Ranking Every English Monarch from Worst to Best 

Fun fact: Æthelred's nickname has nothing to do with him being not ready, it's a pun on his name, which means "well-advised" So Æthelred the Unready literally means "Well-advised the Poorly-advised". Lol.

I like that you included the Anglo-Saxon monarchs too, not just the Normans.

Agree with your sentiments on George VI - dude is very underrated.

Henry VII is way too low, by far the best Tudor in terms of sheer canny ability and turned the kingdom from a basketcase to a relatively modern kingdom (certainly better than his disastrous son).

"Oh, King John, what disaster. Rule restrained by Magna Carta."

I'd put Alfred much higher, definitely in the top 5. Without him, England would have been a Danish colony or a disjointed heptarchy . The idea of a united English kingdom begins with him. It wasn't realized until his grandson Athelstan, but he's the source. Without him, there is no list.

hmm, Holy "Roman" Emperors could be pretty interesting to look at next

Well lads you know what time it is. I'm William the Conqueror My enemies stood no chance They call me the first English king Although I come from France 1066, the Doomsday book I gave to history So fat on death my body burst But enough about me To help remember all your kings I've come up with this song A simple rhyming ditty For you all to sing along Oh, William (Bit short init? We need more kings. Who came next?) William second, cheeks were red Killed out hunting, so it's said I took over, Henry one That's my next eldest son Then King Stephen, it's true check it! Hi, Henry two, killed Thomas Beckett Richard Lionheart? That's right! Always spoiling for a fight Oh King John, what a disaster Rule restrained by Magna Carta William, William, Henry, Stephen Henry, Richard, John, oi! Time for my mate, King Henry eight To take up this song Henry three built the abbey Ed one hated Scots A red hot poker killed Ed two That must have hurt him lots Edward third was a chivalry nerd Began the hundred years war Then Richard two was king aged ten Then Henry, yes one more King Henry four, plots galore Not least from Henry five, why? Killed ten score at Agincourt Then Henry six arrived Edward four, Edward five Richard the third, he's bad 'Cause he fought wars with Henry seventh First Tudor and my dad So Henry eight, I was great Six wives, two were beheaded Edward the sixth came next, but he died young And so my dreaded Daughter Mary ruled, so scary Then along came... me I'm Liz the first, I had no kids So Tudors RIP William, William, Henry, Stephen Henry, Richard, John, oi! Henry, Ed, Ed, Ed, Rich two Then three more Henrys join our song Edward, Edward, Rich the third Henry, Henry, Ed again Mary one, good Queen Bess That's me, time for more men James six of Scotland next Is English James the first he led Then Stuarts ruled, so Charles the first The one who lost his head No monarchy until came me Charles two, I liked to party King Jimmy two was scary, woooh Then Mary was a smarty She ruled with Bill, their shoes were filled By sourpuss Queen Anne Gloria And so from then, you were ruled by men Till along came me Victoria William, William, Henry, Stephen Henry, Richard, John, oi! Henry, Ed, Ed, Ed, Rich two Then three more Henrys join our song Edward, Edward, Rich the third Henry, Henry, Ed again Mary one, good Queen Bess Jimmy, Charles and Charles and then Jim, Will, Mary, Anna Gloria Still to come, it's Queen Victoria And so began the Hanover gang George one and George two (grim) Then George the third was quite absurd Till I replaced old him King George the fourth and known henceforth As angry, fat and cross (hang on) It's true you beat Napoleon But were mostly a dead loss (bang on) Old William four was a sailor (ahoy) It's nearly the end of the story-a As onto the scene comes the best loved queen Hail to Queen Victoria William, William, Henry, Stephen Henry, Richard, John, oi! Henry, Ed, Ed, Ed, Rich two Then three more Henrys join our song Edward, Edward, Rich the third Henry, Henry, Ed again Mary one, good Queen Bess Jimmy, Charles and Charles and then Jim, Will, Mary, Anna Gloria George, George, George, George Will, Victoria Victoria Victoria Victoria (I ruled for sixty four years, you know.) Ed seven, George five Then Ed, George sixth Liz two then reigned and how And so our famous monarch song Is brought right up to now, oh William, William, Henry, Stephen Henry, Richard, John, oi! Henry, Ed, Ed, Ed, Rich two Then three more Henrys join our song Edward, Edward, Rich the third Henry, Henry, Ed again Mary one, good Queen Bess Jimmy, Charles and Charles and then Jim, Will, Mary, Anna Gloria George, George, George, George Will, Victoria Edward, George, Edward, George six And Queen Liz two completes the mix That's all the English kings and queens Since William first that there have been. Edit: I feel as though Charles II and Henry VII should be rated higher and you missed Lady Jane Grey. However aside from that decent list.

