Edward, the Black Prince
Edward of Woodstock,
Prince of Wales,
KG (
June 15 1330 –
June 8 1376), popularly known as
the Black Prince, was the eldest son of King
Edward III of England and
Philippa of Hainault, and father to King
Richard II of England. He died one year before his father and so never ruled as king. The throne passed instead to his son Richard, a
minor, upon the death of Edward III.
Birth, early significance and titles
Born at
Woodstock Palace in
Oxfordshire, Edward was created
Earl of Chester in
1333,
Duke of Cornwall in
1337 (the first creation of an English
duke) and finally invested as
Prince of Wales in
1343.
His birth was significant to the royal family in some views, as it is said that it gave Edward III and his associates the confidence that the
Plantagenet dynasty would continue, so that they could go ahead with the overthrow of
Mortimer and
Isabella in 1330 without feeling the dynasty was at risk.
Edward served as a symbolic regent for periods in 1339, 1340, and 1342 while Edward III was on campaign. He was expected to attend all council meetings, and he performed the negotiations with the
papacy about the war in 1337.
His early life saw a rise in fashion sense, with Edward taking a fancy to red and purple velvet cloaks and hats, and an early love for
tournaments at the expense of learning, like his father. He also developed his recklessness with money which, along with his love of
gambling, would eventually cause the end of his career.
Military career
Edward proved to have a prodigious military talent, as shown by his bravery at the
Battle of Crécy when he was only sixteen years old. He followed this up ten years later with another
Hundred Years' War victory at the
Battle of Poitiers which allowed, in the long run, the
Treaty of Bretigny to be signed after severe anarchy in France. He proved himself again in
1367 with the victory at the
Battle of Najera in northern
Castile. Froissart called him 'the greatest soldier of his age'.
He continued the practice of using Welsh and English archers in the English army, and the English owed much of their subsequent military success to the supremacy of the
English longbow over the continental
crossbow. He proved repeatedly that his longbowmen were not only able to fire far faster than crossbowmen, but more accurately at far greater distances. He also successfully used longbows in association with strong infantry holds and men-at-arms after the French cavalry started wearing light but strong
plate armour, proving longbow superiority even against plate armour by knocking down the horses with arrows and the firm infantry holds (ditches, stakes, potholes, hedges, wagons, marshes, mud, rectangular thorny boxes, and hedgehog balls), and using men-at-arms (often mounted) to wipe out severely wounded French. Edward was also one of the first military leaders to introduce a
uniform, clothing his Cheshire and Flintshire troops in green and white cloth.
However, despite his tactical skill, Edward generally avoided conventional battle, preferring to continue the
chevauchee strategy of his father, wreaking havoc on the civilians of France through pillage, looting, slaughter, and rape. The aim behind this was to show the French that their king could not help them, thus successfully provoking the many internal issues of 1356 to 1560;
e.g., the peasant movements, mercenary raids, power struggles, company revolts,
jacquerie rebellions, and so on. It was also a successful form of economic warfare. Edward was generally superior to his fellow commanders at chevauchees, employing a balanced mix of speed and destruction during the attack raids, which generally lasted a couple of months. By contrast, his fellow commanders were often too slow and destructive, or too fast and weak. Edward even used specialised raider units for the job, and he scanned areas far and wide with reconnaissance mercenaries before attacking. However, Edward's weakness, in common with all English commanders of the time, was in the retreat from the area. Resources were inevitably strained, and the raiders were usually slowed down by their refusal to give up any prisoners or spoils of war, and too much trust was put into information from prisoners - who would try to trick the English.
The Black Prince is associated with at least two major allegations of atrocities in war: commanding the slaughter of some 3,000 civilian inhabitants, including women and children, of
Limoges in
1370 after a siege provoked by the bishop of Limoges inviting the French to retake the city; and taking part in the raid of
Caen during the
Normandy Chevauchee of 1346 during which 2,500 civilians were slaughtered. It has to be said that Froissart's devastating account of the prince's cruelty at Limoges is not borne out by any of the French sources, nor are the casualty figures.
Details of his revolutionary tactics and strategy have been provided by historian and actor
Robert Hardy, and military historian David Nicolle.
Final campaign and illness, death and burial
His military campaigning on behalf of Pedro of Castile, known to his enemies as '
Pedro the Cruel', ruined Edward's health as well as his finances, and he was forced to give up the administration of
Aquitaine in 1371 and return to England. While trying to involve himself in the government of England, he soon had to give up any hope of resuming military activity, and he died aged 45. It is not known what lingering illness blighted the last eight years of his life. He died at
Westminster on
Trinity Sunday,
June 8 1376, leaving his young son, Richard II, as heir to the throne. He is buried in
the Corona, Canterbury Cathedral, opposite his cousin
Henry IV of England, where his original
heraldic attributes may be seen. Edward's will had stipulated not only the design for his tomb but had also specified that he should be buried in the Crypt of the cathedral. This request was ignored, however, and the military hero was interred alongside the tomb of St Thomas in the Trinity Chapel. The effigy of the Prince â€" although gold in colour â€" was cast in
latten.
