I cannot let this day pass, it's,
Today (or maybe next week, as England used the Old Style till 1752), 386 years ago a Prince was born at St. James Palace as the third son and second son to survive childhood of King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria.
He grew up with a Civil War and ended up being a soldier in France, suspecting he'd never see England again, at least not as a Royal. But fate turned to the sides of the Stuarts and in 1660 he rode back into London with his brothers, King Charles the Second and Henry, Duke of Gloucester.
He married Anne Hyde in 1660 and after a lot of painful farewells, two of their children survived childhood, Mary and Anne (the future Mary II and Anne of Great Britain), he converted to Catholicism somewhere around the end of the '60s, Anne died in 1671, James remarried in 1673 to Mary Beatrice d'Este (Mary of Modena) and also two of their children survived childhood and only one survived into adulthood, James and Louisa Maria (James became James III in the Jacobite succession and unfortunately, Louisa Maria died at the age of 19.)
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| James, Duke of York by Sir Peter Lely c. 1665 || Royal Collection Trust |
In 1685 he was crowned as King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland (even though he wasn't anything of France; The claim to France was only nominal, and was asserted by every English king from Edward III to George III, regardless of the amount of French territory actually controlled), it was the first joint coronation after Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon in 1509, there weren't any crowns for the Queen and so the Royal Treasury had created two crowns and one diadem for Mary Beatrice. In 1689 he 'abdicated' as King according to parliament, in the Jacobite succession, he was King from 1685 till his death in 1701. James 'fled' into exile in France (in his belief for his own safety as he didn't want to end up like his father, beheaded) and after his defeat at the Battle of Boyne, it was clear that he would, sadly, never set foot in his Kingdom again. James tried to launch a few other campaigns to restore his position on the throne, but they failed and he lived his last years in Saint-Germain-en-Lay.
After his death in 1701 he (James's heart was placed in a silver-gilt locket and given to the convent at Chaillot, and his brain was placed in a lead casket and given to the Scots College in Paris. His entrails were placed in two gilt urns and sent to the parish church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the English Jesuit college at Saint-Omer, while the flesh from his right arm was given to the English Augustinian nuns of Paris) was laid to rest at the Chapel of Saint Edmund in the Church of the English Benedictines in the Rue St. Jacques in Paris, he wasn't buried and lights kept burning around his coffin until the French Revolution. During the Revolution, his tomb was raided and his body disappeared.
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| In order to keep it fun, a 'sliding crown' (during his coronation, the crown nearly slid of James his head because it was too big (the coronation preparation was that rushed by James that there wasn't enough time to measure the right size)), sorry James. |
In order to celebrate his birthday, I am having a couple of books for you;
* The Life and Times of James II
* The Memoirs of James II, His Campaigns as Duke of York 1652 - 1660
* James VII: Duke and King of Scots, 1633 - 1701
The Life and Times of James II
Back of the book (okay, in-lay of the book)
As a child, he strongly resisted attempts by his mother to convert him to the Roman Church, yet, in the late 1660s, he openly became a Catholic and, by his refusal to compromise, made himself one of the most unpopular and feared men in the kingdom. In his youth, he was a brave and successful soldier, yet during the great crisis of his life, he seemed incapable of showing either courage or resolution. At the Restoration, he administered the navy with ability and assurance, winning the lifelong devotion of Samuel Pepys, but his record as King was on of crass maladroitness which caused him to 'go n his travels' after only four years of rule. Even the verdict of history is paradoxical: to some James remains Macaulay's tyrannical villain, to others a misunderstood martyr.
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The Memoirs of James II; His Campaigns as Duke of York 1652 - 1660
Introduction of the book by Sir Arthur Bryant
James the Second of England and the Seventh of Scotland was neither a great man nor a great king. But he was a prince of firm integrity, strong religious faith, a loyal master and friend -perhaps, in the light of his own interests, too loyal a friend - and, within the limits imposed by his royal birth and calling, a fine administrator, especially in naval and military matters in which from his earliest years he had had much experience. With the help of his lieutenant, Samuel Pepys, he did more personally for the Royal Navy than any other English Sovereign, past or future. And that was no small service to his country, even if it was his only one. With his ancestor, Edward III, he shared, too, the unique privilege for a King of England of commanding her Fleet in action. He not only took part, like King George VI and the Duke of Edinburgh, in one the major battles of British sea history, but he directed it victoriously as Commander-in-Chief. Not only did he command Britain's Fleet in action and preside over Admiralty for many years. At one time, as a very young man, he temporarily commanded the French army in the field while acting as deputy for the great Turenne. Later, though also for a very brief period and as a deputy, he commanded the Spanish army in the Netherlands. Many years afterwards, when King of English, he commanded the English Army in the abortive and, for him, disastrous campaign of 1688. He also commanded the Irish Army before the battle of Boyne. This must surely be a record of command, however checkered, for any Sovereign. James, too, was the last Roman Catholic to reign in England. And he has yet another claim to fame: that the greatest city of the modern world, New York, was re-christened after him and bears his name.
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James VII; Duke and King of Scots, 1633 - 1701
Back of the book:
James VII and II is one of the least studied monarchs of Scotland, and has previously mostly been studied from an English perspective or as the muddles victim of the Revolution of 1688/9 which delivered for Britain much-vaunted political emancipation. This book provides the first complete portrait of James as a Stewart prince of Scotland, as duke of Albany and King of Scots. It re-evaluates the traditional views of James as a Catholic extremist and absolutist who failed through incompetence, and challenges preconceptions based on strong views of his failings, both in popular belief and serious history. Investigating the personality and motives of the man, this biography assesses James as commander, as Christian and as king, but also as family man and Restoration libertine - a prince of his time. Painting a picture of James from cradle to grave, from childhood to resigned exile, it brings him to life within his Scottish context and as a member of the royal line of Scotland. the journey from dashing young cavalry commander to pious prince in exile appears oddly incongruous given the political and personal trials that lay between. That journey was much more of Scotland than previous studies have suggested - indeed, James was in many ways the last King of Scots.
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Well, that's been a lot of chitchat from me about this interesting man. If you're interested in royal history, mainly the Stuarts, please read into this forgotten King. :)
Have a great week, loves!
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