"It was Walpole" I cannot express how happy that reference makes me.

Great video as always, but I strongly disagree with the positioning of Henry VII. The man ended a 30-year fratricidal war despite having the weakest claim to the throne, imposed law and order on a heavily atomized feudal kingdom, conducted far-sighted diplomacy, sanitized the economy and trade, strengthened the royal coffers. Nah dude u did him dirty he's top 5 material imo 😂

I am so unbelievably grateful that you included the kings prior to 1066. Lol, much like Americans tend to skip the chapters of their history from the mayflower straight to the revolution the English seem to think their history doesn't start before William came ashore.

Timestamps: **F Tier** 56. John Lackland 0:40 55. Richard II 1:17 54. Edward II 1:34 53. Henry VI 1:53 52. Stephen of Blois 2:07 51. Richard III 2:27 50. Mary I 2:53 49. Charles I 3:15 48. James II 3:25 47. Edward VIII 3:51 46. William Rufus 4:02 **D Teir** 45. Eadwig 4:10 44. George I 4:20 43. Eadred 4:33 42. Sweyn Forkbeard 4:45 41. Harthacanut 4:56 40. Harold Harefut 5:03 39. Richard I 5:12 38. Edward VI 5:30 37. George IV 5:49 36. Aethelread* 5:59 **? Teir** 35. Edward V 6:20 34. Edward the Martyr 6:35 **C Teir** 33. Charles II 6:40 32. William IV 6:51 31. George II 7:06 30. Edward IV 7:18 29. Edmund I 7:31 28. Edward VII 7:42 27. Henry III 7:52 26. Henry IV 8:06 25. Edmund Ironside 8:22 24. Henry VII 8:38 **B Teir** 23. George III 8:52 22. George V 9:07 21. Anne 9:16 20. Henry I 9:34 19. Henry VIII (bruh) 9:44 18. Edward the COnfessor 10:45 17. Harold Godwinson 11:00 16. James I 11:14 **A Teir** 15. George VI 11:23 14. Mary II 11:45 13. William the Conqueror 12:00 12. William II 12:10 11. Edgar the Peacefulu 12:16 10. Alfred the Great 12:25 9. Henry V 12:45 8. Canute the Great 13:00 7. Athelstan 13:12 6. Henry II 13:24 **S Teir** 5. Victoria 13:55 4. Edward I 14:06 3. Edward the Elder 14:26 2. Edward III 14:41 1. Elizabeth I 15:02

I'm an American, but George III probably should be ranked higher. Not only did he establish the King's Library. It wasn't just the American and French Revolutions that took place during his reign, but also the Industrial Revolution. Britain became both a huge colonial and naval empire. Britain's ships wouldn't have been able to colonize the globe if they didn't know where they were going, and George III not only set up a prize to get somebody to solve the longitude problem, but he personally intervened to make sure John Harrison got the money he deserved for inventing the maritime chronometer. I suspect some of the things that Victoria is praised for actually started in her uncle's reign.

Edward III was so badass, that he ruled those 50 years backwards in time... Seriously though, people don't give him enough credit because the 100 years war became what it became, if not for the Black Death he would have won and regained land lost since Richard's time (he held more of France than actual king of France). The often ommited fact is, England at the time had around 2 million Citizens, France around 17, and he still whooped their asses at every occasion. He got ready, trained his famous longbowmen to be the best foot archers in history by forbidding any sport other than archery (under the pain of death) and rescinding taxes on fletchers (bowmakers) for 5 years before the start of war, they even won a battle with literally their pants down, but the black death forced a ceasefire, and the country never recovered during his reign.

I would have put George III definitely higher on this list. His role for Britain is so often underrated.

Top 5 personal favourites: 1. Edward iii - reign epitomises the height of the romanticised medieval chivalric England with a Arthurian court (100 years war, Edward Woodstock the Black Prince, Crecy, Sluys, Chaucer, knights of the Garter etc.) If it wasn’t for the last few years of his reign where he most likely suffered with dementia he could definitely be Englands greatest king 2. Henry ii - while perhaps less romantic still extremely competent and powerful leader of what was later coined the Angevin empire, only let down by rebellious sons and his knights mistakenly killing Beckett 3. Henry v - hard not to be impressed even if he was a bit of a religious nut - Agincourt & Shakespeare ofc, fought in the thick of the battle of Shrewsbury at 16 scarring half his face. The dude was 6 weeks off unifying the English and French thrones if he hadn’t died!! Pretty impressive Hal 4. Edward i - the dude conquered Wales and made all future heirs it’s Prince while also building loads of huge castles there. Went on crusade in his youth, battered Scotland making it a vassal of the English (battle of Stirling Bridge etc.) until his son messed it up… Bannockburn 5. Edward iv - personal underdog fav, took the throne at 18 after defeating the Henry vi in battle, married for love (silly but respect), essentially won the war of the roses in his lifetime, brought back the chivalric court of Edward iii, and he was huge 6’4 (can you tell I love the medieval & the name Edward, ps. my boy Athelstan just missed out on this)

