Edward III

A 14th-century castle and moat unearthed beneath a French hotel….

Apr 4, 2024

anniversaries, archaeology, battles, buildings, genealogy

breton war of succession, castles, charles de blois, Charles V, Charles VI, chateau de l’hermine, Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, hotel lagorce, Hundred Years War, Joan of Kent, John IV Duke of Brittany, Richard II, siege of Nantes, Thomas Holand, vannes

I have learned from this site (as well as numerous other sites, all you have to do is search “castle remains under vannes hotel”) that the remarkably well preserved remains of a14th-century castle and moat have been discovered only about 10 feet below the foundations of the Hotel Lagorce in Vannes. This lost castle…
Pedro I of Castile – an important ancestor of the House of York.

Mar 23, 2024

anniversaries, battles, genealogy, law, religion

Alphonso XI, anti-Semitism, appearance, Battle of Nejara, Black Prince, Blanche of Bourbon, Constance of Castile, Cortes, Edmund of Langley, Edward III, Edward IV, Eleanor de Guzman, Enrique of Trastamara, executed women, incest, Isabel of Castile, John II, John of Gaunt, Maria de Padilla, Maria of Portugal, Mortimers, Nevilles, Pedro I, secret marriage

King Pedro I of Castile and Leon, known to some as ‘Pedro the Cruel’ and to others as ‘Pedro the Just’ was born in Burgos on 30 August 1334. His parents were Alphonso XI, King of Castile and Leon and Maria of Portugal, Alphonso’s queen and double cousin. Alphonso also had a mistress, Eleanor de…
Guy Ritchie’s inheritance blooper on Netflix….

Mar 7, 2024

buildings, genealogy, law, religion

bigamy, Castile, child mortality, Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, entail male, family trusts, guy ritchie, Henry IV, illegitimate children, Isabel of Castile, John of Gaunt, land, Lionel of Antwerp, Mortimers, Moynihan barony, Netflix, primogeniture, Richard II, Sir Brian Stanley-Wainwright, Stephen Lark, The Gentlemen, titles

There’s a new “blockbuster” coming up on Netflix. It’s called The Gentlemen, and is described as follows: “….Army captain Eddie Horniman is working for the UN abroad when he learns his aristocratic dad has died….everyone expects Eddie’s older brother Freddy to become next Duke of Halstead and inherit the estate…but his father has disinherited Freddy…
A circumstantial but viable clue to the eventual death of Edward II….

Mar 6, 2024

anniversaries, archaeology, battles, buildings, genealogy, law, religion, Science, sources

Abdication, adam murimuth, Auramala Project, Battle of Sluys, Berkeley Castle, berkeley pill, Canada, Corfe Castle, david tandy, Edmund Earl of Kent, Edward II, Edward III, Edward IV, Edward V, elizabeth comyn, escape, evidence, executions, Fieschi Letter, fundy bay, Glenn Moran, Gloucester Cathedral, Gloucestershire, Hugh Despencer the Younger, Ian Mortimer, Isabelle de France, Joan of Kent, John Ashdown-Hill, John of Gaunt, Kathryn Warner, Lady Eleanor Talbot, mtDNA evidence, richard barber, Richard II, Richard of Shrewsbury, Richard Talbot, Roger Mortimer, Salisbury Cathedral, secret marriage, Severn Estuary, Thomas Lord Berkeley

In a way the mystery of Edward II is not unlike that of the Princes in the Tower (see here). In both cases supposed royal murders have turned out to be untrue and the victims have escaped to the Continent. Also in both cases the murder aspect has been unchallenged until relatively recently, with all the old…
The Queen of France’s necromancers….

Mar 2, 2024

archaeology, battles, genealogy, Science

“Tudor” propaganda, “Tudors”, disability, Duchy of Brittany, Edward III, France, Hundred Years War, jean de vignay, joan of penthevriere, joan the lame, John IV Duke of Brittany, Leicester dig, Mark Ormrod, melcombe, necromancy, philip vi, Richard III, Shakespeare, storms, Thomas More, treaty of malestroit

Supporters of Richard III are always incensed that his reputation (courtesy of the Bard, the sainted Sir Thomas More and the House of Tudor) has always been damned because of his scoliosis. Well, the Bard and More embellished a curved back into much, much more. They turned him into a wicked hobgoblin! But in those…
Isabella of France

Feb 25, 2024

anniversaries, battles, Book Reviews, genealogy, law, Science

Capetians, Edward II, Edward III, executions, France, Hugh Despencer, Hugh Despencer the Younger, Hundred Years War, Isabelle de France, IVF, Kathryn Warner, Orwell, Phillip IV, questions of paternity, rebellions, Roger Mortimer, Salic Law, Sir William wallace

This is the second of Kathryn Warner’s books about Edward II, focussing on the life of his wife, who came across from France as the daughter, sister and aunt of the last five Capetian kings at the outset of the Hundred Years’ War, her niece being passed over as a Salic Law led to a…
More about Edward III and Mélusine….

Feb 15, 2024

genealogy, religion

Crusades, Edward III, Elizabeth Wydeville, France, Fulk of Anjou, Geoffrey Plantagenet, Jacquetta of Luxembourg, Lusignan, Melusine, Poitiers, Richard II, Sir Simon Burley, The Black Prince, witchcraft

About seven years ago I wrote a piece for this blog about Edward III’s belief that his line was descended from the fairy, Mélusine. In a nutshell, the story of Mélusine as I knew it then was as follows, and I quote from my Murrey & Blue article: “….Edward III told his friends, the founder…
Uncrowned: Royal heirs who didn’t take the throne

Feb 8, 2024

anniversaries, battles, genealogy

Edward III, Edward of Woodstock, Elizabeth I, Henry I, Hundred Years War, King William II, Mary Stuart, Matilda, Robert of Normandy, The White Ship, William Aetheling

We all know the well-trodden vistas of the kings and queens of England but what about those of the kings and queens we nearly had? In my new book, Uncrowned: Royal Heirs Who Didn’t Take The Throne, I charter the lives of twenty-five heirs apparent and presumptive who nature had destined to one day wear…
The early Hollands – or Holands

Feb 5, 2024

buildings, genealogy

annulment, barons Holland, Borehamwood, Cheshire, Cheshire risings, County of St. Pol, Duchy of Brittany, Edward II, Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, Hale, Henry II, Henry VI, Hollands, House of Lancaster, House of York, Ireland family, Joan of Kent, Lancashire, Lancashire Assizes, Lovells, Matthew Holland, maud de la zouche, Mitford sisters, Mortimers, murder, Parliament, Robert Holand, secret marriage, Sir John Egerton, Thomas Holland, Thomas of Lancaster, Thurstan Holland, Upholland, Wigan

Upholland is a village in Lancashire, about 4 miles from Wigan and these days only just outside Greater Manchester. It was formerly the HQ of the Lancashire gentry family of Holland. (Up until the 15th Century, it was often, if not invariably, spelt ‘Holand’, but I will stick with the modern spelling for consistency.) The…
Hugh Despenser the Younger

Feb 1, 2024

anniversaries, Book Reviews, genealogy, law, religion

Caerphilly Castle, Cardiff Castle, Edward II, Edward III, Eleanor de Clare, executions, extortion, Hereford, Hugh Despencer the Younger, Isabelle de France, joan comyn, Kathryn Warner, neath, revenge, Richard Talbot, secret marriage, Wales

So here we have one of Kathryn Warner‘s earlier books. It describes the life and career of Edward II’s third and final favourite – his marriage to Eleanor de Clare, his lawless activitities but also the degree to which they were exaggerated, leading to his “trial” and execution. We can recommend it highly as part…