UK Monarchy
Eminent scholar and energetic storyteller Dr. David Starkey (The Six Wives of Henry VIII) serves as your guide through nearly 10 centuries of royal rule in England.
From the fall of the Roman Empire to the Restoration, Starkey vividly describes the human drama behind the throne, with all its intrigue, lust, treachery, and thirst for power. You visit the very stages upon which history played out—Westminster Abbey, Bosworth Field, the dreaded Tower of London, and more—and explore the true character of the men and women who wore the crown.
In this rich tapestry, Starkey identifies a unifying thread. On one hand, England required authoritarian might to stand strong against external threats. On the other, it cherished its longstanding tradition of rule by consent of the governed. The dynamic tension between these two impulses enabled the monarchy to survive as the oldest-functioning political institution in Europe.
@MrsJCDepll The pope may not be THE anti Christ but he may be AN anti Christ, if you define "anti" as being "against" what Christ was for.
From the docu description: "...it cherished its longstanding tradition of rule by consent of the governed." LMAATWO ...All The Way Off. Tis hard to walk butt my hiney consented for it to happen, much like the subjugated subjects.
Have to agree with @Milton Babb. How the English tolerate let alone cherish the royalty BS is ridiculous. If nothing else they could toss the bums out, sell off all their assets, put the ultra mega bucks into a trust in which the earnings are to cover the taxes the regulars are assessed. Any other taxes would be assigned wholly onto the corps, the members of Parliament, and those contracting with and/or benefiting from govt work, such as consultants; much like it was supposed to be in the usa, until we elected the worms who used The Constitution for hiney wipe. If someone proposed that, one wonders if they would go for it or keep their "wastes of time" on a bejeweled pedestal?
Right sad that the Scots couldn't manage to vote themselves a ScoXit from the uppity English. One wonders just how honest the vote counting was. Stalin made a good point about saying that it is enough that the voters get to vote, the vote counters determine who wins (or something like that).
Thank you sooooo much for posting this online! I am a HUGE fan of David Starkey!
In the Interests of World Safety.
Please don’t look at the uK much over the next few days, you may die laughing! There have been many cases of actual sides splitting.
I refer to The queens Diamond Jubilee over here. Maniacal, Monarchical Madness! For Four Daze!
If anyone around the world has noticed that the uK has often adopted a condescending or even mocking attitude of other World Cultures, I suggest it’s payback time here! Laugh your socks off, laugh your boots off even but do it safely. You may need protective eyewear to shield the sensitive from the BLINDING stupidity.
From one of the few sane people left in the uK, most of us have died of shame.
Peace and Safety to All
The Political One
Edit. Is there a worse national anthem in the world? This dire dirge is disgraceful.
By the Way, this is only season 2
Why are all the episodes listed not the actual names of the episodes?
Motte and Bailey Castles build in a matter of days??? Maybe Dr David Starkey should go over his research again... They wouldnt take as long as Masonry castles still they took months to build. ts. ts.
I take pause in adding my American opinion, because my opinion on Monarchies is not American. With a Monarchy, the title of King or Queen may not carry power to back up said title, but it has something their Prime Ministers or Presidents will never have, a sense of impartial political views. Executives of governments come & go with the political whims of the people's wishes, but the Monarchy continues, just as in life, the Executive would be the fad, and the Monarch would be the classic.
I can understand the purpose of the monarchy in past history, but what is its purpose in modern terms? Why are these people (elites and royalty) still have money...stolen money from the average citizens... and in power? They don't work, contribute nothing (well except for Prince William who was seen vacationing in a third world country and helping hospitals scrub toilets... but he is the only one I respect the rest are trash) and just sit around doing nothing, but set up elaborate parties for their rich friends while the rest of the country starves to death...it's like the rich version of a welfare family. >_> Not to state that everyone who living on welfare checks and food stamps are all lazy,... hell I'm a hard working substitute teacher for students with special needs and my family and I live on WIC (welfare food stamp program), but I do know some people who are on the program who are lazy, waste of space beings and who expect everyone else to do all the work and only care about their selfish needs and wants. The monarchy is just a fancy version of this stereotypical, lazy, welfare family. Seriously, what is wrong with the people of Great Britain? They love talking trash about the people of United States, but at least the citizens of the U.S. don't honor and worship some elite f*** that has no true power and does nothing. At least prime ministers and presidents have actual real work to do that involve their respected countries and contribute in them in some way, but royalty... they're nothing, but waste of space. Why are they still around?
