A-05.3-EDWARD-II
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Edward-I passed away in 1307 . He was aged 68 then. He had been successful in annexing Wales. and partially successful in subjugating Scotland. When he died, he was in the process of making a final and decisive assault on Robert Bruce of Scotland but he fell ill and died. His death-bed wish was to crush Scottish rebellion and independence movement.
Edward-I had two sons. His first son Alphonso had died already. So, there was no problem for his second son Edward-II in ascending the throne.
Edward- II was a very weak king both in military prowess and normal family values.
During the reign of his father Edward-I, he was fortunate to be betrothed to Isabella, sister of the French King. (
The wedding took place only after the demise of Edward-I. Edward-II after becoming King of England traveled to France and married Isabella. in 1308
Isabella was born in 1295. She was only 13 when she married Edward-II. She was considered to be a very beautiful woman.
and very intelligent , diplomatic and strong-willed
Isabella was a very virtuous woman.and bore four children to Edward-II, a son and a daughter.She was from renowned royal family and had values and conduct befitting her birth.
But her husband Edward-II was unworthy of her love and loyalty. He was a moral-degenerate and had un-natural, un-manly and disgusting physical relationship with one of his boyhood friends by name Piers Gavaston . He was always frolicking with his 'gay' companion and was lost to all sense of shame in his public display of his amorous pastimes and passions
Even while his father Edward-i was alive, this disgusting affair had been noticed by the nobles and by the king himself and so Edward-I banished Gavaston from England.
But as soon as Edward-II ascended the throne, he repealed the royal order of his father and invited Gavoston back to England and his close company.
He openly made it known that he cared more for the company of Gavoston than that of the Queen Isabella. She was shattered by this neglect but put up with it for the sake of dignity.
Edward-II, lavished his attention on his gay' Govoston and went on showering titles, properties and positions to this shameless leach. The Nobles were both disgusted and dismayed by the behaviour of this upstart who dared to insult all of them and even the queeen herself.
They could not tolerate this any more and with all their private soldiers collected, forced the feeble king in parliament to consent to restoration of their prestige, power and properties to themselves and to banish the low-born Gaveston once again from England.
Pope also ordered Edward-II to banish his gay friend.
So, Edward-II sent Gaveston Ireland as his representative.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JPWrTvgVfM
Needless to say, that the Queen Isabella welcomed this action by the nobilty.
Goscony is a province in Western/coastal France just north of Spain , It was the property of Edward-I . However, the French king was entitled to demand homage in person from Edward-II as the land nominally fell in the French territory.
The situation in England was very precarious for Edward-II. All his barons were against him. Robert Bruce of Scotland was growing stronger and stronger with every passing day. Wales was no longer quiet. He could not leave England in such a situation. So, he requested her wife and Queen Isabella to plead with her brother the King of France. to excuse him for personally visiting the French Royal court and paying ovbesience to the French King.
And she went to French court and spoke her brother, the King of France. Some kind of compromise was arrived at. It was agreed
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Isabella proposed that Edward should resign the dominion of Guienne to his son, now thirteen years of age; and that the prince should come to Paris, and do the homage which every vassal owed to his superior lord. This expedient, which seemed so happily to remove all difficulties, was immediately embraced:
Thus, the boy Edward-III was sent to his mother and the plan worked well. giving relief to every one in England.
The boy was too young to have followed all the public disorder and loss of royal authority of his father in England.
The Queen Isabella did not like to go back to England. After the banishment of Gavaston, a new team of advisers had been chosen by Edward-II. They were known as Spencer( senior) and Spencer( junior). Spencer ( junior) became a substitute for Gavaston, to the degenerate King. and the King could not deny any wish from this strange bedfellow. Using this advantage, the Spencers amassed great wealth and power and insulted the queen herself.
Spencers hated the Queen and the Queen hated the Spencers likewise.
In French territoy, the Queen found a number of fugitives from England. They were all from noble families and had been victims of first Gavaston and then of Spencer. They had been robbed of their property, titles and privileges and many who chose not to flee had been cruelly murdered. All of them were waiting for an opportunity to wreck vengence on the Spensers and indirectly on Edward-II.
Among such fugitives was one Mortimer. He had been condemned to the Towers ( prison-house) and barely managed to escape to France. He was a brave and handsome man and was very sympathetic and courteous to the Queen Isabella. After so many years of neglect by her husband, Isabella found Mortimer to be soothing and worthy of her affection. They made no secret of their mutual admiration.
Isabella feared that she would be insulted and even killed by the then all-powerful Spenser, and so she sent reply to Edward-II that she would not return to England unless the King there first dismissed his prime adviser, Spenser. As expected Edward-II refused as he was too 'attached' to Spenser( junior).
Mortimer then organized all the fugitive nobility and planned an invasion of England. Isabella tried to get the support of the French king for this plan but the French King did not approve.
So, Isabella got help from Holland and with a good fleet and armory, landed in England.
All the nobilty, clergy and commoners of England rallied to her support. Isabella just asked that her son Edward-III be coronated instead of the weak and unjust pawn of Spenser that her husband was.
Mortimer's men with the support of the traditional nobles of England had waged war on the Spencers and indirectly on Edward-I himself. The King lost the war. and was brutally murdered.
Now the effective power was in the hands of Queen Isabella and Mortimer her sweetheart.
It took some years for the boy Edward-III be crowned as he was too young a boy. So, the queen was the regent and indirectly throughher Mortimer became all powerful.
The queen and Mortimer amassedc great wealth and the old nobility and commoners bnow found to their dismay that only the exploiters were different and the same old story of tyranny and arbitrary power continued.
When the boy Edward became of age, he was coronated as King Edward-III.
He displayed his regal character to all the nobilty and people. He knew of the real character of Mortimer and had him dismissed and decimated. He avaoided harsh punishment to his mother but she had to leave England and live in obscurity in French soil till her death.
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Edward-II was dethroned by the rebellious lords and the son of Edward-II and his Queen, was crowned the King of England, as Edward-III.
The despicable life of the 'gay' king is a single act play by Christopher Marlowe , a slightly senior writer of the Bard's times.
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EDWARD THE SECOND
http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/20288/pg20288-images.html
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YOU CAN READ THE FULL TEXT OF
HERE
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YOU CAN READ THE FULL TEXT OF
HERE
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