Charles II

Charles II was the eldest surviving child of Charles I and Henrietta Maria. He became the heir apparent to the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland when his father was executed by the Parliamentarians in 1649, during the English Civil War. He went into exile in France and later the Dutch Republic, where he tried to regain his kingdoms by allying with various European powers. He was proclaimed king in Scotland in 1649, but his attempts to reclaim England were unsuccessful. He was eventually defeated by Oliver Cromwell at the Battle of Worcester in 1651 and escaped to France again. After Cromwell's death in 1658, Charles was invited to return to England by the Convention Parliament, which declared him king on 29 May 1660. This event marked the end of the Interregnum and the start of the Restoration period. Charles was crowned in Westminster Abbey on 23 April 1661. He restored the Church of England as the official state religion and enacted laws to suppress dissenters. He also pursued a policy of religious tolerance, issuing the Declaration of Indulgence in 1672, which granted freedom of worship to Catholics and nonconformists, but was forced to withdraw it by Parliament. Charles faced several challenges during his reign, such as the Great Plague of London (1665-1666), the Great Fire of London (1666), the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665-1667), the Third Anglo-Dutch War (1672-1674), and the Popish Plot (1678-1681), a fabricated conspiracy to assassinate him and replace him with his Catholic brother James. He also had a secret treaty with his cousin Louis XIV of France, in which he agreed to convert to Catholicism in exchange for financial and military support. He did not publicly declare his conversion until his deathbed. Charles was a popular and charismatic monarch, known for his wit and charm. He had a lively and hedonistic court, where he entertained many mistresses, such as Barbara Villiers, Louise de Kérouaille and Nell Gwyn. He had no legitimate children by his wife Catherine of Braganza, but he acknowledged 14 illegitimate children by various women, some of whom became prominent nobles. He died on 6 February 1685 at Whitehall Palace, after suffering a sudden apoplectic fit. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, next to his father. He was succeeded by his brother James, who became James II of England and James VII of Scotland.