Painting of Louis VIII and Blanche of Castille

Kings and queens

An oil portrait of Charlemagne (c747–814), King of the Franks, by 15th/16th-century artist Albrecht Durer. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)

The legacy of Charlemagne: how the king of the Franks continues to cast a shadow over Europe

Portrait of Queen Anne

Queen Anne's reputation: why isn't she more fondly remembered?

Two scenes from the Chronique de St Denis, late 14th century. The left-hand scene depicts the marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Louis VII of France in 1137. The scene on the right shows Louis departing by ship to go on the Second Crusade in 1147. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Eleanor of Aquitaine: the medieval queen who took on Europe’s most powerful men

A portrait of the young Elizabeth I. (Photo by Art Collection 2/Alamy Stock Photo)

Elizabeth I's personality: the unfathomable queen

Photo of the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles

The palace of Versailles: Sun King Louis XIV's ultimate power play

Illustration of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn on their wedding day

The royal weddings of Henry VIII: Alison Weir on what came before divorced, beheaded, died...

A portrait of Charles I. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Has history been unfair to Charles I?

Henry VIII

Q&AWhat was the Sweating Sickness? And how did Henry VIII ‘self-isolate’?

A James Gillray cartoon: 'Germans eating sour-krout'.

Cabbages and kings: how Georgian royals brought continental food to the British menu

Henry V. (© Lebrecht Music and Arts Photo Library / Alamy)

10 things you (probably) didn’t know about Henry V and the battle of Agincourt

Royal women podcast episodes

Elizabeth II and Prince Philip with their third son, Prince Edward, on the balcony at Buckingham Palace. (Photo by Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

A brief history of royal mothers and childbirth

Queen Elizabeth greets the crowd from the top of a huge elephant minutely decorated during a walk to the gates of the Jaipur Palace, c1961 in Jaipur, India. (Photo by Keystone-FranceGamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The Queen and the Commonwealth: a force for international change?

Who is the greatest leader in world history?

A portrait of Edward IV, the first Yorkist king of England. From the National Portrait Gallery. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Edward IV: champion of the Wars of the Roses

The Jacobite rebellions: how close were they to returning the Stuarts to power?

Queen Victoria refused to wear her crimson velvet robes of state for her wedding to Albert. Instead, she opted for a dress of pure white and “simple magnificence”. (Photo by Rischgitz/Getty Images)

“Nothing could have gone off better”: the wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

Portrait of Marie-Antoinette with the rose, 1783, by Vigée-Le Brun. (Photo by Alamy)

Marie Antoinette. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A bust of Charlemagne

Charlemagne: creating the myth

The execution of Charles I in 1649.

To kill a king: 350 years of regicide

William of Orange landing at Torbay, 1688

Your guide to...the Glorious Revolution

Members of the royal family at an event marking the centenary of the Royal Air Force. (Photo by TOLGA AKMEN/AFP via Getty Images)

Opposing the royals: a brief history of republicanism in Britain

An illustration of the barons compelling King John to ratify Magna Carta, 1215. (Photo by The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)

6 facts about Magna Carta

Simon de Montfort’s medieval revolution. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Princess Margaret wearing a fur coat

The Queen's "rebel sister": 13 facts about Princess Margaret

Edward VI

To kidnap a king: the foiled plot to abduct Edward VI

Richard III, Edward IV and George, Duke of Clarence

Blood brothers: Richard III's battle with his siblings

Queen Victoria with Prince Albert and their children in 1846. After a painting by F Winterhalter. Victoria’s husband, Albert, “carved out for the crown a moral kind of authority as the nation’s first and model family,” says Sarah Gristwood. (Photo by Culture Club/Getty Images)

Retaining the royals: why has the British monarchy survived – and thrived?

American socialite Wallis Simpson

The vilification of Wallis Simpson: how Edward VIII's mistress was savaged by society

Retiring royals: 9 rulers and royals who stepped down through history