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115-495: A theory as to the origin of the jack-in-the-box is that it comes from the 14th-century English prelate Sir John Schorne , who is often pictured holding a boot with a devil in it. According to folklore , he once cast the devil into a boot to protect the village of North Marston in Buckinghamshire . In French, a jack-in-the-box is called a " diable en boîte " (literally "devil in a box"). The phrase jack-in-the-box

230-613: A Celtic kingdom in what is now southwest Scotland and Cumbria. In doing so, he annexed what is now the county of Cumbria to England. In 1124, Henry I ceded what is now southeast Scotland (called Lothian ) to the Kingdom of Scotland , in return for the King of Scotland's loyalty. This final cession established what would become the traditional borders of England which have remained largely unchanged since then (except for occasional and temporary changes). This area of land had previously been

345-632: A Council of the North was set up for the northern counties of England. After falling into disuse, it was re-established in 1537 and abolished in 1641. A very short-lived Council of the West also existed for the West Country between 1537 and 1540. In the Anglo-Saxon period, the geld or property tax was first levied in response to Danish invasions but later became a regular tax. The majority of

460-506: A peerage on such basis, meaning a right to sit in the House of Lords , were not to be revived, nor any right of succession based on them. The Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 followed the conquest of Wales by Edward I of England . It assumed the lands held by the Princes of Gwynedd under the title " Prince of Wales " as legally part of the lands of England, and established shire counties on

575-499: A Scandinavian king ruled all of England. Northumbria was not well integrated into the rest of the country. Siward became the last Scandinavian Earl of Northumbria when he succeeded Erik in about 1033. He governed for 22 years without difficulty. On Siward's death in 1055, the king of England, Edward the Confessor , chose a West Saxon to govern Yorkshire, in place of Siward's son, Waltheof . Edward's choice, Tostig Godwinson ,

690-482: A Viking ally called Thurfrith led a force to York and besieged the city. Æthelstan counterattacked and Gofraid was captured. The city was then looted by the Anglo-Saxons and Gofraid allowed to return to Ireland. [Guthferth] ... at last came a suppliant to court. Being amicably received by the king, and sumptuously entertained for four days, he resought his ships; an incorrigible pirate, and accustomed to live in

805-539: A Viking army landed with the intention of conquering rather than just raiding. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle described the army as the "mycel heathen here" ( Great Heathen Army ). They landed in East Anglia where the locals, under Edmund of East Anglia , "made peace" with them in return for horses. The army, led by Ivar the Boneless and his brother Halfdan Ragnarsson , made its way north to Northumbria where

920-418: A gift for a local prince's fifth birthday. After seeing this toy, other nobles requested their own "Devils-in-a-box" for their children. In the early 18th century, improved toy mechanisms made the jack-in-the-box more widely available for all children and not just royalty. Originally, the jack-in-the-box was made out of wood , but with new technology the toy could be constructed from printed cardboard. Around

1035-576: A history of being rulers of Bernicia, and at times Northumbria. Copsi had fought in Harald Hardrada 's army with Tostig, against Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. He had managed to escape after Harald's defeat. When Copsi offered homage to William at Barking in 1067, William rewarded him by making him earl of Northumbria. After just five weeks as earl, Copsi was murdered by Osulf , son of Earl Eadwulf IV of Bernicia . When, in turn,

1150-551: A joint army from Wessex and Mercia at Tettenhall on 5 August 910. Ragnall I was York's next ruler, he was the grandson of Ímar and was probably one of the Vikings expelled from Dublin in 902. He fought against Constantín II , King of Scotland , in the Battle of Corbridge in 918. It is not clear from the annals, who actually won the battle, but the outcome did allow Ragnall to establish himself as king at York. It seems that

1265-543: A local noble or bishop. The last such, the County Palatine of Durham , did not lose this special status until the 19th century. Although all of England was divided into shires by the time of the Norman Conquest, some counties were formed considerably later, up to the 16th century. Because of their differing origins the counties varied considerably in size . The county boundaries were fairly static between

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1380-449: A major European war. A Treaty of Union was agreed on 22 July 1706, and following the Acts of Union of 1707 , which created the Kingdom of Great Britain , the independence of the kingdoms of England and Scotland came to an end on 1 May 1707. The Acts of Union created a customs union and monetary union and provided that any "laws and statutes" that were "contrary to or inconsistent with

1495-536: A new invasion. The ensuing war ended with an agreement in 1016 between Canute and Æþelræd's successor, Edmund Ironside , to divide England between them, but Edmund's death on 30 November of that year left England united under Danish rule. This continued for 26 years until the death of Harthacnut in June 1042. He was the son of Canute and Emma of Normandy (the widow of Æthelred the Unready) and had no heirs of his own; he

1610-731: A part of the Anglian Kingdom of Northumbria . Lothian contained what later became the Scottish capital, Edinburgh . This arrangement was later finalized in 1237 by the Treaty of York . The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land from the Irish, over which the Kingdom of England then claimed sovereignty, all allegedly sanctioned by

1725-461: A series of civil wars over possession of the throne between the House of Lancaster (whose heraldic symbol was the red rose) and the House of York (whose symbol was the white rose), each led by different branches of the descendants of Edward III. The end of these wars found the throne held by the descendant of an initially illegitimate member of the House of Lancaster, married to the eldest daughter of

