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Political History of England: 1066

By the dawn of the 11th century, England was no amateur to being invaded. For centuries Vikings had raided and plundered coastal villages, everywhere sowing seeds of destruction and chaos. Then, Alfred the Great, a Saxon king, made England stable enough to fend off Viking attacks; despite the long boats that came and went, the king’s law ensured stability. However, one Viking invasion succeeded where the others had failed, leaving a Viking, King Canute, on the English thrown. Canute, as has already been discussed in class, ruled a vast empire, which was comprised of England, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. King Canute respected Saxon customs and its nobility in England, and therefore, he changed nothing with regards to English society and culture. Canute chose as his closest advisor the most powerful Saxon noble, Godwin, Earl of Wessex. Godwin’s power and influence became so insurmountable that he became virtual co-ruler with Canute in England. Then, when Canute Died in A.D. 1035, a power struggle ensued amongst the nobility. Treachery, murder, and mutilation ran rampant throughout the divided island. By the end of this bloody contest, Prince Edward was the only survivor that had any claim to the throne as a descendent of the once great Saxon, Alfred the Great.

Edward, known as “The Confessor,” was crowned king on Easter Day A.D. 1043. However, he did not possess absolute power. Godwin still retained a lot of power and he did not want to lose power to the newly crowned king. Edward hated Godwin because Godwin had arranged the death of his older brother during the tumultuous period after Canute’s death. However, despite his position as king, Godwin’s influence was such that there was little Edward could do in order to seek revenge on his rival. Therefore an uneasy peace agreement was reached when Godwin offered his daughter to Edward for marriage, and Edward accepted.

Edward had grown up in Normandy and was not native to England. Edward’s mother was Norman, and he had lived in Normandy for 30 years before being crowned the English king. Edward’s native language was Norman French, and his godfathers were the formidable Dukes of Normandy. The Normans themselves were decedents of Viking raiders that had settled and learned how to ride horses into battle with uncanny skill. Although the Norman Duchy did formal homage to the king of France, they were very independent—they owned fortified castles and were patrons of great churches, which granted them considerable papal support. In time, a gent by the name of William “the Conquer,” whichever title you prefer, was born in A.D. 1027 in Normandy, and was the illegitimate son of Duke Robert of Normandy. William was a child when his dad died on a pilgrimage to the holy land, leaving William only 8 years of age as his heir. It is likely that Edward was a protector of William in his young age. William would not have an easy upbringing due to Norman nobles that had set their eyes on becoming the Duke, which was William’s debatable title. William survived assassination attempts, and saw his Stewart murdered before his eyes at the tender age of 10. Edward must have been astonished at how the boy grew into a formidable man that was able to crush a league of rebellious nobles that tried to rob William of the title of his duchy.

At any rate, back in England, while William was subduing his vassals in Normandy, Edward seized upon an opportunity to rid himself of the Earl of Wessex, the ever present and powerful Godwin. Edward brought over Norman allies and established them in castles and made one Archbishop of Canterbury. Feeling that the time was ripe, he confronted Godwin with the crime of his murdered brother and banished Godwin from the country. However, Edward’s scheming failed miserably, for in exile, Godwin was just as dangerous as he was back in England. He assembled a fleet, sailed back to England, and reduced Edward to being a puppet king, forcing Edward to turn to religion. Through Edward’s new life of prayer and penance, he earned the nick name “the confessor.” Edward’s marriage to Godwin’s daughter was a shame, and he never slept with her, thwarting Godwin’s plan to have his daughter’s son become king. To establish an heir that would not please Godwin, Edward secretly made a pact with the young Duke of Normandy, William, though no one in England was aware of this. Then Godwin in A.D. 1053 suddenly died of a stroke while at dinner with the king. His eldest son, Harold Godwinson, took “the Godfather” position over the Godwin family and possessions and continued the power struggle with the king. Then Harold Godwinson did something strange, and the historical account diverges. The Norman version of event recorded in the Bayeux Tapestry was that Harold sailed to Normandy as a messenger affirming Edward’s choice of an heir, William the Duke of Normandy. The Bayeux Tapestry is a 20 inch by 230 foot long embroidered cloth that artfully chronicles the events surrounding this time period. It was commissioned by William’s half brother a few years after the successful Norman invasion of England, and therefore, is less credible because of its intended use as propaganda. The tapestry states that while sailing, a storm blew Harold and his men ashore Normandy where they were taken prisoner by William. William generously allowed Harold to become part of his military entourage and they went on campaign together. As a result, Harold becomes William’s knight, which was a two way obligation: William was to protect Harold, while Harold was to swear an oath of loyalty to the Duke. Oaths were a religious and sacred act that functioned as glue for binding social, economic, and political contracts. The Normans believed that this meant that Harold was a vassal to William and that William had a legitimate claim to the English thrown when Edward the Confessor died. However, Harold’s version of the story is quite different from the Norman version. Harold’s story is that he sailed to Normandy to rescue his brother from captivity, but then he was made captive by William. Harold did swear allegiance to William, but only in Normandy, not in England, which would have no bearing on the English succession, or invalidate his claim to the English thrown. At any rate, most historians believe that Harold did swear some type of allegiance to William, but went about securing the throne for himself upon his return to England. To better secure the English thrown, Harold turned against one of his brothers, Tostig, the Earl of Northumbria. Tostig had provoked a northern rebellion against him and had created his own army. The local nobles rebelled against him and put in their own man to become earl. Harold was sent by King Edward to sort out the mess and Harold was presented with two options: to support his brother and risk a civil war, or forget blood ties and support the nobles, gaining their support when he made his bid for the thrown. Harold put ambition before brotherly love because he would need the nobles to support him in his bid for the kingship of England. He turned on his foolhardy brother, and as a result, Tostig was banished from England. Tostig becomes a mortal enemy of his older brother, Harold, and his vendetta would cost both brothers their lives in the near future.

