What If ... Richard the Lionheart had been succeeded by his nephew, Arthur of Brittany
Kings of England, Duke of Normandy
1189 to 1199: Richard I "the Lionheart" (House of Plantagenet)
Kings of England, Dukes of Brittany and Normandy
1199-1214: Arthur I (House of Plantagenet) [1]
1214-1280: Philip I “Garçon Roi” (Plantagenet) [2]
1280-1283: Edward I (Plantagenet) [3]
1283-1302: Edward II "Longshanks" (Plantagent) [4]
Kings of England and Scotland, Dukes of Brittany and Normandy
1302-1305: Edward II and I "Longshanks" (Plantagent) [4]
1305-1328: James I (Plantagenet) [5]
1328-1352: Robert I and II “The Scottish” (Plantagenet) [6]
Kings of Great Britain, Dukes of Brittany and Normandy
1352-1369: Robert I “The Scottish” (Plantagenet) [6]
1369-1404: Alexander II "the Warrior" (Plantagenet) [7]
1404-1416: Henry III "The Grave-Dancer" (Plantagenet) [8]
Kings of Great Britain and Ireland
1416-1434: Henry III "The Grave-Dancer" (Plantagenet) [8] - Count of Flanders and Artois in Personal Union from 1417 forward.
1434-1480: William III "the Flemish" (Plantagenet) [9] - Count of Flanders and Artois in Personal Union.
1480-1495: James II "the Writer" (Plantagenet) [10] - Count of Flanders and Artois in Personal Union.
1495-1530: Edward III "The Battler" (Plantagenet) [11] - Count of Flanders and Artois until 1508. Claimed to be Lord of the Netherlands from 1508 onwards.
1530-1538: Succession Crisis [12]
Kings of Great Britain and Ireland and Lord of the Netherlands
1538-1547: Albert I "the Butcher" (Plantagenet) [13]
1547-1551: Charles I "the Cruel" (Plantagenet) [14]
[14] Charles was born in 1494 as the second child but first son of Albert I and his first wife Eleanor Grey. A nine-year-old when his mother died, Charles' personality changed for the worse, going from being a happy little boy to a cold somber man whose relationship with his siblings and father soured the years. So by the time Albert died in 1547, Charles was mentioned in documents from the time as not crying at all.
Charles was rightly paranoid that he would be overthown, as he began to execute any people he thought could threaten his power. This caused his popularity to plummet and when news arrived of Alexander of Benin landing Dover to launch another invasion of Great Britain in 1551 Charles assured himself that this will end the same as the pretender’s previous attempts.
He was wrong.
Alexander became greatly supported by the people for his leadership skills and love for the common man, both things Charles didn’t have. The “True King” as Alexander was known as eventually made it to London where he gave Charles the chance to willingly abdicate. Before Charles could answer he was shot in the back by a skilled archer, and in the resulting chaos ___________ was crowned the new King.
Kings of England, Duke of Normandy
1189 to 1199: Richard I "the Lionheart" (House of Plantagenet)
Kings of England, Dukes of Brittany and Normandy
1199-1214: Arthur I (House of Plantagenet) [1]
1214-1280: Philip I “Garçon Roi” (Plantagenet) [2]
1280-1283: Edward I (Plantagenet) [3]
1283-1302: Edward II "Longshanks" (Plantagent) [4]
Kings of England and Scotland, Dukes of Brittany and Normandy
1302-1305: Edward II and I "Longshanks" (Plantagent) [4]
1305-1328: James I (Plantagenet) [5]
1328-1352: Robert I and II “The Scottish” (Plantagenet) [6]
Kings of Great Britain, Dukes of Brittany and Normandy
1352-1369: Robert I “The Scottish” (Plantagenet) [6]
1369-1404: Alexander II "the Warrior" (Plantagenet) [7]
1404-1416: Henry III "The Grave-Dancer" (Plantagenet) [8]
Kings of Great Britain and Ireland
1416-1434: Henry III "The Grave-Dancer" (Plantagenet) [8] - Count of Flanders and Artois in Personal Union from 1417 forward.
1434-1480: William III "the Flemish" (Plantagenet) [9] - Count of Flanders and Artois in Personal Union.
1480-1495: James II "the Writer" (Plantagenet) [10] - Count of Flanders and Artois in Personal Union.
1495-1530: Edward III "The Battler" (Plantagenet) [11] - Count of Flanders and Artois until 1508. Claimed to be Lord of the Netherlands from 1508 onwards.