Did you know that Cnut the great was the first king of England to call himself the king of England his predecessors called themselves the king of the English

Brilliant list!! Some comments on it: You obviously know your stuff and don’t just follow the normal trends, I particularly love the often unrecognised credit you give Athelstan and Edward the Elder! While you justly put those such as Henry viii and Richard i fairly low on the list. - Charles ii at 34 a bit harsh: he did very well towing the line between Protestant and Catholics at perhaps the height of religious intolerance + seemed like a chill and hilarious dude. - Edward iv at 30 also seems harsh: effectively won the war of the roses during his lifetime, won the battle of Mortimer’s cross at 18 to become king and the guy was 6’4 (tallest king!) - bigger than longshanks - Unsure why Mary ii is so high at 14: always seemed pretty passive to me and was swept into power in the glorious revolution by others. Still, a very well done list!!

How the hell is Victoria ranked higher than Henry II? She was a figurehead that did basically nothing, Henry II was the man who built the mighty Angevin Empire and established English common law

I agree completely with Henry VIII, like I think he also had some good advisors and guys doing the actual infrastructure... that he blew through by executing a lot of them. Can't argue he didn't have an eye for choosing administration which I think is an underrated trait in a king that can get you a lot farther than stuff like military acumen if you can just hire guys for that instead.

7:00 Massive oversight on William IV. Seeing it was him who personally forced the Tories to accept the Great Reform Act in 1832. Thus placing him much higher.

Edward IV is my personal favorite. A young man who marches to avenge his father and brother, and rules with mercy after

Amazing video! Ranking of Monarchs/Emperors video are always funny and informative!

So umm, guess it's time to update the list

I actually think this is a very good attempt at ranking the monarchs. Henry 7th is obviously too low. Ethelred the unready is too high. Henry 1st should be higher aswell. I actually think Victoria is too high I appreciate It’s hard to rank a figure head but Victoria spent a considerable time of her reign moping after her husbands death instead of fulfilling her constitutional duty. She was pointlessly vindictive to Peel and Gladstone and she lucky that this didn’t have any lasting effects. Honestly William 4th (who is very underrated ) and George 6th were better figurehead monarchs but Victoria was playing on easy mode.

It’s rare I agree so much with any “list” video. You did a splendid job.

These monarch videos are good to watch to see your perspective and such, it is also a good intermediate video to put between the episodes of the new Punic Wars episodes.

"When the long tally is added, it will be seen that the British nation and the English-speaking world owe far more to the vices of John than to the labours of virtuous sovereigns". - Winston Churchill on King John

I love your videos so much!!! So simple yet they really make my day.

You show the depth of your scholarship by making Edward III no. 2. The guy was amazing! I can’t believe there hasn’t been a movie about his life. And on top of that, he sired, raised and trained the Black Prince.

Yoooo I’ve been waiting for this, English history is one if my favorite subjects!

New Spectrum video just as I get home from work! Neat!

William II was called Rufus because it's Latin for Red-Haired. It's a Roman cognomen.

“It was Walpole”. name a time that it isn’t Walpole. Its literally always Walpole.

Thanks for including the music used in the video!

Spectrum: the queen is alive and hasn’t finished yet Me: …

Note on Anne, she actually reigned from 1702 to 1714. She was Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland until the Acts of Union in 1707 wherein she reigned as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland until 1714.

Do Poland next. Have fun with the many elected dynasties after the main Piast branch died out in 1370). ;)

been waiting for this video for a while!

I always thought Henry VII was seriously underated. I studied him at school and he honestly made very few mistakes and managed to drag the country out bankruptcy. His diplomacy was masterful and the only monarchs I consider better than him were Alfred and maybe Athelstan.

Would love to see Russian Czars, French Kings, and U.S. Presidents.

