42 Edward The Black Prince Facts: Family, Death And Other Details!

Prince Edward, the Black Prince, is remembered for his brave and strong patriotic inclination towards his father's empire.

His bravery in his military career made him mark his emblem in the history of England. At the young age of 16, he defeated the French army and was made Prince of Wales in 1343 when he was just 13 years old.

The Black Prince was born on June 15, 1330, and on his third birthday in 1333, he was made the Earl of Chester. It was also one of the main reasons why he safeguarded Chester from the French.

In 1367, an expedition was led by Prince Edward to rescue Don Pedro, who had been overthrown by Henry of Trastamara with the help of a French army. He also had many French commanders, including Richard II, Charles V, and King John II.

The Black Prince's ruby was given to the prince by Don Pedro in order to protect him from the French alliance. The Black Prince's ruby is still preserved in Britain's Imperial State Crown of the United Kingdom.

Early Army Operations

In early life army operations, the Black Prince, Edward, fought the Battle of Crecy and the Battle of Winchelsea. The Siege of Calais and the Cheshire expedition are also known through the early army operations of King Edward, the Black Prince.

The Battle of Crecy, which was fought on August 26, 1346, led to the victory of the English army. The battle was fought against the French throne.

During the first 10 years of the Hundred Years War, the English king, Edward the Black Prince, won a battle that astounded many European leaders. His victories in battles are his major accomplishments.

The eldest son, King Edward the Black Prince, was known to be one of the best commanders in the Hundred Years' War against the French King, Philip VI. King Edward, the Black Prince, was also known by the name Edward of Woodstock. At the time this battle took place, King Edward, the Black Prince, was Prince of Wales.

The prince received knighthood immediately after he landed at La Hougue from his father, King Edward III. King Edward, the Black Prince, took the charge as commander along with the Earls of Oxford, Sir John Chandos, and Warwick, Sir Geoffroy d'Harcourt. The French king, along with their commanders, sensed the danger.

The French army, trying every possible attempt to use their great riches on land, failed to defeat the English king. Consecutively, the battle led to the Siege of Calais, in which the French great treasure of Calais was won by the English Army.

The military career of the Prince of Wales was really full of victories with the help of his strong father, King Edward III.

The Prince of Wales also rescued his father, King Edward III, during the expedition to Calais. With the help of his eldest son, Edward of Woodstock, and his third younger son, John of Gaunt, again, the victory of the English army was assured and won.

This made the Prince of Wales stronger in the face of the Spanish king commander, Charles de la Cerda, also known as Charles of Spain, during the Battle of Winchelsea. After the battle of Winchelsea, the Prince dealt with small Chester expeditions.

Edward, the Black Prince, marched along with the Earl of Chester to safeguard the judges of Chester. He was also created Earl of Chester on his third birthday by his father King Edward III.

In order to stop the enemies, the men of the earldom promised to pay a huge fine. The justices began a conquest when they believed they had everything figured out.

They took several buildings and a large amount of land and gave them to the prince, their lord. Apart from the above, Prince Edward led the Spanish campaign, the Battle of Poitiers, and the War in Aquitaine.

The War In Aquitaine

Edward the Black Prince, along with 6000 strong free companies, returned to Aquitaine, passing through the kingdom of Aragon.

The Black Prince agreed to pay the money to the king of the French army. The Black Prince, Edward, suffered due to the havoc created by the French army as they took all his nation along with his residence.

The lord of Albret, although he promised to bring a thousand lances, could only provide Prince Edward with 200 lances for the Spanish expedition.

The feud between the lord of Albret, the French great riches land, and Prince Edward was settled with a peace treaty, though they still harbored deep resentment for one another. The lord of Albret also did not pay him the yearly pension.

When he was almost about to marry the sister of the queen of France, the Black Prince annoyed both of them.

Later, the lord of Albret, along with his uncle, the Count of Armagnac, was brought to the French king's side with the help they provided to the lord in the form of pension.

The Spanish expedition caused a lot of economic crisis for the prince, and he decided to return to Bordeaux, where a meeting of the estates of Aquitaine was called at Saint-Emilion so that they could get permission from them.

