King of England and Ireland (16858), also king of Scotland, as James VII, born in London, UK, the second son of Charles I. Nine months before his father's execution, he escaped to Holland. At the Restoration (1660) he was made Lord High Admiral of England, and commanded the fleet in the Dutch Wars; but after becoming a convert to Catholicism he was forced to resign his post. The national ferment occasioned by the Popish Plot (1678) became so formidable that he had to retire to the European mainland, and several unsuccessful attempts were made to exclude him from the succession. During his reign his actions in favour of Catholicism raised general indignation, and William, Prince of Orange, his son-in-law and nephew, was formally asked by leading clerics and landowners to invade (1688). Deserted by ministers and troops, James escaped to France, where he was warmly received by Louis XIV. He made an ineffectual attempt to regain his throne in Ireland, which ended in the Battle of the Boyne (1690), and remained at St Germain until his death.
| James II | |
|---|---|
| King of Scots, England and Ireland | |
| Godfrey Kneller, 1684 | |
| Reign | 6 February 1685 — 11 December 1688 |
| Coronation | 23 April 1685 |
| Predecessor | Charles II of England |
|
Crown Prince Successors |
James Francis Edward Stuart (unsucceeded) William III of England Mary II of England |
| Spouse | Mary of Modena (1658 — 1718) |
| Issue | |
|
Mary II of England Anne of Great Britain James Francis Edward Stuart |
|
| Full name | |
| James Stuart | |
| Titles | |
|
HM The King HM The Duke of Normandy |
|
| Royal House | Stuart |
| Royal anthem | God Save the King |
| Father | HM Charles I of England |
| Mother | Lady Henrietta Maria of France |
| Born |
14 October 1633 St. James' Palace, London |
| Died |
16 September 1701 Saint-Germain-en-Laye |
| Burial | Saint-Germain-en-Laye |
James VII of Scotland and James II of England (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) became King of Scots, King of England, and King of Ireland on 6 February 1685, and Duke of Normandy on 31 December 1660. 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.
Early life
James, the second surviving son of Charles I and Henrietta Maria of France, was born at St. James's Palace in 1633 and created Duke of York in 1644. width: 240px;" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0">
| British Royalty |
|---|
| House of Stuart |
| James II & VII |
| Children |
| Mary II |
| Anne |
| James Francis Edward Stuart |
| Grandchildren |
| Charles Edward Stuart |
| Henry Benedict Stuart |
Religion
James was admitted to the Roman Catholic Church in about 1668 or 1669, although this was kept secret for some time.
Reign
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Charles died sine prole legitima (without legitimate offspring) in 1685, converting to Roman Catholicism on his deathbed.
Glorious Revolution
In April 1688, James re-issued the Declaration of Indulgence, subsequently ordering Anglican clergymen to read it in their churches. it was a Convention Parliament which restored Charles II to the Throne following the English Civil War and republican Commonwealth.) The Convention declared, on 12 February 1689, that James's attempt to flee on 11 December constituted an abdication of the government, and that the Throne had then become vacant (instead of passing to James II's son, James Francis Edward).
The son of James II, James Francis Edward Stuart (known to his supporters as "James III and VIII" and to his opponents as the "Old Pretender"), took up the Jacobite cause.
Style and arms
The official style of James II was "James the Second, by the Grace of God, King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc." This was a few months after the restoration of his brother Charles II to the English and Irish thrones (Charles II had been crowned King of Scotland in 1651), and was probably done as a political gesture of support for James - since his brother also would have claimed the title "Duke of Normandy."
Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| By Anne Hyde | |||
| Charles, Duke of Cambridge | 22 October 1660 | 5 May 1661 | |
| Mary II | 30 April 1662 | 28 December 1694 | married 1677, William III, Prince of Orange; no issue |
| James, Duke of Cambridge | 12 July 1663 | 22 May 1667 | |
| Anne | 6 February 1665 | 1 August 1714 | married 1683, Prince George of Denmark; no surviving issue |
| Charles, Duke of Kendal | 4 July 1666 | 20 June 1667 | |
| Edgar, Duke of Cambridge | 14 September 1667 | 15 November 1669 | |
| Henrietta | 13 January 1669 | 15 November 1669 | |
| Catherine | 9 February 1671 | 5 December 1671 | |
| By Mary of Modena | |||
| Catherine Laura | 10 January 1675 | 3 October 1676 | died of convulsions. |
| Isabel | 28 August 1676 | 2 March 1681 | |
| Charles, Duke of Cambridge | 7 November 1677 | 12 December 1677 | died of smallpox |
| Elizabeth | 1678 | c. 1678 | |
| Charlotte Maria | 16 August 1682 | 16 October 1682 | died of convulsions |
| James, Prince of Wales | 10 June 1688 | 1 January 1766 | married 1719, Mary Sobieski; had issue |
| Louise | 28 June 1692 | 20 April 1712 | |
| By Arabella Churchill | |||
| Henrietta FitzJames | 1667 | 3 April 1730 | Married first Henry Waldegrave; |
| James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick | 21 August 1670 | 12 June 1734 | |
| Henry FitzJames, 1st Duke of Albemarle | August, 1673 | December, 1702 | |
| Arabella FitzJames | 1674 | 7 November 1704 | Became a nun; |
| By Catherine Sedley | |||
| Catherine Darnley | c. 1681 | 13 March 1743 |
married firstly, James Annesley, 3rd Earl of Anglesey and had issue, married secondly, John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby and had issue. |
| James Darnley | 1684 | 1685 | |
| Charles Darnley | ? | ? | |
Miscellaneous
James was responsible for the last major redevelopments at the Palace of Whitehall prior to its destruction by fire.
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