by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Queen Mary II of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Her Highness The Lady Mary was the eldest daughter and the second child of James, Duke of York (the future King James II of England) and his first wife, Anne Hyde.  Mary was born at St. James’ Palace in London, England, on April 30, 1662. Her elder brother Charles lived for only six months and died before Mary was born. Except for the short time one or more of her three younger brothers were alive, Mary was second in line to the throne after her father, brother of King Charles II.

Mary had seven siblings, of whom only Mary and her sister Anne survived childhood:

• Charles, Duke of Cambridge (1660 – 1661), died of smallpox at seven months
• James, Duke of Cambridge (1663 – 1667), died of the bubonic plague or smallpox at age 3
• Queen Anne of Great Britain (1665 – 1714), married Prince George of Denmark, no surviving issue
• Charles, Duke of Kendal (1666 – 1667), died in infancy
• Edgar, Duke of Cambridge (1667 – 1671), died at age 3
• Henrietta Stuart (born and died 1669), died in infancy
• Catherine Stuart (born and died 1671), died in infancy

The Family of James, Duke of York. The Duke (later King James II and VII) and Duchess of York (previously Anne Hyde). Their two daughters, Mary (left) and Anne (right), later Queen Mary II and Queen Anne, were added in or after 1680. Windsor Castle is in the background; Credit – Wikipedia

Mary was christened in the Church of England on May 9, 1662, at the Chapel Royal in St. James’ Palace. Her godparents were:

• The Duchess of Buckingham (born The Honorable Mary Fairfax, wife of George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham)
• The Duchess of Ormonde (born Elizabeth Preston, wife of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde)
• Prince Rupert of the Rhine, her father’s first cousin

Mary’s mother and father converted to Roman Catholicism, but on the orders of King Charles II, Mary and her sister Anne were brought up in the Church of England. Mary’s mother died of breast cancer in 1671 when Mary was 9 years old. At that time, Mary and her younger sister Anne were declared “children of the state” and their education became the responsibility of their uncle, King Charles II. The two sisters were moved away from their father’s Catholic influence and given their own household at Richmond Palace on the River Thames under the care of Sir Edward Villiers and his wife Frances. The Villiers daughters were educated with Mary and Anne, and the girls had lessons in religion, French, drawing, music, and dancing.

In 1673, Mary’s father James made a second marriage with the Catholic 15-year-old Maria Beatrice of Modena. Mary was only four years younger than her stepmother, and James told his daughters that he had provided them with a new playmate.

Mary had seven half-siblings via her father’s second marriage with Maria Beatrice of Modena, but only two survived childhood:

• Catherine Laura Stuart (1675 – 1676)
• Isabel Stuart (1676 – 1681)
• Charles, Duke of Cambridge (born and died 1677), died of smallpox
• Elizabeth Stuart (born and died 1678)
• Charlotte Maria Stuart (born and died 1682)
• James Francis Edward, Prince of Wales “the Old Pretender” (1688 – 1766), married Mary Sobieski, had issue
• Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart (1692 – 1712), died of smallpox

In 1677, when Mary was 15 years old, it became apparent that Catherine of Braganza, the wife of King Charles II, would not provide a Stuart heir. In addition, Maria Beatrice of Modena had two miscarriages and two daughters, one had died in infancy, and one was sickly and not expected to survive. Mary’s marriage became a matter of dynastic importance for the House of Stuart. The bridegroom her uncle chose for her was William III, Prince of Orange, her first cousin. William was the only child of Mary’s paternal aunt Mary, Princess Royal and Willem II, Prince of Orange, who had died of smallpox a few days before his son’s birth. William was fourth in line to the English throne after his uncle James and his cousins Mary and Anne.

William III, Prince of Orange; Credit -Wikipedia

15-year-old Mary and 27-year-old William were married on November 4, 1677, in Mary’s bedchamber at St. James’ Palace with only the closest relatives attending. The bride was miserable, the groom acted with cool correctness, the father of the bride was grimly resigned to the marriage, and the stepmother of the bride, who was very pregnant, was in tears at the prospect of losing her stepdaughter. The bride’s aunt Catherine of Braganza tried to comfort Mary saying, “When I came to England I had not even seen the King,” to which Mary replied, “Madam, you came into England, but I am going out of England.” Mary’s sister Anne and her governess Lady Frances Villiers were unable to attend as they were both ill with smallpox. Only the bride and groom’s uncle, King Charles II, was his usual cheerful and tactless self. Upon closing the curtains around the marital bed, Charles remarked, “Now nephew, to your work! Hey! St. George for England!”