During this time of fraternal bickering within the Godwin family, Edward the Confessor was old and dying. Miserably for Harold, King Edward never officially designated him as his heir. However, the king did reach out and touch him on his death bed. Was this a sign of a king’s favor, or was it a divine curse? Then, that very night, a comet streaked across the English sky, and people took it as a sign—not a blessing but an omen, the year was 1066. Harold Godwinson had no hesitation that it was the king’s blessing, which was enough For Harold and for the nobles who supported him to declare Harold King of England. Therefore, on January 6th, 1066, the country saw the funeral of one king in the morning and the coronation of another in the afternoon. The newly crowned King Harold of England knew what kind of reaction this might create in Normandy, but had no prescience of the grim consequences. William, Duke of Normandy, heard of Harold’s coronation while hunting. One of his colleagues wrote: “When the duke heard the news, he came as a man outraged. Often he tied his mantle, and often he untied it again, and spoke to no man. Neither did any man dare speak to him.” For ten years William had confidently let it be known that England would be his when Edward died. He was in a terrible position of looking ridiculous, and therefore, he consulted his nobles in assemblies about the prospect of invading England. However, his vassals believed the risk was too high for the enticement of new lands and wealth, so William looked for ecclesiastical support. William went to the pope for support and received it. William was invested with the papal banner and signet ring. Now, with the support of God’s vicar, his vassal nobles flocked to support their Duke in this ‘holy’ adventure.

William the Conqueror’s invasion of England in 1066 began with building boats from lumber. In honor of their Viking ancestors, the Normans constructed 400 dragon-headed boats. Loaded in the boats were shields, spears, horses, vast casks of wine and ale, as well as bows. Across the English Channel, Harold responded by organizing his military, which was considerable. Harold had a large numbers of axe men that could cut through both horse and man with one blow. However, his men were only obligated to serve the king two months out of the year. With amazing speed, Harold had his army in place along the southern coast of England, daring William to come. About the same time, William had his army in place and was eager to cross the channel. However, William’s forces did not cross—William was waiting for a good south to north wind to carry his ships safely to England, but alas it never came. Harold waited for William, who never came. After waiting for two months, William’s Normans were nowhere to be seen. This was particularly troubling for Harold because his men’s time of service was running out. More troubling was that it was harvest time, so men needed to be on their farms to collect food for the winter. To neglect these duties would certainly spell famine. As a result, Harold was forced to demobilize men and send them home. Only 11 days after doing this, he was in for a nasty surprise. Tostig, Harold’s ‘endeared’ and outcast brother had returned to England. Tostig had been busy while in exile from England: he had allied himself to the Norse King, Harold Hardrada. Hardrada was simply the most feared warrior of the age. Creative cruelty and super human strength were accredited to him, and Hardrada also had a claim to the throne of England. His family lineage went back to King Canute, and therefore, he possessed a viable claim to the throne. Hardrada was not the type of man to cower away from a fight, especially when the prize was a crown. The Norse King and Tostig assembled an army of about 12 thousand men mobilized by 300 ships and had landed in Northumbria, Northern England. Tostig’s Vendetta was at hand and his allied Norse army fought off the northern earls and nobles and he took control of York. However, when Tostig sent his army out of the city to collect hostages at Stamford Bridge, he found his big brother bedecked in armor and ready for a fight. Harold had travelled a hundred and eighty seven miles while assembling his army in four days, travelling about 37-45 miles a day to meet this new Viking threat. At the end of the journey, Harold fought one of the bloodiest battles in English history. Harold’s army broke the Norse line and Hardrada was proven to be mortal when an arrow struck threw his throat killed him instantly. In addition, Tostig was cut down by Harold’s men. In an act of fraternal respect, Harold found his dead brother and buried him at York Minister. The Norse army was utterly defeated: only 24 ships returned to Norway to report on their defeat and the death of their warrior king. However, Harold had no time to exalt or grieve the death of his brother, for news arrived just one day after Harold’s victory that William’s winds had changed, and was sailing to the coast of southern England.

As a result of William’s invasion, Harold had to double back his entire army to the South of England. William was plundering southern territories, burning everything that could not be plundered, driving terror into the locals. In October 1066, the two armies met at Hastings. The battle began with Harold’s success: William’s cavalry on his left flank broke and ran; however, Harold’s men were too inexperienced and broke rank in order to pursue them. William was able to rally his horses by personally taking charge and then his cavalry crashed into the men who were foolish enough to pursue his horses—it was a slaughter. All-in-all, the battle lasted for 6 hours, but William exploited his archers and cavalry and wore Harold’s forces down with interchangeable assaults. It is believed that Harold died by an arrow to the eye and then was disemboweled with a sword. Half the nobility of Saxon England perished at Hastings. After winning the battle, William proceeded from town to town, city to city subjugating them to his rule.

Due to his right of conquest, William was made the King of England and was crowned on Christmas day 1066. His coronation was a violent shamble more than a triumph, for when the people shouted acclimations in honor of their new king, William’s soldiers believed that a riot had started. They responded by burning down every house in sight. Even the abbey in which the ceremony was taking place was half empty due to the smoke. At any rate, William was made king, and his power in England resided on the bases of giving land, Saxon land, to his Norman nobles. He and his Normans did not assimilate into Anglo-Saxon culture as Canute once did. Through campaigns of terror and through the construction of 90 castles throughout England, William was able to control about 2 million Saxons with about 25 thousand Normans. He constructed churches to reinforce his alliance with the papacy and made a survey of property. William gathered very accurate records of every asset in England—especially land and animals, which was useful for collecting taxes. This census and record book became known as the “Doomsday Book” because its decisions were said to be as final as the last judgment. William’s lordship over England was carried out by brutal, ruthless, and successful series of acts of aggression and cruelty. However, William died an old man when he was thrown from his horse. His body was left to desecration and robbery as his heirs competed amongst each other for the English crown.