1840-676: A unitary legislative chamber with a new body, the Council of State becoming the executive. However the Army remained the dominant institution in the new republic and the most prominent general was Oliver Cromwell . The Commonwealth fought wars in Ireland and Scotland which were subdued and placed under Commonwealth military occupation. Meanwhile, relations with the Dutch Republic had deteriorated. Despite initial English support during

1955-411: Is a term used by historians for what is now Yorkshire during the period of Scandinavian domination from late 9th century until it was annexed and integrated into England after the Norman Conquest; in particular, it is used to refer to York , the city controlled by these kings and earls. The Kingdom of Jórvík was closely associated with the longer-lived Kingdom of Dublin throughout this period. York

2070-671: The 1801 union between the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, forming the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The counties of England were established for administration by the Normans , in most cases based on earlier shires established by

2185-619: The Angevin kings became "more English in nature"; the houses of Lancaster and York are both Plantagenet cadet branches, the Tudor dynasty claimed descent from Edward III via John Beaufort and James VI and I of the House of Stuart claimed descent from Henry VII via Margaret Tudor . The completion of the conquest of Wales by Edward I in 1284 put Wales under the control of the English crown. Edward III (reigned 1327–1377) transformed

2300-734: The Angles . They called their land Engla land , meaning "land of the English", by Æthelweard Latinized Anglia , from an original Anglia vetus , the purported homeland of the Angles (called Angulus by Bede ). The name Engla land became England by haplology during the Middle English period ( Engle-land , Engelond ). The Latin name was Anglia or Anglorum terra , the Old French and Anglo-Norman one Engleterre . The standard title for monarchs from Æthelstan until John

2415-486: The Anglo-Saxons . They ceased to be used for administration only with the creation of the administrative counties in 1889. Unlike the partly self-governing boroughs that covered urban areas, the counties of medieval England existed primarily as a means of enforcing central government power, enabling monarchs to exercise control over local areas through their chosen representatives – originally sheriffs and later

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2530-408: The Battle of Stainmore in 954. The whole area was then governed by earls, from the local nobility, who were appointed by the kings of England. In 975 the king of England Edgar died suddenly. The succession was contested between his two sons Edward and Æthelred . Edward became king but was killed under suspicious circumstances in 978. Æthelred replaced him as ruler and in 1002 he was told that

2645-590: The Bretwalda . Soon after the Norman Conquest of England , however, some Norman lords began to attack Wales. They conquered and ruled parts of it, acknowledging the overlordship of the Norman kings of England but with considerable local independence. Over many years these " Marcher Lords " conquered more and more of Wales, against considerable resistance led by various Welsh princes, who also often acknowledged

2760-554: The Cricklade area. Edward and his allies responded by attacking East Anglia. Edward's Kentish allies engaged Æthelwold's army, and in this battle Æthelwold was killed. Edward followed up his attack on East Anglia with raids into the Viking kingdom. The following year the Vikings retaliated, led by their new joint kings Eowils and Halfdan II their intention was to raid Mercia and Wessex but were intercepted and killed when they met

2875-475: The Cuerdale Hoard , contained approximately 8,000 Anglo-Scandinavian coins as well as continental and Kufic coins. Some of the coins discovered have Siefredus's name on providing an indication to when he reigned. The coin evidence suggests that Siefredus succeeded Guthred and ruled from about 895 until 900. The medieval chronicler Æthelweard has led some historians to suggest that Siefriedus maybe

2990-833: The Elizabethan Religious Settlement , meanwhile establishing England as a great power and laying the foundations of the British Empire via colonization of the Americas . The accession of James VI and I in 1603 resulted in the Union of the Crowns , with the Stuart dynasty ruling the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland . Under the Stuarts, England plunged into civil war , which culminated in

3105-658: The English Civil War (1641–45), in which the king was defeated, and to the abolition of the monarchy under Oliver Cromwell during the Interregnum of 1649–1660. After the trial and execution of Charles I in January 1649, the Rump Parliament passed an act declaring England to be a Commonwealth on 19 May 1649. The monarchy and the House of Lords were abolished, and so the House of Commons became

3220-684: The Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542 ). Wales was incorporated into the Kingdom of England, and henceforth was represented in the Parliament of England . During the 1530s, Henry VIII overthrew the power of the Catholic Church within the kingdom, replacing the pope as head of his own English Church and seizing the Catholic Church's lands, thereby facilitating the creation of a variation of Catholicism that became more Protestant over time. This had

3335-413: The Parliament of Ireland , with the aim of restoring such central authority as had been lost throughout the country during the previous two centuries. Calais , the last remaining continental possession of the Kingdom, was lost in 1558, during the reign of Philip and Mary I . Their successor, Elizabeth I , consolidated the new and increasingly Protestant Church of England . She also began to build up

3450-567: The execution of Charles I in 1649. The monarchy returned in 1660, but the Civil War had established the precedent that an English monarch cannot govern without the consent of Parliament. This concept became legally established as part of the Glorious Revolution of 1688. From this time the kingdom of England, as well as its successor state the United Kingdom, functioned in effect as a constitutional monarchy . On 1 May 1707, under

3565-402: The lord-lieutenants – and their subordinate justices of the peace . Counties were used initially for the administration of justice , collection of taxes and organisation of the military, and later for local government and electing parliamentary representation. Some outlying counties were from time to time accorded palatine status with some military and central government functions vested in

