February 3rd - 9th
On 3rd February…
1399 - John of Gaunt, the fourth son of King Edward III died. On John’s death his cousin, King Richard II, confiscated his lands and prevented them from being passed down to his son Henry Bolingbroke. Henry Bolingbroke got a little bit annoyed about that and eventually deposed King Richard II, forcing him to abdicate. Henry then became King Henry IV and the whole affair began the friction and family feud which ended up as the Wars of the Roses.
On 4th February…
211CE - The Roman Emperor Septimius Severus died in the city of Eboracum which is now called York. He was preparing to lead a campaign against the Caledonians (Scottish tribes) when he died.
Birth of a successful activist
1913 - Rosa Parks was born in Alabama, U.S.A. She was an American Civil Rights Activist who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger when the bus became crowded.
Her actions led to a boycott of the bus company and changes to the law which made it illegal to have segregated seating on buses.
Rosa Parks received numerous awards throughout her career including the Presidential Medal of Freedom which is the highest award given by the U.S.A. to people who have contributed to the national interests of the country, the recipients are chosen by the American President.
On 5th February…
Robert Peel, founder of the police force was born in Lancashire
1788 - Robert Peel, British politician and the founder of the modern police force, was born in Lancashire. ‘Peelers’ and ‘Bobbies’ the nicknames given to the early police force were taken from his name.
On 6th February…
Queen Anne was born in London
1665 - Queen Anne of England was born in London. She became queen after both King William III and Queen Mary II died childless. She was the younger sister of Queen Mary II; they were both daughters of the deposed King James II and VII.
Did you know that she was pregnant 18 times? Sadly, only five of her children were born alive and only one of those survived past infancy. Unfortunately, he died when he was just 11 years old.
King Charles II died at the mercy of his doctors
1685 - King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland died. His father King Charles I had been executed during the English Civil War and for a while the nation had been ruled by Parliament and a Lord Protector (Oliver Cromwell). King Charles II had at least 12 children by his mistresses but had no legitimate heirs.
Charles died a slow and painful death suffering at the hands of his doctors who actually thought that they were healing him. Thankfully medicine has progressed a lot since then,
Did you know that the years of his reign are called the ‘Restoration Period’? This is because the monarchy had been restored following the English Civil War and the reign of Parliament and the Lord Protector.
He was uncle to Queen Anne and Queen Mary II.
Death of King George VI
1952 - King George VI died. He had never expected to become king because he was the second son of King George V. His older brother (King Edward VIII) abdicated the throne leaving the job to George who stepped in and became King George VI.
He was the grandfather of our current king: King Charles III of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
On 7th February…
Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth
1812 - Charles Dickens, the famous English author and writer of stories such as Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol, was born in Portsmouth, England.
2005 - Ellen MacArthur became the fastest female to sail solo around the world. It took her 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds.
On 8th February…
Execution of a queen
1587 - Mary, Queen of Scots was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle after being found guilty of plotting to assassinate her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I.
Having been forced to abdicate the Scottish throne in favour of her baby son James, Mary was forced to flee to England for safety where she was then held prisoner for 19 years by Queen Elizabeth I who had been wary of her Scottish cousin’s potential claim to the English throne.
On 9th February…
1555 - The Bishop of Gloucester, Thomas Hooper, was burned at the stake near Gloucester Cathedral. He was the first bishop to be executed in this way during the reign of Queen Mary I. Thomas had originally been a Catholic Bishop but had converted to Protestantism during the reign of King Edward VI, son of Henry VIII. He had supported Queen Mary in her claim to the throne but was found guilty of heresy when Queen Mary made England a Catholic country again. Many of the Protestant Bishops were found guilty during this time and were executed by being burnt at the stake. This is how Queen Mary earned her nickname Bloody Mary.
Queen of Scot’s husband was murdered
1567 - Lord Darnley, Henry Stewart, the husband of Mary Queen of Scots was murdered in the orchard of Kirk o’ Field in Edinburgh. Mary was a suspect in his death. Together they had a son who grew up to become King James VI and I (of Scotland and of England).