Regnal Years
While the ways of expressing dates and the complications caused by the use of the Julian calendar provide multiple opportunities for historical confusion, people in Early Modern England had one other way of puzzling today's reader: regnal years.
Some original documents from the seventeenth century show dates as we would understand them. For example, a letter to Christopher Wase dated 1647 includes a line stating that Newport School ‘was founded by Mr William Adams [...] who died Anno 1661 aged about 70 years’(1).
However, it was still relatively common for dates to be shown as Regnal years. A lease made to William Cowper is described as having been made ‘29 September 2 Charles I’(2) meaning in the second year of the reign of Charles I. Charles was successor to James I who died on 27 March 1625, meaning that the date of accession for Charles I was 27 March 1625. That marks the start of his first regnal year. Therefore the second year of the reign of Charles I ran from 27 March 1626 to 26 March 1627. The date of that lease in modern terms, then, would be 29 September 1626.
In official records, the years of the Commonwealth or Interregnum (depending on your point of view) carry dates as we would now recognise them: the reign of Charles II is officially regarded as having begun on 30 January 1649 in modern terms.
Regnal years for seventeenth century:
Monarch | James I | Charles I | Charles II |
Accession date | 25 March 1603 | 27 March 1625 | 30 January 1649 |
Regnal Year | Dates | Dates | Dates |
1 | 25/3/1603 to 24/3/1604 | 27/3/1625 to 26/3/1626 | 30/1/1649 to 29/1/1650 |
2 | 25/3/1604 to 24/3/1605 | 27/3/1626 to 26/3/1627 | 30/1/1650 to 29/1/1651 |
3 | 25/3/1605 to 24/3/1606 | 27/3/1627 to 26/3/1628 | 30/1/1651 to 29/1/1652 |
4 | 25/3/1606 to 24/3/1607 | 27/3/1628 to 26/3/1629 | 30/1/1652 to 29/1/1653 |
5 | 25/3/1607 to 24/3/1608 | 27/3/1629 to 26/3/1630 | 30/1/1653 to 29/1/1654 |
6 | 25/3/1608 to 24/3/1609 | 27/3/1630 to 26/3/1631 | 30/1/1654 to 29/1/1655 |
7 | 25/3/1609 to 24/3/1610 | 27/3/1631 to 26/3/1632 | 30/1/1655 to 29/1/1656 |
8 | 25/3/1610 to 24/3/1611 | 27/3/1632 to 26/3/1633 | 30/1/1656 to 29/1/1657 |
9 | 25/3/1611 to 24/3/1612 | 27/3/1633 to 26/3/1634 | 30/1/1657 to 29/1/1658 |
10 | 25/3/1612 to 24/3/1613 | 27/3/1634 to 26/3/1635 | 30/1/1658 to 29/1/1659 |
11 | 25/3/1613 to 24/3/1614 | 27/3/1635 to 26/3/1636 | 30/1/1659 to 29/1/1660 |
12 | 25/3/1614 to 24/3/1615 | 27/3/1636 to 26/3/1637 | 30/1/1660 to 29/1/1661 |
13 | 25/3/1615 to 24/3/1616 | 27/3/1637 to 26/3/1638 | 30/1/1661 to 29/1/1662 |
14 | 25/3/1616 to 24/3/1617 | 27/3/1638 to 26/3/1639 | 30/1/1662 to 29/1/1663 |
15 | 25/3/1617 to 24/3/1618 | 27/3/1639 to 26/3/1640 | 30/1/1663 to 29/1/1664 |
16 | 25/3/1618 to 24/3/1619 | 27/3/1640 to 26/3/1641 | 30/1/1664 to 29/1/1665 |
17 | 25/3/1619 to 24/3/1620 | 27/3/1641 to 26/3/1642 | 30/1/1665 to 29/1/1666 |
18 | 25/3/1620 to 24/3/1621 | 27/3/1642 to 26/3/1643 | 30/1/1666 to 29/1/1667 |
19 | 25/3/1621 to 24/3/1622 | 27/3/1643 to 26/3/1644 | 30/1/1667 to 29/1/1668 |
20 | 25/3/1622 to 24/3/1623 | 27/3/1644 to 26/3/1645 | 30/1/1668 to 29/1/1669 |
21 | 25/3/1623 to 24/3/1624 | 27/3/1645 to 26/3/1646 | 30/1/1669 to 29/1/1670 |
22 | 25/3/1624 to 24/3/1625 | 27/3/1646 to 26/3/1647 | 30/1/1670 to 29/1/1671 |
23 | 25/3/1625 to 27/3/1625 | 27/3/1647 to 26/3/1648 | 30/1/1671 to 29/1/1672 |
24 | 27/3/1648 to 30/1/1649 | 30/1/1672 to 29/1/1673 | |
25 | 30/1/1673 to 29/1/1674 | ||
26 | 30/1/1674 to 29/1/1675 | ||
27 | 30/1/1675 to 29/1/1676 | ||
28 | 30/1/1676 to 29/1/1677 | ||
29 | 30/1/1677 to 29/1/1678 | ||
30 | 30/1/1678 to 29/1/1679 | ||
31 | 30/1/1679 to 29/1/1680 | ||
32 | 30/1/1680 to 29/1/1681 | ||
33 | 30/1/1681 to 29/1/1682 | ||
34 | 30/1/1682 to 29/1/1683 | ||
35 | 30/1/1683 to 29/1/1684 | ||
36 | 30/1/1684 to 29/1/1685 | ||
37 | 30/1/1685 to 6/2/1685 |
References:
1 Christopher Wase archive held at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, CCC390.2 p145.
2 Izon, John (1974) The Records of King Edward’s School Birmingham A Supplementary Miscellany Vol. VI Dugdale Society (p95).