hour long botched service full of mis-fortunate mishaps….

Victoria came to the throne after the death of her uncle, William IV, on the 20th of June 1837…. She was 18 years old and her Coronation took place a year later…. With a year to plan such an event one would imagine things to run smoothly on the day – but this was not entirely to be the case….

When writing in her diary to record the day Victoria remarked “I shall remember this day as the proudest of my life”…. There would have been those who remembered the day for very different reasons – but indeed Victoria had every right to feel proud – and not least for the way she managed to hold it together….

It could perhaps be said that Victoria was more than a little responsible for some of the difficulties of the day herself…. There had been very little rehearsal for the ceremony – she had only visited the Abbey on the eve of the Coronation and even then only after persuasion from Prime Minister Lord Melbourne…. She insisted she knew what she was meant to be doing – saying she understood where to stand and when to move throughout the ceremony – although it is highly likely she had forgotten half of it by the time came….

As the day dawned clusters of people began to gather in London…. With the advent of the railways it had become easy for people to travel – soon the numbers had swelled to some 400,000 – lining the route to Westminster Abbey….

The Gold State Coach – Image credit: Steve F.E. Cameron – own work – CC BY-SA 3.0

The lengthy service involved two changes of dress for the Queen and when not needed for the proceedings it had been arranged that the royal party should retreat to St. Edward’s Chapel…. Whilst a chapel in every sense of the word it certainly did not resemble one on this occasion…. The altar was piled with plates of sandwiches and bottles of wine….people’s possessions and paraphernalia were littered everywhere…. Victoria was quite appalled at the state of the place….

Placing the crown upon the Queen’s head went more or less according to plan – but it is a shame the same cannot be said for the Coronation ring…. The ring had been sized to fit Victoria’s little finger but the Archbishop forced it on to her ring finger…. After the ceremony Victoria had to painfully struggle to remove it – having to resort to soaking her hand in iced water to reduce the swelling….

The Bishop of Durham then gave her the ceremonial orb at the wrong time in the ceremony and the Bishop of Bath and Wells managed to turn over two pages of the order of service and missed out a crucial chunk of the proceedings – Victoria had to be called back so that it could be repeated….

If it wasn’t her bishops giving her grief it was her Lords…. As the peers came before the new Queen to pay their respects one in particular, Lord John Rolle, Devon’s wealthiest landowner at the time, came a right cropper! As he mounted the steps leading up to her he tripped – and in an action truly befitting his name – he dramatically rolled back down to the bottom…. Luckily he was unhurt – well, maybe his pride was a little dented – and he was determined to fulfil his duty….so started the ascent again…. Showing concern Victoria rose and went down the steps to meet him…. It was an act that was seen as being both gracious and kind by many – but there were those who were not willing to show such kindness towards his Lordship….

“Then the trumpets braying, and the organ playing,
 And the sweet trombones, with their silver tones,
 But Lord Rolle was rolling; ‘twas mighty consoling
 To think his Lordship did not break his bones!”
                         - Mr Barney Maguire

After this catalogue of events a new programme was put together ready for the next Coronation…. Thankfully they got it right the next time – but then they did have 63 years to plan it….

Coronation of Queen Victoria by Edmund Thomas Parris – Public domain

British History

On this day in history….6th May 1910

On this day in history : 6th May 1910 – King Edward VII, known as ‘Bertie’ to his family and close friends, dies from a heart attack at Buckingham Palace….

Photograph of Edward VII 1900s W & D Downey – Public domain

Edward, the eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, had been born at Buckingham Palace on the 9th of November 1841…. He was to become Prince of Wales a month later, on the 8th of December….

On the 10th of March 1863 he married Danish Princess Alexandra, at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor…. They were to have six children five of whom lived to adulthood – Prince Albert Victor, Prince George (later to become George V), Princess Louise, Princess Victoria and Princess Maud….

Edward and Alexandra on their wedding day 1863 – Public domain

Edward was to have many affairs during his marriage, including with actresses Sarah Bernhardt and Lillie Langtry…. He also had relationships with Lady Randolph Churchill (the mother of Winston Churchill) and Alice Keppell (the great grandmother of Camilla, wife of Prince Charles)…. He had one particularly scandalous affair with an actress before his marriage…. Prince Albert was distraught over the disgrace it brought upon the royal family…. The affair ended – but two weeks later Albert died…. Queen Victoria blamed Edward for the death of her beloved husband – she never forgave him….

Edward (right) with his mother Queen Victoria, Tsar Nicholas II (left), Empress Alexandra and baby Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, 1896 – Public domain

Following the death of Victoria, on the 22nd of January 1901 Edward became King…. The Coronation was set for the 26th of June 1902 but Edward suffered appendicitis two days before – and it had to be postponed until the 9th of August 1902….

Edward was a heavy smoker, regularly smoking over 20 cigarettes a day and a dozen cigars…. In March 1910, whilst in Biarritz, France, he collapsed with a severe case of bronchitis…. He stayed in France to convalesce – his condition went unreported to the British public…. Edward faced much criticism for staying away at a time when political tensions were running high over the unresolved constitutional crisis of the ‘People’s Budget’….

On the 27th of April he arrived back at Buckingham Palace…. Queen Alexandra returned shortly after, having just visited her brother, King George of Greece, in Corfu…. On discovering the condition of her husband she called their children to inform them their father was seriously ill….

On the 6th of May Edward suffered a series of heart attacks – but refused to go to bed…. “No, I shall not give in; I shall go on; I shall work to the end”…. At 11.30pm he lost consciousness and was carried to bed…. He died fifteen minutes later….