A Bit of European History

I've been watching a lot of Lucy Worsley because I have COVID and am stuck at home, and I'd like to put some of these documentaries in chronological order. I always like to put things in order. Plus, it may come in handy someday. In the 8th grade, Waldorf students study the Age of Revolution as well as U.S. History. There is a LOT of material to cover and sometimes watching to learn about it is faster than reading to learn about it.

It is also really fun to see actual artifacts and locations from the time period!

The Age of Revolution
by Charles Kovacs

Lucy Worsley Investigates, ep.3
"The Black Death"
King Edward III
House of Plantagenet
focus on one family in Walsham le Willows, a village in Suffolk, England
1348

Lucy Worsley Investigates, ep.1
"Princes in the Tower"
young King Edward V (never crowned) and his brother
1483

King Richard III was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death during the last decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses marked the end of the Middle Ages in England.

Henry VII declared himself king by just title of inheritance and by the judgment of God in battle, after slaying Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. His coronation marked the beginning of the Tudor dynasty.

Henry VII: The Winter King
King Henry VII
not Lucy Worsley

Tudor Monastery Farm
King Henry VII
also not Lucy Worsley, but a documentary series that I LOVE!
1500

Lucy Worsley's 12 Days of Tudor Christmas
King Henry VIII

Secrets of the Six Wives
King Henry VIII

Lucy Worsley's Royal Myths and Secrets, ep.4
"The Reformation"
King Henry VIII
The English Reformation and Thomas Cromwell
Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon was annulled on May 23, 1533

Lady Jane, rated PG-13
movie with Helena Bonham Carter
Queen Jane, the Nine Days' Queen
House of Grey
July 10 until July 19, 1553 (succeeded by Mary Tudor, "Bloody Mary")

Lucy Worsley's Royal Myths and Secrets, ep.1
"The Warrior Queen"
Queen Elizabeth I
defeat of the Spanish Armada - July 29, 1588

Lucy Worsley Investigates, ep.4
"The Witch Hunts"
King James VI of Scotland
The Scottish Reformation and John Knox
1590

James VI became king of Scotland in 1567 when Mary was forced to abdicate. On the death of Elizabeth in 1603, he became James I of England. He is thus known as James VI and I. Elizabeth I was the last Tudor monarch.

Lucy Worsley's Royal Myths and Secrets, ep.2
"Queen Anne: The Mother of Great Britain"
Queen Anne
Acts of Union - May 1, 1707
Queen Anne was the last Stuart monarch. After Queen Anne dies childless, the crown passes to her second cousin George I of the House of Hanover.

I also really enjoyed the movie Délicieux, rated PG-13
in French with English subtitles
storming of the Bastille - July 14, 1789

Lucy Worsley's Royal Myths and Secrets, ep.3
"Marie Antoinette: The Doomed Queen"
The French Revolution and Maximilien Robespierre
King Louis XVI of France - date of execution: January 21, 1793
Queen Marie Antoinette of France - date of execution: October 16, 1793

Lucy Worsley Investigates, ep.2
"Madness of King George"
King George III
declared unfit to rule and forced to give up his throne in 1811

Fun Fact: The planet Uranus was originally named "Georgium sidus," the Georgian Star, after King George III of England, who had funded the 40-foot telescope William Herschel used in its discovery.

Lucy Worsley's Royal Myths and Secrets, ep.5
"George IV and the Regency"
King George IV
Regency era 1811 - 1820

Victoria and Albert: The Wedding
Queen Victoria
marriage to Prince Albert - February 10, 1840
also discusses her uncle, King George IV (the Prince Regent)

The Young Victoria, rated PG
movie with Emily Blunt
Queen Victoria
this goes a lot into her mother's relationship with John Conroy

Her Majesty, Mrs Brown, rated PG
movie with Judi Dench
Queen Victoria
her heartbreak after Prince Albert's death
1864

Of course, there's also Victoria (seasons 1, 2, and 3), Victorian Farm, the Victorian Farm Christmas Special, and Edwardian Farm. The Edwardian Era was 1901 to 1910 (sometimes extended to the beginning of WWI).

Victoria was the last of the Hanoverian line in Britain.

The ascension of her son Bertie, crowned King Edward VII, marked the beginning of the House of Windsor. This is because his father was Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. In 1917, the name of the British royal house was changed from the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the English Windsor because of anti-German sentiment during the First World War. The name was taken from Windsor Castle, the first version of which was built by William the Conqueror in 1070. It is the largest inhabited castle in the world.

Queen Victoria's Descendants Still Reign Over Europe
Town & Country - Sep 16, 2022
countries mentioned in this article include England, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Russia, Romania, Yugoslavia, and Greece

Victoria's second daughter, Princess Alice, lost her daughter Alix when Alix and her family were executed by the Bolsheviks in 1918. Alix, who would become better known to history as Alexandra Feodorovna, was the Empress of Russia and wife of Tsar Nicholas II of the house Romanov. Together the two had five children, all of whom were executed along with their parents.

Lucy Worsley's Royal Myths and Secrets, ep.6
"The Russian Revolution"
Tzar Nicholas II of Russia
The Russian Revolution and Vladimir Lenin
1917

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