History Main / EnglishRose

* ''Series/TheCrown2016'': Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Head of the Commonwealth. She grew up in a loving family that never expected her to become the monarch. She's a porcelain-skinned, petite young woman with rich brown hair and blue eyes who possesses a gentle demeanor and iron will.

If the trope is PlayedStraight, she must be English, or at least British or Irish. Englishness is defined by her origin and family background. English Roses from a FantasyCounterpartCulture and sci-fi futuristic versions are allowed: England might not exist in the setting, but if said land and culture are based on real-life England, associated character tropes may be used as well.

If the trope is PlayedStraight, she must be English. Englishness is defined by her origin and family background. English Roses from a FantasyCounterpartCulture and sci-fi futuristic versions are allowed: England might not exist in the setting, but if said land and culture are based on real-life England, associated character tropes may be used as well.

** Dora in "Murder at Moorstones Manor". She's Hugo's endearingly innocent fiancée. Hugo is the eldest son, obsessed with cars, and viewed as the loony of the Chiddingfold family. Dora is a pretty young woman, fair-skinned with blue eyes and brown hair. When long-suffering Dora asks Hugo to choose between herself and his car, he chooses the car and then leaves her at the moor. She's seen several times in horrible weather as a DamselInDistress, trying to get somewhere safe. In the middle of the night, Dora reaches Moorstones Manor, exhausted and in a terrible state. The thing is, both Sir Clive and his son Hugo have been murdered. The next day, Dora surprises everyone, claiming she can take care of herself and that she's not the demure little girl and Lady Chiddingfold's idiot son's fiancée they expected her to be. She claims she shot them both as revenge for having had to bear Hugo for six years. But several other people take credit for those murders as well.

If from a historical period (and upper-class), she was raised to be a ProperLady. A modern specimen does not need to follow the full set of Proper Lady ideals, but still has to be a NiceGirl: well-mannered and goodhearted.

An English Rose is often composed and dignified in any social setting. A major characteristic is her humility in terms of family and society. Her will can be iron-hard, [[SilkHidingSteel while seemingly subservient]]. Before marriage she tends to be a [[SpiritedYoungLady more spirited version]], and if she marries, she doesn't necessarily lose that spirit. One of the charms of the English Rose may be her ability to maintain decorum and pleasure regardless of any trouble.

* She is fair skinned, has a rosy glow to her cheeks rather than being eerily pale. Her complexion can be described as peachy pale or porcelain-like.

* She has gentle eyes, that are almond shaped or drooping rather than cat-like.[[note]]Following the stereotypes DroopyEyes = gentle, CattyEyes = active[[/note]]

* In the audio play ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho'', Doctor's companion Charlotte "Charley" Elspeth Pollard was raised to become one, but said ScrewThisImOuttaHere as soon as she had the chance to. However, many of her traits fit perfectly. She has hard time dealing with the fact she's not going to see her family ever again, she longs to become a mother, she speaks in the classic Received Pronunciation, Creator/JaneAusten is one of her favourite authors, and she's very much in love with the past and enjoys {{Gorgeous Period Dress}}es. She's a classy LadyOfAdventure and sees historical adventures as an excuse to put her endless etiquette lessons to good use. Occasionally referenced:

* The titular character of ''Film/MaryPoppins'' is ladylike, well-mannered with a number of feminine talents, though she's a bit wacky in her capacity as a MagicalNanny (it comes from being "practically perfect in every way", of course). She's essentially an English Rose taken UpToEleven, and in the movie version she was portrayed as a pretty brunette, played by Creator/JulieAndrews.
* ''Film/{{Hysteria}}'': Emily is the younger daughter of a widowed Doctor Dalrymple. She is a pretty, gentle and dainty young woman with fair skin and dark hair. (She is played by Felicity Jones who has the right look). She knows her father depends on her help in his London household and she is a very obedient and affectionate daughter. Because of her father's expectations, she tries to fulfill the Victorian ideal of "angel of the house". Later, by the end of the film, she knows herself better and wants to be more her own person, but she is still a very nice girl, with the promise that she will be more cheerful and happy.
* Juliet Hulme as played by Creator/KateWinslet in ''Film/HeavenlyCreatures'' was specifically described as an English Rose in several reviews. Juliet is a NewTransferStudent from England who moved to New Zealand. She's beautiful, intelligent, born to a rich, glamorous and intellectual family. She has striking eyes, blond hair, peachy-pale complexion (made even paler and her cheeks rosier because of her tuberculosis), bee-stung lips and visually she fits the archetype very well. She's attached to her parents, is seen playing with her little brother and has an intense friendship with Pauline. She's occasionally too spirited and sometimes downright rude to teachers, which might be excused because she's a teenager, but later events subverts this trope entirely: [[spoiler:English Rose can't be a murderer.]]

