Charles II of England
Overview
 
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...

, Scotland
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...

, and Ireland
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...

.

Charles II's father, King Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

, was executed at Whitehall
Palace of Whitehall
The Palace of Whitehall was the main residence of the English monarchs in London from 1530 until 1698 when all except Inigo Jones's 1622 Banqueting House was destroyed by fire...

 on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...

. Although the Parliament of Scotland
Parliament of Scotland
The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...

 proclaimed Charles II King of Great Britain and Ireland in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

 on 6 February 1649, the English Parliament instead passed a statute that made any such proclamation unlawful. England entered the period known as the English Interregnum
English Interregnum
The English Interregnum was the period of parliamentary and military rule by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the Commonwealth of England after the English Civil War...

 or the English Commonwealth, and the country was a de facto republic, led by Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....

.
Timeline

1649    The claimant King Charles II of England and Scotland is declared King of Scotland, by the Parliament of Scotland. This move was not followed by the Parliament of England or the Parliament of Ireland.

1650    Third English Civil War: in the Battle of Dunbar, English Parliamentarian forces lead by Oliver Cromwell defeat an army loyal to King Charles II of England and lead by David Leslie, Lord Newark.

1651    Charles II is crowned King of Scotland.

1660    Declaration of Breda by King Charles II of England.

1660    English Restoration: Charles II (on his birthday – see below) is restored to the throne of Great Britain.

1661    King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland is crowned in Westminster Abbey.

1661    Marriage contract between Charles II of England and Catherine of Braganza.

1662    Charles II of England sells Dunkirk to France for 40,000 pounds.

1663    Charles II of England grants John Clarke a Royal Charter to Rhode Island.

1665    English King Charles II declares war on the Netherlands marking the start of the Second Anglo-Dutch War.

Quotations

He had been, he said, an unconscionable time dying; but he hoped that they would excuse it.

Quoted by Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay|Thomas Babington Macaulay, A History of England, 1849, vol.i, ch.4, p.437

Let not poor Nelly starve.

On his deathbed, asking that his favourite mistress, Nell Gwynne|Nell Gwynne, be looked after.

 
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