Again, another meeting was called to allow him a hearth tax of 10 sous for five years, and the tax was published on January 25, 1368. Regarding the same tax, there were many complaints raised by many, and among them was also the lord of Albret.

One of the close friends of Prince Edward the Black Prince was named Chandos, who strongly supported him not to impose the tax and also retired to the Norman estate.

Charles V, from the French side, took the opportunity and asked Prince Edward, the son of King Edward III, to appear in front of him in Paris. For this, Prince Edward retaliated by causing small atrocities around the place. The messenger was imprisoned, many were killed, and along with Prince Edward stood his long-time acquaintance Chandos.

Many were jealous of the powers of Prince Edward, and he had already informed his father about the French king but was ignored by him. The war was declared in April 1369, and King Edward III dispatched many of his earls to show their best strength against their French adversaries.

The Earls of Cambridge and Pembroke were sent, but it did not assure their victory as their long-time hold on the country could not be withheld.

On January 1, 1370, Prince Edward had to witness the death of his close friend, Chandos. Many requests from Gascon lords went in vain and the prince's authoritative powers weakened.

King Edward III's younger son, John of Gaunt, also betrayed his brother. The two armies led by the French king led to the defeat of prince Edward. He was betrayed by many of his close acquaintances.

In retaliation for the treachery, he ensured the English victory in the Siege of Limoges, becoming the victor of his father, King Edward III. It was his sickness that he was not able to fight off well in the war; otherwise, he was so strong physically and mentally that he could lose his enemies.

Prince Edward fought alongside his father, Edward III, Richard II, and many others fought against King John II, Charles V, and others.

Relationships Of Edward The Black Prince

On October 10, 1361, Prince Edward married his own cousin, the Countess of Kent, Joan. Joan was the fair maid and daughter of the Earl of Kent, Edmund, who was the younger son of King Edward I, by Margaret of France, who was his second wife.

Prince Edward married Joan at Windsor Castle. The eldest son of King Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, and his wife had two sons who were born in Aquitaine.

The first son, Edward, who was born on July 27, 1364, in Angouleme, died in January 1371 before his father, Prince Edward, could return to England.

Edward died and was buried in the Austin Friars church in London. The Black Prince's son, Richard, who was second in command to his dead brother, succeeded the English throne as king next to his grandfather Edward III.

When he married his cousin Joan, he also became the stepfather of her small children by Sir Thomas Holland. The second Earl of Kent, Thomas Holland's daughter, Joan Holland, married Edmund of Langley.

The first Duke of Exeter, John Holland, married Elizabeth of Lancaster, who was the daughter of John of Gaunt. The third child was Joan Holland, who was the Duchess of Brittany.

Before Prince Edward's marriage to his cousin Joan, he had many natural sons. With Edith de Willesford, Prince Edward had a son named Sir Roger Clarendon, who was later executed because of his treacherous and conspiracy nature, while another son was Sir John Sounders, whose mother is unknown as per the information from the different resources.

Prince Edward was the first and eldest son of Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault, who was the Queen of England. The Black Prince was so named because the prince's emblem was three white ostrich feathers on a black background.

It was also his black armor, a shield that protected him. After the 16th century, he started to be recognized as a Black Prince.

The Death Of Edward The Black Prince

At the early age of 45 years, the Black Prince Edward, the eldest son of King Edward III, died on June 8, 1376. Edward's tomb is in Canterbury Cathedral along with his black shield, helmet, and gauntlets.

Edward died due to his health problems which he had suffered from a very young age and because of which he lost many wars. From his early days, he had acknowledged prior to his death that he would die very soon.

When dysentery was very reoccurring and he started to feel the weakness, along with getting faint many times, it made his family members believe that he had died.

Prince Edward was a good-hearted prince and left his servants many gifts. He also took the assurance that his son Richard would be protected by his father.

He also asked that all his debts be cleared out. The fear of death created Prince Edward to often attend the Bishop of Bangor, so all his sins are forgiven by God for those he caused harm and injuries.

He even asked many people to pray for him even after his death, to live a peaceful life. On September 29, 1376, he was buried in Canterbury Cathedral. The first few lines of the effigy are: 'Such as thou art, sometimes I was. Such as I am, such shalt thou be.'