His sickness is considered by some historians as not the only reason for his loss of power in 1371. When the campaign in Spain did not pay off (as Pedro was murdered), England sustained heavy debts because of Edward's actions, the Black Prince's heavy taxes causing only resentment. As a result, Edward III found himself being forced to stick with a commander who was sick, resented, and not careful with money. Some time into his rule, Edward made matters worse when the French called him to Paris to explain himself; his reply was that he would come to Paris with 70,000 men behind him. However, respected biographer Richard Barber has questioned such 'facts', and the primary historian of the time,
Jean Froissart.
See also main article Prince of Wales's feathersThe emblem of the Prince of Wales's feathers and its accompanying motto,
Ich dien (
German: "I serve"), are said to have been inherited by the prince from King
John of Bohemia, against whom he fought in the
Battle of Crécy. According to legend, after the battle, the prince walked over to the King of Bohemia's dead body. The king had ridden into battle despite his
blindness, and Edward admired his bravery. He picked up the king's helmet, lined with
ostrich feathers, and took the king's motto,
Ich dien. This emblem and motto were not exclusively used by the Black Prince, but also by his brothers. This story, however, is only partly true; while it may be true that he adopted the ostrich feathers from the King of Bohemia, the emblem he used was used before him by other English monarchs.
There is a theory that the Black Prince and his brothers inherited the ostrich feather badge from his mother
Philippa of Hainault; she came from the family of the
Counts of Hainault, and they used the ostrich (French
autruche) feather symbol as a
heraldic pun on the name of a place called
Ostrehans which they owned.
There is a theory that "Ich dien" arose as a Germanizing mishearing of
Welsh Uwch dyn = "Your servant".
Edward had been raised with his cousin
Joan, "The Fair Maid of Kent". Edward married Joan in October
1361, prompting some controversy. Both Edward and Joan had the same great-grandfather (
Edward I Longshanks), and it was believed that a warrior such as Edward should have married a foreigner for diplomatic advantages in war. Some believe he was thus exiled to the province of
Aquitaine, where he ruled as prince on behalf of his father. During this period, he fathered two sons: Edward, who died in infancy; and Richard, who would later rule as
Richard II of England. He was given the lordship of
Biscay by
Pedro I of Castile in 1367. It should be noted that some historians are critical of the idea that Edward was exiled in Aquitaine, as it allowed him to take control of nearly sovereign area on his own.
Edward is almost always now called the "
Black Prince", but he was never known as such during his lifetime (instead being known as
Edward of Woodstock after his place of birth). The "Black Prince" title does not appear in writing until at least 200 years after his death. Its origin is uncertain; while some later historians have speculated that he may have worn black armour (possibly presented to him by his father at the battle of Crécy), or a black
surcoat over his armour, it is also likely that the name was first coined by French chroniclers in reference to the ruinous military defeats he had inflicted on France or his cruelty in these. One possibly apocryphal
etymology of the phrase has it deriving from the blackness of his tomb effigy from dirt and/or black polish, when it is in fact shiny metal.
|
Iconic image of the Black Prince |
Edward lived in a century of decline for the knightly ideal of
chivalry. The formation of the
Order of the Garter, an English royal order of which Edward was a founding member, signified a shift towards patriotism and away from the crusader mentality that characterized England in the previous two centuries. Edward's stance in this evolution is seemingly somewhat divided. Edward displayed obedience to typical chivalric obligations through his pious contributions to
Canterbury Cathedral throughout his life.
On one hand, after capturing
John the Good and his youngest son at Poitiers, he treated them with great respect, at one point giving John leave to return home, and he reportedly prayed with John at Canterbury Cathedral. Notably, he also allowed a day for preparations before the Battle of Poitiers so that both sides could discuss the upcoming battle with one another, and so that the Cardinal of
Perigord could plead for peace. Though not agreeing with knightly charges on the battlefield, he also was devoted to tournament jousting.
