Edward the Black Prince
-
While reading Francis Pryor’s book Britain in the Middle Ages: An Archaeological History, I came upon an example of medieval graffiti that is to be found in the Church of St Mary, Ashwell, Herts. Inside the wall of the west tower is a Latin verse which captures the horror, fear and guilt felt by survivors…
-
There are all sorts of stories about why Edward of Woodstock, Prince of Wales, was called the Black Prince, from the colour of his armour to his reputation as a ferocious warrior and the grim expression on his face. I’ve also read that it wasn’t a name given to him until well after his death.…
-
What on earth did the archbishop say to Edward III about Queen Philippa….?
Antwerp, Archbishop of Canterbury, Battle of Sluys, Blanche of the Tower, burghers of Calais, Edmund of Langley, Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, Ghent, House of Lancaster, Ian Mortimer, john de stratford, John of Gaunt, Kathryn Warner, Lionel of Antwerp, Phillippa of Hainault, possible infidelity, siege of Tournoi, Tournai, treaty of esplechin, Westminster AbbeyWe have all probably heard the story of John of Gaunt being an illegitimate commoner because he was swapped at birth for a royal baby girl who died when the queen “overlay” her in bed. Only a boy from the town of Ghent could be found as a replacement. So there was no royal blood…
-
Today, if we were to undertake a leisurely drive from Plymouth to London, showing an important foreign guest the sites along the way, all we’d need would be a decent car that was insured and perhaps a current MOT and full tank of fuel. Oh, and the wherewithal to feed said guest at the best…
-
We all know that Edward III and the Hundred Years War go together, not quite like peaches and cream, but together all the same, and during a truce with France he began to prepare for renewed hostilities when the truce ended. After many long weeks of delay, the date of embarkation for his great army…
-
“Time-honour’d Lancaster” was given to pressing on at the expense of his men….
1475 invasion of France, Anthony Goodman, Anthony Steel, arnold, bayonne, Bordeaux, Calais, Castile, chevauchee, Constanza of Castile, david nicolle, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Castle, Edward the Black Prince, Elizabeth of Lancaster, France, Froissart, Gascony, Helen Carr, Henry IV, Hundred Years War, John of Gaunt, Jonathan Sumption, Navarre, Pedro I, Portugal, Scotland, Sir John Holland, Spain, tournaments, troyes, unofficial executions, usurpation, villalpandoIn late April 1388, John of Gaunt‘s son-in-law Sir John Holand returned to England from the Spanish peninsula, where he had been constable of Gaunt’s army. Gaunt had invaded the peninsula in pursuit of the Crown of Castile, to which he had a claim through his marriage to the Infanta Constanza. I am now going…
-
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…
-
The first problem is to identify the James Audley who became legendary at Poitiers. The problem is, you see, there were (at least) two James Audleys present that day. The first is James Audley, 2nd Lord Audley of Heighley Castle, Staffordshire (1313-1386.) As you might expect, he was the son of the 1st Lord Audley…