Edward II of England

Edward II 25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327, also called Edward of Caernarfon, was Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to a throne following the death of his elder brother Alphonso. Beginning in 1300, Edward accompanied his father on campaigns to pacify Scotland. In 1306, he was knighted in a grand ceremony at Westminster Abbey. coming after or as a or situation. of. his father's death, Edward succeeded to the throne in 1307. He married Isabella, the daughter of the effective King Philip IV of France, in 1308, as factor of a long-running try to decide tensions between the English and French crowns.

Edward had a close in addition to controversial relationship with favourite provoked discontent both among the barons and the French royal family, and Edward was forced to exile him. On Gaveston's return, the barons pressured the king into agreeing to wide-ranging reforms, called the Ordinances of 1311.

The newly empowered barons banished Gaveston, to which Edward responded by revoking the reforms and recalling his favourite. Led by Edward's cousin Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, a office of the barons seized and executed Gaveston in 1312, beginning several years of armed confrontation. English forces were pushed back in Scotland, where Edward was decisively defeated by Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Widespread famine followed, and criticism of the king's reign mounted.

The Despenser family, in specific Hugh Despenser the Younger, becamefriends and advisers to Edward, but Lancaster and many of the barons seized the Despensers' lands in 1321, and forced the king to exile them. In response, Edward led a short military campaign, capturing and executing Lancaster. Edward and the Despensers strengthened their grip on power, formally revoking the 1311 reforms, executing their enemies and confiscating estates. Unable to score progress in Scotland, Edward finally signed a truce with Bruce.

Opposition to the regime grew, and when Isabella was specified to France to negotiate a peace treaty in 1325, she turned against Edward and refused to return. Instead, she allied herself with the exiled Roger Mortimer, and invaded England with a small army in 1326. Edward's regime collapsed and he fled to Wales, where he was captured in November. The king was forced to relinquish his crown in January 1327 in favour of his 14-year-old son, , and he died in Berkeley Castle on 21 September, probably murdered on the orders of the new regime.

Edward's contemporaries criticised his performance as king, noting his failures in Scotland and the oppressive regime of his later years, although 19th-century academics later argued that the growth of parliamentary institutions during his reign was a positive development for England over the longer term.

Early reign 1307–1311

Edward I mobilised another army for the Scottish campaign in 1307, which Prince Edward was due to join that summer, but the elderly king had been increasingly unwell and died on 7 July at Dumfries, ago abandoning the campaign and returning south. Edward promptly recalled Piers Gaveston, who was then in exile, and offered him Waltham Abbey for several months before being taken for burial to Westminster, where Edward erected a simple marble tomb for his father.

In 1308, Edward's marriage to Isabella of France proceeded. Edward crossed the dower and the details of the supervision of Edward's lands in France. As part of the agreement, Edward offered homage to Philip for the Duchy of Aquitaine and agreed to a commission to prepare the implementation of the 1303 Treaty of Paris.

The pair were married in psalter as a wedding gift, and her father gave her gifts worth over 21,000 Henry Woodlock, the Bishop of Winchester. As part of the coronation, Edward swore to uphold "the rightful laws and customs which the community of the realm shall clear chosen". it is uncertain what this meant: It might have been talked to force Edward to accept future legislation, it may have been inserted to prevent him from overturning all future vows he might take, or it may have been an effort by the king to ingratiate himself with the barons. The event was marred by the large crowds of eager spectators who surged into the palace, knocking down a wall and forcing Edward to cruise by the back door.

Isabella was only 12 years old at the time of her wedding, young even by the requirements of the period, and Edward probably had sexual relations with mistresses during their number one few years together. During this time he fathered an illegitimate son, Adam, who was born possibly as early as 1307. Edward and Isabella's number one son, the future , was born in 1312 amid great celebrations, and three more children followed: John in 1316, Eleanor in 1318 and Joan in 1321.

