Anglo-Scottish Kings

Introduction

As well as being a conventional collection of biographies, AngloScottishKings aims is to discover who was the greatest English and Scottish king. Sovereigns are awarded a maximum of twenty points, in five categories, resulting in a percentage total. Only Late Medieval and Early Modern monarchs have been graded i.e. English Kings between 1066-1649, and Scottish kings from 1124 to 1625. This is due to the paucity of information on many of the earlier medieval rulers; while many of the later Constitutional Monarchs had a negligible effect on history. The kings have been appraised on their military ability, domestic policy, foreign policy, length of reign, and succession. A more detailed description of the rules can be found at the bottom of this page.

English Royal League Table
Does not include the brief reign of Richard III, or the child kings Edward V and VI.

Rank	Monarch	Mark %
1.	Henry VII	88
2.	Henry II	85
3.	James I	83
4.	Edward I	82
5.	Edward III	81
6.	William I	77
7.	Henry IV	74
8.	Henry V	72
9.	Edward IV	68
10.	Henry I	66
11.	Elizabeth I	65
12.	William II	60
13.	Henry III	56
13.	Henry VIII	56
15.	Mary I	49
16.	Richard I	46
17.	John	42
18.	Richard II	46
19.	Stephen	32
20.	Charles I	27
21.	Edward II	23
22.	Henry VI	22

Scottish Royal League Table
(Does not include the brief reigns of John, Edward, or the nominal rule of Robert III)

Rank	Monarch	Mark %
1.	Robert I	81
2.	James VI	76
2.	Robert II	76
4.	William I	74
5.	Alexander II	73
6.	David I	72
7.	Alexander III	70
8.	James V	62
9.	James IV	61
10.	James II	60
11.	James I	56
12.	James III	48
13.	Mary I	44
14.	David II	44
15.	Malcolm IV	42

Rules
Kings have been subjectively rated on their records in the foreign and domestic spheres, as well as their military leadership. Whereas the final two categories are more structured.

Military Ability: Medieval thought dictated that the victor of a battle had been chosen by God. Therefore a king's capacity to command his forces was of paramount importance. Monarchs who fought no serious wars are awarded 10 out 20, since they neither lost nor gained from the battlefield.

Domestic Policy: Whereas aggression was encouraged in foreign matters, kings were expected to rule with patriarchal concern for their subjects. However, the legacy of almost every medieval king is stained with blood, and monarchs should not be judged by postmodern standards. The ideal sovereign could control his barons, apply the rule of law, and spent his revenue wisely. Popularity was advantageous, but not essential.

Foreign Policy: The king's diplomatic proficiency, the promotion of national prestige, and particularly the acquisition of territory, will be considered. Scottish kings had less resources at their disposal, than their English counterparts, and are scored accordingly.

Length of Reign: Twenty points will be allotted to any monarch who achieved two decades of continuous adult rule, and a point will be deducted from this total, for every year below this target. In the event of a king being deposed, captured etc., only to regain their crown, the longer of his two spells in power will be taken into account.

Succession: No king wished to be remembered as the last of their dynasty, and it is hard to overstate how much importance was placed on the ability to reproduce. In a period of low life expectancy and high infant mortality, a royal couple were duty-bound to produce as many offspring as possible. Ideally, a dying king would bequeath his realm to a legitimate adult male. Women and children were considered ill equipped for political leadership, and for the first group even today this anachronism survives; Princess Anne is further down the line of succession than her two younger brothers Andrew and Edward. Childless monarchs were essentially failures, though to leave the kingdom to a sibling was a very small consolation, since the Crown stayed in the immediate family. The various succession scenarios are as follows:

Adult son = Twenty Points
Adult daughter = Ten Points
Male Child or Grandchild = Ten Points
Female Child or Grandchild = Five Points
Adult Sibling = Two Points
No children or end of dynasty = No Points

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Anglo-Scottish Kings