Mary in the year of her marriage; Credit – Wikipedia

William and Mary made a formal entry into The Hague, the seat of William’s Dutch Republic, on December 14, 1677. Mary soon became pregnant but suffered a miscarriage, which may have prevented any future successful pregnancies. It is suspected that she had at least two more miscarriages. Her inability to have children was Mary’s greatest unhappiness. Despite their physical mismatch, Mary was quite tall (5 feet 11 inches/180 cm) and towered over the undersized and asthmatic William (5 feet 6 inches/167 cm), William adored Mary, and Mary was devoted to William. Unlike his uncles, Charles II and James II, who had many mistresses, William reputedly had only one mistress, Elizabeth Hamilton, Countess of Orkney.

In 1685, William and Mary’s uncle, King Charles II, died without any legitimate children despite having at least 14 illegitimate children. Mary’s father, who had converted to Roman Catholicism, succeeded his brother as King James II. Mary and her younger sister Anne were James’ only surviving children and were first and second in the line of succession, followed by William, who was third as the only child of King Charles I’s eldest surviving daughter. King James II was now set on a course of restoring Catholicism to England. He issued a Declaration of Indulgence removing restrictions imposed on those who did not conform to the Church of England. England might have tolerated King James II, knowing that his heirs were the Protestant daughters of his first wife Anne Hyde, Mary and Anne. However, on June 10, 1688, James’ second wife, Maria Beatrice of Modena, who had no surviving children, gave birth to a Catholic son, James Francis Edward. Immediately, false rumors swirled that the infant had been smuggled into the queen’s chambers in a warming pan.

On November 5, 1688, William III, Prince of Orange, the nephew and son-in-law of King James II, landed in England vowing to safeguard the Protestant interest. He marched to London, gathering many supporters. James II panicked and sent his wife and infant son to France. He tried to flee to France about a month later but was captured. William had no desire to make his uncle a martyr, so he allowed him to escape. James was received in France by his first cousin, King Louis XIV, who offered him a palace and a pension.

Back in England, Parliament refused to depose James but declared that, having fled to France, James had effectively abdicated the throne and the throne had become vacant. James’s elder daughter Mary was declared Queen Mary II, and she was to rule jointly with her husband William, who would be King William III. This overthrow of King James II is known as the Glorious Revolution. James was determined to regain the throne and landed in Ireland with a French force in 1689. He was defeated by his nephew William at the Battle of the Boyne on July 1, 1690, and was forced to withdraw again to France, where he lived in exile for the rest of his life.

William and Mary were crowned at Westminster Abbey in London, England, on April 11, 1689. Since they were joint sovereigns, a duplicate coronation chair and a duplicate set of regalia were required for the coronation ceremony. At previous coronations, monarchs had sworn to uphold the laws made by their ancestors. However, William and Mary swore to rule according to “the statutes in Parliament agreed upon and laws and customs of the same” and promised to uphold the Protestant reformed religion.

On December 16, 1689, Parliament passed the Bill of Rights 1689, which limited the monarch’s powers and set out the rights of Parliament. The Bill of Rights 1689, along with the Act of Settlement 1701, are still in effect in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth realms, although both have been amended by the Perth Agreement 2011, which took effect on March 26, 2015. The Bill of Rights also confirmed the succession to the throne. Following the death of either William or Mary, the other was to continue to reign. Next in the line of succession would be any children of the couple, followed by Mary’s sister Anne and her children. Last in the line of succession stood any children William III might have had from any subsequent marriage. Beginning in 1690, William was often on military campaigns in Europe and left Mary to reign. She was not keen on assuming such power but did so with the advice of a nine-member Cabinet Council.

William and Mary left a legacy in the United States. In 1693, William and Mary granted a royal charter to found the College of William and Mary, now in present-day Williamsburg, Virginia. It is the second oldest university in the United States after Harvard University and the only university in the United States with a royal charter. The College of William and Mary educated American Presidents Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and John Tyler, and other key figures important to the development of the United States as a nation, including Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall, Speaker of the House of Representatives Henry Clay, sixteen members of the Continental Congress, and four signers of the Declaration of Independence.  Another alumnus of The College of William and Mary is this writer’s son.

