With definitive collapse of the Royalist forces in 1655, Prince Charles (or, as he styled himself, King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland) was left with very little support abroad as well, with several normally friendly courts being anxious of his presence at its territory, Charles decided to "wait out the worst" in a far, far away place where he could still command some loyalty. In a extremely unusual move, he sailed to the New World, arriving in the Colony of Virginia, nicknamed a "Loyal Dominion" because of its royalist leanings and the fact the Commonwealth forces were unable to establish a control there.
With the support of France, now more than keen to prop him up in order to undermine the British rule in America, Charles had little difficulty establishing his authority in, what he privately called, the "gloomy Virginia", that he pledged to turn into a "Sweet Virginia".
Although till his dying breath in 1685, Charles considered Virginia as just an overseas English territory where he'd wait for his return to London, his accession is now considered as the moment the country of Virginia was established, and he's being known to the history as King Charles I of Virginia.
Founding King of Virginia
Following Charles' death, his oldest son James was proclaimed "King of England, Scotland and Ireland". Initially he faced some opposition due to his seemingly illegitimate origins (denied by Charles), but with support of France, who saw Charles' brother, also names James, as just too problematic, he managed to secure his throne. However, despite him being a Protestant, Charles' own Catholic leanings, combined with a large wave of Catholic Royalist refugees, determined future states of Virginia as religiously "mixed" state.
King James I of Virginia
While James continued to reefer to himself as legitimate King of England, he unofficially, but effectively, recognized a political reality by "elevating" Virginia into one of his kingdoms, as opposed to mere English colony.
