List of French monarchs

2008/9 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Historical figures

The monarchs of France ruled, first as kings and later as emperors (Bonapartes only), from the Middle Ages to 1870. There is some disagreement as to when France came into existence. The earliest date would be the establishment of the Merovingian Frankish kingdom by Clovis I in 486 with the defeat of Syagrius, the last Roman official in Gaul. That kingdom's rulers were deposed in the 8th century. The Treaty of Verdun established the Kingdom of Western Francia in 843.

In light of these recent trends, this list begins with Charles the Bald and the Kingdom of Western Francia, originating in 843, the state which would directly evolve into modern France. For earlier Frankish monarchs, see List of Frankish Kings.

In addition to the monarchs listed below, the Kings of England and Great Britain from 1340–1360 and 1369–1801 also claimed the title of King of France. For a short time, this had some basis in fact—under the terms of the 1420 Treaty of Troyes, Charles VI had recognized his son-in-law Henry V of England as regent and heir. Henry V predeceased Charles VI and so his son, Henry VI, succeeded his grandfather as King of France. Most of Northern France was under English control until 1435, but by 1453, the English had been expelled from all of France save Calais (and the Channel Islands), and Calais itself fell in 1558. Nevertheless, English monarchs continued to claim the title until the creation of the United Kingdom in 1801. Various English kings between 1337 and 1422 had also claimed the title of King of France, but only intermittently.

The title "King of the Franks" (Latin: Rex Francorum) remained in use until the reign of Philip IV. During the brief period when the French Constitution of 1791 was in effect (1791–1792) and after the July Revolution in 1830, the style "King of the French" was used instead of "King of France (and Navarre)". It was a constitutional innovation known as popular monarchy which linked the monarch's title to the people, not to the territory of France.

See also List of Frankish Kings

The name of France comes from the Germanic tribe known as the Franks. The Merovingian kings began as mere chieftains, the oldest known being Pharamond. Clovis I was the first of these to rise to true kingship. After his death, his kingdom was split between his sons into Soissons ( Neustria), Paris, Orleans ( Burgundy), and Metz ( Austrasia). Various other kingdoms would continue to break apart and be formed as the various Merovingian kings warred with each other.

The Carolingians overpowered the Merovingian kings. First they became their majordomos (mayor of the palace) in Austrasia. Eventually, they united the entire Frankish kingdom for the first time since Clovis. With Mayor Pippin the Younger, the Merovingians were completely phased out. The Carolingian Dynasty would be the first true French monarchy. The great and extended kingdom of Pippin's son, the legendary Charlemagne (Charles I), was split by Louis I (Louis the Pious). In 843, while Louis's son Lothair was in power, the great Frankish kingdom was split. The Eastern Kingdom became Germany, the Middle Kingdom became Lotharingia and later part of the Holy Roman Empire, and the Western Kingdom became France. Charles the Bald was the first ruler of the independent West Franks (France).

Carolingian Dynasty (843 to 987)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Charles II the Bald (Charles II le Chauve)	843	October 6, 877
	Louis II the Stammerer (Louis II le Bègue)	October 6, 877	April 10, 879
	Louis III	April 10, 879	August 5, 882
	Carloman II	April 10, 879	December 6, 884
	Charles the Fat (Charles le Gros)	885	January 13, 888
	Odo (Eudes de Paris)	February 29, 888	January 1, 898
	Charles III the Simple (Charles III le Simple)	January 1, 898	June 30, 922
	Robert I	June 30, 922	June 15, 923
	Rudolph (Raoul de France)	July 13, 923	January 14, 936
	Louis IV from Overseas (Louis IV d'Outremer)	June 19, 936	September 10, 954
	Lothair (Lothaire de France)	November 12, 954	March 2, 986
	Louis V the Lazy (Louis V le Fainéant)	June 8, 986	May 22, 987

Capetian Dynasty, Direct Capetians (987 to 1328)

The Capetian Dynasty, the male-line descendants of Hugh Capet ruled France continuously from 987 to 1792 and again from 1814 to 1848. The branches of the dynasty which ruled after 1328, however, are generally given the specific branch names of Valois and Bourbon.