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3680-531: The 16th century Laws in Wales acts and the Local Government Act 1888 . Each shire was responsible for gathering taxes for the central government; for local defence; and for justice, through assize courts . The power of the feudal barons to control their landholding was considerably weakened in 1290 by the statute of Quia Emptores . Feudal baronies became perhaps obsolete (but not extinct) on

3795-635: The 1930s, the jack-in-the-box became a wind-up toy made from tin . Additionally, the tin boxes began to be covered in images from children's nursery rhymes with corresponding tunes. Over the years, the jack-in-the-box has evolved into characters other than the clown, such as Winnie the Pooh , The Cat in the Hat , the Three Little Pigs , kittens , dogs , Curious George , Santa Claus , giraffes , and so on. Starting in 1935 and continuing for 20 years,

3910-469: The 7th and 11th centuries, indicate that the cathedral remained a religious centre throughout. Guthred died in 895 and was buried at York Minster . Siefredus of Northumbria replaced Guthred as ruler of Jórvík and although not a great deal is known about him there has been some information provided by coin evidence. A substantial find in the Ribble Valley , during the 19th century, now known as

4025-485: The Anglo-Saxons were embroiled in a civil war. In 862 the ruler of Northumbria, Osberht , had been deposed by Ælla of Northumbria . Ivar the Boneless was able to capitalize on the Anglo-Saxons disarray and captured York in 866/ 867. After Ivar the Boneless had annexed York, the two Anglo-Saxon leaders settled their differences, they joined forces and attempted to retake the city. When the Northumbrians attacked,

4140-579: The Anglo-Saxons, restored the city of London splendidly ... and made it habitable once more." Alfred's restoration entailed reoccupying and refurbishing the nearly deserted Roman walled city, building quays along the Thames , and laying a new city street plan. During the following years Northumbria repeatedly changed hands between the English kings and the Norwegian invaders, but was definitively brought under English control by Eadred in 954, completing

4255-772: The Anglo-Scandinavian town of Tanshelf , where Archbishop Wulfan and the Northumbrian witan submitted to him. Eric Bloodaxe capitalizing on the deteriorating political situation in York, established himself as king. Eadred's response was to raid Northumbria and drive Eric out. Olaf Cuaran was reestablished as king from 950 to 952. Olaf's rule was short-lived as in 952 Eric removed him and then reigned in Northumbria till 954. Scandinavian domination came to an end when Eadred's forces killed Eric Bloodaxe at

4370-665: The Castilian Pero Niño . Though the English won numerous victories, they were unable to overcome the numerical superiority of the French and their strategic use of gunpowder weapons. England was defeated at the Battle of Formigny in 1450 and finally at the Battle of Castillon in 1453, retaining only a single town in France, Calais . During the Hundred Years' War an English identity began to develop in place of

4485-549: The Danes. The remaining Northumbrian leaders, probably led by archbishop, Wulfhere , "made peace" with the Vikings. The Vikings appointed a compliant native prince Ecgberht as puppet ruler of Northumbria. Five years later, in 872, when the Great Army was elsewhere, the local Northumbrians capitalized on their absence by driving Wulfhere and Ecgberht out. The two exiles found refuge at the court of Burgred of Mercia . The revolt

4600-535: The Danish Vikings and after this event he declared himself King of the Anglo-Saxons , until his death in 899. During the course of the early tenth century, the various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were united by Alfred's descendants Edward the Elder (reigned 899–924) and Æthelstan (reigned 924–939) to form the Kingdom of the English. In 927, Æthelstan conquered the last remaining Viking kingdom, York , making him

4715-797: The Danish men in his territory "would faithlessly take his life, and then all his councillors, and possess his kingdom afterwards". In response, he ordered the deaths of all Danes living in England. The orders were carried out on 13 November 1002 (now known as the St Brice's Day massacre ). It is thought that the massacre provoked the king of Denmark , Sweyn Forkbeard , to invade England in 1003. The onslaught continued until 1014 when Æthelred and his family were driven into exile and Sweyn installed as king of England. However he only reigned for five weeks before dying. After Sweyn's death, his son Cnut became

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4830-579: The Dutch Republic in its wars against Louis XIV of France. In the Scottish case, the attractions were partly financial and partly to do with removing English trade sanctions put in place through the Alien Act 1705 . The English were more anxious about the royal succession. The death of William III in 1702 had led to the accession of his sister-in-law Anne to the thrones of England and Scotland, but her only surviving child had died in 1700, and

4945-526: The Dutch War of Independence against the Spanish, tensions arose as the Dutch Republic emerged as England's principal commercial and naval rival. By the mid-17th century, it had become the foremost trading nation. In response the English, alarmed by their waning competitiveness, implemented stricter trading policies to curb Dutch dominance. The First Anglo-Dutch War which followed, however, failed to resolve

5060-447: The Elder died in 924. It seems that Sihtric took advantage of the situation to expand his kingdom. There is some numismatic evidence to support this as there are coins, from this time, minted at Lincoln, in the Kingdom of Mercia, as well those from York. Edward was replaced by his son Æthelstan , and although the annals indicated that Sihtric was reluctant to submit to Edward, he submitted to Æthelstan at Tamworth in January 926. Part of

