The Kings & Queens of Britain

by Cath Senker

Who was Britain's longest reigning monarch? Did Henry I assassinate his brother? How did clans develop in feudal Scotland ? For more than 1,000 years the British monarchy has dramatically shaped national and international history. Kings and queens have conquered territory, imposed religious change and extracted taxation, each with their own motivations and ambitions. In this beautifully illustrated book, Cath Senker delves into the extraordinary history of the British monarchy and its host of kings, queens and pretenders. There have been benevolent rulers, violent ones, religious fanatics, brilliant economists, masters of diplomacy and the power hungry. But whether they have abused their power or used it for good, each monarch has played a part in the rich tapestry of British history, coping with both international and civil wars, rebellions and criticism. The Kings and Queens of Britain introduces this fascinating thousand-year history, providing rich biographical detail of Britain's remarkable monarchs.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

192 pages, Hardcover

Published October 15, 2019

Reviews

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author did a good job of briefly giving an outline of the history of the king or queen, the times and sometimes of those influencing them. She shows very clearly how the Royal's became a constitutional Monarchy. It started before King John and the Magna Carta. (and I am shocked that this computer doesn't know the words, Magna Carta.) This is a good and fast review of British history. I would have found it convenient had she shown in the lines of kings and queens who were other than first born. Some took the throne by force and didn't seem to have much in the way of family blood to make such a claim. That was explained in some places. However this information is on the internet for those who have forgotten their history or who are interested. There are many pictures and the robes become more elaborate with time.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderfully written and engaging look at the kings and queens of Britain — starting in the 800s, you’ll get a look at the Saxons and Danes, the Normans, the struggle for power in Wales from 800-1536, the House of Anjou, Scotland from 800-1424, the Plantagenets, the War of the Roses, the Tudors with a look at Henry VIII’s wives, Mary Queen of Scots, the Renaissance Period in Scotland, the Stuarts, the House of Hanover with a brief look at the Jacobite rebellion and Battle of Culloden (hello, Outlander!) and finally a look at the Houses of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and The House of Windsor with the current Queen.

A great place to start if you love British history or the monarchy! Lots of pictures, info books, diagrams and photos to bring the history to life!

[Lucas]

This book gives a very good overview of the kings and queens of Britain from each dynasty from roughly the 9th century to present. As someone who has wanted to learn more about this subject but had no idea where to start, this book gave me pretty much exactly what I wanted. I now have a bunch of different jumping off points to go to in the future and a pretty good general idea about the important points about many of the different monarchs and dynasties. This book does not go in to depth on any particular king or queen, it is pretty concise for the most part and it only presents the most important information with a few brief side bars. It is also focused mostly on England, with Scotland and Wales receiving a few short chapters altogether.

[Paul Lunger · Rating 4 out of 5]

With "The Kings and Queens of Britain", Cath Senker gives we the reader a quick overview of history of the British monarchy from King Egbert all the way down to the current monarch King Charles III. What makes the book interesting in places is the details that are provided of some of the more obscure monarchs over the history of the empire. If the book has one downfall is that it periodically interrupts things at inopportune times to deal with some of the monarch of Wales & Scotland which an disrupt the flow of the book. Overall, though, this isn't a bad read for anyone with an interest in monarchy or the United Kingdom at large.

[Apryll Nesmith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not a historian nor do I have a literature degree. I bought this book in reference with reading history books including The war of the Roses which many books have been published in a series. I tend to get lost in the books that I am reading and trying to remember who is related to who and this book makes it so much easier. It goes to Queen Elizabeth II before she passed in 2022. The pictures are beautiful and well captioned. I could even have my kids use this if they needed to know the Queen and Kings of Britain.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gave me a great overview of the kings and queens of England as well as information about Scotland, Wales and Ireland. The pictures are amazing and I think I will refer to this book many times in the future as it is a great reference. I will probably read it again too. Thanks to this book, I have memorised the names of the monarchs from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth II. Now to memorise the dates and the Anglo-Saxon kings.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is an enormous coffee table kind of book, so not one you really curl up in bed with--only I did, reading a bit most nights for ages. I enjoyed learning things I somehow never was taught in school. It was amusing to get to the end and see that almost all the sources are websites and almost all the pictures are from Wikipedia, but whatever: reading this was a pleasant way of working through hundreds of years of monarchs, and I liked the pictures lol.

[Kris Gaudet · Rating 3 out of 5]

If ever you’ve been interested in the British monarchy, this is a clear way to start. There’s a lot of information to cover, but it is just meant to be that.. informative. Don’t expect to read this and not feel slight boredom.

I used this as my “I need a break from my current read book”.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book covers kings and queens of Britain from the 800s until the present including rulers in Scotland, Ireland and Wales. Information on each ruler is concise but informative and gives a good overview of the monarchy.

[Eli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cnut boosted it up from a three honestly

[Cathy Thiry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of the King's and Queens of Britain, recommended if you don't have any real knowledge of the history of the British monarchy (like myself).

[Charles Fortune · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting, brief history of the British monarchy.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing in depth. Impossible to do in one book. But a good overview introduction

[Lisa Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

I purchased this book as a reference piece. I read bits of it every few days and try and make all the connections make sense. It is only 192 pages.

[Sean Dickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was ok

A nice read through the history of the monarchy, I thought it was a bit rushed with certain monarchs, but overall, it was a good read.

[Kiley]

DNF’d at page 58.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

High School level. Good book to skim read for pictures and dates and lists of kings & Queens.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This makes a great reference manual. A bit dense to read front to back. Lots of good information.

[Suzanne Deneuve Hall]

A brilliant reference for understanding historical lineage.

[Samantha Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

A couple mistakes in the book, but overall very informative and easy to understand and find certain pages.