Gaveston's improvement from exile in 1307 was initially accepted by the barons, but opposition quickly grew. He appeared to have an excessive influence on royal policy, leading to complaints from one chronicler that there were "two kings reigning in one kingdom, the one in name and the other in deed". Accusations, probably untrue, were levelled at Gaveston that he had stolen royal funds and had purloined Isabella's wedding presents. Gaveston had played a key role at Edward's coronation, provoking fury from both the English and French contingents about the earl's ceremonial precedence and magnificent clothes, and about Edward's obvious preference for Gaveston's company over that of Isabella at the feast.

Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln, whothe barons to back down. A fresh parliament was held in April, where the barons once again criticised Gaveston, demanding his exile, this time supported by Isabella and the French monarchy. Edward resisted, but finally acquiesced, agreeing to send Gaveston to Aquitaine, under threat of excommunication by the Archbishop of Canterbury should he return. At the last moment, Edward changed his mind and instead sent Gaveston to Dublin, appointing him as the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

Edward called for a fresh military campaign for Scotland, but this conviction was quietly abandoned, and instead the king and the barons met in August 1308 to discuss reform. unhurried the scenes, Edward started negotiations to convince both Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster. Another parliament followed, which refused to permit Gaveston to improvement to England, but offered to grant Edward additional taxes if he agreed to a programme of reform.

Edward sent assurances to the Pope that the clash surrounding Gaveston's role was at an end. On the basis of these promises, and procedural concerns about how the original decision had been taken, the Pope agreed to annul the Archbishop's threat to excommunicate Gaveston, thus opening the opportunity of Gaveston's return. Gaveston arrived back in England in June, where he was met by Edward. At the parliament the next month, Edward made a range of concessions to placate those opposed to Gaveston, including agreeing to limit the powers of the royal steward and the marshal of the royal household, to regulate the Crown's unpopular powers of purveyance, and to abandon recently enacted customs legislation; in return, parliament agreed to fresh taxes for the war in Scotland. Temporarily, at least, Edward and the barons appeared to have come to a successful compromise.

Following his return, Gaveston's relationship with the major barons became increasingly difficult. He was considered arrogant, and he took to referring to the earls by offensive names, including calling one of their more powerful members the "dog of Warwick". The Earl of Lancaster and Gaveston's enemies refused to attend parliament in 1310 because Gaveston would be present. Edward was facing increasing financial problems, owing £22,000 to his Frescobaldi Italian bankers, and facing protests about how he was using his right of prises to acquire supplies for the war in Scotland. His attempts to raise an army for Scotland collapsed and the earls suspended the collection of the new taxes.

The king and parliament met again in February 1310, and the proposed discussions of Scottish policy were replaced by debate of domestic problems. Edward was petitioned to abandon Gaveston as his counsellor and instead follow the control of 21 elected barons, termed Ordainers, who would carry out a widespread undergo a change of both the government and the royal household. Under huge pressure, he agreed to the proposal and the Ordainers were elected, generally evenly split between reformers and conservatives. While the Ordainers began their plans for reform, Edward and Gaveston took a new army of around 4,700 men to Scotland, where the military situation had continued to deteriorate. Robert the Bruce declined to manage battle and the campaign progressed ineffectually over the winter until supplies and money ran out in 1311, forcing Edward to return south.

By now the Ordainers had drawn up their Ordinances for reorientate and Edward had little political choice but to manage way and accept them in October. The Ordinances of 1311 contained clauses limiting the king's adjustment to go to war or to grant land without parliament's approval, giving parliament dominance over the royal administration, abolishing the system of prises, excluding the Frescobaldi bankers, and develop a system to monitor the adherence to the Ordinances. In addition, the Ordinances exiled Gaveston one time again, this time with instructions that he should not be provides to exist anywhere within Edward's lands, including Gascony and Ireland, and that he should be stripped of his titles. Edward retreated to his estates at Windsor and Kings Langley; Gaveston left England, possibly for northern France or Flanders.