5175-769: The English Act of Settlement 1701 had given the succession to the English crown to the Protestant House of Hanover . Securing the same succession in Scotland became the primary object of English strategic thinking towards Scotland. By 1704, the Union of the Crowns was in crisis, with the Scottish Act of Security allowing for the Scottish Parliament to choose a different monarch, which could in turn lead to an independent foreign policy during

5290-478: The English kingdoms, and native Anglo-Saxon life in general. The English lands were unified in the 10th century in a reconquest completed by King Æthelstan in 927. During the Heptarchy, the most powerful king among the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms might become acknowledged as Bretwalda , a high king over the other kings. The decline of Mercia allowed Wessex to become more powerful, absorbing the kingdoms of Kent and Sussex in 825. The kings of Wessex increasingly dominated

5405-404: The English model over those areas. The Marcher Lords were progressively tied to the English kings by the grants of lands and lordships in England. The Council of Wales and the Marches , administered from Ludlow Castle , was initially established by Edward IV of England to govern the lands held under the Principality of Wales in 1472. At the same time the Council of Wales was created in 1472,

5520-404: The Eucharist : Also this same tyme was moche spekyng agayne the sacrament of the auter, that some callyd it Jacke of the boxe, with divers other shamfulle names In the early 1500s, the first jack-in-the-box was made by a German clockmaker known as Claus. Claus built a wooden box, with metal edges and a handle that would pop out an animated devil or "Jack" after cranking the handle. It was built as

5635-454: The Grandees in the Army, through the Council of State imposed a new constitutional arrangement under a written constitution called the Instrument of Government . Under the Instrument of Government executive power lay with a Lord Protector (an office to be held for the life of the incumbent) and there were to be triennial Parliaments, with each sitting for at least five months. Article 23 of the Instrument of Government stated that Oliver Cromwell

5750-416: The Great became king. When Alfred died in 899. Alfred's son Edward the Elder ascended the throne of Wessex. However, Æthelwold made a bid for power, seizing his fathers old estate in Wimbourne . Edward's forces besieged Æthelwold's position, forcing him to flee. He went to York, where the locals accepted him as king, in 901. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle : ... he stole away by night, and sought

5865-406: The House of York: Henry VII and Elizabeth of York . Wales retained a separate legal and administrative system, which had been established by Edward I in the late 13th century. The country was divided between the Marcher Lords , who gave feudal allegiance to the crown, and the Principality of Wales . Under the Tudor monarchy, Henry VIII replaced the laws of Wales with those of England (under

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5980-509: The Kingdom of Dublin in that same year. The Cuerdale Hoard also contained some coins with the name Cnut or Knútr on them, the coin evidence suggests that he reigned between 900 and 905. He is listed as ruler of York but has proved to be something of a conundrum , for historians, as Cnut is not recorded on any written contemporary sources. Historians have posited several hypotheses. These include, "no coins have been found from Gunfriths[Guthred] reign so perhaps they could be his? ". As some of

6095-466: The Kingdom of England from the Norman Conquest of 1066 conventionally distinguish periods named after successive ruling dynasties: Norman/Angevin 1066–1216, Plantagenet 1216–1485, Tudor 1485–1603 and Stuart 1603–1707 (interrupted by the Interregnum of 1649–1660). All English monarchs after 1066 ultimately descend from the Normans , and the distinction of the Plantagenets is conventional—beginning with Henry II (reigned 1154–1189) as from that time,

6210-471: The Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe; his reign also saw vital developments in legislation and government—in particular the evolution of the English Parliament . From the 1340s, English claims to the French throne were held in pretense, but after the Hundred Years' War and the outbreak of the Wars of the Roses in 1455, the English were no longer in any position to pursue their French claims and lost all their land on

6325-399: The Kingdom of Scotland. Despite the Union of the Crowns , the kingdoms remained separate and independent states: a state of affairs which lasted for more than a century. The Stuart kings overestimated the power of the English monarchy, and were cast down by Parliament in 1645 and 1688. In the first instance, Charles I 's introduction of new forms of taxation in defiance of Parliament led to

6440-421: The Kingdom of York (Jórvík) with Halfdan as its first king. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle : Halfdene apportioned the lands of North-humbria: and they thenceforth continued ploughing and tilling them. Halfdan's reign did not last long, as he was killed, trying to assert his claim to the Kingdom of Dublin, in 877. There was an interregnum after Halfdan died until Guthred became king in 883. Guthred

6555-420: The Normans continued collecting the geld regularly. They also introduced new sources of revenue based on concepts of feudalism . The king was entitled to collect a feudal aid when his eldest son was knighted, his eldest daughter married, or if the king needed to pay his own ransom. The heir to a fief was also required to pay the king a feudal relief before he could take possession of his inheritance. The king

6670-424: The Norwegians at the Battle of Stamford Bridge (25 September 1066) when the news reached him. He decided to set out without delay and confront the Norman army in Sussex so marched southwards at once, despite the army not being properly rested following the battle with the Norwegians. The armies of Harold and William faced each other at the Battle of Hastings (14 October 1066), in which the English army, or Fyrd ,

6785-495: The Papal bull Laudabiliter . At the time, Gaelic Ireland was made up of several kingdoms, with a High King claiming lordship over most of the other kings. The Duchy of Aquitaine came into personal union with the Kingdom of England upon the accession of Henry II , who had married Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine . The Kingdom of England and the Duchy of Normandy remained in personal union until John Lackland , Henry II's son and fourth-generation descendant of William I, lost