Henry II and the English Dynasty

After the death of William the Conqueror, civil wars were fought in England for the chief job, the kingship. After this period of instability, Henry II became a strong leader that brought stability to England and started the first Dynasty. Henry the II should be known like figures such as Queen Elizabeth, or King Henry the VIII, Charles V, or Oliver Cromwell; however, no great statue of him, like Richard the Lion heart, remains even though he was the foundation of English history. The dynasty he establishes is called the “Angevin dynasty” because of the French territories of Anjou that he controlled. At the height of Henry’s power he owned vast tracks of land in France, about ½ of France. These territories included Normandy, Brittany, Anjou, and Aquitaine. His mother, the Empress Matilda, was a daughter of Henry I, son of William, making Henry II a great grandson of William the Conqueror and son of the prince of Anjou, Geoffrey V. Matilda was trying to place Henry on the throne of England against a competing cousin. Empress Matilda and Geoffrey V wanted Henry II to become a king Arthur figure in England, which would mean taking the crown, from Stephen, a grandson of William and cousin to Matilda. This became a civil war between Matilda and Stephen with neither gaining a military advantage. So by marrying Geoffrey of Anjou, Matilda’s plan was to breed Stephen out and place her son on the throne. Henry II was an ideal king; he was a hard man, had a temper, possessed a quick intellect capable of political decisions, he was charming, and had lots of energy. Matilda knew that she would have to marry him well. Therefore she arranged for Henry II to marry the Lady of Aquitaine, Eleanor in A.D. 1152. Henry was 19, while Eleanor was 30 years old. She was much more politically experienced then him, and she had already been married to the king of France, Louis VII. Surprisingly, and as unlikely as one might think, Henry II and Eleanor actually fancied each other—a rare union of both political and love interests. By his marriage to her, he gained the land of Aquitaine which was a territory in France of great wealth. In 1153, Henry crossed the English Channel to invade England. Stephen caved in after his nobles and barons abandoned him. They struck a deal: Stephen would be allowed to stay on the throne, but Henry II would be his heir. Henry would not have long to wait, for Stephen died within a year after the bargain.

King Henry II of England and his wife, Eleanor, were crowned as king and queen, and it was a time of prosperity in the middle ages. Monasteries were thriving, as well as learning and education. Henry II’s political success stemmed from the fact that he did not treat his realm like an empire. Each territory was treated in accordance with its customs. In addition, Henry took the following responsibilities seriously: 1. Protect the church, 2. Protect the lands of your ancestors, 3. Do justice, and 4. Suppress evil laws and customs. Before Henry’s rule, a king had to physically preside over the various obligations he had as a ruler. However, by the end of his reign, the king did not have to be present for his justice to be carried out. Henry II had instituted judges, permanent and professional courts, as well as courts that toured the countryside to adjudicate local disputes. Although he was very successful in delegating responsibilities to competent officials, the responsibility of being the protector of the Church would give him the greatest grief. Religious conflict would turn into an open civil war of sorts and would end with blood in the cathedral.

The Church was a huge administrative center that had taught Henry how to govern—it was the institution of the Church that was the bastion of learning at the time. The Archbishopric of Canterbury offered the churches’ top protégée to Henry for election to chancellor, and Henry II accepted the nomination. The new chancellor of England’s name was Thomas Becket. Becket was the first commoner to make a large mark on English history. He was a merchant’s son and became the king’s best friend. Initially, Becket reveled in his new position of wealth and power; he liked to get and spend money, to eat the finest food and drink the finest wines. Becket was tall and self-contained, but he began to treat the king as his equal, which would have catastrophic consequences. When the Bishop of Canterbury died and that position became vacant, Henry believed it prudent to place his friend, Becket, in the position. In Henry II’s mind, Becket’s worldliness and loyalty qualified him for this position because the King needed an ally against intrusions from the Pope. Becket was seen as the perfect candidate to become a bishop that could put the Church in its place beneath the authority of the king. Henry II perceived the authority of his power above the authority of the Popes and believed that he was appointed by God to rule. However, the Popes saw it differently; they believed kings were appointed by Popes, and only Popes were appointed by God. Some of the ecclesiastical difficulties Henry II was facing were: 1. could law breaking clergymen be judged by secular judges, the king? Or was it an ecclesiastical manner, where only the Pope’s decision mattered. 2. Could bishops excommunicate royal officials? 3. Who was responsible for investing bishop’s with their power, kings or popes? This was an issue of lay investiture. By making Becket Archbishop of Canterbury, Henry II would have a powerful ally against the Church in making the Church subordinate to the state, or would he?

St. Thomas Becket was made Archbishop of Canterbury against his will, and initially nothing about his lifestyle had changed. He conducted lavish banquets and seemed to be his usual self. However, the king began to see some changes in Becket’s conduct. Becket had stood up publically, and in a militant tone, opposed a tax Henry was trying to pass on the Church. Henry went ballistic because he believed that his friendship had been betrayed. Then Becket began wearing a hair shirt and underwear made of goat’s hair. These types of garments were known for lice dwelling within them and were very uncomfortable to wear. Hair shirts were designed for monks that sought to mortify the flesh, thereby exalting one’s soul. Then in A.D. 1164, Henry assembled a council of the most important nobles of the realm to solidify his control over the clergy. Becket urged his bishops to oppose this and Becket refused the king’s demands, ordering total resistance from the clergy. Becket was brought to trial, accused of improper use of funds during his term as chancellor. All of those nights drinking, eating, and spending lavishly came back to haunt the now humbled bishop. However, Becket, dignified in his bishop’s robe and with a large silver cross, travelled to his trial. His arch rival, the bishop of London, tried to wrestle the staff away from him, but Becket’s grip was iron tight. The trial ended with Becket storming out, convicted of all charges. He fled on the nearest horse and he sailed to the Flemish coast with die-hard followers. Henry II took actions against the followers of Becket back in England by threatening deportation if they spoke a good word about the bishop. Then after several years of diplomacy in exile, talks were arranged between Becket and Henry. During their reunion, the King and the bishop were reconciled as friends and Becket was restored to his authority and position. In addition to this, it was agreed that all of Becket’s enemies were to become the king’s enemies as well. After Henry II had announced all this publically, he asked Becket to ride with his court for awhile, but Becket declined. Although the king forgave those that took Becket’s side during the controversy, Becket did not forgive the people who stayed loyal to the king. For whatever reason, Becket had problems meeting the king half way and letting bygones be bygones. Therefore, in order to make a long story short, the king and the bishop have another falling out. One last meeting is arranged for the old friends and bitterest of enemies. The two, Henry and Becket, meet by a river and the king claimed that only if Becket would do what he told him to do, he would have entrusted Becket with everything he had. Becket did not respond, and the king sadly dismissed himself and walked away, making a comment about seeing him next time. Becket responded that the next time they would see each other would be in the afterlife. This made the king very angry, and they departed in hostility.

