British Monarchs Quiz

England has had a crowned head since the Norman Conquest. This quiz shows a portrait of every monarch since 1066: 42 in all, from William the Conqueror to Charles III.

The grid has 42 cards, in order. Each card wears its royal house up front, and solving it reveals the name and the reign.

Most players land the Tudors, Victoria and the Windsors. The run-killers are the look-alike Georges and the kings between John and the Wars of the Roses.

How to play

• Just start typing. The quiz checks your answer at every keystroke. There is no submit button.
• A name needs its number or a nickname: eight Henrys and eight Edwards share the board, so "henry" alone solves nothing.
• Numbers work in every form: "Henry VIII", "Henry 8" and "Henry the Eighth" all solve the same card.
• Nicknames count: "William the Conqueror", "Richard the Lionheart", "Bloody Mary", "Longshanks" and "Bolingbroke" all solve their card.
• A roman numeral is the start of the numerals above it, so typing "henry viii" solves Henry V, VI and VII on the way. Every one of them is a card you need anyway. Type "henry 8" to reach the Tudor directly.
• The timer starts at your first keystroke and counts up. Give Up ends the run and shows every portrait you missed. Progress saves automatically.

What counts in this quiz

• All 42 monarchs a standard regnal list counts, from William I to Charles III.
• William III and Mary II ruled together, and each has a card.
• Henry VI and Edward IV reigned twice. Each has one card, and the card names both reigns.
• Edward V and Edward VIII were never crowned. They reigned, so they count.
• The medieval kings have no photograph and no painting from life. Their cards carry the posthumous portraits that every reference list uses.

What's not included, and why

• Lady Jane Grey has no card. Her nine days in 1553 are disputed, and standard lists leave her out.
• The Empress Matilda has no card. She claimed the throne in the Anarchy but was never crowned.
• Oliver Cromwell has no card. The republic of 1649 to 1660 had no monarch, which is why Charles II follows Charles I after an 11-year gap.
• The kings before 1066 have no card. Alfred the Great, Athelstan, Cnut and Edward the Confessor belong to the Anglo-Saxon and Danish lines, and the quiz starts at the Conquest.

Good to know

• Three kings reigned in 1936: George V died in January, Edward VIII abdicated in December, and George VI took over.
• Elizabeth II reigned 70 years and 214 days, the longest of all. Victoria is second with 63 years.
• Henry VI became king at nine months old, the youngest ever.
• Richard III's skeleton was found under a car park in Leicester in 2012.
• Charles III waited 70 years for the throne, the longest wait of any heir.