Edward III of England
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after the disastrous and unorthodox reign of his father, Edward II. Edward III transformed the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe. His fifty-year reign is one of the longest in English history, and saw vital developments in legislation and government, in particular the evolution of the English Parliament, as well as the ravages of the Black Death. He outlived his eldest son, Edward the Black Prince, and was succeeded by his grandson, Richard II.
"Edward III" and "Edward of Windsor" redirect here. For other uses, see Edward III (disambiguation) and Edward Windsor (disambiguation).Edward III
25 January 1327 – 21 June 1377
1 February 1327
Isabella of France and Roger Mortimer (1327–1330)
13 November 1312
Windsor Castle, Berkshire, England
21 June 1377 (aged 64)
Sheen Palace, Richmond, London, England
5 July 1377
Edward was crowned at age fourteen after his father was deposed by his mother, Isabella of France, and her lover, Roger Mortimer. At the age of seventeen, he led a successful coup d'état against Mortimer, the de facto ruler of England, and began his personal reign. After a successful campaign in Scotland, he declared himself rightful heir to the French throne,[a] starting the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453). Following some initial setbacks, this first phase of the war went exceptionally well for England and would become known as the Edwardian War. Victories at Crécy and Poitiers, in 1356, led to the highly favourable Treaty of Brétigny, in which England made territorial gains, and Edward renounced his claim to the French throne. Edward's later years were marked by foreign policy failure and domestic strife, largely as a result of his increasing inactivity and poor health.
Edward was temperamental and thought himself capable of feats such as healing by the royal touch, as some prior English kings did. He was also capable of unusual clemency. He was in many ways a conventional medieval king whose main interest was warfare, but he also had a broad range of non-military interests. Admired in his own time, and for centuries after, he was later denounced as an irresponsible adventurer by Whig historians, but modern historians credit him with significant achievements.
Background[edit]
King Edward II of England had court favourites who were unpopular with his nobility, such as Piers Gaveston and Hugh Despenser the Younger. Gaveston was killed during a noble rebellion against Edward in 1312, while Despenser was hated by the English nobility.[2] Edward was also unpopular with the common people due to his repeated demands that they provide unpaid military service in Scotland.[3] None of his campaigns there were successful,[4] and this led to a further decline in his popularity, particularly with the nobility. His image was damaged again in 1322 when he executed his cousin Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, and confiscated the Lancaster estates.[5] Historian Chris Given-Wilson wrote that, by 1325, the nobility believed that "no landholder could feel safe" under the regime.[6] This distrust of Edward was shared by his wife, Isabella of France,[7][b] who believed Despenser responsible for poisoning the King's mind against her.[10] In September 1324 Queen Isabella was publicly humiliated when the government declared her an enemy alien,[11] and the King repossessed her estates,[11] probably at the urging of Despenser.[12] Edward also disbanded her retinue.[13] Edward had already been threatened with deposition on two previous occasions (in 1310 and 1321).[10] Historians agree that hostility towards Edward was universal. W. H. Dunham and C. T. Wood ascribed this to Edward's "cruelty and personal faults",[14] suggesting that "very few, not even his half-brothers or his son, seemed to care about the wretched man"[14] and that none would fight for him.[14] A contemporary chronicler described Edward as rex inutilis, or a "useless king".[15]
Early life (1312–1327)[edit]
Edward was born at Windsor Castle on 13 November 1312, and was described in a contemporary prophecy as "the boar that would come out of Windsor".[16] The reign of his father, Edward II, was a particularly problematic period of English history.[17][18][19][c] The King had alienated several English nobles and Scottish allies by abandoning his father's war with Scotland soon after his accession, and continued to lose battles against the Scots intermittently.[20][21] Also controversial was the King's patronage of a small group of royal favourites rather than his nobility generally. This, says the historian Michael Prestwich, "unbalanced the whole system of royal patronage".[22] However, the birth of a male heir in 1312 — the future Edward III — soon improved Edward II's relations with the French, and a moderate element within the nobility temporarily quelled baronial opposition.[23] The young prince was created Earl of Chester at only twelve days old, and by January the following year had been provided with an entire household.[24] An early influence on Prince Edward was the Bishop of Durham, Richard de Bury, one of the century's major bibliophiles. Originally a tutor, he appears to have become a mentor to the King. Under Bury's tutelage, Edward learned to write and to read French and Latin. He would have had access to famous contemporary works, such as Vegetius's De Re Militari, which had been translated into Anglo-Norman, as well as the Mirror for Princes and various psalters and religious texts.[25]