William and Mary depicted on the ceiling of the Painted Hall, Greenwich; Credit – Wikipedia

In early December 1694, Mary became ill. Smallpox was spreading through London, and it was feared that Mary might have contracted the disease, a disease that had previously killed both of William’s parents. Mary was in a weakened state, having been upset about William’s latest illness and the sudden death of John Tillotson, Archbishop of Canterbury. One morning when Mary awoke, she felt particularly ill and noticed a rash on her arms. Eventually, the doctors confirmed that Mary was suffering from smallpox, which she accepted with an attitude that surprised all around her. The first thing Mary did was to send away everyone who had not had smallpox. William, who had survived the disease, had a bed put in Mary’s room and oversaw her medical care.

Prayers were said for Mary in all the churches on Christmas Day 1694. Mary said that she had slept well and felt better. The rashes seemed to have disappeared, and the doctors thought that perhaps it had been measles. However, when Mary was examined in the evening, the nine doctors attending her discovered that the rashes had turned inward and sunk into her skin, which was not a good sign. Mary had an uncomfortable night, and her throat was hemorrhaging. The desperate doctors tried all sorts of remedies: bleeding Mary, applying hot irons to her forehead, and giving her various potions. Mary was told that she was dying. The usual unemotional William broke down and burst into tears. Mary begged him to control himself and not to make her suffer by seeing him so upset. She told him that she was “not so bad” to which William replied, “that if God caused this blow to fall, it would be all over for me.”

Dr. John Radcliffe, the renowned doctor, examined Mary on December 27. He confirmed that Mary’s condition was hopeless. Mary received Communion and tried to pray, but she was too weak, and in a whisper, asked others to pray for her. In the evening, Mary was much weaker. She tried to talk to William, but the effort was too much for her. William approached her in tears, and Mary motioned him away. Soon she lapsed into unconsciousness. In the early morning of December 28, 1694, Mary peacefully died. She was just 32 years old. William was terribly grief-stricken, collapsed at Mary’s bedside, and had to be carried, nearly insensible, from the room. For a few days, it was feared that William, too, would die.

Queen Mary II lying in state © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Mary lay in state in the Banqueting Hall of Whitehall Palace. Despite the cold weather, large crowds lined up to file past their Queen and pay their respects. On March 5, 1695, in a heavy snowstorm, the funeral procession traveled the short distance from Whitehall Palace to Westminster Abbey. The King was not present, according to custom, but all members of both Houses of Parliament, all wearing black, attended the funeral. The noted English composer Henry Purcell specially composed Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary.

• YouTube: Purcell – Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary

Queen Mary II was buried in a vault under the monument to George Monck, Duke of Albemarle, in the Henry VII Chapel of Westminster Abbey. Charles II, Mary’s husband William III, Mary’s sister Anne, and her husband George of Denmark were also buried in this vault. A joint monument for William III and Mary II was designed but never constructed. An inscription on the floor marks her grave. William reigned alone until he died in 1702, when he was succeeded by Mary’s sister Anne.

Inscription on the floor of the Henry VII Chapel at Westminster Abbey marking the grave of Mary II;  Credit – findagrave.com

Stuart Royal Vault at Westminster Abbey;  Credit – www.westminster-abbey.org

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Recommended Book: William and Mary by John Van der Kiste, 2003
Recommended Book: Ungrateful Daughters: The Stuart Princesses Who Stole Their Father’s Throne by Maureen Waller, 2002

House of Stuart Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Stuart Index
• Coronations after the Norman Conquest (1066 – present)
• First Cousins of Queen Mary II and Queen Anne
• History and Traditions: Stuart Weddings
• House of Stuart Burial Sites
• House of Stuart Christenings

by Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Anne Hyde, Duchess of York; Credit – Wikipedia

Anne Hyde, the first wife of James, Duke of York, later King James II of England, died before her husband became king. She was born on March 12, 1637, at Cranbourne Lodge in Windsor, England. Her parents were Edward Hyde (later created 1st Earl of Clarendon) and his second wife, Frances Aylesbury, the daughter and heiress of Sir Thomas Aylesbury, 1st Baronet, and his wife Anne Denman.