I think if Henry V would've lived longer he might've been the best English monarch ever

Great work my friend i really like these videos

I'm so thankful to see you put Harold Godwinson on this list. Guy fuckin crushes one of the most formidable people to ever challenge for the English throne in Harold Hardrada (I prob spelled that wrong). Last of the Vikings kings, guy was easily the most experienced militarily of the 3... I just didn't see that one coming... An then still gave William hell after marching his army at across the country at breakneck pace

Also William the Comqueror did commission the Doomsdaybook, which is basically a giant land survey over England. I feel he would be higher than 13 for that.

Personally I would rank Richard The Lionheart and Charles II higher a bit higher because Richard was pretty much everything people at the time wanted a King to be, a great general who fought wars and went crusading while leaving the barons and earls along to manage their own fiefs without intervention, and Charles II because he's the king who brought back partying!

I like the inclusion of the AngloSaxon kings who are so often forgotten. Richard III deserves a better rank, certainly better than Edwig, Eardred, Edward V ( who never ruled) and Sven Forkbeard, and even Richard I who was a miserable king. A very enjoyable video!

Wildly off-the-mark list; excellent commentary. That sums this video up.

Loved your list on the Tsars keep up your great work!

I gotta call out yet also credit discussing Edward I without mentioning that he conquered Wales. It’s too important not to mention, but also his reign wasn’t just about conquering Wales so it’s nice to see him spoken of without that

Amazing job! You are one of the only people who has done this list and I have been waiting for one this good. Keep up the good work!

Good video dude

Let's not forget that Henry II took some pretty heavy defeats against the Welsh,like the Battle of Ewloe.

Good list it is ironic that Henry VIII went through so many wives because he wanted to leave England a male heir, but Anne Boleyn bore him Elizabeth who put England on the world map, England has done well under her queens, who ruled in their own right.

Nicely done!

Thanks for this video!

Would have had Henry VII in the top 3. I cannot express enough how good of a monarch this bloke was.

I love how the bottom half of the list bounces back and forth between random kings in the 18/19th century and then even more random and obscure medieval kings

My friends and I went through and ranked all pre-Act of Union monarchs for fun a while back. We came up with similar rankings, but our top five were: 1) Edward III 2) Edward Longshanks 3) Alfred the Great 4) Henry II and 5) Tie between Athelstan and Henry V

looking forward to this writing up my own list soon

So which place would you put Elizabeth II in now that her reign has come to an end?

0:32 So uhhh update pls?

Whenever you make these tier lists I make a list in Word for myself too. First I go to the corresponding Wikipedia article, then I copy all the names into it (even the disputed ones) and then I start playing the video and sorting the names in my list at the same time. There are always some names that get left out. So this time the people who were left out were - all the disputed claimants - king Phillip of Spain and - both Cromwells (and I can see why these people were left out)

Love this content

Richard I was a great warrior king but not a great king of England. Think he deserves to be higher up though. His crusading accomplishments set him apart from any of the other middling monarchs.

As always good video, Kingdom of Poland and Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, next please!

I love your video's they are very informative and funny

Loved ur list. And loved the skyrim plug.

That’s not a British accent, it’s really cool that you’ve taken such an interest in our history that you’d make this. You must be great at quizzes! 😝 I’m British and this is educational.

Now that Queen Elizabeth II have pass, I figure she's either below or above her father George VI.

Great video! One small issue at 12:35, and it's a common misconception to fall under, but Alfred was never deemed "king of England", he definitely laid the foundations for England to emerge later down the line though.

Great video as always. What about polish monarchs next ?

I feel Charles II is ranked lower than he should be, in my opinion. Unlike his father and brother, Charles II was actually able to dissolve parliament and rule competently as an Absolute Monarch. Aside from that, he also steered the country through three catastrophic events, the Great Fire of London, Great Plague and most of the Popish Plot. In fact, he even personally dispelled the Popish Plot himself. As well as going to London with his brother to assist the Firemen during the Great Fire of London. Personally, a favourite of mine.

Jesuits, who were Catholic, were actually the first to implement educational reform across Europe, making mathematics compulsory. In fact, in the 16th and 17th century mathematics was only truly taught in Jesuit schools. Others only did very basic maths (like primary level).

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH DUDE !!!! finally english monarchs

Bloody fanstastic champ, for next one of you're episodes I recommend doing Polish ones. There were many of them and well, you already touched on western and eastern, so what about central?

I had to check the date of this video when you mentioned Elizabeth II being alive

Good choice of Elizabeth I as number 1. She WAS Belphoebe and Gloriana! The Queen regnant in every sense who would "have but one mistress here and no master" and whose reign saw England's independence preserved and then set the nation on the path leading to imperial global hegemony.

Henry V should be higher like this is the person who won the 100 years war for England before his son, his son’s advisors and Joan of Arc caused a defeat in the 100 years war.

