Every child has dreamed of being a king or queen at least once. Who will give up unlimited power? In real life, becoming a monarch is not at all easy. History is full of situations where children have become rulers and have terrible moments as a result. Here are fifteen impressive facts about child rulers from around the world.
Mary, Queen of Scots, became ruler at the age of six days
Of course, the six-day-old did not rule anything: Maria's mother ruled while her daughter was growing up in France. However, at eighteen, Mary came to power herself, got married, was overthrown, fled to England - she thought that Queen Elizabeth the First would protect her. But she held Mary in prison for eighteen years, fearing that she would begin to claim the English throne. And it is no coincidence - Maria made plans to kill Elizabeth, but in 1587 she was executed.
Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible got the nickname for a reason
Immediately after the death of his father in 1533, the three-year-old Ivan became the ruler. A few years later, his mother also died, the boy was left an orphan and grew up under the control of the boyars. Boyars mocked little Ivan, he grew up hungry, isolated from society. At the age of sixteen, he gathered the boyars for a meeting and set dogs on them. So he became king. Over the thirty-seven years of his reign, Ivan has repeatedly justified his ominous nickname. He even killed his own son, breaking his head with a scepter. He died of a heart attack in 1584, but his chilling life story is still one of the most famous in the world.
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Pope Benedict Eleventh, the youngest Pope in history
Benedict the Eleventh became pope in 1032, when he was only twelve years old. In those days, the pope was not only the leader of the Catholic Church, but also the ruler of the papal lands. They did not love Benedict, they made an attempt on his life, after which he fled to Rome, where he stole, killed and committed other crimes. At the same time, he managed to take the post of pope twice more. It is difficult to believe that such a thing is possible at all, nevertheless, in the old days, the post of the pope could really fall on criminals.
King Oyo of Uganda is the youngest reigning monarch
Oyo was crowned in 1995 at the age of three. During the coronation, he sat on a miniature throne, playing with toys, after which he took off his crown and went to his mother's lap. Today he still rules - he works with the UN to improve the health of the nation. In this list, his story is one of the most positive and peaceful.
The war began because Queen Isabella II turned out to be a woman
Isabella became queen after her father's death, when she was only three years old. Some Spaniards wanted her uncle, Carlos, to become king. They refused to recognize the female monarch. At thirteen years old, Isabella officially ascended the throne, but her reign was constantly accompanied by scandals, so she fled to France, where she spent her life.
Christina of Sweden was raised and raised as a boy
Christina became queen at the age of six when her father died, and at eighteen she officially began to rule. She was raised and taught as a boy, so she quickly became famous for her sharp mind. She got up at five in the morning to read. The world was shocked when, ten years after coming to power, she renounced the throne. Some believe that the reason is the queen's refusal to marry. She left for Rome, where she lived for the remaining years, supporting art and communicating with the religious leaders of the Catholic Church.
Pu Yi started life as an emperor and died as a gardener
Pu Yi became the Chinese emperor in 1908 when he was only two years old. Three years later, the revolution destroyed the empire and the Republic of China arose. The boy emperor was no longer a ruler. However, he was allowed to stay in the palace. Every time he walked, he was pursued by a whole company of servants who carried medicine, tea and treats for little Pu Yi. Then he was expelled from the palace, and the emperor left for Japan. At the end of World War II, he was captured and spent five years in Siberia. He then returned to China and worked as a gardener until he died of cancer in 1967. The Oscar-winning film "The Last Emperor" was made about the life of this unusual person.
Sultan Murad the Fourth staged a massacre
Murad the Fourth became Sultan of the Ottoman Empire at the age of eleven in 1623. He wanted to suppress the uprising against the government, so he closed coffee shops and liquor stores - he believed that people were gathering there to build a conspiracy. In addition, he banned tobacco and ordered the execution of anyone who smokes. One day he saw dancing women and ordered them to be drowned, and he cut off his head for his musician because he sang a Persian song. The entire history of the reign of this sultan is endlessly accompanied by cruelty and prohibitions.
King Tut is the most famous child ruler in history
Tutankhamun became ruler around 1333 BC. BC when he was eight years old. He died ten years later, and the reasons are still unknown. He became more famous for death than life: in 1922, archaeologists found his tomb. This turned out to be one of the largest archaeological achievements, and therefore we can say that Tutankhamun is the most famous of all the child rulers in the history of mankind.
Henry the Sixth is the youngest British monarch in history
Henry was only nine months old when he took over as his father on the throne of Britain in 1422. After he began to rule, a rivalry arose between the two royal houses - the Lancaster, of which Henry was the representative, and the Yorks. The rivalry is known as the War of the Roses. Heinrich lost and was killed in the Tower at the age of fifty.
John the First was king all his life, because he lived only five days
John became king immediately after his birth in 1316, because his father died a few months earlier. The baby lived only five days - according to rumors, his uncle, who took the throne, poisoned the young ruler. The picture shows a funeral procession in honor of the little king.
King Sobhuza the Second of Swaziland ruled longest in history
King Sobhuza II ruled Swaziland for eighty-two years, from the age of one to his death at eighty-three. During his reign, he fought for the country's independence from the British Empire and helped Swaziland develop economically. He had over a hundred wives and many different nicknames.
Shah Shapur II became king even before he was born
Shapur II, who ruled Persia, became king immediately after his birth. According to legend, he was crowned in the womb - his subjects literally put the crown on his mother's belly. At sixteen, he began to truly rule.
Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha became king of Bulgaria in six le t
Simeon II ascended the Bulgarian throne at the age of six in 1943, but his reign was short - after three years the monarchy was abolished. Simeon left the country with his mother, but then returned, formed a political party and became prime minister, however, he was not re-elected for a second term.
Elagabal - Roman Emperor Boy
This boy was not an heir, but he still ruled - his family tricked people into convincing people that he was the bastard of the former emperor. There are many strange and frightening stories about his four years in power. The most creepy story is connected with how he invited guests to dinner, and then ordered to fill them with rose petals. There were so many flowers that people simply suffocated from their smell.
Marina Ilyushenko