Each row is one monarchy, and time runs left to right. Here is one real stretch of the chart: Scotland and England from 1590 to 1735.
Swipe the example sideways
Cut from the full chart: bars that touch the frame carry on beyond it. Only the three rows involved are drawn; Ireland, also part of both shared crowns, is left out.
1 Grey bar: the monarchy exists. A break means no king or queen: England 1649–1660, Scotland 1651–1660.
2 Coloured band: the ruling house, named on the band. In England, Tudor gives way to Stuart in 1603.
3 Colours repeat. Stuart and Hanover share this blue in Great Britain. Read the name, or select the band when it is too short to carry one, like Stuart here. Colour says nothing about power or size.
4 Dot: one ruler, placed mid-reign; the thin line spans the reign. Blue, named dots are major rulers. This one is James’s English reign, 1603–1625.
5 Union, 1603. James VI of Scotland also became James I of England. One king, two kingdoms: each kept its own parliament and laws, so each keeps its own row and its own dot for him. The second union symbol marks the shared crown restored in 1660.
6 State union, 1707. England and Scotland end and Great Britain begins on a new row. Lines run from each symbol to every kingdom involved.
7 Blue year line: the selected year. Dates are whole years. At this boundary both rows include 1707, because the change happened within that year; it does not mean England and Great Britain existed at the same instant.
Using the chart
Select Click or tap a phase bar, ruler dot or connection symbol for its dates, details and sources. With a mouse or keyboard, hover over or focus a symbol for a quick summary.
Houses Click or tap a coloured house band to highlight every monarchy that house rules in the “Europe in” year; the others fade but stay usable. A new selection moves the year to the period’s start if needed. Change the year and the highlight follows. Click the band again, click an empty part of the chart, or press Escape to clear it. Selecting a ruler from another house also clears it; a ruler from the selected house keeps it. On a phone, the band leaves the chart visible; open Details to inspect the selected house.
Year On the horizontal chart, drag the blue handle on the sticky ruler to change year. An off-center handle follows your pointer until it reaches the middle, then locks there as the chart pans beneath it. At either end, the handle moves toward the edge; drag it back to the middle to lock again. Sideways scrolling and Shift+wheel also change year, centering the playhead where the scroll limits allow. The horizontal scrollbar selects the year at the viewport center. Arrow keys, Home and End also work when focused.
On a phone Time runs down the page and each monarchy is a column. Scroll up or down to change year: the horizontal blue line stays centered and the house highlights follow. At the date-range boundaries, the line moves away from the center. Swipe sideways to browse countries without changing year.
Lines Dashed: a shared ruler or looser union, sometimes interrupted. Solid: a state union, continuity or reorganization. Dotted: a division, conquest or end. Dash-dot: a restoration.
Other symbols
Continuity The crown carries on in a successor realm.Partition A realm is divided.Conquest or dissolution A realm is taken over or comes to an end.Restoration A monarchy returns.Reorganization A crown changes its rank or legal form.
