Simon de Montfort

Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, was one of

Henry III’s key servants. He married the king’s

youngest sister, Eleanor, and was appointed

Henry’s deputy in Gascony, where he put down

local rebels. But when he returned to England,

de Montfort became leader of the barons in

their revolt against Henry’s capricious rule. The

rebel leader presided over Parliament in 1265,

showing the way to limitations on royal power

in the future.

The Provisions truly tied Henry’s hands. He could hardly move without baronial

approval. For a couple of years, the barons had him cornered, and he had

to play by the rules. Henry was still king, but a huge chunk of the power was,

if not with the people, at least with the upper classes.

It couldn’t last, though. Henry was too headstrong, and the members of the

Council could not always reach agreement on decisions. Soon England found

itself embroiled in civil war. De Montfort defeated Henry, captured his son,

Prince Edward, and forced the king into another agreement to abide by the

Provisions of Oxford – and to forgive him and the other rebels for their

treacherous behaviour.

This victory made de Montfort into the effective ruler of England, a state

of affairs that lasted for around a year until Edward escaped, attacked de

Montfort, and defeated him at the Battle of Evesham in 1265. It was a total

triumph for Edward, and he sealed his victory by having de Montfort’s body

torn apart and put on show in all its bloody bits. With de Montfort out of the

way, Henry’s rule was secure, and for the last seven years of his reign, his

power went unchallenged.

Henry gained added brownie points by rebuilding Westminster Abbey,

which endeared him to the church. He also claimed to have healing powers,

allegedly being able to cure the disease scrofula (known as ‘the king’s evil’)

by touching sufferers. Churchmen interpreted this supernatural power –

which was also claimed by many later rulers – as God-given, lending Henry

greater credibility with believers. The king went to his grave in 1272, a confident

monarch with a powerful platform, both worldly and religious, on which

his son and heir, Edward, would be able to build.

Chapter 8

More Plantagenets

In This Chapter

_ Fighting the Welsh and the Scots

_ Beginning the Hundred Years War with France

_ Dealing with rebellions

_ Losing the crown to a rival

The Plantagenet dynasty (see Chapter 7) continued with the reign of

Edward I. Edward was a strong, impressive-looking king in the traditional

mould of the medieval warrior-ruler. He believed in going for what he wanted

by conquest and spent one fortune conquering Wales and building some of

the country’s finest castles to defend it, and another fortune on a failed

attempt to take control of Scotland, too. Edward I used to be seen as a great

king, and his legal reforms – introducing local justices of the peace and giving

communities the power to police their local areas – were effective. But his

bully-boy tactics against the Welsh and the Scots made him a villain rather

than a hero for all but die-hard English patriots.

Edward was followed by two more Edwards; his son Edward II and grandson

Edward III. Edward II was a promising king, intelligent and loyal. But his

reliance on a succession of favourites caused mishap and rebellion in his

kingdom, and after a 20-year reign, he was forced off the throne and almost

certainly murdered. His son and successor Edward III was a very different

character. He embraced the traditional virtues of chivalry and founded the

famous Order of the Garter. He also claimed to be rightful ruler of France and

began the Hundred Years War to try to take over the country. The war lasted

long after the end of Edward III’s 50-year reign.

The last Plantagenet king was Edward III’s son Richard II. Like his father,

Richard loved chivalry, and he began his reign by successfully defeating the

popular uprising now known as the Peasants’ Revolt. But in his later years,

saddened by the death of his first queen, Anne, he became both tyrannical

and unpredictable. His fights with his senior barons finally got too much and

Richard was deposed, the first Lancastrian king, Henry IV taking over.

Longshanks: Edward I

The eldest son of Henry III and his queen, Eleanor of Provence, was born in