Anne, who was the eldest child, had five younger siblings:

• Henry Hyde, 2nd Earl of Clarendon (1638 – 1709), married (1) Theodosia Capell, had issue   (2) Flower Backhouse, no issue
• Lawrence Hyde, 1st Earl of Rochester (1642 – 1711), married Lady Henrietta Boyle, had issue
• Edward Hyde, died at age 20
• James Hyde, drowned in his 20s
• Frances Hyde, married Thomas Keightley

Anne’s father Edward Hyde was a lawyer and Member of Parliament. At first, Hyde was a moderate critic of King Charles I, but he gradually became more supportive of the king. In 1641, Hyde became an informal adviser to King Charles I. In February 1643, Hyde was knighted and was appointed to the Privy Council. The following month, he was made Chancellor of the Exchequer. In 1649, after the execution of King Charles I, when Anne was 12 years old, her family fled to the Netherlands. They settled in Breda, where they were offered a home by the eldest daughter of King Charles I, Mary, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange, who was known for helping many royalist fugitives from England. In his early years of exile, Hyde played no political role but instead began writing a history of the English Civil War, The History of the Rebellion. In 1651, Hyde became an adviser to the king in exile, Charles II, and soon became his chief adviser. Charles appointed Hyde Lord Chancellor in 1658.

Edward Hyde by Jacob van Reesbroeck, 1649-1653; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1654, Anne Hyde was appointed a maid of honor to Mary, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange, the eldest daughter of King Charles I of England, the widow of Willem II, Prince of Orange and the mother of the young Willem III, Prince of Orange who would marry Anne’s daughter Mary. The couple would eventually co-reign in England as King William III and Queen Mary II. Given the situation, it was natural that Anne should come into contact with members of the exiled English royal family, including King Charles I’s second surviving son, James, Duke of York. Anne was attractive and stylish and attracted many men, including James, Duke of York. On November 24, 1659, in Breda, Anne and James married secretly in front of witnesses.

Contemporaries of Edward Hyde assumed that he had arranged the royal marriage of his daughter, but modern historians generally agree that he played no part. The marriage came as an unwelcome shock to Hyde, and he is supposed to have told his daughter that he would rather see her dead than disgrace her family. Anne Hyde was the first non-royal spouse to marry into the royal family since King Henry VIII‘s marriage to Catherine Parr in 1543. There would not be another non-royal spouse until 1871 when Queen Victoria‘s daughter Princess Louise married John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne and heir to the Dukedom of Argyll.

The monarchy was restored in 1660, and King Charles II and the rest of the royal family returned to England. In the fall of 1660, it was obvious that Anne was pregnant. The royal family was embarrassed, and society viewed the pregnancy as a scandal. The king was consulted, resulting in James and Anne being officially married at Worcester House in London on September 3, 1660, just seven weeks before the birth of their first child.

James and Anne Hyde in the 1660s, by Sir Peter Lely; Credit – Wikipedia

James and Anne had eight children, but only two survived childhood, and both were Queens Regnant:

• Charles, Duke of Cambridge (1660 – 1661): Conceived before his parents’ official marriage, Charles was styled Duke of Cambridge but never formally created Duke of Cambridge. He died at the age of six months from smallpox and was buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England.
• Queen Mary II of England (1662 – 1694), married her first cousin William III, Prince of Orange in 1677, ascended to the throne in 1689 as co-ruler with her husband after the deposition of her father, no surviving issue
• James, Duke of Cambridge (1663 – 1667): James was created Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Cambridge and Baron of Dauntsey by his uncle King Charles II.  He was also named a Knight of the Garter but was never officially installed. Both James and his younger brother Charles, Duke of Kendal became ill with what was likely smallpox or the bubonic plague.  Little Charles died first, and three-year-old James died three weeks later and was buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England.
• Queen Anne of Great Britain (1665 – 1714), married Prince George of Denmark ; Anne had 17 pregnancies, five live births, but two died on the day of their birth, two died at less than two years old within six days of each other from smallpox, and one died at age 11
• Charles, Duke of Kendal (1666 – 1667): Charles was styled Duke of Kendal but was never officially created Duke of Kendal because of his early death. He died at the age of ten months and was buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England.
• Edgar, Duke of Cambridge (1667 – 1671): Edgar was created was Duke and Earl of Cambridge and Baron of Dauntsey by his uncle King Charles II. Edgartown on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts was named after him. Edgar died at the age of three and was buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England.
• Henrietta (born and died 1669): Named after her paternal grandmother Henrietta Maria of France, Henrietta was born at the Palace of Whitehall in London, England. She died at St. James’ Palace in London, England, when she was ten months old and was buried at Westminster Abbey.
• Catherine (born and died 1671): Catherine was born at the Palace of Whitehall in London, England. Her mother died seven weeks after her birth from breast cancer. Catherine did not survive her mother for very long. She died at the age of ten months at St. James’ Palace in London, England, and was buried at Westminster Abbey.