Since the Norman Conquest had united the Duchy of Normandy and its French estates with those of the Crown and the land of England, English kings had held several territories, including Poitou, Aquitaine, Normandy, Anjou and Maine, and these holdings — at one point covering more of France than that held by the French king — had frequently led to conflict.[26] In 1325, Edward II was faced with a demand from his brother-in-law Charles IV of France to perform homage for the English Duchy of Aquitaine.[27] The King was reluctant to leave the country, as discontent was once again brewing domestically, particularly over his relationship with the favourite Hugh Despenser the Younger.[d] Instead, he had his son Edward created Duke of Aquitaine in his place and sent him to France to perform the homage.[28] The young Edward was accompanied by his mother Isabella, who was King Charles's sister and was meant to negotiate a peace treaty with the French.[29] While in France, Isabella conspired with the exiled Roger Mortimer to have Edward II deposed.[30] To build up diplomatic and military support for the venture, Isabella had her son engaged to the twelve-year-old Philippa of Hainault.[31] An invasion of England was launched and Edward II's forces deserted him completely. Isabella and Mortimer summoned a parliament, and the King was forced to relinquish the throne to his son, who was proclaimed king in London on 25 January 1327. The new king was crowned as Edward III at Westminster Abbey on 1 February at the age of 14.[32][e]
Early reign (1327–1337)[edit]
Mortimer's rule and fall[edit]
One of Edward's first acts — de facto Mortimer's — was to lead another campaign to Scotland in July 1327.[33] It was not long before the new reign also met with other problems caused by the central position of Mortimer at court, who was now the de facto ruler of England. Mortimer used his position to acquire noble estates and titles, and his unpopularity grew with the humiliating defeat by the Scots at the Battle of Stanhope Park in the county of Durham, and the ensuing Treaty of Edinburgh–Northampton, agreed with the Scots in 1328.[34] The young king also came into conflict with his guardian. Mortimer knew his position in relation to the King was precarious and subjected Edward to disrespect. The King married Philippa of Hainault at York Minster on 24 January 1328, and the birth of their first child, Edward of Woodstock, on 15 June 1330 only increased tension with Mortimer.[35] Eventually, the King decided to take direct action against Mortimer.[36] Although up until now Edward had kept a low profile, it is likely that he increasingly suspected that Mortimer's behaviour could endanger Edward's own life, as the former's position became more unpopular. This was exacerbated by his execution of Edward's uncle Edmund, Earl of Kent. Contemporary chroniclers suspected, too, that Mortimer had designs on the throne, and it is likely that it was these rumours that encouraged Edward to act against him and his mother, who supposedly maintained a close relationship with Mortimer.[37]
Aided by his close companion William Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu, and a small number of other trusted men, Edward took Mortimer by surprise and captured him at Nottingham Castle on 19 October 1330. Mortimer was executed and Edward's personal reign began.[36] The historian Mark Ormrod argued that at this point Edward had had "little instruction in the art of kingship",[38] and although he had received several books on the subject on his betrothal to Phillipa, "it is extremely doubtful that he read or comprehended these works".[38] His reign, continues Ormrod, was to be guided by his practical, rather than theoretical, experience.[38]
War in Scotland[edit]
Edward III was not content with the peace agreement made in his name, but the renewal of the war with Scotland originated in private, rather than royal initiative.[39] A group of English magnates known as The Disinherited, who had lost land in Scotland by the peace accord,[40] staged an invasion of Scotland and won a great victory at the Battle of Dupplin Moor in 1332.[39] They attempted to install Edward Balliol as king of Scotland in place of the infant David II, but Balliol was soon expelled and was forced to seek the help of Edward III. The English king responded by laying siege to the important border town of Berwick and defeated a large relieving army at the Battle of Halidon Hill,[41] even while under threat from foreign raids.[42] However, Berwick was taken after the besieged Scots set fire to the town, forcing them to treat;[43] at one point Edward's queen was under siege in Bamburgh Castle, but this was too late to save the Scots' campaign.[44] He reinstated Balliol on the throne and received a substantial amount of land in southern Scotland.[45] These victories proved hard to sustain, as forces loyal to David II gradually regained control of the country.[46] A Scottish uprising in 1344 required the raising of another army and a supporting navy. Edward, having repaired Roxburgh Castle,[47][f] launched a number of ineffective strikes against the Scots.[49] In 1338, Edward agreed a truce with the Scots.[46]
Later reign (1360–1377)[edit]
Further campaigns in France and governance[edit]
