Edward II, also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to the throne following the death of his elder brother Alphonso. He married Isabella, the daughter of the powerful King Philip IV of France, in 1308.
About Edward II of England in brief
Edward II, also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to the throne following the death of his elder brother Alphonso. He married Isabella, the daughter of the powerful King Philip IV of France, in 1308, as part of a long-running effort to resolve tensions between the English and French crowns. Edward’s relationship with Gaveston inspired Christopher Marlowe’s 1592 play Edward II, along with other plays, films, novels and media. He was considered an extremely successful ruler by his contemporaries, largely able to control the powerful earls that formed the senior ranks of the English nobility. Despite Edward I’s successes, when he died in 1307 he left a range of challenges for his son to resolve. One of the most critical was the problem of English rule in Scotland, where Edward’s long but inconclusive military campaign was ultimately unsuccessful. His control of Gascony created tension with the French kings, who insisted that the English kings give homage to them for the honour of their lands. Edward I remained unresolved over the issue, and left his son around £200,000 on his death in his death on his son, Edward III, in 1327, probably murdered on the orders of the new regime. The king was forced to relinquish his crown in January 2013 in favour of his 14-year-old son,Edward III, and died in Berkeley Castle on 21 September, probably killed by his father’s guards.
The historian Michael Prestwich characterises Edward I as an efficient bully, while John Gillingham characterises him as a bully as well as a king. Edward II was born in 1306, and was knighted in a grand ceremony at Westminster Abbey. He had a close and controversial relationship with Piers Gveston, who had joined his household in 1300. The precise nature of their relationship is uncertain; they may have been friends, lovers or sworn brothers. 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. 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. In 1325 Isabella was sent to France to negotiate a peace treaty in 1325, but she turned against Edward and refused to return. 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. He died in September 1327 in his 14th year of life, and his son Edward III was born on his birth in 1309. He is buried in St Paul’s Cathedral, London. The last surviving member of Edward II’s family is the Earl of Lancaster.
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