Where did the royal family of england come from? how did they get into power anyway?

Question

Where did the royal family of england come from? how did they get into power anyway?

Answer 1

The current British royal family is of German descent starting from King George I of Great Britain from 1 August 1714. Born in Germany, at the age of 54, he ascended the British throne as the first monarch of the House of Hanover. His claim to the throne was from his mother, Electress Sophia of Hanover, who was the youngest daughter of Elizabeth Stuart. King George I was a descendant of the Stuarts through his maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I of England/James VI of Scotland.

Queen Anne died childless and she was the last "English-Scottish" monarch to rule England. Her death also indicated the end of the House of Stuart Dynasty, and the crown was passed unto her second cousin.

Sophia was declared the heiress presumptive to her first cousin once removed, Queen Anne of England, Scotland and Ireland (later Queen of Great Britain and Ireland). She would have acceded to Anne's crown, had she not died a few weeks before Anne did. On Sophia's death, her son George Louis, Elector of Hanover and Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, became heir apparent. On Queen Anne's death, he became King George I.

As the mother of George I, she is therefore the legislative linchpin ancestor of the House of Hanover line of succession to the British throne and their modern descendants of the House of Windsor. Her grandfather was James I & VI of England and Scotland and her uncle was Charles I of England and Scotland

Answer 2

At the present we have the House of Windsor as our reigning monarchs.  As many other people have stated they are descended from the House of Hanover.  The House of Hanover was related by marriage to the House of Stuart.  The House of Stuart was elected as the heirs to the Throne after the death of Queen Elizabeth I.  The House of Tudor had distant claim to the throne, but gained it through conquer.  The Houses of York and Lancaster, were two halves of the Plantagenet Household.  The Plantagenet House was descended from William The Conqueror.  He was rewarded the King of England after defeating Harold Godwinson on the field of battle, even though had already been declared the legitimate successor to Edward the Confessor.  Edward was the last of the great Saxon kings and could trace his lineage back to the kings of the various areas of England.  So as you can see although at times tenuous it is a continuous history of ruling Houses.

Answer 3

germany, although phillip is greek

Answer 4

The present Royal Family are of German descent of Elizabeth's side and Philip was born in Greece (Corfu actually on a kitchen table). Their name used to be Saxe-Coburg Gotha but they changes it to Windsor as the First World War loomed because Windsor was where they lived at the time and they wanted a more English sounding name. Some of them became Mountbattens. Royalty, originally, was decided by strength with the King being the best fighter but gradually the rank was passed on through families. As a way of preserving their 'royal blood' they didn't marry into common families and lots of interbreeding took place. If you look closely at royalty, certainly in Europe, you can see the results of interbreeding in their faces. Generally the women are small and dumpy and the men tall with weak chins and long noses. Pitiful really but, sadly, we're stuck with them.

Answer 5

According to Tony Robinson, they shouldn't be in power at all!

Startling new facts came to light in research for a Channel 4 programme on Richard III. The historian Michael K Jones had uncovered what appears to be strong proof that the 15th-century English monarch Edward IV was, in fact, illegitimate, thus throwing the legitimacy of all the kings and queens who followed into question. In fact, it appears that the royal line should have extended, not through Edward, but through his brother, George, Duke of Clarence, and his heirs.

Answer 6

Germany.

They were orginally Saxe-Coburg-Gotha but it was changed to Windsor.

They are descended from the Hanoevers who were also German.

Answer 7

The current royal family of England can trace it's origin to  George I who originally came from Germany.

Answer 8

that is something i have thought about to. how did it all start

Answer 9

They are German in history but British now.  The family was pure German until the Queen Mother married in, and she was Scottish Lady.  This makes Queen Elizabeth 1/2 German, 1/2 Scottish and since Queen Elizabeth II  married another German (Prince Philip's family ruled Greece until the 1920) and he actually DID NOT even have a last name until he was to marry Princess Elizabeth.  Prince Philip was called "Philip of Greece" and it took Scholars almost a week to figure out the history of his family and what his last name would be.  It was Battenburg (or in english, Mountbatten).  The Battenbergs changed their last name to English in 1917 when the English Royals became "Windsors" and NOT "Saxe-Coburg-Gotha."  Saxe, Coburg and Gotha are all German Principalities (meaning Duke's ruled over them, the way Charles is "Duke of Cornwall."  The royals gave up all right to the German throne when they took the name, Windsor.  They changed their names because Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany was their 1st cousin and they wanted to distance themselves from the "evils of Germany" and by taking a new, English name, they did it.  No one wants a King or Queen who is fighting their 1st cousin, and WWI made the change more than necessary!

Answer 10

I have heard they are of the Tudor line, which means they come somehow from King Henry VIII.

In the old days, kings were made, not born, by victory in conquest/war. Then the royalty was passed to their heirs.