Family of James, Duke of York. The Duke (later King James II and VII) and Duchess of York (previously Anne Hyde), painted by Peter Lely between 1668 and 1670. Their two daughters, Mary (left) and Anne (right), later Queen Mary II and Queen Anne, were added by Benedetto Gennari after 1680. Windsor Castle is in the background; Credit – Wikipedia

Anne was not particularly maternal and spent much of her time holding her own court at St. James’ Palace, a more brilliant court than that of King Charles II’s wife, Catherine of Braganza at Whitehall Palace. Queen Catherine failed to produce heirs for her husband, so Anne had the advantage of having produced heirs to the throne. Anne knew of her husband’s mistresses and comforted herself by overeating and buying expensive jewelry.

Anne and James had been exposed to Roman Catholicism while they were abroad, and Anne converted secretly in 1670. She was instrumental in James’ conversion to Roman Catholicism shortly afterward, although he continued to attend Church of England services until 1676. King Charles II insisted that their children be brought up in the Church of England.

In 1667, Anne gave birth to her last son Edgar (died in 1671), and admitted that she never again felt well after his birth. 1667 was a difficult year for Anne: her mother died, and her father fell from power, was exiled, and spent the rest of his life in France. Anne never saw him again. By 1670, Anne was very ill with breast cancer, and once again pregnant. She gave birth to her last child Catherine, on February 9, 1671 (died in December 1671) while in the advanced stages of breast cancer.

Anne, Duchess of York by Sir Peter Lely around 1670; Credit – Wikipedia

On March 30, 1671, after returning home to St. James’ Palace from a dinner, Anne collapsed. Queen Catherine, who was fond of Anne, rushed to her bedside. Anne’s Church of England brother Henry Hyde (later 2nd Earl of Clarendon) refused to come to her deathbed because he suspected that she had become a Catholic. Anne’s husband James ran interference with the well-intentioned Church of England clergy at the deathbed and quietly informed them of Anne’s conversion to Catholicism. The clergy was kind enough to offer just general prayers. Anne, Duchess of York died on March 31, 1671, at the age of 34, and was buried at Westminster Abbey in the vault of Mary, Queen of Scots in the Henry VII Chapel. By the end of the year, Anne’s children Edgar and Catherine had died, and Mary and Anne, both future Queens Regnant, were the only survivors of the eight children of the Duke and Duchess of York.

House of Stuart Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Stuart Index
• Coronations after the Norman Conquest (1066 – present)
• History and Traditions: Stuart Weddings
• House of Stuart Burial Sites
• House of Stuart Christenings

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

King Charles II of England; Credit – Wikipedia

King Charles II was born on May 29, 1630, at St. James’ Palace in London, England. He was the eldest surviving son of King Charles I of England and Henrietta Maria of France, daughter of King Henri IV of France.  Charles was the Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay from birth and was declared Prince of Wales in 1638, but was never formally created Prince of Wales. Charles’ mother was not happy with his appearance. She wrote in a letter: “He is so ugly. I am ashamed, but his size and fatness make up for what he lacks in beauty.”