While Edward's early reign had been energetic and successful, his later years were marked by inertia, military failure and political strife. The day-to-day affairs of the state had less appeal to Edward than military campaigning, so during the 1360s Edward increasingly relied on the help of his subordinates, in particular William Wykeham[p] A relative upstart, Wykeham was made Keeper of the Privy Seal in 1363 and Chancellor in 1367, though due to political difficulties connected with his inexperience, the Parliament forced him to resign the chancellorship in 1371.[163] Compounding Edward's difficulties were the deaths of his most trusted men, some from the 1361–62 recurrence of the plague. William Montagu, 1st Earl of Salisbury, Edward's companion in the 1330 coup, died as early as 1344. William de Clinton, 1st Earl of Huntingdon, who had also been with Edward at Nottingham, died in 1354. One of the earls created in 1337, William de Bohun, 1st Earl of Northampton, died in 1360, and the next year Henry of Grosmont, Duke of Lancaster, perhaps the greatest of Edward's captains, succumbed to what was probably plague.[164] Their deaths left the majority of the magnates younger and more naturally aligned to the princes than to the King himself.[165]
Personality[edit]
Mark Ormrod has noted that in this period, politics was often dictated by the personality and character of the king. However, it was also understood that not only should a king rule well and wisely, but that he should be seen to do so. Ormrod argues that, while he did not begin his reign with these skills, unlike many of his fellow Plantagenet kings, he acquired them. His collection of chronicles indicates an interest in history, even to the extent that, on occasion, he consulted their authors.[38][s] He may have been particularly keen to emulate Henry II and Edward I, whose own martial prowess and success would have resonated with him.[218] His tastes were conventional, Ormrod says,[38] and J. R. Lander also has argued that this is reflected in his hobbies. Unlike his father's passion for manual work, including carpentry, thatching and rowing, Edward III "shared to the full the conventional tastes and pleasure of the aristocracy",[219] with his principal interest being architecture.[218][t] This conservativism is also reflected in his religious views, which, expressed as they were through the patronage of friaries and visiting of shrines, demonstrate a conventional religion.[218] This is also reflected in his almsgiving. While ancestors such as Henry III had often been haphazard and exuberant in the amounts they gave and when they did so, Edward III maintained a regular 366 meals a week to be provided for the poor with another £25 to be distributed during the four main feasts.[220][u] However, alongside his conventionality ran a populist streak, and Ormrod has described him as a "natural showman", particularly in his alacrity to heal those suffering from scrofula by his royal touch.[218][v] In less than two years, between 1338 and 1340, he touched for scrofula in both England and while campaigning in France;[223] another 355 occurred between November 1340 and the same month the following year.[218] He was generous to the point of extravagance.[224] In an alternative view, Norman Cantor has described Edward as an "avaricious and sadistic thug".[225]
From what is known of Edward's character, he could be impulsive and temperamental, as was seen by his actions against Stratford and the ministers in 1340/41.[226] Other escapades were not just impulsive but dangerous, such as in 1349, when he sailed to Calais with only a small bodyguard.[218] At the same time, he was well known for his clemency; Mortimer's grandson was not only absolved, he came to play an important part in the French wars and was eventually made a Knight of the Garter.[227] His favourite pursuit was the art of war and, in this, he conformed to the medieval notion of good kingship.[228][229] As a warrior he was so successful that one modern military historian has described him as the greatest general in English history.[230] He seems to have been unusually devoted to Queen Philippa. Much has been made of Edward's sexual licentiousness, but there is no evidence of any infidelity on his part before Alice Perrers became his lover, and by that time the Queen was already terminally ill.[231][232] This devotion extended to the rest of the family as well; in contrast to many of his predecessors, Edward never experienced opposition from any of his five adult sons.[233]
Later events[edit]
Edward's grandson, the young Richard II, faced political and economic problems, many resulting from the Black Death, including the Peasants' Revolt that broke out across the south of England in 1381.[245][246] Over the coming decades, Richard and groups of nobles vied for power and control of policy towards France until Henry of Bolingbroke seized the throne with the support of Parliament in 1399.[247][248] Ruling as Henry IV, he exercised power through a royal council and Parliament, while attempting to enforce political and religious conformity.[249][250] His son, Henry V, reinvigorated the war with France and came close to achieving strategic success shortly before his death in 1422.[251][252] Henry VI became king at the age of only nine months and both the English political system and the military situation in France began to unravel.[253][254]
A sequence of bloody civil wars – later termed the Wars of the Roses – erupted in 1455, spurred on by an economic crisis and a widespread perception of poor government.[255] The idea that Edward III was to blame for the later-15th century Wars of the Roses was prevalent as late as the 19th century, but came to be challenged in the 20th.[256][257]