Which English Monarch (alive or dead) do you find the most fascinating?

1. 71

   Mel Jayposted 13 years ago

   Which English Monarch (alive or dead) do you find the most fascinating?
   
   I am fascinated by all of them from Alfred the Great through to Elizabeth II, but I think my favorite might be Henry VIII because he was so terrible (killing his wives and striving for absolute power). 
   
   

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2. 60

   duffsmomposted 13 years ago

   Henry the VIII fascinates me.  He definitely went against the grain with the divorce issue and so many wives--many who didn't make it!

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3. 0

   Old Empresarioposted 13 years ago

   Probably Henry II is my favorite. I am fascinated by the fact that the Kings from William I to Edward III were not English at all, but came from a line of Norman or French dukes. The Tudor paternal line was Welsh and the Stuarts were Scots. William of Orange was Dutch. And everyone after George I until the 20th Century was German. I suppose the current queen has some English pedigree.

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4. 60

   megwinklerposted 12 years ago

   It seems so cliche, but Elizabeth I.  I've done a ton of research on her prior to her rule and it's just amazing how brilliant she was.  Her rule was the Golden Age of British history.  Her father, Henry VIII is also completely fascinating to me as well.  Those crazy Tudors stirred things up in England for sure.  I never tire of movies, books, tv shows, etc about Tudor England.

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5. 0

   Kieran Gracieposted 12 years ago

   I agree with megwinkler - the Tudor dynasty is the most fascinating for me and, of the Tudor kings, Henry VIII is the most interesting.  He was a big man in all sorts of ways, not only in the physical sense. 
   
   He was responsible for the break from Rome that started the Protestant movement.  He ruined a whole lot of great British architecture.   He understood naval power and how to use it. He was a very strong ruler, until near his death, and put England firmly on the world map. And he fathered ELizabeth I, who was another strong ruler ....

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6. 71

   maven101posted 12 years ago

   Elizabeth 1 is my choice for the following reasons:
   Elizabeth's deft political skills and strong personal character were directly responsible for putting England (at the time of her accession in 1558 a weak, divided backwater far outside the mainstream of European power and cultural development) on the road to becoming a true world economic and political power and restoring the country's lost sense of national pride....Larry

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