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Hugh Capet (Hugues Capet)	July 3, 987	October 24, 996
	Robert II the Pious (Robert II le Pieux)	October 24, 996	July 20, 1031
	Henry I (Henri Ier)	July 20, 1031	August 4, 1060
	Philip I (Philippe Ier)	August 4, 1060	July 29, 1108
	Louis VI the Fat (Louis VI le Gros)	July 29, 1108	August 1, 1137
	Louis VII the Young (Louis VII le Jeune)	August 1, 1137	September 18, 1180
	Philip II Augustus (Philippe II Auguste)	September 18, 1180	July 14, 1223
	Louis VIII the Lion (Louis VIII le Lion)	July 14, 1223	November 8, 1226
	Louis IX the Saint (Saint Louis)	November 8, 1226	August 25, 1270
	Philip III the Bold (Philippe III le Hardi)	August 25, 1270	October 5, 1285
	Philip IV the Fair (Philippe IV le Bel)	October 5, 1285	November 29, 1314
	Louis X the Quarreller (Louis X le Hutin)	November 29, 1314	June 5, 1316
	John I the Posthumous (Jean Ier le Posthume)	November 15, 1316	November 20, 1316
	Philip V the Tall (Philippe V le Long)	November 20, 1316	January 3, 1322
	Charles IV the Fair (Charles IV le Bel)	January 3, 1322	February 1, 1328

Not listed above are Hugh Magnus, eldest son of Robert II, and Philip of France, eldest son of Louis VI: both were co-Kings with their fathers (in accordance with the early Capetian practice whereby Kings would crown their heirs in their own lifetimes and share power with the co-king), but predeceased them. Because neither Hugh nor Philip were sole or senior king in their own lifetimes, they are not traditionally listed as Kings of France, and are not given ordinals.

Capetian Dynasty, House of Valois (1328-1589)

Direct Valois (1328-1498)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Philip VI of Valois, the Fortunate (Philippe VI de Valois, 'le Fortuné)	February 1, 1328	August 22, 1350
	John II the Good (Jean II le Bon)	August 22, 1350	April 8, 1364
	Charles V the Wise (Charles V le Sage)	April 8, 1364	September 16, 1380
	Charles VI the Beloved, the Mad (Charles VI le Bienaimé, le Fol)	September 16, 1380	October 21, 1422
	Charles VII the Victorious, the Well-Served (Charles VII le Victorieux, le Bien-Servi)	October 21, 1422	July 22, 1461
	Louis XI the Prudent, the Spider (Louis XI le Prudent, l'Araignée)	July 22, 1461	August 30, 1483
	Charles VIII the Affable (Charles VIII l'Affable)	August 30, 1483	April 7, 1498

From 1422 to 1453, Henry VI of England was King in northern France, although after the coronation of Charles VII in 1429 Henry's power was weakened, and much English held territory was lost. Henry was, however, crowned King of France in Paris in 1431. He is not generally listed as a genuine King of France, merely as a pretender.

Capetian Dynasty, Valois- Orléans Branch (1498-1515)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Louis XII Father of the People (Louis XII le Père du Peuple)	April 7, 1498	January 1, 1515

Capetian Dynasty, Valois- Angoulême Branch (1515-1589)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Francis I the Father and Restorer of Letters (François Ier le Père et Restaurateur des Lettres)	January 1, 1515	March 31, 1547
	Henry II (Henri II)	March 31, 1547	July 10, 1559
	Francis II (François II)	July 10, 1559	December 5, 1560
	Charles IX	December 5, 1560	May 30, 1574
	Henry III (Henri III)	May 30, 1574	August 2, 1589

Capetian Dynasty, House of Bourbon (1589-1792)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Henry IV, Good King Henry (Henri IV, le Bon Roi Henri)	August 2, 1589	May 14, 1610
	Louis XIII the Just (Louis XIII le Juste)	May 14, 1610	May 14, 1643
	Louis XIV, the Sun King (Louis XIV, le Roi Soleil)	May 14, 1643	September 1, 1715
	Louis XV the Beloved (Louis XV, le Bien-Aimé)	September 1, 1715	May 10, 1774
	Louis XVI	May 10, 1774	August 10, 1792

From 21 January 1793 to 8 June 1795, Louis XVI's son Louis-Charles was the titular King of France as Louis XVII; in reality, however, he was imprisoned in the Temple throughout this duration, and power was held by the leaders of the Republic. Upon Louis' death, his uncle Louis-Stanislas claimed the throne, as Louis XVIII, but only became de facto King of France in 1814.

