Plantagenets - King Edward II

House of Plantagenet - King Edward II

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Name: King Edward II
Father: Edward I
Mother: Eleanor of Castile
Born: April 25, 1284 at Caernarvon, Wales
Ascended to the throne: July 8, 1307 aged 23 years
Crowned: February 25, 1308 at Westminster Abbey
Married: Isabella, Daughter of Philip IV of France
Children: Two sons and two daughters
Died: September 21, 1327 at Berkeley Castle (murdered), aged 43 years, 4 months, and 25 days
Buried at: Gloucester

King of England from 1307, son of Edward I. Born at Caernarfon Castle, he was created the first Prince of Wales in 1301. Incompetent and frivolous, and unduly influenced by his favourite, Piers Gaveston, Edward struggled throughout his reign with discontented barons, who attempted to restrict his power through the Ordinances of 1311. His invasion of Scotland in 1314 to suppress revolt resulted in defeat at Bannockburn. When he fell under the influence of a new favourite, Hugh le Despenser, he was deposed in 1327 by his wife Isabella (1292–1358), daughter of Philip IV of France, and her lover Roger de Mortimer, and murdered in Berkeley Castle, Gloucestershire. He was succeeded by his son, Edward III.

Timeline

1307	Edward II accedes to the throne on the death of his father, Edward I.
1308	Edward’s favourite, Piers Gaveston, is exiled for misgovernment.
1309	Gaveston returns from exile in France.
1310	Parliament sets up a committee of Lords Ordainers to control the King and improve administration. The King’s cousin, Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, takes control
1312	Piers Gaveston is kidnapped by the King’s opponents and is put to death.
1314	Edward and the English army are defeated at the Battle of Bannockburn by Robert Bruce. Scottish independence is assured
1320	Welsh border barons, father and son, both named Hugh Despenser, gain the King’s favour,
1320	The Scots assert their independence by signing the Declaration of Arbroath
1322	Barons’ rebellion, led by Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, is crushed at the Battle of Boroughbridge in Yorkshire.
1326	Edward’s wife, Isabella, abandons him and with her lover, Mortimer, seizes power and deposes Edward. The Despensers are both put to death.
1327	Edward is formally deposed by Parliament in favour of Edward III, his son, and is murdered in Berkeley Castle on the orders of his wife, Isabella.

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