Thomas Becket travelled from this meeting back to Canterbury and he walked to the church barefoot, followed by throngs of the poor and his supporters. Becket excommunicated all those who had remained loyal to the king and fought against him. The excommunicated bishops gathered at the king’s court and filled the king’s ears with reports on Becket’s infidelity. As a result, King Henry II unofficially ordered Becket’s death, accusing Becket as a traitor to the state. In A.D. 1170, December the 29th, 4 knights busted into the church and ordered Becket to go to Westminster to give an account of his conduct, but Becket refused. Becket went into the cathedral, where he received fatal sword wounds to the head. Due to the outrage of the people, Henry II was forced to make a pilgrimage to Becket’s tomb. The king walked the last 50 miles barefoot wearing a hair shirt and was wiped by monks at the tomb. Henry would rule for another 20 years.

In addition to Henry’s tumultuous relationship with ecclesiastical authorities, He had larger troubles with the supreme authority—his wife. King Henry II’s marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine was initially well to do, but through a string of mistresses that Henry flaunted, the embers of love began to smolder out. Eleanor felt betrayed and alienated by her husband’s mistresses, and most significantly, their presence publically embarrassed her. She was a very powerful woman and not one that could be insulted casually. She turned her considerable energy and intellect toward getting revenge against her husband through their children. Eleanor sedulously convinced their sons—Henry, Geoffrey, Richard, and John—that their father was robbing them of the rightful power, dignity, and inheritance. Young Henry was officially next in line for the kingship of England, but had to get pocket money from his father. This apparent dishonor his father had showed him led Henry to rebel against his father. The rebellion would not last long because young Henry died of dysentery. Eleanor must have been very distraught, especially when her next son, Geoffrey, was trampled to death by a horse. Then, due to John’s affiliation with the king, she pinned her hopes on Richard—she was not disappointed. Richard was physically brave and ambitious, whereas John was vindictive, clever, and self serving. Henry II saw John as his legitimate heir, and Eleanor constantly antagonized and baited Richard by that fact. Then, when Richard was prepared to take his father to war, she craftily forged an alliance between Richard and the king of France, Philip II Augustus. In A.D. 1189, Richard declared war against his father in order to rightfully rule England not as the heir to a king, but as a conqueror. The war did not go well for Henry II because some of his Barons defected to Richard’s side, and John, Henry II’s favorite for the crown, had done so too. In the end, Henry made peace with his son, and terms were agreed to that humbled him before his son. Henry II died two days after the peace and Richard become the King of England.

King Richard’s coronation was a huge spectacle. No one mourned his father—they were too busy drinking and feasting for Richard’s coronation. Richard decked himself out in gold, and then, when a group of Jews gave Richard a gift that others interpreted as an omen, the Jews were massacred. Indeed, Richard’s scribes first used the word “holocaust” to describe what had happened to the Jews in England. Richard actually spent less time in England than any other English monarch simply due to the 3rd Crusade. In his absence, his brother John set himself up as a rival with his own court and mercenary army. When Richard was captured in Germany, John declared his brother dead and himself as king of England. Richard would be ransomed from captivity, leaving England bankrupt. However, while fighting in England to take power from John, Richard was killed by an arrow. Hence, John becomes the next king of England, but he was a terrible politician. Through various military and economic blunders, King John finds himself signing Magna Carta, which was a list of abuses the king could not do to the nobility. From that point forward, the law was not defined by a king’s whim, which would have profound consequences for the future of England.

Edward I “the Leopard Prince” and the Wars of the British Isles

Between the years 1250-1300, the nations around Britain would fight against English dominion. Various voices echo of the discontent at the prospect of English dominion. A proclamation drawn up in the Welsh kingdom of Gwynedd stated, “The people…assert that even if their prince should give overlord-ship to the English king, they would refuse to do homage to any foreigner, whose language, customs and laws they were ignorant.” An Irish proclamation: “On account of the endless perfidy of the English, and to recover our native freedom, the Irish are compelled to enter a deadly war.” And Scottish barons: “For as long as but 100 of us remain alive we will yield no least way to English dominion. We fight not for glory, nor riches, nor honor, but for freedom.” The bloody wars of the British nations were not just battles about territories, but of ideas: What does a sovereign nation look like? Is it an extension of the ruler’s will? How much does it involve the people? These wars, fought to suit the aspirations of an English Empire, were fights to the death between princes and of principles.

The story begins with Henry III’s son, the Leopard Prince Edward I, the Caesar of Britain. His enemies compared him to a large cat predator: “Perhaps he will rightly be called a leopard; Leo, brave, proud and fierce, wily, devious, and treacherous.” Edward I’s tomb was opened in 1774 by antiquarians who were curious about his fearsome reputation. On his tomb is written, “HICK EST MALLEUS SCOTTORUM,” which translates to “Here Lies the Hammer of the Scots.” His corps was bedecked in the purple robe used by ancient Roman emperors, and at 6 feet 2 inches, a large height at the time, he well lived up to his appellation: “Long Shanks.” Edward I saw it as England’s imperial mission to bring his rule to the four corners of the British Isles; his endless ambition was responsible for provoking the peoples of Britain into a firm awareness of their nationhood.