First Republic (1792-1804)

Many people were monarchists at the time and consequently refused to recognise the overthrow of the monarchy, and considered Louis XVI's reign to have continued until his death in 1793, then his son Louis XVII to have reigned until his death in 1795, with Louis XVIII's reign then commencing, hence the numbering.

Bonaparte Dynasty, First Empire (1804-1814)

Portrait	Name	Emperor From	Emperor Until
	Napoleon I (Napoléon Ier)	May 18, 1804	April 11, 1814

Capetian Dynasty, House of Bourbon, Restored (1814)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Louis XVIII	May 2, 1814	March 13, 1815

Bonaparte Dynasty, First Empire, Restored ( The Hundred Days, 1815)

Portrait	Name	Emperor From	Emperor Until
	Napoleon I (Napoléon Ier)	March 20, 1815	June 22, 1815
	Napoleon II the Eaglet (Napoléon II, l'Aiglon)	June 22, 1815	July 7, 1815

Capetian Dynasty, House of Bourbon, Restored (1815-1830)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Louis XVIII	July 7, 1815	September 16, 1824
	Charles X	September 16, 1824	August 2, 1830

The elder son and heir of Charles X, the Dauphin Louis-Antoine, is occasionally considered to have legally been the King of France as Louis XIX in the 20 minutes that passed between Charles X's formal signature of abdication and the Dauphin's own signature.
Henri d'Artois, Charles X's grandnephew, was considered by monarchists to be the titular King of France, as Henry V from 2 August 1830 to 9 August 1830, but his reign remained largely fictional, as he acceeded in a revolutionary context and hence was never recognized by the French State. He is generally not accounted for in lists of official French monarchs.

Capetian Dynasty, House of Bourbon-Orléans ( The Monarchy of July 1830-1848)

Portrait	Name	King From	King Until
	Louis-Philippe I the Citizen King (Louis Philippe, le Roi Citoyen)	August 9, 1830	February 24, 1848

Second Republic, Restored (1848 - 1852)

The Second French Republic lasted from 1848 to 1852, when its president, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, was declared Emperor of the French.

Bonaparte Dynasty, Second Empire, Restored (1852-1870)

Portrait	Name	Emperor From	Emperor Until
	Napoleon III (Napoléon III)	December 2, 1852	September 4, 1870

Government of National Defense ( Paris Commune 1870 - 1871)

The transition period between the fall of the Second Empire after the capture of Napoleon III by the Prussians and the assumption of the Third Republic by General Louis Jules Trochu.

Heads of State following 1871

The chronology of Head of State of France continues with the Presidents of the French Republic and short term interim periods by the Chief of State of the French State (1940–1944), the Chairman of the Provisional Government of the French Republic (1944–1946) and the president of the French Senate (1969 and 1974) during the Fifth Republic.

Later pretenders

Various pretenders descended from the preceding monarchs have claimed to be the legitimate monarch of France, rejecting the claims of the President of France, and of each other. These groups are:

• Legitimist claimants to the throne of France—descendants of the Bourbons, rejecting all heads of state since 1830. Some "fusionists" recognized the Orléanist claimant after 1883.
• Orléanist claimants to the throne of France—descendants of Louis-Phillippe, rejecting all heads of state since 1848.
• Bonapartist claimants to the throne of France—descendants of Napoleon I and his brothers, rejecting all heads of state 1815–52, and since 1870.
• Jacobite claimants to the throne of France—descendants of King Edward III of England, also claiming Scotland, and Ireland.