Occupation: Queen of Great Britain, co-ruler with her husband, William III (William of Orange)
Known for: assuming the throne as co-ruler with her husband when it was feared that her father would restore Roman Catholicism
Religion: Protestant (Anglican)
About Mary II:
Mary II was the daughter of James II of Great Britain and his first wife, Anne Hyde. She married her first cousin, William of Orange, when she was 15 years old. For ten years she devoted herself to royal duties in Holland. Although William's mistress, Elizabeth Villiers, was a sore spot in their marriage, they agreed on their Protestant religious beliefs.
When Mary of Modena, second wife of James II, gave birth to a boy in 1688 after her first five children had died, William and Mary and many others at court suspected that the child was not truly the son of James. Whig aristocrats as well as William and Mary feared that the Catholic leanings of James II and Mary of Modena's association with Roman Catholicism, the Jesuits, and France would lead to the restoration of Roman Catholicism in England.
When James II fled England, Mary II returned to England as monarch but insisted on sharing her crown with her husband.
During William's frequent absences Mary ruled England herself but she deferred to William when he was present. She supported the Anglican Church and many charities. She never reconciled with her father and she quarreled with her sister Anne.
Mary II died childless in 1694 of smallpox, only 32 years old. Her husband William ruled after her death, passing the crown to Mary's sister Anne when he died.