Henry III, Edward’s father, named Edward after “the confessor” because Henry had a lot of respect for his memory. Indeed, Henry had built a shrine to the 200 year old dead king, and had built a home for this shrine—Westminster Abbey. Westminster was/is an immense gothic structure and an awe inspiring vision of the English monarchy. In years to come, the abbey would become a place where all English monarchs are crowned and buried. Henry III reigned for 56 years after inheriting his throne from his father, King John—the same John that signed Magna Carta—at the age of 9. Henry III desired to turn the monarchy into England’s dominate power, and desired to restore his territories in France lost by his blundering father. It would be a long and difficult fight that would only serve to limit the power of kings in England. In A.D. 1258 at Oxford, a council became the dominant political body due to its support by the nobility. In particular, Simon De Montfort drastically diminished the Monarchy’s power and was the De Facto leader of the country. Essentially, the council had eliminated the structure of government instituted by William the Conquer—absolute monarchy. For a while, Henry accepted it because he could not do anything about it, and he bided his time. This was wise, for after a period of time, and after controversial issues being raised in the council, the preliminary republic became divided against itself. The council agreed that the king ought to be answerable to the barons, but they disagreed about whether the barons themselves ought to be responsible to their lesser, the people? The nobles thought “No,” while De Montfort thought “Yes.” But how did young, 19 year old Prince Edward think of these events? Edward was amazed by Simon’s powerful personality and he, like his father, was forced to abide Simon’s authority. Simon was indeed a formidable foe, when he went anywhere he had a personal escort of 160 knights—far more than that of the king and his son combined. However, as divisions grew within the nobility, the leopard prince began sharpening his claws. As his father’s heir, the outcome of a war fought between the nobles and the monarchy would directly affect his power when his time came to be king. The dispute as to who would rule England settled on Simon and Edward; neither could prevail without the other’s total defeat. For 5 years Henry and Edward maneuvered against Simon for power, but the issue, in the end, could only be decided through battle. For the first time since the Norman Conquest the political fate of the country was at stake, would England be a republic or a monarchy?

In A.D. 1264, De Montfort won the first round in the conflict at the battle of Lewes in Sussex. Although Anglo-Irish and Scotsmen—even Robert the Bruce himself—fought on the behalf of Henry III and Edward I, the battle was a disaster for the royalist, and Edward was taken prisoner. This event was the closest that England came to being a republic, and it would not come any closer until Oliver Cromwell’s victory over King Charles. However, the knights, barons, and lesser princes had trouble determining the fate of the prince and the king, for what authority could pass judgment over the supreme authority in the land? A governing council was set up, but soon the council began to take on the attributes of a dictatorship under De Montfort. Simon, although a pious and people oriented ruler, was not the messianic reformer the people had hoped for and appeared as a vainglorious replacement for the king. He began to repel more people than he attracted. Meanwhile, Edward outwitted his captors and made a dashing escape on horseback away from the clutches of De Montfort. Edward met with nobles who were royalists and assembled an army and met De Montfort in battle. It was a slaughter. After he was told that his son had been killed, Simon replied, “then, it is time to die!” and he charged into the fray and was cut down in a brutal manner. Edward ignored the rules of war; the wounded were stabbed where they lay, and Simon’s head, hands, feet, and testicles where cut off. After the battle, it took about 2 years for Edward to lay siege to important castles and consolidate power back to the monarchy. His success was solidified due to his policy of making the barons not enemies, but allies with common interests.

In A.D. 1274 Edward I was crowned as king of England in Westminster Abbey. Edward wanted Westminster to be the center of not just England, but the whole of the British Isles. He first turned his attention to Wales. The dominate prince there was Llywelyn Gruffydd (Griffith) and his mountainous kingdom of Gwynedd (Gwenith). Griffith had campaigned successfully during the wars between Simon and Edward in order to gain territory and power for himself in Wales. In addition, he was a supporter of De Montfort and went as far as marrying his daughter to solidify their bond against the monarchy in England. Edward was not likely to forgive, or forget, this offense. Griffith was recognized as the Prince of Wales by Henry III; however, Griffith failed to show up to Edward’s Coronation and ignored five summonses to pay homage to the new king. Edward knew the connection between ceremonies and power and he immediately took Griffith’s actions, or lack thereof, as open rebellion. As a result, in A.D. 1276 Edward I amassed a huge army, the largest seen in England since the Norman Conquest. The geography of Wales is characterized by difficult terrain, but Edward managed to successfully invade Wales and make Griffith pay homage. The war was characterized by the construction of large castles to solidify English power and to deprive the Welsh of any hope of support from the sea. Then in A.D. 1282, a popular rebellion took place and the war was renewed. No quarter was given by either side—it was a very brutal and savage war. The Welsh used guerrilla tactics, but then in a skirmish, Griffith was killed, and the Welsh held out for another 6 months before Wales was completely “pacified.” In 1301, the English prince and heir inherited the title “the Prince of Wales,” making the title English rather than Welsh. The Welsh were now 2nd class citizens in their own country. The war in Wales and the expensive castle building projects landed Edward some money troubles. The war had cost 10 times more than the king’s annual income. At the time, Jews were the major source of money lending. Therefore, Edward I owed the Jews vast amounts of money. He had bleed them dry, borrowing all their money, leaving them nothing left to yield, and therefore, valueless and dispensable. Edward ruthlessly solved his debt problems through Church law. In an act of “piety” he outlawed money lending, putting the Jews out of their money and out of business. He forced them to wear yellow badges of identification and arrested all the heads of Jewish households, 300 Jews were hung in the tower of London. Then He expelled the entire community in 1290. This was so popular an act with the Church that its authorities awarded Edward a large tax grant. The exportation boats were not a pleasant trip for the Jews and could be quite hazardous. For instance, one captain had the Jews on his ship stretch their legs off the ship at a sand bar/island created by the low tide, however, the captain left them there, the tide came in, and they all drowned. During this time of the expulsion of the Jews, Edward’s Queen, Eleanor of Castile, died. This event left Edward, a usually stern and austere man, to be overwhelmed with grief. He built monuments in her honor, which consisted of 12 crosses to mark the way to hear tomb. Despite this, Eleanor’s death solidified Edward’s marriage to his imperial plans for the British Isles.

