Edward III of England

Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377) was one of the most successful English kings of medieval times. His fifty-year reign began when his father Edward II of England was deposed on 25 January 1327, and lasted until 1377. Among his immediate predecessors, only Henry III ruled as long, and it would be over 400 years before another monarch would occupy the throne for that duration. Edward's reign was marked by an expansion of English territory through wars in Scotland and France. Edward's parentage and his prodigious offspring provided the basis for two lengthy and significant events in British and European history, the Hundred Years' War and the Wars of the Roses, respectively.

Domestic events and personal life

While the king and the prince campaigned abroad, the government was left largely in the hands of the prince's younger brother, John of Gaunt. Economic prosperity from the developing wool trade created new wealth in the kingdom, but the ravages of the bubonic plague, or Black Death, had a significant impact on the lives of his subjects. Commercial taxes became a major source of royal revenue, which had previously been largely from taxes on land. Parliament became divided into two houses. During Edward's reign, French was still the language of the English noblesse following the Norman invasion, but this was changed.

Related Topics:
John of Gaunt - Bubonic plague - Black Death - Parliament - French - Norman invasion

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The king also founded an order of knighthood, the Order of the Garter, allegedly as a result of an incident when a lady, with whom he was dancing at a court ball, dropped an item of intimate apparel (possibly a sanitary belt, though sources describe it as being made of velvet). Gallantly picking it up to assuage her embarrassment, Edward tied it around his own leg, and remarked Honi soit qui mal y pense ('Shame on him who thinks evil of it'), which became the motto of the Order of the Garter. The woman in the case is known only as the "Countess of Salisbury". Some say it was Edward's daughter-in-law, Joan of Kent, but a more likely candidate is Joan's mother-in-law from her first marriage.

Related Topics:
Knighthood - Order of the Garter - Velvet - Joan of Kent

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Despite having an unusually happy marriage, and producing thirteen children with Philippa, Edward was a notorious womaniser. After Philippa's death in 1369, Edward's mistress, Alice Perrers, became a byword for corruption.

Related Topics:
1369 - Alice Perrers

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Facing a resurgent French monarchy and losses in France, Edward asked parliament to grant him more funds by taxing the wine and wool trades, but this was badly received in 1374-1375 as a new outbreak of bubonic plague struck. The "Good Parliament" of 1376 criticised Edward's councillors, including Alice Perrers' family, and advised him to limit his ambitions to suit his revenues.

Related Topics:
1374 - 1375 - Bubonic plague - 1376

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Edward died of a stroke in 1377 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. The Prince Edward pre-deceased him in 1376, and Edward III was succeeded by his young grandson, King Richard II of England, son of Edward the Black Prince.

Related Topics:
Stroke - 1377 - Westminster Abbey - 1376 - Richard II of England

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~