James II of England

James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was king of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1685 to 1688. He was King James II in England and Ireland, and King James VII in Scotland. He was also Duke of Normandy from 31 December 1660. He lost his kingdoms in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. He did not succeed in taking them back in a war, and he spent the rest of his life in France.

James II & VII[lower-alpha 1]
Portrait by Peter Lely
King of England, Scotland, and Ireland
Reign6 February 1685 – 23 December 1688
Coronation23 April 1685
PredecessorCharles II
SuccessorsWilliam III & II and Mary II
Born14 October 1633
(N.S.: 24 October 1633)
St James's Palace, London, England
Died16 September 1701 (aged 67) (N.S.)
Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
Burial
Church of the English Benedictines, Paris, France
Spouse
Issue
more...
  • Charles, Duke of Cambridge
  • Mary II, Queen of England
  • James, Duke of Cambridge
  • Anne, Queen of Great Britain
  • Charles, Duke of Kendal
  • Edgar, Duke of Cambridge
  • Isabel Stuart
  • Charles, Duke of Cambridge
  • James Francis Edward Stuart
  • Louisa Maria Stuart
  • Illegitimate:
  • Henrietta FitzJames
  • James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick
  • Henry FitzJames
HouseStuart
FatherCharles I of England
MotherHenrietta Maria of France
Religion
SignatureJames II & VII's signature
A painting of James II of England

He was the last Roman Catholic king in the British Isles. Some of his people did not like his religious ideas, leading a group of them to disobey and fight against him. This was called the Glorious Revolution in England and Scotland. King James and his son, James Francis Edward went into exile. The king was replaced by his Protestant daughter, Queen Mary II, and her husband King William III and II. They became rulers in 1689.

The belief that James, not William III or Mary II, was the one true ruler became known as Jacobitism (from Jacobus or Iacobus, Latin for James). James made one serious attempt to recover his throne when he landed in Ireland in 1689. After his defeat at the Battle of the Boyne in the summer of 1690, he returned to France, living the rest of his life under the protection of King Louis XIV. His son James Francis Edward Stuart (The Old Pretender) and his grandson Charles Edward Stuart (The Young Pretender and Bonnie Prince Charlie) attempted to restore the Jacobite line after James's death, but failed.

Issue
NameBirthDeathNotes
By Anne Hyde
Charles, Duke of Cambridge22 October 16605 May 1661 
Mary II30 April 166228 December 1694married 1677, William III, Prince of Orange; no issue
James, Duke of Cambridge11 or 12 July 166320 June 1667 
Anne6 February 16651 August 1714married 1683, Prince George of Denmark; no surviving issue
Charles, Duke of Kendal4 July 166622 May 1667 
Edgar, Duke of Cambridge14 September 16678 June 1671 
Henrietta13 January 166915 November 1669 
Catherine9 February 16715 December 1671 
By Mary of Modena
Unnamed childMarch or May 1674miscarriage
Catherine Laura10 January 16753 October 1675died of convulsions.[1]
Unnamed childOctober 1675stillborn
Isabel (or Isabella)28 August 16762 or 4 March 1681buried in Westminster Abbey on 4 March (Old Style) as "The Lady Isabella, daughter to the Duke of York"[2]
Charles, Duke of Cambridge7 November 167712 December 1677died of smallpox[1]
Elizabethc. 1678 
Unnamed childFebruary 1681stillborn
Charlotte Maria16 August 168216 October 1682died of convulsions[1] and buried in Westminster Abbey on 8 October (Old Style) as "The Lady Charlott-Marie, daughter to the Duke of York"[3]
Unnamed childOctober 1683stillborn
Unnamed childMay 1684miscarriage
James, Prince of Wales "the Old Pretender"10 June 16881 January 1766married 1719, Clementina Sobieska; had issue
Louisa Maria Teresa28 June 169218 April 1712 
By Arabella Churchill
Henrietta FitzJames16673 April 1730Married first Henry Waldegrave; had issue. Married secondly Piers Butler, 3rd Viscount Galmoye; no issue.
James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick21 August 167012 June 1734Married firstly Honora Bourke and had issue. Married secondly Ana Bulkely and had issue.[4]
Henry FitzJames, 1st Duke of AlbemarleAugust 1673December 1702Married Marie Gabrielle d'Audibert de Lussan; had issue.
Arabella FitzJames16747 November 1704Became a nun under the name Ignatia.[4]
By Catherine Sedley
Catherine Darnleyc. 168113 March 1743Alleged daughter. Married firstly, James Annesley, 3rd Earl of Anglesey and had issue. Married secondly, John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby and had issue.[4]
James Darnley168422 April 1685
Charles DarnleyDied young.[4]

Notes
  1. In Scotland, he was called James VII, as there were six previous kings of that nation named James.
  2. In Scotland, he was called James VII, as there were six previous kings of that nation named James.

References
  1. Weir, 260
  2. J. L. Chester, The Marriage, Baptismal, and Burial Registers of the Collegiate Church or Abbey of St. Peter, Westminster, Volume 10 (Harleian Society, 1876), p. 201
  3. Chester (1876), p. 206
  4. Weir, 263
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