Edward first became interested in Scotland due to “The Great Cause,” the competition for the crown of Scotland. The relationship between Scotland and England before this time can be characterized as harmonious. In 1278 the King of Scotland, Alexander III, paid homage to Edward, but only for lands that were Edward’s, Scotland was free and sovereign. Even during the royalist war against De Montfort, Scotland had supported Henry III and Edward. However, problems arose in 1290 due to Alexander’s heirs dying off in the 1280s. When in 1286 Alexander died himself, his only heir was a three year old granddaughter, Margaret. A treaty was signed that Margaret would marry Edward’s son, who was 1 year of age, and that Scotland would maintain its sovereignty. However, when Margaret sailed to Scotland from Norway, she fell ill and died, leaving Scotland’s nobles in an atmosphere of competition for the top position. With nobles lining up to contest for the position, there had to be someone that could judge which one was the most fitting, and Edward, all too willingly, took this position as an adjudicator. The two wealthiest noble houses, the Bruces and the Balliols, contested each other’s claims and their bickering threatened Scotland with civil war. Edward came north to adjudicate between the two families and to settle the dispute. Edward made it clear that whoever would be elected king would be under his suzerainty, which was the price for his blessing—the bent knee, the kiss to the ring, the obedient sword. All contenders for the Scottish crown paid homage to Edward, but the other lesser Scottish nobles did not. Then, in the end, John Balliol’s claim to the Scottish crown ruled out, he received the blessing of Edward, and he was made king of the Scots. Although John Balliol acknowledged Edward as a vassal lord, he did not take orders from him. When a French invasion on the English mainland coincided with another Welsh rebellion, Edward decided to exercise his suzerainty over Scotland and he asked Scottish nobles to fight for him. They refused, and then signed a formal treaty and an alliance with the French. To Edward, this was an act worthy of Marcus Junius Brutus or Judas Iscariot—it was a stab in the back, an act of treacherous rebellion, a declaration of war.

In preparation for the invasion of Scotland, Edward assembled an army that dwarfed the one he assembled against the Welsh in 1296. From the onset, this was to be a war of attrition. The Scottish city of Berwick, a large and wealthy port city, would be the first to know Edward’s wrath. The city fell in a matter of hours, but the massacre that followed lasted for days. A Scotsman wrote: “The king of England spared no one. Whatever the age or sex, and for two days streams of blood flowed from the bodies of the slain so that mills could be turned round by its flow.” Then at the battle of Dunbar, the Scot’s army was swept aside by the “Hammer of the Scots.” Balliol’s coat of arms was stripped from him and the Scottish government was taken over by English officials. Just as Welsh independence and it relics were taken to Westminster, so now the Scottish’s “Stone of Scone,” a symbol of the independent Scottish crown on which every Scottish king was crowned, was removed to Westminster. A new English coronation chair was designed to hold it. When Edward was given the broken Scottish royal seal, Edward commented, “A man does good business when he rids himself of a turd.” In the end, all the Scottish nobles gave in and paid homage to Edward, all but the Wallace family.

William Wallace was the son of Malcolm Wallace and their story is an inspiration for any and all freedom fighters. Wallace remained loyal to King John Balliol and never gave homage to Edward. However, William was not the only Scot to take up arms against the English. A man by the name of Andrew Moray led gorilla strikes and liberated northern Scotland from English rule. At the same time, Wallace led his band of men to liberate the south of Scotland. The two men met each other and joined forces at Sterling, a key strategic point that opened, or closed, Scotland for invasion by the English in southern Scotland. The battle between the Scots and the English at Sterling does not at all resemble the battle that takes place in the popular movie Brave-heart—that battle more nearly mirrors a later battle between Edward’s son, Edward II, and Robert the Bruce (the battle of Bannockburn). At Sterling, the Scots gathered at the Sterling Bridge and Wallace broke the conventions of war. He did not allow the entire English army to move across the bridge before he began his assault. Therefore half of the English army was forced to engage the entirety of the Scottish army while the other half struggled to cross the bridge. The Scots used terror tactics in fighting the English, and they skinned a fat English tax collector, and from his flesh made a belt for Wallace’s sword. At any rate, Wallace used this victory as a launching point for an invasion of England itself. It was quite unsuccessful. At the battle of Falkirk, King Edward himself decided to personally take command of the English army. Edward’s superior numbers, knights, and archers won the day for the English. Thousands of Scots died, but Wallace was able to escape capture and would do so for many years until at last he was betrayed, perhaps by the Bruce, and was given over to Edward. Edward gave Wallace a mock trial, and the king’s rage devised one of the most grueling deaths—alive disembowelment. Despite the loss at Falkirk, the Scots continued to fight for Freedom.

