Henry IV of England

Henry IV (c. April 1367 – 20 March 1413), also known as Henry Bolingbroke (having been born at Bolingbroke Castle), was King of England from 1399 to 1413, Lord of Ireland and duke of Aquitaine. Henry was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster and a grandson of King Edward III.

When Henry came of age, he was involved in the 1388 revolt of the Lords Appellant against his first cousin, King Richard II. Henry was later exiled from England in 1397. After Henry's father died in 1399, Richard blocked Henry's inheritance to the holdings of the House of Lancaster. So, Henry rallied Lancastrian supporters, imprisoned Richard II and formally deposed him, usurping the throne. These actions later contributed to dynastic disputes in the Wars of the Roses (1455–1487).

Henry was the first English ruler whose mother tongue was English (rather than French) since the Norman Conquest, over 300 years earlier. He was also the first monarch to come from the House of Lancaster. As king, he faced a number of rebellions, most seriously those of Owain Glyndŵr, the last Welshman to claim the title of Prince of Wales, and the English knight Henry Percy (Hotspur), who was killed in the Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403. Henry IV had six children from his first marriage to Mary de Bohun, while his second marriage to Joan of Navarre produced no surviving children. Henry and Mary's eldest son, Henry of Monmouth, assumed the reins of government in 1410 as the king's health worsened. Henry IV died in 1413, and his son succeeded him as Henry V.