6900-429: The Raven motif. In 940, his cousin Olaf Cuaran joined him in York. In 941 Olaf Guthfrithson invaded Mercia and East Anglia The Archbishops of York and Canterbury mediated and Edmund I , Æthelstan's successor, surrendered much of the south-east Midlands and Lincolnshire. It is probable that Olaf Guthfrithson died in 942 and was replaced by Olaf Cuaran. Then in 943 the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that Olaf Cuaran

7015-402: The Scots, on the condition, that he should be his fellow-worker as well by sea as by land. In 946 Edmund was assassinated at Pucklechurch . Edmund was replaced by Eadred who immediately turned his attention to Northumbria, where according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , he "subdued all Northumberland under his power" and obtained oaths of obedience from the Scots. In 947 Eadred went to

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7130-429: The Sussex coast at Hastings . Although William had won the battle it took several years for the Normans to consolidate their rule over England. It is likely that the Conqueror exercised little authority north of the Humber during 1067 as he simply did not have the troops there to enforce his will although the northern earls did submit to him. Copsi , a supporter of Tostig, was a native of Northumbria and his family had

7245-425: The Vikings withdrew behind the crumbling Roman city walls, but the Anglo-Saxon leaders were both killed and the Northumbrians defeated during the ensuing battle on 21 March 867. Symeon of Durham wrote: In those days, the nation of the Northumbrians had violently expelled from the kingdom the rightful king of their nation, Osbryht by name, and had placed at the head of the kingdom a certain tyrant, named Alla. When

7360-512: The abolition of feudal tenure during the Civil War , as confirmed by the Tenures Abolition Act 1660 passed under the Restoration which took away knight-service and other legal rights. Tenure by knight-service was abolished and discharged and the lands covered by such tenures, including once-feudal baronies, were henceforth held by socage ( i.e. , in exchange for monetary rents). The English Fitzwalter Case in 1670 ruled that barony by tenure had been discontinued for many years and any claims to

7475-421: The agreement was that Sihtric should marry Æthelstan's sister Eadgyth also he should be baptised. According to Roger of Wendover, Sihtric was baptised but he "repudiated" the faith and rejected his bride shortly after, without the marriage being consummated. In 927 Sihtric died. His brother Gofraid left Dublin and headed to Northumbria to replace Sihtric as king but his attempt to rule was unsuccessful, and he

7590-433: The annals for 944 all seem to agree that Edmund was able to expel the Viking leaders from Northumbria. In 945, Edmund invaded Cumbria and blinded two sons of Domnall mac Eógain , king of Strathclyde . Then according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle he "granted" all of Strathclyde, to Malcom king of the Scots in return for an alliance. This year king Edmund ravaged all Cumberland, and granted it all to Malcolm king of

7705-408: The army in North-humbria; and they received him for their king, and became obedient to him. Æthelwold did not stay in York long; in 903 he began a campaign to regain the crown of Wessex. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle describes how he raised a fleet and landed first in Essex, then went on to East Anglia where he persuaded their king Eohric to help him in his campaign. The combined armies raided Wessex in

7820-448: The coins had both Siefredus and Cnuts name on them "perhaps these are the same person?". Another possibility is that he was "a Danish noble, mentioned in Norse sources, who was assassinated in 902 after a very brief reign. So brief that there was not enough time to produce coins in quantity." The next ruler, Æthelwold , was the son of Æthelred , the king of Wessex from 865 to 871. Following his father's death, in 871, his uncle Alfred

7935-407: The commercial issues. In April 1653 Cromwell and the other Grandees of the New Model Army , frustrated with the members of the Rump Parliament who would not pass legislation to dissolve the Rump and to allow a new more representative parliament to be elected, stopped the Rump's session and declared the Rump dissolved. After an experiment with a Nominated Assembly ( Barebone's Parliament ),

8050-416: The continent, except for Calais . After the turmoils of the Wars of the Roses, the Tudor dynasty ruled during the English Renaissance and again extended English monarchical power beyond England proper, achieving the full union of England and the Principality of Wales under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542 . Henry VIII oversaw the English Reformation , and his daughter Elizabeth I (reigned 1558–1603)

8165-446: The continental possessions of the Duchy to Philip II of France in 1204 and decisively after the Battle of Bouvines in 1214. A few remnants of Normandy , including the Channel Islands , remained in John's possession, together with most of the Duchy of Aquitaine. Up until the Norman Conquest of England, Wales had remained for the most part independent of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms , although some Welsh kings did sometimes acknowledge

8280-600: The design of the coinage was changed to conform with the standard English system. On some coins, produced at York, the mint-signature was Eforwic , the Old English name for York. Although Æthelstan had integrated the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms into one unified England and suppressed opposition from the Vikings and their allies, when he died in 939, the Viking leader Olaf Guthfrithson (who had been defeated at Brunanburh) arrived from Dublin and took over Northumbria with minimal opposition. Coins minted at York during his reign show

8395-678: The disastrous Raid on the Medway and forced the humiliated Charles in to an unfavourable peace treaty . The treaty eliminated a number of long-standing issues, and in the long-term made it possible for the two countries to unite against the expansionist policies pursued by Louis XIV of France . In the short-term however, Charles' desire to avenge this setback led to the Third Anglo-Dutch War in 1672. Despite attaining French support this time, Dutch naval successes made Parliament unwilling to support Charles' war effort any further, and he