** Elizabeth's sister Jane Bennet from ''Literature/PrideAndPrejudice'' is a kind, polite, well-mannered and beautiful lady from the English country gentry. Jane is considered the most beautiful young woman in the neighbourhood. Her character is contrasted with Elizabeth's as sweeter, shyer, and equally sensible, but not as clever; her most notable trait is a desire to see only the good in others.
** Jane Fairfax from ''Literature/{{Emma}}'' is a beautiful, intelligent, accomplished and gentle young woman, and she seems to be admired by virtually everybody. She has dark hair, deep grey eyes, dark eyelashes and eyebrows, and her complexion is fair, smooth and delicate without being pale. She's rather tall, and her figure is graceful and elegant. Unfortunately, Jane has shattered health, so she lacks the rosy cheeks. Emma herself also thinks she should be friendlier, livelier and little less proper in her {{Proper Lady}}-like behaviour.

** Frederica Vernon from ''Literature/LadySusan'' is a very pretty young girl with delicate complexion, a pleasant oval face, mild dark eyes and "peculiar sweetness in her look". Her abusive mother Lady Susan tells lies about her, so her aunt and uncle expect Frederica to be uncultured, uneducated and amoral. They are pleasantly surprised to find that Frederica is very timid and shy, and a major {{Bookworm}} and FriendToAllChildren. Here is a sentence about Frederica from her aunt's letter:

* The narrator of Creator/GuyDeMaupassant's short-story "The Wreck" is an older Frenchman who reflects on his acquaintance with a pretty Englishwoman with whom he has been corresponding his whole life since they met (20 years ago on [[NewYearHasCome New Year's Eve]]). She was a sandy-haired, dainty young girl of eighteen who was travelling with her father and two younger sisters. He worked as an inspector of the Maritime Insurance Company and they met on a wrecked ship. They nearly died because as they were strolling on the wreck, the tide swept the ship back on sea. The narrator says she was the only woman he has ever loved, and she became a lost ideal he cannot have. She got married and the narrator says they write to each other every New Year's Day. She writes about her life, her sisters and her children, but he only ever writes about their encounter.

* In ''Literature/ToSayNothingOfTheDog'', Ned, a 21st century time-traveling historian in the Victorian era, describes one: "She was like a delicate blossom, capable of growing only in a single time, adapted only to the select hothouse environment of the late Victorian era: the untouched flower, the blooming English rose, the angel in the house." [[spoiler: It was Verity, another time-traveling historian.]]
* ''Literature/JonathanStrangeAndMrNorrell'': The daughter of a clergyman, Arabella Strange is a charming, intelligent, caring and humorous English young woman. She's pale-skinned, petite and always modestly dressed. She's good-looking, too, but with a TrueBeautyIsOnTheInside catch, as she's described as "moderately pretty" rather than beautiful - but her good humour and vivacity make her incredibly attractive to those around her.
* ''Literature/TheEssexSerpent'': Stella Ransome, the lovely and sweet wife of priest William Ransome and mother of three, who all live in the village of Aldwinter in an Essex parish. Stella is blue-eyed with blond hair, very beautiful and petite (she's described as "no bigger than a fairy and twice as pretty"), and she's also warm and radiant. She loves collecting and pressing wild blue flowers, she often wears blue clothes and becomes obsessed with the blue colour and blue things in general. [[spoiler:She's gradually consumed by tuberculosis and]] her fair, pale skin becomes almost translucent.

* ''Literature/WivesAndDaughters'': Molly Gibson is a beloved daughter of an English country doctor. She's a kindhearted girl who loves her father, their neighbours and friends. Molly gets attached to Mrs Hamley who embraces her almost like a daughter, and later she becomes really close to her stepsister Cynthia. Molly's complexion is first described as colourless, and when she grows up, it's tanned because she loves being outdoors. Her stepmother tries to get her to use rosemary washes and creams in order to lighten her tanned skin, and later the narrator occasionally describes Molly's complexion as cream-coloured. She has plentiful curly black hair and long, almond-shaped, soft gray eyes with curling black eyelashes, and she has a shy, loving expression. She has a slight, lean figure, promising to be tall. When she dresses up, especially for balls, Molly looks really beautiful.