Charles II as an infant in 1630; Credit – Wikipedia

Charles had eight siblings:

• Charles James, Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay, born and died May 13, 1629
• Mary, Princess Royal (1631 – 1660), married Willem II, Prince of Orange, had one child: Willem III, Prince of Orange, later King William III of England
• King James II (1633 – 1701), married (1) Anne Hyde, had issue including Queen Mary II and Queen Anne; (2) Mary of Modena, had issue including James Francis Edward, The Old Pretender
• Princess Elizabeth (1635 – 1650) unmarried, died from pneumonia
• Princess Anne (1637 – 1640) died young from tuberculosis
• Princess Catherine, born and died June 29, 1639
• Henry, Duke of Gloucester (1640 – 1660) unmarried, died from smallpox
• Princess Henrietta (1644 – 1670), married Philippe, Duke of Orléans, had issue

Charles with his siblings in 1637: Left to right: Mary, James, Charles, Elizabeth, and Anne; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1631, Charles was placed under the care of Mary Sackville, Countess of Dorset, whose husband Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset, was lord chamberlain to Queen Henrietta Maria. His education was overseen by William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle and Brian Duppa, Bishop of Winchester and then later by John Earle, Bishop of Salisbury. The philosopher Thomas Hobbes was Charles’ mathematics teacher.

Charles as Prince of Wales in 1642; Credit – Wikipedia

Charles was still young when the English Civil War broke out between his father King Charles I and the Parliamentarian and Puritan forces. He accompanied his father to the Battle of Edgehill in 1642 and participated in the campaigns of 1645 as commander of the royalist forces in the West Country. When the situation deteriorated in the spring of 1646, Charles was sent out of England, eventually settling in France, where his mother already lived in exile with his sister Henriette and where his young first cousin King Louis XIV was on the throne.

In 1648, Charles traveled to The Hague where he lived for a while with his sister Mary, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange. While living in The Hague, Charles met his first known mistress Lucy Walter. Her son James, born on April 9, 1649, was immediately recognized by Charles as his son and later became James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth.

The execution of King Charles I on January 30, 1649, made Charles the de jure King. In 1650, he landed in Scotland and raised an army of 10,000 men. After being crowned King of Scots at Scone on January 1, 1651, Charles marched the army into England and suffered an overwhelming defeat at the Battle of Worcester.  After being a fugitive for six weeks, Charles escaped England and fled to France. Oliver Cromwell was declared Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland. England remained a Commonwealth and then a Protectorate until 1659.

Charles in exile, painted by Philippe de Champaigne, circa 1653; Credit – Wikipedia

During his years in exile, Charles, a de jure King, had no kingdom and therefore no income. He depended on the payments he received from his mother from the money she received from the French government. On September 3, 1658, Oliver Cromwell died. His son Richard Cromwell ruled only until April 1659 and there was a real possibility for the restoration of the monarchy. On May 1, 1660, Parliament formally invited Charles, as King Charles II, to be the English monarch in what has become known as the Restoration. On May 23, 1660, Charles landed at Dover, and on his 30th birthday, May 29, 1660, King Charles II entered London in a procession. Charles was crowned at Westminster Abbey on April 23, 1661, on the feast day of St. George, the patron saint of England.

Coronation portrait by John Michael Wright, circa 1661

Catherine of Braganza, the daughter of King João IV of Portugal, had first been suggested as a bride for Charles in 1645 during the reign of Charles’ father and again in 1660 when the monarchy was restored in England. There were rumors of Catherine’s inability to have children, but the newly restored King Charles II was eager to have the £300,000 dowry. The marriage contract was signed on June 23, 1661. Catherine set sail for England in April 1662 and landed at Portsmouth, England on May 13, 1662. On May 21, 1662, King Charles II and Catherine were married in Portsmouth twice, in a private Catholic ceremony and a public Anglican ceremony. Catherine’s Roman Catholicism made her an unpopular queen.

Catherine of Braganza; Credit – Wikipedia

Despite fathering many illegitimate children with his mistresses, Charles had no children with Catherine. It is thought that Catherine did have at least three miscarriages. Despite having many mistresses, Charles insisted that Catherine be treated with respect and sided with her over his mistresses when he felt she was not receiving the respect she was due. After an initial shock at being presented to Charles’ mistress right after her marriage, Catherine maintained a dignified attitude towards her husband’s mistresses and showed many acts of kindness to his illegitimate children. When it became apparent that Catherine would not produce an heir to the throne, it was suggested that Charles divorce his wife and marry a Protestant princess. Charles refused the suggestion.

