Love & The Throne #2 - Edward III's Naughty Boys

RICHARD II


The Legacy of Edward III

Edward III appeared to be notoriously loyal to his wife, Philippa of Hainault and only took his mistress, Alice Pierres after Philippa died.

When Edward III died, his grandson, Richard II came to the throne. Richard's father, Edward, the Black Prince, was Edward III's oldest son. Edward's second son was Lionel, his 3rd son was John of Gaunt and his fourth son was Edmund of Langley (these are the boys who survived infancy.) These naughty boys paint the backdrop for England's war to come "The Wars of the Roses."

For simplicity's sake: The Wars of the Roses was a British civil war between 1455-1485 between the houses of Lancaster and York for the throne. Now, getting there wasn't so simple. Let's take a look at Naughty Boy #1 – Richard II.

Richard was ten when he came to the throne. Ten and clueless. His father had been groomed for the throne as was Richard's elder brother. His father and brother died before Edward III did, leaving Richard the heir to the throne upon his grandfather's death. (Edward the Black Prince married his first cousin, Joan, and died of dysentery, from be all the warring he did. Ewww.)

As for Richard, no one groomed him to be king one day. The nobles didn't trust John of Gaunt to be regent so they came up with the idea of councils to assist Richard in ruling. (John of Gaunt, by now, is the eldest of Edward III's children alive.)

The councils did the trick, and Richard assumed full authority when he turned 18. Richard was a good looking guy, tall, over six feet, but described as being effeminate in his features. He married Anne of Bohemia when they were 15 in 1382. Initially, the marriage was unpopular. Anne had no dowry and Richard had to pay HER family to marry her. Anne won over the people and by the time she died, they called her Good Queen Anne. Interestingly, Anne had no children. She died in 1394. In 1396 Richard married Isabella of France. She was only 6! Needless to say they didn't have sex. Toward the end of his Richard turned into a tyrant and was accused of gross mismanagement of the throne. Richard abdicated and died before Isabella reached child bearing age.

So why didn't Richard have kids? The answer is lost to history. Perhaps he was sterile? I'm sure he did his duty by Anne. Perhaps Anne couldn't have them? History does not tell of us any other lovers Richard might have had male or female. When Richard died, Isabella when to France and married Charles, Duke of Orleans. She died in childbirth. Things that make you go um… Needless to say, Richard didn't have any kids.

So who is NEXT in line?

Naughty Boy #2 – Lionel of Antwerp

Lionel was born in Nov 1338 in Antwerp, the 2nd son to survive infancy of Edward III. He married his first wife, Elizabeth in 1352 and they had a daughter, Philippa. Lionel spent a lot of time in Ireland "taming the marshes." Elizabeth died after having Philippa so Lionel set out to find another wife and he did – an Italian, Violette. He went to Italy and married her. Shortly after the marriage he died. It was rumored her dad poisoned Lionel.

Lionel's only heir was Philippa, a GIRL! Heaven forbid. She might have been "of age" when Richard abdicates, but the nobles hardly give her a thought. After all – she's a GIRL. Sadly, they overlook Lionel's heir because of her sex. Those naughty nobles. Philippa goes on to marry Edmund Mortimer and they become known in Ireland.

Naughty Boy #3 – John of Gaunt

Unlike Richard II, John can't keep it in his pants. He was born in Ghent, hence, Gaunt, the English translation. Gaunt was excluded from being Richard's Regent because of his dealings with Alice Pierrers before his father died, but John was always loyal to Richard.

John had sex with one of his mother's ladies-in-waiting and fathered a child by her in 1359. It was a girl who was named Philippa. Then John married his first wife, Blanche. His eldest son was Henry Bolinbroke, his heir. John was named the 1st Duke of Lancaster. When Blanche died, John married a lady named Constance from Castille. He fathered a daughter with Constance, but while married to Constance, John had a passionate affair with a lady named Katherine Sywnford and they had four kids named the Beauforts. After Constance died, John married Katherine, but their kids were born out of wedlock. They were legitimatized after John and Katherine married but excluded from the throne. Keep an eye of the Beauforts – they'll come back to haunt the throne.

Naughty Boy #4 – Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York

Edmund's wife was Isabella of Castille – Constance's sister. Ewwww. He had two boys – Edward and Richard with Isabella. Edward died heroically in the Battle of Agincourt. Richard fathered a couple of children and then died a traitor's death when it was discovered he had plotted to kill Henry V. Anyway it's one of Richard's boys who marries Anne Mortimer, Philippa Moritmer's granddaughter. (Remember Philippa – Lionel's only daughter?) Richard York (Edmund's grandson) and Anne Mortimer have a son named Richard – the 3rd Duke of York.

Edmund dies where he's born, poor thing. He's actually not very naughty, he's just the founder of the house of York, which of course is important when we get to the Wars of the Roses.