8510-515: The early tenth century, when it was unified from various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms , until 1 May 1707, when it united with Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain , which would later become the United Kingdom . The Kingdom of England was among the most powerful states in Europe during the medieval and early modern periods. Beginning in the year 886 Alfred the Great reoccupied London from

8625-499: The effect of aligning England with Scotland, which also gradually adopted a Protestant religion, whereas the most important continental powers, France and Spain, remained Roman Catholic. The "Tudor conquest" (or reconquest ) of Ireland' took place under the Tudor dynasty. Following a failed rebellion against the crown by Silken Thomas , the Earl of Kildare , in the 1530s, Henry VIII was declared King of Ireland in 1542 by statute of

8740-521: The extent of the Norman takeover, most of the former landowners who survived the conquest, retained only a fraction of their estates, and then as tenants of a Norman lord. With 25 of William the Conquerors magnates holding 90% of the county's manors, the days when English kings appointed Scandinavian Earls of Northumbria were at an end. After the Norman conquest there were several unsuccessful attempts by Scandinavian kings to regain control of England,

8855-593: The first Anglo-Saxon ruler of the whole of England. In 1016, the kingdom became part of the North Sea Empire of Cnut the Great , a personal union between England, Denmark and Norway . The Norman Conquest in 1066 led to the transfer of the English capital city and chief royal residence from the Anglo-Saxon one at Winchester to Westminster , and the City of London quickly established itself as England's largest and principal commercial centre. Histories of

8970-517: The first company to take on the distribution of the toy was a very small firm named Joy Toy. The company is located in Italy as well as the Netherlands . Since then, Fisher Price , Chad Valley , Mattel and Tomy have all played a major role in distributing the jack-in-the-box. Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from

9085-474: The king's income derived from the royal demesne and the annual " farm " from each shire (the fixed sum paid by sheriffs for the privilege of administering and profiting from royal lands). Kings also made income from judicial fines and regulation of trade. People owed the king service in the form of the trinoda necessitas — fyrd service, burh building, and bridge building. After the Conquest of 1066,

9200-559: The kingdom's naval strength, on the foundations Henry VIII had laid down. By 1588, her new navy was strong enough to defeat the Spanish Armada , which had sought to invade England to halt English support for the Dutch rebels and to put a Catholic monarch on the throne in her place. The House of Tudor ended with the death of Elizabeth I on 24 March 1603. James I ascended the throne of England and brought it into personal union with

9315-455: The leader of the Danish army and Æthelred returned to England. Æthelred drove Cnut out of England and back to Denmark. Then in 1015, Cnut relaunched the campaign against England. Meanwhile, in 1016 Æthelred died and was succeeded by his son, Edmund Ironside . Edmund and his forces were decisively beaten by Cnut at the Battle of Ashingdon . After the battle, Cnut made a treaty with Edmund whereby Edmund would be king of Wessex and Cnut would rule

9430-492: The number of hides they owned. After the Norman Conquest, the king's household troops remained central to any royal army. The Anglo-Saxon fyrd also remained in use. But the Normans also introduced a new feudal element to the English military. The king's tenants-in-chief (his feudal barons ) were obligated to provide mounted knights for service in the royal army or to garrison royal castles . The total number of knights owed

9545-476: The other kingdoms of England during the 9th century. In 827, Northumbria submitted to Egbert of Wessex at Dore , briefly making Egbert the first king to reign over a united England. In 886, Alfred the Great retook London, which he apparently regarded as a turning point in his reign. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that "all of the English people ( all Angelcyn ) not subject to the Danes submitted themselves to King Alfred." Asser added that "Alfred, king of

9660-404: The overlordship of the Norman kings of England. Edward I defeated Llywelyn ap Gruffudd , and so effectively conquered Wales, in 1282. He created the title Prince of Wales for his heir, the future Edward II , in 1301. Edward I's conquest was brutal and the subsequent repression considerable, as the magnificent Welsh castles such as Conwy , Harlech , and Caernarfon attest. Edward III

9775-482: The pagans came upon the kingdom, the dissension was allayed by divine counsel and the aid of the nobles. King Osbryht and Alla, having united their forces and formed an army, came to the city of York; on their approach the multitude of the shipmen immediately took flight. The Christians, perceiving their flight and terror, found that they themselves were the stronger party. They fought upon each side with much ferocity, and both kings fell. The rest who escaped made peace with

9890-538: The people of York were unhappy with Ragnall as they promised obedience to Æthelflæd , Lady of the Mercians in early 918, but the negotiations were ended prematurely by her death in June of that year. Later in his reign, Ragnall submitted to Edward as overlord, but was allowed to keep his kingdom. Ragnall had three separate issues of coins produced while he ruled York the coins bearing the name RAIENALT, RACNOLDT or similar. He died late in 920 or early 921. The next ruler

10005-512: The previous division between the Norman lords and their Anglo-Saxon subjects. This was a consequence of sustained hostility to the increasingly nationalist French, whose kings and other leaders (notably the charismatic Joan of Arc ) used a developing sense of French identity to help draw people to their cause. The kingdom had little time to recover before entering the Wars of the Roses (1455–1487),