1530-1538: Succession Crisis [12]
Kings of Great Britain and Ireland and Lord of the Netherlands
1538-1547: Albert I "the Butcher" (Plantagenet) [13]
1547-1551: Charles I "the Cruel" (Plantagenet) [14]
[1] Born in 1187 to Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany, the fourth son of Henry II, and Constance of Brittany, he was heir to his uncle, Richard the Lionheart. Rumours abound that Richard attempted to name his brother, John Lackland, as his heir on his deathbed, but Arthur was supported by the King of France and was soon crowned. In return for his support, Arthur was married to Beatrice of Blois (the French Kings great niece) in 1208 and they had three children in the remaining six years of his reign.
Arthur was hard working and capable, he recognized the powers and abilities of his elders, avoiding a number of revolts by his ability to simply listen. John Lackland attempted to ferment rebellion in the North in 1213, Arthur had been taxing the populace but without any continental conflict, his coffers had been swelling and without any expenditure on infrastructure outside of London and the South East. This began a period known as the Second Anarchy as North battled South, meaning England was battling along old divides - Northumbria versus Wessex.
As 1214 came to a close, news reached Arthur on his deathbed that his uncle and challenger had died at Bamburgh, leaving John’s wife, Isabella of Angoulême, challenge him for the throne, in the name of their eldest son, 7 year old, Henry of Winchester. A few short days later, surrounded by his wife and young children, Arthur died and his son, Philip, Duke of Cornwall, succeeded him.
[2] Philip was born the eldest of the three children, ten months after his parents wedding, in 1209 and he was named after his great-great grand uncle, Philip II, King of France.
His education was arranged by his mother, Beatrice of Blois, due to his father being busy commanding his generals in defeating the traitorous, John Lackland.
When his father died aged 27, there were rumours of fail play and 5 year old Philip was pronounced King, with his mother as regent, because of the war being commanded Beatrice and Isabella, it became known as the War of Mothers.
Luckily the war didn’t last long, especially when King Philip II of France, sent his cousin, veteran commander, Robert II, Count of Dreux, with a small army to support, Beatrice.
The northern lords, knowing they didn’t stand a chance against the south, supported by the French, arrested Isabella, bringing her down to London, under a white banner.
The Treaty of Westminster would state that:
- Beatrice would be Queen Regent for Philip, the rightful King of England.
- The late, Prince John Lackland, was posthumously declared a traitor to the Crown of England.
- Isabella of Angoulême, was declared a traitor, but rather than executed, she was sent to the court of Philip II of France, where she would become his chamber maid and mistress.
- The children of John and Isabella, Princes Henry and Richard & Princesses Joan and Isabella, being deemed too young to be classed as traitors, would grow up within the royal household.
- The would be a limitations on feudal taxes called on by the Crown, based on the treasury size.
- Better representation of Northern Lord at court.
For the next 11 years, the regency was strong with peace between the two Duchy of Brittany & Normandy and the Kingdom of France, with Philip II of France dealing with kingdoms in Iberia to the South West and German states in the East.
Once the boy King came of age, his mother would stay at court as an advisor. As well as his mother, Philip created new titles for northern lords to stand as advisors.
With these new lords, he promised to give them more power to request infrastructure developments by naming the Archbishop of York, as Lord Chancellor of the North. In England’s French holdings, Philip placed Archbishop of Rouen as Lord Chancellor of Normandy & Brittany, while the Archbishop of Canterbury would just be Lord Chancellor of the South.
With the interior affairs dealt with, 20 year old, Philip looked to find a wife and this came in the form of Elizabeth of Brabant, daughter of Henry, Duke of Brabant and his wife, Princess Marie, herself a daughter of King Philip II of France.
This marriage would be fruitful with five children being born to them both.
While Philip would have many more children with numerous of women around him.
His reign was renowned for being peaceful and prosperous. His 66 year reign came to an end with his death at age 71, during the night, came as a funny antidote, especially as he would continue to introduce himself to new members at court, as the oldest boy king.
[3] Philip's son Geoffrey had hoped to gain glory by conquering Wales. Unfortunately, he died in battle thanks to a stray arrow. (Many suspect it was his cousin Edward Longshanks who shot the arrow deliberately). Thankfully, Geoffrey's wife, Isabelle of Luxemburg was later found to be pregnant. She birthed a son and named him Edward after her husband's dearest friend and cousin (she was one of the few who did not believe in the rumors of Edward's supposed culpability in her husband's death and went out of her way to make to clear despite the same people making insinuations about her own relationship with the man).
Edward grew up rather coddled and sheltered. It certainly didn't help that some people were spreading rumors about his paternity. His grandfather died when he was eleven-years-old. He was meek and clinging to his mother's skirts. Many had low opinions of him, not to mention his mother who acted as his regent, and it was often whispered he should be put aside for his cousin. Things came to a head in 1283 when Edward's supporters stormed the palace, taking the boy king captive and declaring him a bastard and therefore unfit to rule. Edward Longshank should be crowned.