* In ''Series/{{Broadchurch}}'', as part of a bid to sell the story to her boss, a journalist describes grieving mother Beth Lattimer as "a real English Rose" to attract readers. In many ways it's a deliberately InvokedTrope as the journalist plays up the portrayal of Beth as a demure and tragic young mother in her article (when in actuality, Beth and her grieving process are considerably more complex) and asks the family for a photo to better showcase Beth's English Rose appearance: fair skin, dark hair, petite frame and classic beauty.

* In ''Series/DeadGorgeous'', Sophie, the middle sister of three daughters born to English gentry in colonial Australia, best fits this description, both in appearance (she is blonde and paler than her two brunette sisters) and temperament. Rebecca is prettier, but is vain and a social climber, and Hazel enthusiastically embraces all of the opportunities the 21st century offers girls. Sophie, however, misses the social niceties of the 19th century and attempts to hang on to them by doing things such as establishing a book club to discuss the novels of Creator/JaneAusten. She is demure and soft-spoken, but not afraid to stand up for what she believes in, and is kind to all, even those who are mean to her. She also prefers the fashions of her home time to the modern ones, unlike her sisters.

*** Lady Sybil possibly fits closest of all, given her genuinely good nature, naturally beautiful looks and strong moral sense. However, her decision to marry the (socialist and Irish Nationalist) chauffeur Tom Branson puts her very firmly in the SpiritedYoungLady category.

** Dora in "Murder at Moorstones Manor". She's Hugo's endearingly innocent fiancée. Hugo is the eldest son, obsessed with cars and viewed as the loony of the Chiddingfold family. Dora is a pretty young woman, fair-skinned with blue eyes and brown hair. When long-suffering Dora asks Hugo to choose between herself and his car, he chooses the car and then leaves her at the moor. She's seen several times in horrible weather as a DamselInDistress, trying to get somewhere safe. In the middle of the night, Dora reaches Moorstones Manor, exhausted and in a terrible state. The thing is, both Sir Clive and his son Hugo have been murdered. The next day, Dora surprises everyone, claiming she can take care of herself and that she's not the demure little girl and Lady Chiddingfold's idiot son's fiancée they expected her to be. She claims she shot them both as a revenge for having had to bear Hugo for six years. But several other people take credit for those murders as well.
** Lady Agatha, Kevin's childhood sweetheart and his lovely wife from "The Curse of the Claw". She's a pretty girl, living next door to Kevin in Cheltenham, England. She's first seen as a child wearing a white dress and a pretty hat, holding a basket with flowers and enthusiastically waving to Kevin from her garden. Older Kevin mourns her death, reminiscing about her kindness, loveliness and beauty. Grosvenor, Kevin's manservant, acknowledges her beauty, too, with some indecent comments about her body, much to Keven's embarrassment and discomfort.

** Miranda in "Roger of the Raj". Roger is a son of obscenely rich English aristocrats, later residing in India. The honourable Miranda is his equally noble and equally rich lovely girlfriend, with large eyes, classically chiselled features and a fair complexion. She proves her worth and determination when she saves Kevin from the shoot out of the revolting British soldiers and Mr Hopper, Roger's communist teacher who tries "to found a socialist state, with centralised ownership of capital to be used for the benefit of all".
* In ''Series/SecretDiaryOfACallGirl'' (season 4, episode 5), this trope is referenced when HighClassCallGirl Belle puts an ad on her website "Call now for a classic English Rose" while she's staying in New York. She sure can fulfil this dream of meeting a classy, petite, fair-skinned and fair-haired English girl to her American customers. And even though as Hannah (her normal, civil self), she is definitely a nice girl and very intelligent, her job as a call girl and her glamorous, sexy appearance move her very far from the ideal of wholesome beauty.

* Song "Rose of England" by Music/ChrisDeBurgh is about an English Rose of RoyalBlood who is lovely, fine, sweet and fair. She loves a man who is not her equal. When she becomes Queen, she weds her country and is no longer a mistress of her heart.

