rebel English Earl she plotted her husband's downfall. In 1326 Isabella and Roger led an army from France. The English people welcomed them. p> Hugh Despenser was hung, drawn and quartered and King Edward II was taken prisoner. In January 1327 Edward abdicated in favor of his son. Edward II was murdered in September 1327. br/>
Edward III.
Meanwhile on 1 February 1327 his son Edward III was crowned. p> However he did not rule until 1330 when he staged a coup. In October, with friends, he entered Nottingham Castle through a secret tunnel. He entered his mother's bedroom and arrested her lover Mortimer. p> In 1337 Edward claimed the throne of France. War began in 1338. The French raided Southampton. Then on 24 July 1340 the English annihilated the French fleet off Sluys. English longbow men rained arrows down onto the French sailors. Men with swords, axes and spears fought to hand. p> To finance his wars the king had to raise taxes and to do that he needed parliament's co-operation. As a result parliament became more powerful during his reign. In 1340 the Commons and the Lords began meeting separately. p> Edward continued to have success in war. On 26 August 1346 the French were crushed by English longbow men at Crecy. Then on 17 October 1346 the Scots were severely defeated at Neville's Cross near Durham. The English army was led by William La Zouche, Archbishop of York and David II of Scotland was captured. p> However in 1348-49 disaster struck. The Black Death reached England and it killed about 1/3 of the population. Afterwards there was a severe shortage of labour and as a result wages rose. Men began to move from village to village to get better wages, undermining the institution of serfdom. Parliament tried to peg wages at their 1349 level. The measure did not work and only caused resentment among the peasants.
One of the victims of the plague was the king's daughter, Princess Joan, who died in Bordeaux. The Black Death was no respect of persons. p> Despite his loss King Edward continued to beat the French. On 19 September 1346 the English won another great victory at Poitiers and the French king was captured. In 1360 the French were made to accept a humiliating peace treaty and pay a ransom for their king.
Finally Edward III died in 1377. He was 65. br/>
Richard II.
Richard II was just 10 years old when he was crowned.
In 1381 he was faced with the peasants revolt. It was sparked off by a poll tax. p> On 13 July the rebels marched on London and sympathizers opened the gates to them. The king and his ministers took refuge in the tower of London while the rebels opened the prisons and looted the house of John of Gaunt, an unpopular noble. On 14 July the king met the rebels at Moorfield and made them various promises, none of which he kept.
The next day the king went to mass at Westminster and while he was away the rebels broke into the tower of London and killed the Archbishop of Canterbury and several royal officials who had taken refuge there. They confronted the king on his way back from mass. The mayor of London stabbed the leader of the rebels, fearing he was going to attack the king. Afterwards the king managed to calm the rebels and persuaded to go home by making various promises.
The rebels demanded the end of serfdom. At first the king promised to grant it. However as soon as the rebels dispersed he broke all his promises. About 200 of the ringleaders were hanged.
However serfdom continued to decline of its own accord and by the 15th century it had virtually disappeared.
However the powerful men in England hated Richard's close friends. In 1388 the so-called Merciless Parliament had several of them executed. However in 1397 Richard II got his revenge. He executed two of his enemies. In 1398 he banished Henry Bolingbroke, Earl of Hereford. However in 1398 Richard went to Ireland and while he was away Bolingbroke staged a coup. Richard II was deposed and Bolingbroke then became Henry III. Richard II died in 1400. (He was probably murdered).
England in the 15 th century
Henry III reigned until 1413. It was a troubled reign. Henry III faced a major revolt in Wales at the beginning of the 15 th century, which he eventually crushed.
His son, Henry V, succeeded him. This king claimed the throne of France and in 1415 he went to war. On 25 October 1415 the English longbow men won a great victory over the French at Agincourt. In 1416 the Battle of the Seine gave the English control of the Channel. Henry was a hero to his people. however he was cruel. He used cruelty to try and force the French into submission. In 1418 Henry captured Caen and his men massacred 2,000 civilians. Henry once said "war without fire is like sausage without mustard ".