10120-461: The previous year, adopted the title (now usually rendered in English rather than Latin) King of Great Britain . The Kingdom of England emerged from the gradual unification of the early medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdoms known as the Heptarchy : East Anglia , Mercia , Northumbria , Kent , Essex , Sussex , and Wessex . The Viking invasions of the 9th century upset the balance of power between

10235-651: The rest of England. Ironside died just a few weeks after the treaty. Cnut then became king of all England. He divided England into four semi-independent earldoms using a system of governance based on the Scandinavian system of the time. He appointed his most trusted followers as earls, with the Norwegian Erik of Hlathir appointed to the Earldom of Northumbria. The previous Earl of Northumbria Uhtred , had been murdered, probably on Cnut's orders. Although

10350-402: The same person, as Sichfrith , who had previously been raiding the coast of Wessex. When these events so happened, Sigferth the pirate arrived from the land of the Northumbrians with a large fleet, ravaged twice and afterwards sailed back to his own homeland. A further hypothesis, proposed by the historian Alfred P. Smyth , is that Siefriedus is the same as the jarl Sichfrith who lay claim to

10465-510: The terms of the Acts of Union 1707 , the parliaments, and therefore Kingdoms, of both England and Scotland were mutually abolished. Their assets and estates united 'for ever, into the Kingdom by the name of Great Britain', forming the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Parliament of Great Britain . The Anglo-Saxons referred to themselves as the Engle or the Angelcynn , originally names of

10580-602: The terms" of the Acts would "cease and become void". The English and Scottish Parliaments were merged into the Parliament of Great Britain , located in Westminster , London. At this point England ceased to exist as a separate political entity, and since then has had no national government . The laws of England were unaffected, with the legal jurisdiction continuing to be that of England and Wales , while Scotland continued to have its own laws and law courts. This continued after

10695-573: The unification of England. At about this time, Lothian , a portion of the northern half of Northumbria ( Bernicia ), was ceded to the Kingdom of Scotland . On 12 July 927 the monarchs of Britain gathered at Eamont in Cumbria to recognise Æthelstan as king of the English. The title "King of the English" or Rex Anglorum in Latin, was first used to describe Æthelstan in one of his charters in 928. The standard title for monarchs from Æthelstan until John

10810-494: The usurping Osulf was also killed, his cousin, Cospatrick , bought the earldom from William. He was not long in power before he joined Edgar Ætheling in rebellion against William in 1068. William's response was brutal. During the winter of 1069, in an action known as the Harrying of the North , he laid waste to Yorkshire and eventually replaced its nobility with his own trusted men. The Domesday Book , for Yorkshire, indicates

10925-490: The water like a fish. In 937 a coalition of Vikings (led by Gofraid's son Olaf Guthfrithson ), Constantine II, King of Scotland, and Owain, King of Strathclyde invaded England. The invaders were stopped and defeated by Æthelstan, and his allies, at the Battle of Brunanburh . After this, although Æthelstan's relationship with Northumbria was not an easy one, his hold on it remained secure until his death in 939. During his reign, Æthelstan integrated Northumbria into England and

11040-453: Was Rex Anglorum ("King of the English"). Cnut , a Dane, was the first to call himself "King of England". During the Norman period Rex Anglorum remained standard, with occasional use of Rex Anglie ("King of England"). From John's reign onwards all other titles were eschewed in favour of Rex or Regina Anglie . In 1604 James I , who had inherited the English throne

11155-448: Was Sihtric , who was a kinsman of Ragnall, and another Viking leader that had been expelled from the Kingdom of Dublin, in 902. Sihtric, however had returned to Ireland to retake Dublin and become their king. Then in 920 he travelled to York and joined Ragnall where in 921 Ragnall died and Sihtric replaced him as king. Sihtric raided Davenport , Cheshire , in violation of the terms of submission agreed between Ragnall and Edward. Edward

11270-492: Was "King of the English". England has remained in political unity ever since. During the reign of Æthelred the Unready (978–1016), a new wave of Danish invasions was orchestrated by Sweyn I of Denmark , culminating after a quarter-century of warfare in the Danish conquest of England in 1013. But Sweyn died on 2 February 1014, and Æþelræd was restored to the throne. In 1015, Sweyn's son Cnut (commonly known as Canute) launched

11385-585: Was again forced to make peace. Following the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, an attempt by James II to reintroduce Roman Catholicism—a century after its suppression by the Tudors—led to the Glorious Revolution of 1688, in which he was exiled by the Dutch prince William of Orange . William and his wife Mary were subsequently crowned by Parliament. William reoriented England's foreign policy to support

11500-402: Was also entitled to his vassals military service, but vassals could pay scutage instead. In the Anglo-Saxon period, England had no standing army. The king and magnates retained professional household troops ( see housecarl ), and all free men were obligated to perform military service in the fyrd . In addition, holders of bookland were obligated to provide a certain number of men based on

11615-524: Was back on the scene this time with his ally, Harald Hardrada of Norway . On the 20 September 1066 the allies defeated, the northern earls, Morcar and Edwin at the Battle of Fulford . The people of York submitted to Tostig and Hardrada who did not occupy the city. Five days later Tostig and Hadrada were defeated and killed, by Harold Godwinson, at the Battle of Stamford Bridge . Shortly after William of Normandy landed at Pevensey on 28 September and on 13 October Harold of England fought his last battle on