* Luserina Barows from ''VideoGame/SuikodenV''. She's not actually English (the series is set in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy land), but her hometown of Rainwall is basically the in-series equivalent of an English town and she is the [[BlueBlood Squire's daughter]]. In terms of personality and looks, she fits the bill perfectly, being sweet, kind, well-mannered and elegant, with flowing fair hair and a demure, pretty look. She also exhibits a good deal of SilkHidingSteel qualities and is found to be running the place and keeping morale high during the events of the game.

* In the book ''Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor'' from ''Literature/TheRoyalDiaries'' series, Henry VIII of England got angry at Prince Edward for being lazy while the girls worked on the rose bushes. Elizabeth was quick to respectfully tell her father that she thinks that Edward's humors were out of balance. For that, the king tenderly told the princess that she was the true Tudor rose.

* The titular character of ''Film/MaryPoppins'' is ladylike, well-mannered with a number of feminine talents (though a bit wacky). It comes from being "practically perfect in every way", of course. She's MagicalNanny serving to an English family. She's essentially an English Rose taken UpToEleven. In the movie version, she was portrayed as a pretty brunette, played by Creator/JulieAndrews.

* ''Series/TheCrown2016'': Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Head of the Commonwealth. She grew up in a loving family that never expected her to become the monarch. She's a porcelain-skinned, petite young woman with rich brown hair and blue eyes who possesses a gentle demeanor and iron will.

* ''Series/TheLastKingdom'': [=Æthelflæd=] of the Kingdom of Wessex is an Anglo-Saxon princess, the beloved daughter of King Alfred who dreams of uniting the separate kingdoms of England. She's beautiful, strong, brave and intelligent with a keen sense of authority. She has dark hair and very fair skin with pink undertones -- her own name means "noble beauty" in the Anglo-Saxon tongue. She's married to Lord Aethelred of Mercia. Eventually, Mercians respect her more than her husband and she's growing into the [[LadyOfWar warrior queen]] archetype.

* ''Series/TheLastKingdom'': Aethelflaed of the Kingdom of Wessex is an Anglo-Saxon princess, the beloved daughter of King Alfred who dreams of uniting the separate kingdoms of England. She's beautiful, strong, brave and intelligent with a keen sense of authority. She has dark hair and very fair skin with pink undertones. She's married to Lord Aethelred of Mercia. Eventually, Mercians respect her more than her husband and she's growing into the [[LadyOfWar warrior queen]] archetype.

* ''Series/RippingYarns'':
** Dora in "Murder at Moorstones Manor". She's Hugo's endearingly innocent fiancée. Hugo is the eldest son, obsessed with cars and viewed as the loony of the Chiddingfold family. She's a pretty young woman, fair-skinned with blue eyes and brown hair. When long-suffering Dora asks Hugo to choose between herself and his car, he chooses the car and then leaves her at the moor. She's seen several times in horrible weather as a DamselInDistress, trying to get somewhere safe. In the middle of the night, Dora reaches Moorstones Manor, exhausted and in a terrible state. The thing is, both Sir Clive and his son Hugo have been murdered. The next day, Dora surprises everyone, claiming she can take care of herself and that she's not the demure little girl and Lady Chiddingfold's idiot son's fiancée they expected her to be. She claims she shot them both as a revenge for having had to bear Hugo for six years. But several other people take credit for those murders as well.
** Lady Agatha, Kevin's childhood sweetheart and his lovely wife from "The Curse of the Claw". She's a lovely girl, living next door to Kevin in Maidenhead, England. She's first seen as a young child wearing a white dress and a pretty hat, holding a basket with flowers and enthusiastically waving to Kevin from her garden. Older Kevin mourns her death, reminiscing about her kindness, loveliness and beauty. Grosvenor, Kevin's manservant, acknowledges her beauty, too, with some indecent comments about her body, much to Keven's embarrassment and discomfort.

** Miranda in "Roger of the Raj". Roger is a son of obscenely rich English aristocrats residing in India. The honourable Miranda is his equally noble and equally rich lovely girlfriend, with large eyes, classically chiselled features and fair complexion. She proves her worth and determination when she saves Kevin from the shoot out of the revolting British soldiers and Mr Hopper, Roger's communist teacher who tries "to found a socialist state, with centralised ownership of capital to be used for the benefit of all".