For 6 years the Scots fought a hard war with England for independence. The war was characterized by murderous siege warfare; at one castle in South West Scotland, Edward took it and left all the defenders hang from the walls. Edward proceeded to burn the Scottish Westminster to the ground and he took Sterling castle, revenging the loss he faced there at the hands of the deceased Wallace. This was a symbolic victory that took the fight out of the Scots, and in 1304 they surrendered to Edward. However this would prove to be the calm before the storm. The Bruce, “the Lion of Scotland,” had other ideas than submission to England. Robert the Bruce was very much like Edward in many respects. He was ruthless and was not inhibited by the rules of war. He stabbed his main rival, John Comyn, to death in order to gain power in Scotland. The murder was not explained or justified; John was still loyal to Balliol and had to be removed. After 6 days after the murder, he had himself inaugurated as king of Scotland. His coronation did not unify Scotland, but rather, put it on the edge of a civil war. Indeed, the situation escalated and he had to flee Scotland. Legend has it that he stayed in a cave, where he learned patience from a spider. Whatever the case, Robert was transformed from being a noble, to a brutal gorilla captain. 4 months after his exile, Robert returned and began attacking his Scottish and English foes alike. He consolidated power in Scotland and his main victory over Edward was that he simply outlived him. On a campaign against the Bruce, Edward died in 1307. Edward I had always feared for his son, Edward II, to ever have to met Robert in battle; Edward II was a real loser, and Edward I knew it. After Edward I’s death, by 1314 Robert had regained his kingdom, and Edward II finally responded by marching north to meet Robert’s army. At the Battle of Bannockburn 1314, a 2 day affair, Robert the Bruce was caught by an English knight alone and away from his men—Robert cleaved the English knight’s head in two with an axe as the two charged at each other. That encounter reflected the larger battle; Scottish spearmen defeated the English knights and it was the worst English defeat since the battle of Hastings in 1066. Edward II fled the field with 500 knights and his army that he left behind him was routed and cut down. With this victory, the Scots sought international recognition of sovereignty by the Church. With the Declaration of Abroath, Pope John XXII recognized Scottish Independence. Robert the Bruce becomes king of Scotland, not just a warlord, but as a war hero and patron to the people.

Edward II’s rule and life was a great shamble. Not only did he get spanked by the Bruce in Scotland, losing his father’s territories there for good, but his own wife would be his complete undoing. He was married to a French princess because after a war fought between his father and Philip IV of France, the two parties agreed to marry their offspring as a peace treaty–Edward II and Isabella. Isabella was young and extremely attractive, but Edward II had little use for her charms—he was certainly a rampant homosexual. He neglected his wife and the nobles to give gifts upon his “royal favorites.” First of these was Piers Gaveston, who would be executed by the nobles in 1312. Second was Hugh Despenser, who had a firm hold upon the king (interpret that however you like) for many years until Edward lost his crown to his son and wife. When a dispute arose between England and France, Edward sent his wife and son to settle the matter. However, Isabella quickly took up with her lover, Roger Mortimer, and they invaded England together. The English nobles were so disgusted by their king that they abandoned him; as a result, Isabella and Roger won a decisive battle between their forces and Edward’s. They killed Hugh Despenser and forced Edward to abdicate the throne to his son by Isabella—Edward III. It is believed that Edward was killed by his wife—the legend is that he died after having a hot iron shoved threw his rectum. This was a very significant event for English history because it demonstrates that England’s kings could be removed if they failed their obligations, and because the rule of Edward III would set England and France on the path to war for the next 100 years.

The Hundred Years War and the Plague

Edward III’s reign marked the beginning of the 100 Years War. His character was more like Edward I rather than the II and he would rule England for 50 years (1327-1377). Due to his mother’s, Isabella’s, blood, Edward III was the nephew of the King of France. When the King of France, Philip IV, and his three sons died, Edward III possessed a legitimate claim to his uncle’s French throne. However legitimate it was, the French nobility did not recognize the King of England as the King of France. A council of barons declared Salic law—a very old and customary Frankish law—that prohibited succession through women, but only through men. Therefore, Edward’s claim to the French throne through his mother’s blood was declared invalid. The French elected Philip VI, a person of distant lineage to the deceased king, as King of France. However, in 1337, Edward declared himself to be the rightful King of France, and thus began the Hundred Years War (1337-1453). Although the French had superior forces and numbers, the English had a new weapon—the long bow. It would be through the use of the English long bow that England took the upper-hand in the war. With this new weapon, archers could kill knights with ease—the deadly Frankish charge was then obsolete. At the battle of Crecy and at the battle of Poitiers (1356), larger French armies were cut down by the long bow, and the French King, John II (1350-1364) was captured. An attempt to ransom him was made by the French, but they could not raise the money to buy his freedom, he died in captivity. The new king of France, Charles V (1364-1380), began rebuilding French forces and making alliances. Under his reign, the war would go badly now for the English. In addition to the resourcefulness of Charles V of France, England suffered from dynastic problems at this time—there were too many heirs. Edward III was a busy man and had 12 children. To make a long story short, in A.D. 1377 Edward III died, and then after some civil contests for the throne, Richard II was left as Edward III’s heir. Throughout his reign, he faced many tribulations—plague and parliament.