The real interesting guy in this whole mess is John of Gaunt because of his healthy libido.

What resonates? Richard II invented the handkerchief.

NEXT: Oh what a tangled web we weave when we USURP the throne – Henry IV.

Love & the Throne #1 - Edward III

George Bernard Shaw, who portrayed Edward III in film.



Welcome to my series, “Love and the Throne,” which takes a look at the back door lives of famous monarchs.

I’ve always been interested in the lives of famous kings and queens. Their decisions have influenced the world. My series goes deeper – who personally influenced them?

The English monarchs were colorful, charismatic leaders and each new king or queen brought something to the throne that still resonates in England today. That’s why I thought I’d tackle Edward III first.

We have a lot of documentation about the type of reign Edward III had, but there’s not much about his “back door” life. I will say this, when people experience a lot of drama early in their life, it’s not something they forget easily. I would say that Edward’s parents and their scandalous behavior influenced him to be the opposite of them. After all, he is the epitome of an English medieval king. Edward II and Isabella would never be described as chivalrous.

Remember the movie, Braveheart? Historically, William Wallace wasn’t the father of Isabella’s baby. Edward III’s parents were Edward II and Isabella. Trust me. Nice movie element, but history backs Edward II as the father of Edward III. Interestingly, Edward II and Isabella had four children.

Edward II was a bi-sexual. He did his duty by his wife, Isabella, getting her pregnant and then went on to indulge in his male lovers – and he just about ruined England. Okay, Edward II didn’t ruin England, but he lost the support of the nobles by playing favorites with his male lovers. He did not make good administrative decisions as king.

Isabella gave birth to Edward II’s first child and son on 13 November 1312. He grew into a tall, handsome boy with a hint of the Plantagenet red in his hair. He was noted to be good natured and kind. He was also said to be ambitious and extravagant, traits, no doubt, he got from his mother. Edward’s childhood was that of a medieval prince. He was groomed to take the throne. Then, when he was 14, he witnessed the destruction of his father’s court.

When Edward was 14, the nobles had had their fill of his father, Edward II. Edward II’s poor decision making coupled with his bi-sexual activities lost him a good deal of allies. Isabella, who had taken a lover, Roger Mortimer, staged a coup. Edward II was forced to abdicate in favor of his son. Since Edward III was only 14, Isabella and Roger were named as Regents for the young king. Shortly after his abdication, Mortimer ordered Edward II’s death.

Isabella felt confident in her ability to control her son, Edward III. His reign is dated as starting in January 1327. One year later, Edward married his first cousin, Philippa of Hainault, on 24 Jan 1328. She was 14.

Edward III had a fruitful marriage to Philippa. Their first son was born on 15 Jun 1330. The boy, Edward, the Black Prince, was the first of 14 children, 9 survived into adulthood. Interestingly, history has not documented any bastard children attributed to Edward III. He appears to be devoted to Philippa.

In the autumn of 1330, Edward, now 17, staged a coup against Mortimer. Mortimer was getting greedy, giving himself estates from the crown property and Edward III, now a man with a family, must have decided it was time for him to assume kingship. Mortimer was disposed and within a month, Edward III had the greedy Mortimer executed for treason. As for his mother, Edward III sent her to a nunnery. It was rumored she was pregnant with Mortimer’s child at the time and miscarried at the nunnery.

Edward III did feel some remorse for his father. He did build a monument to the memory of Edward II shortly after he came to the throne.

Once Edward III had taken the throne for himself, his adventures began. His military accomplishments were legend. Philippa accompanied him on several of his expeditions to Scotland and Flanders. Rumor was his son John of Gaunt could have been a challenging, with the real baby dying in childbirth. The same rumor haunts their daughter, Joan, but there’s just not enough historical facts to back up these rumors one way or another.

Between fathering children with Philippa and warmongering, Edward III lived the life he wanted to live. He took half of France, securing the city of Calais for England. Philippa died in 1369 when Edward was 57. He took a mistress after her death, Alice Perrers. Alice was a gold digger, or so history would like us to believe. Alice used John of Gaunt to exert influence over Parliament, as Edward III declined in health in his later years. When Edward III died from a stroke in 1376, Alice supposedly took the rings off his fingers. In film, Edward III wasn't tackled very much. A movie about his life was made in 1912 and it was a silent film. I couldn't find a picture of the actor who protrayed him at that time. When Edward has been portrayed, it is usually as a old man at the end of his reign. I guess the first half wasn't scandalous enough. hehe

What resonates today? The Canterbury Tales were written during Edward III’s reign. He is also the founder of the “Order of the Garter.”

Edward III’s legacy was having too many sons.

NEXT: Edward’s heir, The Black Prince, his son, Lionel, 1st Duke of Clarence, and his son, John of Gaunt set the table for the Wars of the Roses.