** Lady Agatha, Kevin's childhood sweetheart and his lovely wife from "The Curse of the Claw". She's a lovely girl, living next door to Kevin in Maidenhead, England. She's first seen as a young child wearing a white dress and a pretty hat, holding a basket with flowers and enthusiastically waving to Kevin from her garden. Older Kevin mourns her death, reminiscing of her kindness, loveliness and beauty. Grosvenor, Kevin's manservant, acknowledges her beauty, too, with some indecent comments about her body, much to Keven's embarrassment and discomfort.

* ''Series/{{Friends}}'': Emily Waltham played by Helen Baxendale was Ross's girlfriend from London. She was a beautiful young woman with fair skin and dark hair and dark eyes. Initially, she was sweet, caring and she and Ross seemed like a perfect match. She and Ross wanted to get married, but both wanted to stay in their homeland because they had strong ties with their family and friends. After Ross accidentally said "I take thee, Rachel" instead of "I take thee, Emily", she became very jealous but who could blame her.

** Mary Garth is perfectly honorable, sensible and well-mannered, but she's also generally regarded as quite plain in terms of her looks.

** Mary Garth is perfectly honorable and well-mannered, but she's also generally regarded as quite plain in terms of her looks.

** Rosamond was raised and generally accepted to be an archetypal English Rose: beautiful, gentle and virtuous, whereas inwardly she is shallow and selfish.
** Mary Garth is perfectly honourable and well-mannered, but she is quite plain.
** Dorothea is the one that comes closest to playing this trope straight, as she is at once beautiful, incredibly modest in both senses of the word and a seriously good person, but she is a bit too "fervent" in her beliefs and ideals, and a bit too interested in "manly affairs" (such as managing her land, or science and learning) to be considered a completely decent lady in 19th century England.

* ''Literature/TheEssexSerpent'': Stella Ransome, the lovely and sweet wife of priest William Ransome and mother of three, who all live in the village of Aldwinter in an Essex parish. Stella is blue-eyed with blond hair, very beautiful and petite (she's described as "no bigger than a fairy and twice as pretty"), and she's also warm and radiant. She loves collecting and pressing wild blue flowers, she often wears blue clothes and becomes obsessed with the blue colour and blue things in general. She's gradually consumed by tuberculosis and her fair, pale skin becomes almost translucent.

* Luserina Barows from ''VideoGame/SuikodenV'' is an excellent, invoked example. She's not actually English (the series is set in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy land), but her hometown of Rainwall is basically the in-series equivalent of an English town and she is the [[BlueBlood Squire's daughter]]. In terms of personality and looks, she fits the bill perfectly, being sweet, kind, well-mannered and elegant, with flowing fair hair and a demure, pretty look. She also exhibits a good deal of SilkHidingSteel qualities and is found to be pretty much running the place and keeping morale high during the events of the game.

* ''Series/{{Friends}}'': Emily Waltham played by Helen Baxendale was Ross's girlfriend from London. She was a beautiful young woman with fair skin and dark hair and dark eyes. Initially, she was sweet, caring and she and Ross seemed like a perfect match. She and Ross wanted to get married, but both wanted to stay in their homeland because they had strong ties with their family and friends. After Ross accidentally said "I take thee, Rachel" instead of "I take thee, Emily", she became very jealous but who could blame her.

* In ''Series/SecretDiaryOfACallGirl'' (season 4, episode 5), this trope is referenced when HighClassCallGirl Belle puts an ad on her website "Call now for a classic English Rose" while she's staying in New York. She sure can fulfill this dream of meeting a classy, petite, fair-skinned and fair-haired English girl to her American customers. And even though as Hannah (her normal, civil self), she is definitely a nice girl and very intelligent, her job as a call girl and her glamorous, sexy appearance move her very far from the ideal of wholesome beauty.

** Lavinia Swire, also from Downton, fits the bill too - she's sweet-natured, gentle, naturally beautiful.....[[spoiler: [[TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth and has a tragic, Victorian-heroine style deathbed scene.]]]]