King Charles II, Portrait by John Riley, c. 1680–1685; Credit – Wikipedia

On February 2, 1685, King Charles II suffered an apparent stroke and died four days later at the age of 54. Modern analysis of his symptoms seems to indicate he may have died from uremia, a symptom of kidney failure. While Charles was dying, Catherine was ill and sent a message begging his forgiveness for being unable to come to him. Charles replied to her, “Alas, poor woman, it is I who should be begging forgiveness.” Charles asked his brother James to look after his mistresses: “…be well to Portsmouth, and let not poor Nelly starve,” referring to Louise Renée de Penancoet de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth and Nell Gwyn. He also apologized to his courtiers: “I am sorry, gentlemen, for being such a time a-dying.” The night before his death, Charles converted to Roman Catholicism, although it is unclear that his level of consciousness allowed for a true commitment. On the morning of his death, February 6, 1685, Charles received the Last Rites of the Roman Catholic Church from Father John Huddleston. King Charles II was buried at Westminster Abbey using the Church of England rites. He was the last monarch to have an effigy carried at his funeral. The effigy is still displayed at Westminster Abbey.

Wax effigy of Charles II, Westminster Abbey Museum; Photo Credit – http://www.westminster-abbey.org

King Charles II left no legitimate offspring, but he left behind quite a number of illegitimate children, whom he ennobled and officially recognized.  Charles was succeeded by his younger brother King James II of England/King James VII of Scotland, who had converted to Catholicism and was unpopular.  James was the last Catholic King of England and was dethroned in 1688 during the Glorious Revolution.

King Charles II is an ancestor through his mistresses of many British aristocrats and of several women who married into the British Royal Family:

• Lucy Walter: ancestor of Sarah, Duchess of York and Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester
• Barbara Villiers, Duchess of Cleveland: ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Sarah, Duchess of York
• Louise Renée de Penancoet de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth: ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales, Queen Camilla, and Sarah, Duchess of York

Illegitimate Children

by Lucy Walter

• James Scott, Duke of Monmouth (1649–1685), married Anne Scott, 1st Duchess of Buccleuch, had issue

by Elizabeth Killigrew

• Charlotte FitzRoy (Charlotte Paston, Countess of Yarmouth) (1650–1684), married (1) James Howard, had issue (2) William Paston, 2nd Earl of Yarmouth, had issue

by Catherine Pegge

• Charles FitzCharles, 1st Earl of Plymouth (1657–1680), married Lady Bridget Osborne, daughter of Thomas Osborne, 1st Duke of Leeds, no issue
• Catherine FitzCharles (born 1658; she either died young or became a nun)

by Barbara Palmer, Duchess of Cleveland (in her own right), wife of Roger Palmer, 1st Earl of Castlemaine

• Lady Anne Fitzroy (may have been the daughter of Roger Palmer, but Charles II accepted her as his child) (1661–1722), married Thomas Lennard, 1st Earl of Sussex, had issue
• Charles Fitzroy, 2nd Duke of Cleveland, 1st Duke of Southampton (1662–1730), married (1) Mary Wood, no issue, (2) Anne Pulteney, had issue
• Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Grafton (1663–1690), married Isabella Bennet, 2nd Countess of Arlington, had issue
• Lady Charlotte Fitzroy (1664–1717), married Edward Lee, 1st Earl of Lichfield, had issue
• George Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1665–1716), married (1) Catherine Wheatley, no issue, (2) Mary Dutton, no issue
• Barbara FitzRoy (1672–1737) – ), unmarried, she became a nun taking the name Sister Benedicta; her mother claimed that she was Charles II’s daughter but she was probably the child of her mother’s second cousin and lover, John Churchill, later the 1st Duke of Marlborough

by Nell Gwyn

• Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans (1670–1726), married Lady Diana de Vere, had issue
• Lord James Beauclerk (1671–1680), died young

by Louise Renée de Penancoet de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth (in her own right)

• Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Duke of Aubigny (1672–1723), married Anne Brudenell, had issue

by Mary ‘Moll’ Davis

• Lady Mary Tudor (1673–1726), married (1) Edward Radclyffe, 2nd Earl of Derwentwater, had issue (2) Henry Graham of Levens, no issue (3) Major James Rooke, no issue

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

House of Stuart Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Stuart Index
• Coronations after the Norman Conquest (1066 – present)
• First Cousins of King Charles II and King James II
• History and Traditions: Stuart Weddings
• House of Stuart Burial Sites
• House of Stuart Christenings