Kings and queens

King George V and his wife, Queen Mary, pictured during a visit to Dublin in 1911. The royal couple were deeply conservative but common sense taught them they had to adapt to the modern world. (Photo by Topical Press Agency/Getty Images)

How George and Mary saved the royal family

A portrait of King Edward III. By using his offspring as pawns in a series of alliances, the king hoped to wield power over a confederation of dependent states bound together by feudal and family ties. (Photo by VCG Wilson/Corbis via Getty Images)

King Edward III: the family man

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The mourning of Queen Victoria . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A scene from the Chronique de St Denis depicting the marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Louis VII of France, 1137. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

An A to Z of the Plantagenets

A statue of the English queen Matilda in Luxembourg Garden, Paris. (Photo by Waring Abbott/Getty Images)

Matilda: William the Conqueror’s queen

A portrait of Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth I’s ‘spymaster’. (Photo by Photo 12/UIG via Getty Images)

Sir Francis Walsingham: spy-master extraordinaire and Elizabeth I’s security chief

A portrait of Henry VII in 1505. His claim to the throne was tenuous and he had to see off a posse of pretenders, yet he proved a canny and competent ruler, modernising the justice system and filling the crown’s coffers. (Photo by Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

Henry VII: the survivor and stabiliser

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The Victorian telegraph and Dan Snow on his new series . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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The Library Summer holidays and Edward VI . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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The Library The career of one of England's most well-known kings . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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The origins of the Tudors . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A monumental misunderstanding

When Victoria wed, she wore white so the crowds could see her from afar. (Leemage/Corbis via Getty Images)

The A to Z of royal weddings with Tracy Borman

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You’d be a mug to sneer at royal wedding souvenirs

The coronation of King Henry III, 13th century. (Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

The fine rolls of King Henry III