** Young debutante Madeleine Allsopp from the series 4 Christmas Special is yet another example from Downton -- she's a petite, fair-skinned, demure little beauty and shows good character and a strong moral sense when she refuses to play along with her impoverished father's schemes when he crassly pushes her onto the wealthy Harold Levinson.
* Liz Grainger from ''Series/WishMeLuck'' is the perfect embodiment of this trope: a pretty (but not too pretty) well-bred, upper-class young woman who is also courageous, principled and willing to [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII serve her country.]]
* ''Series/{{Cranford}}'':
** Sophy Hutton is a great example -- she's pretty, pale-skinned, a LoveInterest for the series' hero Doctor Harrison and is very helpful to her widowed father who, to top it all off, happens to be the village reverend.
** Miss Matty is an example of English Rose who aged gracefully. She was very pretty when she was young and people say her most striking feature was her complexion. She was very devoted to her family and actually never married because her family needed her support and didn't approve of her suitor. Yet she remained faithful to him and never loved anybody else.
* ''Series/{{Friends}}'': Emily Waltham played by Helen Baxendale was Ross's girlfriend from London. She was a beautiful young woman with fair skin and dark hair and dark eyes. Initially, she was sweet, caring and she and Ross seemed like a perfect match. She and Ross wanted to get married, but both wanted to stay in their homeland because they had strong ties with their family and friends. After Ross accidentally said "I take thee, Rachel" instead of "I take thee, Emily", she became very jealous but who could blame her.

* In ''Series/{{Broadchurch}}'', as part of a bid to sell the story to her boss, a journalist describes grieving mother Beth Lattimer as "a real English Rose" to attract readers. In many ways it's a deliberately InvokedTrope as the journalist plays up the portrayal of Beth as a demure and tragic young mother in her article (when in actuality, Beth and her grieving process are considerably more complex) and asks the family for a photo to better showcase Beth's English Rose appearance: fair skin, dark hair, petite frame and classic beauty.
* ''Series/TheCrown2016'': Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Head of the Commonwealth. She grew up in a loving family that never expected her to become the monarch. She's a porcelain-skinned, petite young woman with rich brown hair and blue eyes who possesses a gentle demeanor and iron will.
* ''Series/TheLastKingdom'': Aethelflaed of the Kingdom of Wessex is an Anglo-Saxon princess, the beloved daughter of King Alfred who dreams of uniting the separate kingdoms of England. She's beautiful, strong, brave and intelligent with a keen sense of authority. She has dark hair and very fair skin with pink undertones. She's married to Lord Aethelred of Mercia. Eventually, Mercians respect her more than her husband and she's growing into the [[LadyOfWar warrior queen]] archetype.
* Anna Fulford from ''Series/MurdochMysteries'' is a young English woman who comes from Bristol, a pretty pale-skinned blonde with big dark-brown eyes. She's the owner of a pub she inherited from her deceased father. She's sweet, kind and lively. She intuitively recognizes that Detective Murdoch is a good man, even though he's pursued by the police or roguish agents, and she decides to help him and later becomes his LoveInterest (though she's ultimately not the woman he ends up with).
* In ''Series/DeadGorgeous'', Sophie, the middle sister of three daughters born to English gentry in colonial Australia, best fits this description, both in appearance (she is blonde and paler than her two brunette sisters) and temperament. Rebecca is prettier, but is vain and a social climber, and Hazel enthusiastically embraces all of the opportunities the 21st century offers girls. Sophie, however, misses the social niceties of the 19th century and attempts to hang on to them by doing things such as establishing a book club to discuss the novels of Creator/JaneAusten. She is demure and soft-spoken, but not afraid to stand up for what she believes in, and is kind to all, even those who are mean to her. She also prefers the fashions of her home time to the modern ones, unlike her sisters.

* In ''Series/DeadGorgeous'', Sophie, the middle sister, best fits this description, both in appearance (she is blonde and paler than her two brunette sisters) and temperament. Rebecca is prettier, but is vain and a social climber, and Hazel enthusiastically embraces all of the opportunities the 21st century offers girls. Sophie, however, misses the social niceties of the 19th century and attempts to hang on to them by doing things such as establishing a book club to discuss the novels of Creator/JaneAusten. She is demure and soft-spoken, but not afraid to stand up for what she believes in, and is kind to all, even those who are mean to her. She also prefers the fashions of her home time to the modern ones, unlike her sisters.