On the other hand, his chivalric tendencies were overridden by pragmatism on many occasions. The Black Prince's repeated use of the
chevauchee strategy was not in keeping with contemporary notions of chivalry, but it was quite successful in accomplishing the goals of his campaigns and weakening the unity and economy of France. On the battlefield, pragmatism over chivalry is also demonstrated via the massed use of infantry strongholds, longbowmen, and flank attacks (a revolutionary practice in such a chivalric age). Moreover, he was exceptionally harsh toward and contemptuous of lower classes in society, as indicated by the heavy taxes he levied as Prince of Aquitaine and by the massacres he perpetrated at
Limoges and
Caen. Edward's behavior was typical of an increasing number of knights and nobles during the late
Middle Ages who paid less and less attention to the high ideal of chivalry.
Such arguments have been explored in more depth by
Richard Barber.
*The 1345 Flanders Campaign on the Northern Front, which was of little significance and ended after 3 weeks when one of Edward's allies was murdered.
*The
Crecy Campaign on the Northern Front, which crippled the French army for 10 years, allowing the siege of Calais to occur with little conventional resistance before the plague set in. Normandy came virtually under English control, but a decision was made to focus on northern France, leaving Normandy under the control of England's vassal allies instead.
*The
Siege of Calais on the Northern Front, during which, though long, the inhabitants suffered worst and were reduced to eating dogs, rats and babies. The siege gave the English personal and vassal control over northern France before the temporary peace due to
the Black Death.
*The
Calais counter-offensive on the Northern Front, after which Calais remained in English hands.
*
Les Espagnols sur Mer or the Battle of Winchelsea on the English Channel Front, which was a Pyrrhic victory of little significance beyond preventing Spanish raids on Essex.
*The Great Raid of 1355 on the Aquitaine-Languedoc Front, which crippled southern France economically, and provoked resentment of the French throne among French peasantry. The raid also 'cushioned' the area for conquest, opened up alliances with neighbours in Aquitaine of which that with
Charles the Bad of
Navarre is most notable, and caused many regions to move towards autonomy from France, as France was not as united as England.
*The Aquitaine Conquests on the Aquitaine Front, which brought much firmer control in Aquitaine, much land for resources and many people to fight for Edward.
*The
Poitiers Campaign on the Aquitaine-Loire Front, which crippled the French Army for the next 13 years, causing the anarchy and chaos which would inevitably cause the
Treaty of Bretigney to be signed in 1360. Following this campaign, there was no French Army leader, there were challenges towards Charles the Wise, and more aristocrats were killed at Crecy and Poitiers then those lost to the Black Death.
*The
Reims Campaign, following which peace was finally achieved with the Treaty of Bretigny. But, on the same terms, England was left with about a third of France rather than a little under half which they would have received through the Treaty of London. This is due to the failure to take Reims which led to the need for a safe passage out of France. As a result, a lesser treaty was agreed to and Edward III was obliged to drop his claims to the French throne. France was still forced to pay a huge ransom of around 4 times France's gross annual domestic product for John the Good. The ransom paid was, however, a little short of that demanded by the English, and John the Good was not returned to the French. Thus, this campaign yielded mixed results, but was mostly positive for Edward. One must also remember Edward III never actually dropped his claim to the throne.
*The
Najera Campaign on the Castillian Front, during which Pedro the Cruel was temporarily saved from a coup, thus confirming Castillian Spanish dedication to the Prince's cause. Later, however, Pedro was murdered. As a result of Pedro's murder, the money the prince put into the war effort became pointless, and Edward was effectively bankrupt. This forced heavy taxes to be levied in Aquitaine to relieve Castile's financial troubles, leading to a vicious cycle of resentment in Aquitaine and vicious repression of this resentment by Edward. Charles the Wise, king of France, was able to take advantage of the resentment against Edward in Aquitaine. However, the prince temporarily became the Lord of Biscay.
*The Siege of
Limoges on the Aquitaine Front, after which the Black Prince is obliged to leave his post for sickness and financial issues, but also partly because of the cruelty of the siege. Without the Prince, the English war effort against Charles the Wise and
Bertrand Du Guesclin was doomed. The Prince's brother
John of Gaunt was not interested with the war in France, being more interested with the
War of Succession in Spain.
*King Edward III and the prince sail from Sandwich with 400 ships, carrying 4,000 men at arms and 10,000 archers for France, but after six weeks of bad weather and being blown off course they are driven back to England. This is the final campaign of the black prince, and following the failure the prince formally resigns from his position as prince of Aquitaine.
* Richard Barber,
The Life and Campaigns of the Black Prince, ISBN 0851154697
*Tuchman, Barbara,
A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century, Alfred A. Knopf, New York City, 1978.
*
Life of the Black Prince by the Herald of Sir
John Chandos.
*
HMS Black Prince, for
Royal Navy ships named in his honour
*
Black Prince's Ruby which he forced Pedro the Cruel to give to him after the Spanish campaign for his ungratefulness.