I'm so impressed with that list. It's so spot on imo

I want to add: 1.Canute the Great died in 1035 not 1025 2. Athelstan was king of the English from 927-939 3. Edward III (date for the reign has an error)

Henry VII ended the war of the roses, united the two houses of Lancaster and York, formed powerful marriage and trade alliances abroad in a time where England's international power had been decimated by the Hundred years war, and turned the deficit he inherited into a surplus that he left behind.

i think that after you make a few more of these, maybe at some sort of channel milestone you could throw together every single emperor/ruler from all of your ranking videos (or at least some from each vid) and put together a general ranking for all of them.

Henry III should be way lower. He bungled multiple invasions of France which didn't achieve the goal of retaking the Angevin lands. He turned most of his own nobles against him. Started a massive feud with Simon De Montfort, leading to the devastation of the second barons war, and his powers being further limited than they were already (thanks magna carta) with the provisions of Oxford. He only got saved in the end by his own son, and the fact that most nobles hated De Montfort more than him. An absolute train wreck from start to finish.

It would be nice to do the same about Non-European monarchies and empires, The Ottoman Sultans, the Arabian Caliphs, the Japanese Emperors extra

RIP queen Elizabeth. Our longest reigning monarch.

We need this lift to be updated

S Tier content brother

No mention of the harrying for William?

Welp, time to update the list. What ranking does Elizabeth II get?

Don’t think I’ve really seen too much of English rulers discussed in bulk, looks neat.

Thank you for this list. I have a request. Kind of an addendum to your list. Now that Queen Elizabeth II has passed on. Where would she be on your updated list?

you need to update the list

14:13 actually people in the middle ages were as tall as modern humans, the decrease in height started in the 1600s until the 1800s, the average height in middle age europe was 1,73 meters and during the 1600 to 1800 was 1,67 meters.

This series is amazing

Considering how high you place Canute, Godwinson and Edward Confessor, I'd have placed Edmund, Sweyn and Eadred maybe slightly higher? Ed III seemed to be to me undermined too, but you placed him high enough? I am also still arguing with myself on whether or not you placed Edgar Peaceable in the right spot, idk

Considering its factoring in to your Henry VIII decision, I'm going to disagree heavily on that his leaving the church benefitted English education. Frankly, the great powers who stayed Catholic, primarily France and Austria, remained competitive with England in terms of the arts and sciences, despite having to spend drastically more on their defense budget and being a part of all the continental upheaval that went on in the period. I hear this claim a lot from people of Spanish and Portuguese extraction, including by way of their respective colonies, and honestly, this seems to have been more of an issue with the Iberian monarchies. Yes, they allowed the church to control education, but so did France, Austria, and the Italians, who all produced huge contributions to the scientific world at a rate comparable with the British. Unfortunately, the Iberians don't seem to have invested in their education, or most other areas of their infrastructure, very much at all, due to a variety of factors, but probably most importantly their colonies, which provided wealth without the need for educated citizens, which set Spain and Portugal (and their colonies) up for failure in the long run. It also didn't help that Spain in particular was spending huge amounts of its colonial wealth on European wars, and that Portugal was spending theirs trying to remain independent of Spain. More to the point, however, politically, Henry VIII's leaving was a disaster for English foreign policy. Fifty years prior, England had contended for control of the French throne. Henry's reign is the final end to English continental ambitions, by making England into such a pariah that Spain could actually attempt to invade, without anyone else in Europe caring. The story of the Spanish Armada is often touted as a miracle by the English, but the fact that it got as far as it did, or that it required a miracle at all, is evidence of just how incompetent English diplomacy and soldiery had become under the Tudors. Leaving the Church cost England a generation of educated men and the entirety of their continental ambitions, and very nearly their sovereignty, and we don't see England pulling away from its peers in terms of education until the 1800s, and even then, not by much. Call me crazy, but founding the largest empire on earth while Europe was devastated by the Naopleonic Wars, probably had a lot more to do with the slight British edge on education than leaving the church. It's also telling that we don't see anything similar in northern Germany, Scandinavia, or the Netherlands, until their economies each took off. So, yeah. I'd be interested in a rebuttal, but I really don't think it's as simple as Catholic country=bad education, and I think Henry VIII probably did more long term harm than good, even if he didn't ultimately cost England its sovereignty.

Aethelstan should be higher than 9 IMO. Man literallly founded the first England that's close to the borders we have today. First true King over all the Anglo-Saxons, no longer divided into Mercia, Wessex and other petty kingdoms.

Well that was awesome!

So imma ask the not so obvious. Since he was a oing in all but name, where do you put Cromwell at?