11730-406: Was baptised, with Edmund as sponsor, and that same year, another king of Northumbria, was named as Ragnall Guthfrithson and he was confirmed also with Edmund as sponsor. Both Olaf and Ragnall are called king, but it is uncertain whether they were co-rulers or rival kings. The chronology of events for both Olaf Guthfrithson, Olaf Cuaranths and Ragnalls' reigns have been subject to debate however

11845-490: Was called the servitium debitum (Latin: "service owed"), and historian Richard Huscroft estimates this number was around 5,000. In reality, the servitium debitum was greater than any king would actually need in wartime. Its main purpose was for assessing how much scutage the king was owed. Scutage was used to pay for mercenaries , which were an important part of any Norman army. Scandinavian York Scandinavian York or Viking York ( Old Norse : Jórvík )

11960-630: Was defeated, Harold and his two brothers were slain, and William emerged as victor. William was then able to conquer England with little further opposition. He was not, however, planning to absorb the Kingdom into the Duchy of Normandy . As a mere duke, William owed allegiance to Philip I of France , whereas in the independent Kingdom of England he could rule without interference. He was crowned on 25 December 1066 in Westminster Abbey , London. In 1092, William II led an invasion of Strathclyde ,

12075-550: Was driven out by King Æthelstan. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle makes no mention of Gofraid, simply stating that Æthelstan succeeded Sihtric as King in Northumbria, and thereafter held a meeting with the other kings in Britain, establishing peace. A later account by William of Malmesbury tells a different story. In his version, Gofraid goes to Scotland following Sihtric's death, to attend a meeting at Dacre with Æthelstan, Constantine II of Scotland, and Owen I of Strathclyde . Gofraid and

12190-455: Was first recorded by Ptolemy around the year 150 as Eborakon . Under the Romans it became the provincial capital and bishopric of Eburacum . The Roman settlement was regularly planned, well defended and contained a stone legionary fortress . The Romans withdrew around 407 and the Anglo-Saxons occupied the settlement from the early 7th century. Post-Roman York was in the kingdom of Deira ; it

12305-539: Was first seen used in literature by John Foxe, in his book Actes and Monuments , first published in 1563. There he used the term as an insult to describe a swindler who would cheat tradesmen by selling them empty boxes instead of what they actually purchased. It also featured in the Chronicle of the Greyfriars of London in 1547 where it was noted as being used pejoratively to refer to the real presence of Christ in

12420-589: Was recalled and there was a second period where the executive power lay with the Council of state. But this restoration of Commonwealth rule, similar to that before the Protectorate, proved to be unstable, and the exiled claimant, Charles II , was restored to the throne in 1660. In 1665 the unresolved commercial issues with the Dutch led to the Second Anglo-Dutch War , which culminated in

12535-530: Was short lived with the Vikings regaining control of York in 873. Wulfhere was recalled to the See but the Anglo-Saxon Ricsige became ruler, as Ecgberht died in 873. In 875/ 876 part of the Great Army returned, headed by Halfdan Ragnarsson. York was retaken and although Halfdan was proclaimed King of Northumbria, in reality he was only the ruler of southern Northumbria (Deira). Deira became known as

12650-663: Was succeeded by his half-brother, Æþelræd's son, Edward the Confessor . The peace lasted until the death of the childless Edward in January 1066. His brother-in-law was crowned King Harold , but his cousin William the Conqueror , Duke of Normandy, immediately claimed the throne for himself. William launched an invasion of England and landed in Sussex on 28 September 1066. Harold and his army were in York following their victory against

12765-399: Was taken over in 655 by its northern neighbour Bernicia to form the kingdom of Northumbria. The Anglo-Saxon king Edwin of Northumbria was baptized there in 627 and the first Anglo-Saxon archbishop Ecgbert of York consecrated in 780. The settlement became the Anglo-Saxon trading port of Eoforwic . The Vikings had been raiding the coasts of England from the late 8th century, but in 865

12880-448: Was the first Christian Viking king of York. It is traditionally thought that Guthred's election was sponsored by Archbishop Wulfhere's religious community from Lindisfarne. Churches and religious centres in Northumbria had been systematically stripped of their wealth since the arrival of the Vikings, however although it had become impoverished the amount of ecclesiastical artefacts that have been excavated in York, from various periods between

12995-532: Was the first English king to have a claim to the throne of France . His pursuit of the claim resulted in the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453), which pitted five kings of England of the House of Plantagenet against five kings of France of the Capetian House of Valois . Extensive naval raiding was carried out by all sides during the war, often involving privateers such as John Hawley of Dartmouth or

13110-578: Was to be the first Lord Protector. The Instrument of Government was replaced by a second constitution (the Humble Petition and Advice ) under which the Lord Protector could nominate his successor. Cromwell nominated his son Richard who became Lord Protector on the death of Oliver on 3 September 1658. Richard proved to be ineffectual and was unable to maintain his rule. He resigned his title and retired into obscurity. The Rump Parliament

13225-510: Was unpopular with locals. In 1065 Tostig was deposed by the northern nobility and replaced with Morcar (the brother of Edwin of Mercia ). The northerners choice of new earl was accepted by Edward. After Edward the Confessor's death in 1066, Harold Godwinson became King of England. He visited York early in his reign and according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle returned to Westminster at Easter 1066. In September 1066 Tostig

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