Charles II of England
A king who returned from exile to preside over a glittering, pleasure-seeking court and a period of dramatic scientific and cultural rebirth.
1630–1685 (age 55)·King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1660 to 1685·Birthday: May 29
Biography
Charles II’s life was shaped by the trauma of his father’s execution and his own desperate, impoverished exile across Europe. His restoration to the throne in 1660 was met with national jubilation, a stark contrast to the austere Puritan rule of Oliver Cromwell. He swiftly re-established the monarchy’s pageantry, fostering a court famous for its hedonism and wit, with mistresses like Nell Gwyn becoming public figures. His reign, however, was a constant political tightrope walk, navigating the fallout from the Great Fire of London, the plague, and deep religious tensions between Protestants and Catholics. A patron of the arts and sciences, he granted a royal charter to the Royal Society, championing figures like Isaac Newton and Christopher Wren. His deathbed conversion to Catholicism capped a rule defined by a cunning political flexibility and a personal determination to never go 'on his travels' again.
#1 When Charles Was Born
The biggest hits of 1630
Charles's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1630Born
1635Started school
1643Became a teenager
1646Could drive
1648Could vote
1651Turned 21
1660Turned 30
1670Turned 40
1680Turned 50
1685Died at 55
Key Achievements
- Secured the Restoration of the English monarchy in 1660 after over a decade of republican rule.
- Founded the Royal Society, granting it a charter that propelled the Scientific Revolution in England.
- Oversaw the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire of 1666, commissioning Sir Christopher Wren's St. Paul's Cathedral.
- Issued the Royal Declaration of Indulgence in 1672, attempting to extend religious tolerance to Protestant Nonconformists and Catholics.
Did You Know?
He was nicknamed the 'Merry Monarch' for his lively court and many mistresses.
He kept a small army of spaniels, a breed now known as the King Charles Spaniel.
He escaped capture after the Battle of Worcester in 1651 by hiding in an oak tree, an event celebrated as Royal Oak Day.
He founded the Royal Observatory at Greenwich in 1675 to solve the problem of finding longitude at sea.
“Let not poor Nelly starve.”
