The idea of having a last name (surname) is a relatively recent phenomenon. In the Middle Ages, when most people in western Europe lived in small villages, surnames weren’t necessary. You’d be Hans the Elder or Mary the Butcher’s daughter or One-armed Tom. And kings and queens often had cognomens—names appended before or after their first name. You’re probably familiar with the famous ones like Catherine the Great, William the Conqueror, Ivan the Terrible, Richard the Lionhearted. But I had fun uncovering some of the more obscure—and entertaining, at least to me—royal nicknames. Some are a little harsh, like Charles the Simple, Conan the Fat, and Louis the Sluggard, and others are perplexing, like John the Posthumous or Michael the Minus-a-Quarter or Ragnar Lodbrok the Hairy-Breeches. I suspect the meanings of some of those attributions were lost in translation. Anyway, here’s  a sampling:

Charles the Affable

Baldwin the Bald (he doesn’t look that bald, but then, artists were under pressure to render their employers in the best light possible)

 John George the Beer Jug

Bloody Mary

Alfonso the Chaste

Otto the Crazy

Friederick the Handsome

And my favorite, Ethelred the Unready