Monarchy is one of the most repugnant things humans have ever come across. British people giving away their money to a small group of arrogant and rich people that don't really care about the common man/woman and elevate themselves above everyone else referring to the masses as their "subjects", I think it's absurd.
Why British people still put up with it is mind boggling, and why some people think it's somehow "cool" is just plain stupid.
I love this kind of stuff but at the same time am shocked its still around. I'm Canadian and baffled that the queen still holds such power (even in our country!). How has centuries of inbreeding given someone the right to rule and suppress a nation? More precisely a well educated nation? Europe is a bit too deep in tradition I think.
Is there anywhere this series is accessable in canada?
I love the information of the documentary...but does the narrator have to talk like that? It's too dramatic, and tires my ears :( I feel like I'm being beaten down by his "passion".
i'm an loyal son of the holy roman catholic church and the only thing that matters to me is that these king's at one time had to bow down to my emperor(pope) in rome
i've spent the better part of my day watching these! (or at least trying to)
@ Ramus, part 3, 5 and 6 aren't available for me either! i've been searching for them but can't manage to find another site where they are accessible, they all seem to feed from google videos. if someone has another alternative i could try, i'd really enjoy finishing up the series!
Part 3,5 and 6 is not available. Anyone know where I can watch them?
Watching the Early Kings, not my favourite of Starkey's documentaries thus far. It's background is all over the place and is a history solely of England from what I can tell. No wonder foreigners think the terms Britian and England are synonymous.
Hey I found the rest of it!
Check this channel:xxSilverPhinxx
Go to the "Monarchy" playlist and start at "Return of the King" then follow it on to "Survival".
Hopefully, someone will upload it here.
Starkey's pretty good - if a little adoring of the monarchy!!
A better (and more left-field) TV historian is Simon Schama. Richard Holmes too (from the military side) though I understand he's not so popular with Americans after he pointed out a few factual inaccuracies in the myth that makes up the reasons for the War of Independence!!!!
@me & bryony
bryony, you're right. Britannia derives from 'Pretanoi' which is a name the Greeks gave the inhabitants of the British Isles; it most probably means 'tatooed ones'.
But the inhabitants of these Isles almost certainly called Britain 'Albion' (or something like it - preserved in the Scots Gaelic 'Alba') which probably meant 'White Land', maybe because of the white cliffs that greet you when you sail to part of the south coast.
well, it's the UK monarchy it's about, which involves Scotland and Wales and such forth - calling the UK 'England' would be ignoring the fact that England is only one country of four within the (United) Kingdom :)
if you wanted to be old-fashioned, the better equivalent of France's 'Gaul' would be either 'Albion' or 'Britannia' :)
@ me
i know exactly how you feel about wanting to live in England, i live in Ontario myself and, God north american history is just so damn boring! personally i plan on living in Rome one day, but i defiantly want go visit all of these catles and abbies mentioned in this series.
a littl eoff topic here... but are we suposed to refer to the nation as Britain or England. ( beacuse in the first video it says that the saxons renaimed it England. Calling it Britain seems a bit like callinf France Gaul dont you think?)
WOW, this is an absolutely amazing series! I knew so little about the UK Monarchy before this series and now feel like I have a pretty firm understanding of the different rulers and their roles in the transformation of England over the last 10 centuries. Really interesting how their was a constant play back and forth between Kings/Queens who were submissive to the church and others who felt they were above it. Informative, entertaining and definitely worth the watch!
This is awesome! I am watching it even thought I should be in bed for w.o.r.k!! I recommend adventure of english...it's awesome. family legend says i am related to charles i.....i dont know if this is a good thing hahaha. this show makes me wish i lived in England so i could visit all of these places every weekend!! yes i am a nerd!!
ps I am a yankee...
Fascinating, educational and uncut, leaves me wondering why i never had time to listen and learn whilst at school. Starkey (whislt i may be a little bias as he is related to me by marraige) is candid and too the point. Excellent
@ aaa
I'm LMAO that everyone is ignoring you and your i**** comment, get back under your bridge troll!!!
@ Epicurean_Logic
Thanks for the insight into the series, I'll be watching them now based on your feedback.
I've only just watched the first documentary at this point, but I plan on locking myself up and spending the rest of my day watching them all. It's an exciting piece of history.
What strikes me as interesting is that, given the mores of the times, I find myself agreeing with all the gruesome political decisions that are made, even the ones leading to mass slaughter. They're mostly all very rational. That kind of scares me.