[4] Edward Longshanks was the eldest of the five children of Arthur of Leicester and Isabella of Scotland. At a young age he was betrothed to Elizabeth de Burgh, a wealthy heiress. They would have two daughters, the younger of which, Elizabeth died birthing.
Edward left England after his wife’s death, leaving this daughters in the care of his cousin and close friend Henry, Archbishop of Canterbury. Edward gained significant renown as a military leader fighting in the Crusade of James of Aragon. (1) Significantly taller than the average man, Edward was both skilled in combat and a clever tactician. Edward grew very close to James of Aragon, while on crusade, and returned to England married to James’s youngest daughter Eleanor. Edward and Eleanor had four children who lived to adulthood. One would be named for Edward’s dearest friend Henry, Archbishop of Canterbury.
After his uncle Philip’s death, Edward watched as people grew more and more dissatisfied with Edward I as king. Rumors spread that Edward I was a bastard, and the two greatest adult members of House Plantagent were the rumored fathers: Arthur of Lancaster and Edward Longshanks. For the first year or so of the reign of Edward I, Edward Longshanks tried to deny he was the father of Edward I. But Edward Longshanks soon found the only way to get people to truly believe he wasn’t the king’s father, was to name Arthur of Lancaster as the father of Edward I.
But, once committed to his path, Edward Longshanks was committed. He swiftly switched from denying Edward I was a bastard to naming him as one and Arthur of Lancaster as father. This conveniently made Arthur of Lancaster a traitor and Edward Longshanks the rightful King.
In 1283, war broke out and Edward Longshanks quickly won. He would be crowned by his dearest friend and cousin Henry, Archbishop of Canterbury. The dethroned young Edward, would be given over to Henry’s keeping and while rarely seen again, in his few public appearance he appeared to be in good health and humor. Arthur of Lancaster would be held captive for several years, before dying of dysentery.
Edward would face several challenges to his reign from other claimants: the children of Arthur of Lancaster and the son of Constance of England who wed Philippa of England, but he would win these battles without too great an issue.
In 1302, the Scottish king died without clear heir, and Edward, as grandson of Alexander II, felt he had the obvious claim. Leading the English armies into battle to press in claim, Edward waged war against his distance Scottish cousin and rival claimant for several years before dying in 1305 in battle, leaving his heir, Prince James, to deal with the war in Scotland.
(1) Earlier, shorter and more successful than OTL
[5] The second son of Edward and Eleanor of Aragon, James was born in 1287. Named for his maternal grandfather, he was named Earl of Richmond at birth and groomed to hold the northern border for his older brother, Edward, who was five years his elder.
Edward’s death at thirteen in a riding accident, however, catapulted the eight-year-old James into the position of heir to the throne, and by the time of his father’s death in 1305, James knew he would have to ensure he stepped out from under the older man’s shadow if he was ever to be respected by his courtiers.
To that end, he led a crippling invasion of Scotland and spent three years battling his distant cousin, Robert the Bruce, for power in Scotland, having sworn he would never be crowned in either Scone or Westminster until he had both countries fully under his control.
James eventually won a pyrrhic victory at Stirling in 1308, and was crowned at Scone as James I of Scotland on the strength of it, although he had to promise to take Robert’s younger sister, Matilda, as his Queen to shore up his rule.
The two of them moved south to York, where James was crowned King of England by his younger brother Henry at Easter 1309, the younger Prince having risen to the rank of Bishop the previous year.
James and Matilda liked York so much that they set up their capital there, although they also spent large amounts of time in Nantes and St Malo, the latter port city being a favourite of theirs when they wanted to spend time with their family undisturbed.
And they had a large family. Matilda was almost constantly pregnant between 1310 and 1325, giving James thirteen children, of whom eight survived to adulthood. James used this to his advantage when it came to his continental holdings, matching his children to royals and nobles throughout the continent, particularly those whom he thought would be able to help him hold Brittany against the intrigues of the French King, Phillip IV. Most notable among those matches were that of his second daughter, Eleanor, who married Louis, Count of Flanders, and his fifth, Constance, who married Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
James was so confident in his ability to hold off the French, in fact, that in 1327, he sailed for Bordeaux, determined to use his new continental alliances to win back his ancestors’ glorious Empire, the one that stretched from Scotland to the Pyrenees.
It was while besieging the Gascon capital, Auch, that James was struck in the neck by an arrow, passing away a few hours later from the shock and the blood loss.
The news reached England a week later, and James’s heir, his son, Robert, was proclaimed monarch in his stead.
