Interesting Facts

Only two British monarchs have reigned more than once: Henry VI and Edward IV. Henry VI reigned from 1422 to 1461 and from 1470 to 1471 and Edward IV reigned from 1461 to 1470 and from 1471 to 1483.

King Henry VIII weighed 21 stones (133 kg, 294 pounds)

King Edward the Confessor was the first English monarch to be declared a saint. He was England's patron saint until 1348.

The last British monarch to lead troops into battle was King George II at the Battle of Dettingen against the French in 1743.

William Caxton, an English merchant and author, introduced the printing press to England

His book, "History of Troy", a history of the ancient Greek city, was the first book to be printed in English, in 1474.

British monarchs wear an "imperial" style of crown. This style was introduced by King Henry IV in 1399. 

The equals sign (=) in mathematics was invented in 1577 by Robert Recorde, a London doctor who studied at both Cambridge and Oxford.

England's youngest ever monarch was King Henry VI who came to the Throne in 1422 aged just 6 months.

England's shortest-reigning monarch was Queen Jane (Lady Jane Grey), the cousin and wife of King Edward VI, who reigned for just 9 days in 1554.