Many famous names have contributed to the illustrious history of Britain. From kings and Queens, to writers and warriors, here are some of the heroes and heroines that have made Britain great.
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Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was the King of Wessex in the south of England, he is famed for his defence of the kingdom against the Danes and is regarded as the first King of England.
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Harold I
Harold was the last Anglo-Saxon King of England, his short reign was brought to an end with his death at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 at the hands of William the Conqueror.
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Richard I The Lionheart
Richard the Lionheart was the great crusader king of England of the 12th Century who, during the third crusade, defeated the Turks at the Battle of Acre and gained access to the Holy City. |
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William the Conqueror
The Duke of Normandy; William the Conqueror became King of England after defeating his rival Harold at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The ensuing Norman Conquest of England completely altered the course of British history. |
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Edward I Longshanks
Known as Edward Longshanks due to his height and Edward Hammer of Scots, because of brutal campaigns in Scotland (watch Braveheart!), Edward I was a ruthlessly ambitious king who sought to combine England, Wales and Scotland under one rule.
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Henry V
Henry V’s place in history is defined by his victory in the Battle of Agincourt, which unified the Kingdoms of England and France, and his legend was further established by William Shakespeare’s pen. |
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Richard III
Richard III is the definitive villain of the British Monarchy and was depicted as such in William Shakespeare’s play; Richard III.
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Henry VIII
Henry VIII was the second Tudor monarch, who famously had six wives, broke off from the Roman Catholic Church, established the Church of England and set about the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
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Mary I
The first daughter of Henry VIII and the first ruling Queen of England, Mary I earned the name Bloody Mary after her brutal to suppression of Protestants in a vain attempt to bring Catholicism back to the English court. |
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Elizabeth I
The second daughter of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I proved to be one of England’s most popular and successful monarchs. Her reign saw England expand its influence in Europe and the Americas, while the Elizabethan era brought about a renaissance in English culture.
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James I
James I of England is also James VI of Scotland, his succession to the throne of England, united the crowns of Scotland and England and began the illustrious Stuart dynasty.
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Charles I
The reign of Charles I is most remembered for the Civil War bringing conflict between Cavaliers and the Roundheads of Oliver Cromwell, ending with the trail and execution of the King. |
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Charles II
The son of the executed King Charles I, Charles II was restored to the monarchy in 1660, giving rise to the Restoration period in British history. Charles was known as the ‘Merry Monarch’ for his hedonistic lifestyle and patronage of the arts.
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James II
The younger son of Charles I and brother of Charles II, James II of England/ James VII of Scotland was the last Roman Catholic King of Britain, deposed after the Glorious Revolution and replaced by Mary and William of Orange.
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William of Orange (& Mary)
A Protestant Dutch aristocrat, William came to rule Britain along with his wife Mary after his father in law King James II was deposed in the Glorious Revolution. |
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George IV
Regarded as something of a playboy while he was Prince Regent, George IV reigned over victory in the Napoleonic Wars and a golden age of the Georgian and Regency architecture in British towns like Bath and Brighton.
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Victoria
One of the most prominent women in British history, Queen Victoria was the longest reigning British monarch, reigning for 63 years, while this Victorian era is regarded as the golden age of the British Empire.
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Elizabeth II
The Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Elizabeth II is the incumbent monarch and Head of State of the UK and the Commonwealth. |
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| Scottish Monarchs: |
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Robert the Bruce
Born on 11 July 1274, Robert the Bruce famously defeated the English armies at the Battle of Bannockburn, gained independence for Scotland and was crowned King Robert I of Scotland.
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William Wallace
William Wallace was the famous Scottish hero of the 13th century, who led the Scotland against England, and inspired the 1995 blockbuster film Braveheart.
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Mary Queen of Scots
Mary Queen of Scots is one of Scotland’s most well known monarchs, famed for her tragic life and falling foul of the Machiavellian politics of the Elizabethan era in Britain. |
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Bonnie Prince Charlie
Scotland’s last great heroic figure, Bonnie Prince Charlie or Charles Edward Stuart, led his Jacobite army of Scottish Highlanders and almost took the British throne. But their defeat at Culloden, instead led to the end of highland life in Scotland.
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| Others: |
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Shakespeare
William Shakespeare is England’s foremost playwright and the his plays, which include Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet and the Merchant of Venice, are as popular today as they were in Elizabethan times.
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King Arthur
King Arthur is a pivotal figure in British mythology and the folklore of Merlin, Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table make up the famous Arthurian Legends.
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Winston Churchill
Britain’s Prime Minister and inspirational leader during World War II, Sir Winston Churchill is regarded as one of the country’s greatest ever statesmen and the greatest Briton ever. |
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Princess Diana
Diana Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales and is mother of the Princes William and Harry. She worked avidly for Aids charities and landmine victims until she died tragically in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
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Prince Charles
First son of Queen Elizabeth, Charles, HRH The Prince of Wales and Duke of Rothesay, is next in line to the British throne.
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