During the Hundred Years War, England faced other troubles at home, king death. In largely crowded cities, like Bristol, London, and York, vermin and flees lived side by side with humans. A flee bite was therefore quite a common annoyance in such cities at this time, and there was no reason to suppose that this was the reason for the plague. With regards to the plague, the greater and larger the city, the greater the shock and effects of the plague. In A.D. 1348, London’s population was about 100,000 and in the first wave of the plague, 300 people died every day. There have been found huge mass burial sites in England, which denotes the shear devastation that this plague caused. With such a large population dying off, England faced serious social and economic changes. One of the effects of the plague was that the people who survived were getting rich. For instance, as tragic as it would be, how much money or land could you stand to inherit if all, or most, of your relatives died right now? Young workers found themselves rich due to the vast inheritances. In addition, there was uncanny social mobility taking place. With fewer workers left alive, the job market became very lucrative because wages went sky high. The annual harvest became twice as expensive to produce and all this money was going to the workers. Due to the great demand for labor and there not being adequate supply, the average layman had more social and economic power because they could simply quit a job if they were not being paid well or if they were treated poorly. The countryside after the Black Death was totally transformed; there were no more serfs. The laborers were no longer tied to the land, and could move from job to job in order to get the best wage. Therefore, it was the law of supply and demand that enabled workers to negotiate terms and change their social and economic situation. Another effect that the plague had was on the Church. The effects of the plague not only eroded away the power of nobles and great land owners, but also of the power of the Church and its ability to provide comfort to people. The Church was powerless to heal and provide help for the afflicted, or even for itself. Due to the sheer number of deaths, laymen were invested with the powers to administer confession—to hear the confession of the dyeing. Priests themselves were not numerically equipped to administer to the needs of the infected, and many, due to the high mortality rate of priests that attended to the sick, abandoned their duties. People began to seek redemption from the scriptures without priests, or without even going to mass. A particular group, the “Lollards,” named in honor of their reputation for mumbling scripture, was such a group. John Wycliffe was the leader and functioned as a translator, reformer, and theologian for the group. Wycliffe translated the Bible into English from the obscurity of Latin, making it more readable to a larger audience. This was a dramatic threat to the authority of the Church because now people might interpret the Scripture differently from Orthodox tradition. The Lollards were supported by the duke of Lancaster, the son of Edward III, John of Gaunt. Although Richard II succeeded his grandfather, Edward III, and had survived the political fallout after his grandfather’s death, he was a boy king that ruled in name only; john of Gaunt was the most powerful man in England. The English government (the nobles) was trying to stabilize the social “crisis,” seeking to usher back in the pre-plague norms; however, too much had changed during the plague years for this reversion to be non-violent. The Peasant’s Revolt was started by village elite’s responding to the oppression of the old nobility. New people were in high positions due to inheritance and were not going to allow the nobility to revert the country back to pre-plague conditions. Without a doubt, it was a class war for the people did not want to see their gains snatched away by the government’s elite. Tax collectors and sheriff’s men were attacked, and some were killed. It was an outright rebellion against the ruling class. In 1381 John Ball became the leader of the Peasant’s Revolt. He was a preaching friar, and a Lollard, who pushed Black Death radicalism to an extreme. He saw it as his duty to bring about God’s social design—to get rid of property owners and bishops. He wanted pure and complete social equality: “Are we not descendant from the same parents, Adam and Eve, and what reason can they give why they should be more masters than ourselves. They are clothed in riches while we are forced to wear poor clothing, they have wines and fine spices and good bread while we have only rye and when we drink it is only water. We are called slaves, and if we do not perform our services we are beaten.” The peasants were not a disorganized rabble; they chose targets such as rich villas and believed themselves to be on the king’s side, even though they had been outlawed. They believed that they were not against the king, but convinced themselves that their mission was to rescue the king and themselves from the rule of Barons. However, when they came across big cities, and took them, discipline broke down. Churches were looted, palaces burnt down, prisoners freed, merchants were beheaded, and the Archbishop of Canterbury was captured and his head was hacked off, and then paraded around the streets. Richard II met the rebels at Smith Field and the Leaders of the Peasant’s Revolt asked the king for a new Magna Carta—that the king abolish serfdom, liquidate the assets of the Church, pardon all outlaws, and that everyman below the level of the king would be equal. Richard cajolingly said “yes,” but then one of his men killed the leader and Richard charged at the peasant rebels and yelled: “You shall have no captain, but me!” This event assuaged the crisis and allowed the king time enough to mobilize armed men. With an army, he was successful in intimidating the leaderless band into submission.

After dealing with the Peasant’s Revolt, Richard II (1377-1399) set about making his office the supreme authority in England. He stressed the divine right of kings to rule; He even went to lengths to portray himself as appointed by the Virgin Mary and Child through art. However, the nobles and barons become disenfranchised and organized what would be called the merciless parliament. This parliament sentenced many of the king’s advisors to death for abusing power over the king in his young age. Richard failed to take action and was swayed into temperance by his wife, staying dormant for 10 years until after his wife died. Richard sentenced to death all the ring leaders of the merciless parliament and he began to like the idea of the nobles fearing him. Therefore, he spontaneously banished nobles in order to intimidate them. One of the nobles he banished and took over his estates without even a trial, which made the other barons and nobles fear for their own lands. They perceived this, not as much as an act of injustice, but as a threat to their power, for who was to say who would be next? Then, when Richard mistakenly took a small army to Ireland with not enough soldiers to Quell the Irish, but enough to leave him venerable at home, the alienated English nobles rose up against Richard. Richard had his crown snatched away and he became a prisoner in the Tower of London. The king was forced to renounce his throne and it is believed that he was starved to death in prison. Quite understandably, the English objective in the Hundred Years War suffered from Richard’s problems at home. King Henry IV was put up as Richard II’s heir, but he did little to further England’s claim to French soil, and was a weak king due to the growing power of parliament.

Henry V (1413-1422) succeeded his father and he took a much more active role in pressing English rights in France. He believed he was appointed by God to be King of France. Therefore, he began a major offensive in France during a time of division because the French king went in and out of sanity. Civil wars broke out in France and Henry seized upon this, making alliances with various factions within France. Henry V became famous for his victory at the battle of Agincourt. As a result, he signed a treaty with Charles VI of France—the Treaty of Troyes (A.D. 1420). Henry V becomes regent for the old French king, and Henry married Charles’ daughter, Catherine. Their Children would rule France and England. They had a son the following year, but he died in A.D. 1422, leaving his new one year old son as the potential king of England and France. The war seemed to be at an end with a favorable outcome for the English; however, the English were not able to take the city of Orleans in A.D. 1429. Joan of Arc, a peasant girl, was able to rally French resistance and was able to convince the dauphin, the title for the Prince of France, to help lift the siege. More and more towns and cities fell to the French as they rallied behind the peasant girl. A few months later, the dauphin was crowned in Rheims as Charles VII. The following year, Joan was captured by Burgundians and she was given over to the English. She was put on trial and burned as a witch in A.D. 1431. Despite her death, the tide had shifted in France; in A.D. 1435, the duke of Burgundy made peace with Charles VII. From there, the French took Normandy and Gascony and a final peace was made in 1453, leaving England Calais.

Henry the VI, the successor of Henry V, had a disorganized and weak rule, which was dominated by the War of the Roses. This was a contest between the families of Lancaster and York, who fought for the crown. The Lancaster’s won out, and founded the Tudor dynasty under King Henry VII of England, the father of King Henry VIII.