* In ''Series/DeadGorgeous'', Sophie, the middle sister, best fits this description, both in appearance (she is blonde and paler than her two brunette sisters) and temperament. Rebecca is prettier, but is vain and a social climber, and Hazel enthusiastically embraces all of the opportunities the 21st century offers girls. Sophie, however, misses the social niceties of the 19th century and attempts to hang on to them by doing things such as establishing a book club to discuss the novels of Creator/JaneAusten. She also prefers the fashions of her home time, unlike her sisters.

* The titular character of ''Film/MaryPoppins'' is ladylike, well-mannered, with a number of feminine talents (though a bit wacky). It comes from being "practically perfect in every way", of course. She's essentially an English Rose taken UpToEleven. In the movie version, she was portrayed as a pretty brunette, played by the always awesome Creator/JulieAndrews.

* Juliet Hulme as played by Creator/KateWinslet in ''Film/HeavenlyCreatures'' was specifically described as an English Rose in several reviews. Juliet is a NewTransferStudent from England who moved to New Zealand. She was born to a wealthy, glamorous, intellectual English family. She's beautiful and intelligent girl with pale complexion and visually she fits the archetype, but later events subverts it.

* Juliet Hulme as played by Creator/KateWinslet in ''Film/HeavenlyCreatures'' was specifically described as an English rose in several reviews, and Winslet herself is sometimes called this in articles about her career.

-->-- '''Narrator''' of Creator/GuyDeMaupassant's short-story "The Wreck"

* She is more on the petite side, and slender--an English Rose can sometimes be a bit chubby, but is never very tall (outside of modeling business use of the trope) or of very substantial build.

* Her hair can be of any shade as long as it isn't too exotic--wavy, light brown, soft blonde, or auburn hair is most archetypal, as well as hairstyles more 'natural' and less fabricated than of her peers, but any moderate and understated hairstyle fitting the period fits the type.

There is no requirement for actresses portraying her to actually be English, or even British. However, it's rare to find actresses playing these characters in English-language media (foreign productions are obviously another story) from outside the [[UsefulNotes/TheCommonwealthOfNations Old Commonwealth]] (minus UsefulNotes/{{Canada}}).

If the trope is PlayedStraight, she must be English. Englishness is defined by her origin and family background. English Roses from a FantasyCounterpartCulture and sci-fi futuristic versions are allowed: England might not exist in the setting, but if said land and culture are based on real life England, associated character tropes may be used as well.

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* The beautiful Truly Scrumptious from ''Film/ChittyChittyBangBang'' is the perfect Proper Lady, and is the daughter of a wealthy sweet factory owner, Lord Scrumptious. She's rather chilly to begin with, but warms up a good deal as the film progresses. She is played by Sally Ann Howes who has the appropriate looks.

** Kay Miniver is a dutiful, happy wife and a mother of three from the (upper-)middle class. Her husband Clem says she's even more beautiful than the time he married her. At the beginning of the film, Mrs. Miniver's old friend James Ballard asks her for a permission to name his masterpiece, a rose he has cultivated, after her. Greer Garson who played her has fair ginger hair and white skin, and her look is emphasised by the black and white technicolor.

* ''Film/{{Hysteria}}'': Emily is the younger daughter of a widowed Doctor Dalrymple. She is a pretty, gentle and dainty young woman with fair skin and dark hair. (She is played by Felicity Jones who has the right look). She knows her father depends on her help in his London household and she is a very obedient and affectionate daughter. Because of her father's expectations, she tries to fulfil the Victorian ideal of "angel of the house". Later, by the end of the film, she knows herself better and wants to be more her own person, but she is still a very nice girl, with the promise that she will be more cheerful and happy.

* In the book ''Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor'' from ''Literature/TheRoyalDiaries'' series, Henry VIII of England got angry at Prince Edward for being lazy while the girls worked on the rose bushes. Elizabeth was quick to respectfully tell her father that she thinks that Edward's humors were out of balance. For that the king tenderly told the princess that she was the true Tudor rose.

** Elinor Dashwood from ''Literature/SenseAndSensibility'' is TheReliableOne of her family despite being only nineteen. She's very pretty, though her sister Marianne is thought to be the prettiest, but Marianne is also slightly darker and her beauty is of the exotic kind. Elinor is fair and has the appropriate looks, and her calm and dignified personality makes her fit perfectly. Elinor's mother and sisters think she's too calm and that she should be a bit more emotional, but her NotSoStoic moments show she has lots of true and deep feelings.
** Frederica Vernon from ''Literature/LadySusan'' is a very pretty young girl with delicate complexion, pleasant oval face, mild dark eyes and "peculiar sweetness in her look". Her abusive mother Lady Susan tells lies about her, so her aunt and uncle expect Frederica to be uncultured, uneducated and amoral. They are pleasantly surprised to find that Frederica is very timid and shy, and a major {{Bookworm}} and FriendToAllChildren. Here is a sentence about Frederica from her aunt's letter:
--->''"There cannot be a more gentle, affectionate heart; or more obliging manners, when acting without restraint; and her little cousins are all very fond of her."''

* In ''Literature/ToSayNothingOfTheDog'', Ned, a 21st century time-traveling historian in the Victorian era, describes one: "She was like a delicate blossom, capable of growing only in a single time, adapted only to the select hothouse environment of the late Victorian era: the untouched flower, the blooming English rose, the angel in the house." [[spoiler: It was Verity, another time traveling historian.]]

[[folder: Live Action TV]]

*** Lady Edith is energetic and almost tragically naive at times, but also suffers from a fairly bad case of MiddleChildSyndrome. (She's also not nearly as good-looking as her sisters.)

** Lavinia Swire, also from Downton, fits the bill too - she's sweet natured, gentle, naturally beautiful.....[[spoiler: [[TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth and has a tragic, Victorian-heroine style deathbed scene.]]]]

* ''Series/TheCrown2016'' : Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and Head of the Commonwealth. She grew up in a loving family that never expected her to become the monarch. She's a porcelain-skinned, petite young woman with rich brown hair and blue eyes who possesses a gentle demeanor and iron will.
* ''Series/TheLastKingdom'': Aethelflaed of the Kingdom of Wessex is an Anglo-Saxon princess, the beloved daughter of King Alfred who dreams of uniting the separate kingdoms of England. She's beautiful, strong, brave and intelligent with a keen sense of authority. She has dark hair and very fair skin with pink undertones. She's married to Lord Aethelred of Mercia. Eventually Mercians respect her more than her husband and she's growing into the [[LadyOfWar warrior queen]] archetype.
* Anna Fulford from ''Series/MurdochMysteries'' is a young English woman who comes from Bristol, a pretty pale-skinned blonde with big dark-brown eyes. She's an owner of a pub she inherited from her deceased father. She's sweet, kind and lively. She intuitively recognizes that Detective Murdoch is a good man, even though he's pursued by the police or roguish agents, and she decides to help him and later becomes his LoveInterest (though she's ultimately not the woman he ends up with).

* The trope is briefly mentioned in song "Portobello Belle" by Music/DireStraits. The song is about a modern girl walking through the market on Portobello Road:

* Spoofed in the Creator/GilbertAndSullivan light opera ''Theatre/UtopiaLimited''. Two South Seas princesses are being raised by their English governess to be properly modest and retiring English roses, until the visiting "Imported Flowers of Progress" assure them that the English fashion is quite different nowadays:

-->''"Mabel Chiltern is a perfect example of the English type of prettiness, the apple-blossom type. She has all the fragrance and freedom of a flower. There is ripple after ripple of sunlight in her hair, and the little mouth, with its parted lips, is expectant, like the mouth of a child. She has the fascinating tyranny of youth, and the astonishing courage of innocence. To sane people she is not reminiscent of any work of art. But she is really like a Tanagra statuette, and would be rather annoyed if she were told so."''

** Cammy White shows what happens to an English Rose when you mix her with ActionGirl and MsFanservice. You'd never think of it if you judged her only by her VERY fanservicy looks, but her serious personality and her devotion to her TrueCompanions have more than a whiff of this archetype. She even has [[UsefulNotes/BritishAccents the RP accent]], especially in the later games. "Cammy White" (Camilla = "priestess", White = the colour of purity) is also an archetypal English Rose name.

* Luserina Barows from ''VideoGame/SuikodenV'' is an excellent, invoked example. She's not actually English (the series is set in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy land), but her hometown of Rainwall is basically the in-series equivalent of an English town and she is the [[BlueBlood Squire's daughter]]. In terms of personality and looks, she fits the bill perfectly, being sweet, kind, well-mannered and elegant, with flowing fair hair and a demure, pretty look. She also exhibits a good deal of SilkHidingSteel qualities, and is found to be pretty much running the place and keeping morale high during the events of the game.