[6] The second son and eldest surviving son of James I and Matilda, Countess of Ross, Robert was born 1311. Named after his Maternal Uncle, Robert the Bruce, his mother had hoped he would have embrace more of his Scottish roots than his older brother which he would.
Robert‘s older brother James, who was born the year before him, would die of smallpox in 1316 making Robert heir apparent to the throne. Robert would ascend to the throne at the age 17 and his first act as king would be to sign a white peace with France where they would get war reparations from England and not be allowed to declare war on each other for 10 years.
Robert would focus on regional development for most of his reign and also increased control and peace in Scotland by lightning taxes and taking many trips there gaining often wearing a kilt gaining the respect of the Scottish population earning him the nickname: “The Scottish.”
Robert would also appoint many Scottish nobles to his court gaining him distrust from the English nobles. He would also increase relations with the Kingdom of France after the war.
Robert would improve relations further with the Scottish by marrying his Maternal First Cousin, Elizabeth Bruce, Daughter of his Uncle, Robert the Bruce who he was very close with until his death in 1329. Robert and Elizabeth would have 6 children together.
Robert’s reign would be mostly peaceful with a few revolts from angry English nobles who believed he was being too soft with the Scottish. Robert would further show his respect for the Scottish by uniting the two crown in 1352 with the 50th anniversary of the annexation of the Scottish Kingdom into the greater kingdom declaring the United Kingdom of Great Britain strengthening the Kingdom as a whole.
Robert would die a few years later in 1369 at the age of 58 of natural causes. He would be succeeded by his son, Alexander.
{7] Despite being the first Alexander to rule England, the young king choose to go by the Scottish numbering, stating it was far easier to just go by whoever had the large number of kings.
Alexander was twenty-five when his father died and already he had great plans for his kingdom, declaring his objective to rule the four kingdoms of Britain, putting together an empire. As Wales was closer (and already partially taken), Alexander started off conquering the lands of the Welsh. It was there he met Owena of Pembroke, the last living descendant of the great prince Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. It was love at first sight for the couple. Alexander and Owena came up with a grand scheme, she would be declared Princess of Wales and their first born son would gain their title.
Their was only one flaw with the plan. Alexander was already married. To a French princess named Joan. They had three daughters, but no sons. It was an unhappy marriage as Alexander had never been fond of the French and had a wandering eye. He decided to ask for an annulment, claiming he had been forced into the marriage (technically true from a modern standpoint as he had loudly decried being forced to marry a French shrew).
Queen Joan for her part did not like her husband much for obvious reasons, but she refused to be thrown to the side for, in her words, an uncouth wild haired savage. She sent letters to her brother Charles, calling upon him for support. Alexander retaliated by gaining the backing of Peter of Castile who just so happened to be his brother in law.
However, before the fighting would start, Queen Joan died suddenly in November 1373, of a fever. By April 1374, England would crown a new queen, already visibly pregnancy. This did not help the rumors that Joan's death was no mere fever. Despite the black gossip and the frosty reception Queen Owena received, she and Alexander would go on to have nine children.
In the meantime, Alexander continued conquering Wales, finally finishing in 1383. He decided to consolidate his rule before turning his sights on Ireland. He invited many Welsh nobles to court, in hopes of integrating them with the English and Scottish nobles. However, his efforts were cut short when in 1387, France attacked Normandy, decrying Alexander as a murderer and his wife a vile sorceress who had killed Queen Joan either by poison or by the dark arts.
Alexander was forced to put his planned invasion of Ireland on hold as he lead his men to the defense of his French lands. The war would last for ten years, ending with most of the duchy of Normandy to be returned to France. It was a heavy blow, and Alexander returned demoralized, scrapping all plans for his war in Ireland and instead focusing on strengthening his defense and refilling his empty coffers.
In 1405, Alexander and Owena would be traveling from Pembroke to Ludlow when their entourage was ambushed. Owena and a few of her ladies managed to escape and hid, but Alexander died fighting his way out of the ambush. Thankfully, Henry was brought to safety and would crowned once the conspirators behind this deceitful attack were captured and beheaded.
[8] The firstborn of Alexander and Owena, Henry of Westminster was from his young childhood completely dedicated to the martial arts. Brought under the tutelage of the best Welsh, Scottish and English military leaders, robust Harri as he was called by his Welsh Longbowmen, to whom he took a deep liking from a young age, became a enormous, arrogant braggart of a man whom would soon plunge Great Britain into a reign of constant warfare, making various enemies that would never cease haunting him.
With the death of his father, Henry was crowned in Canterbury under the tutelage of his mother, whom remained a deeply influential figure all-throughout his reign. Queen Owena, hiding beneath the Kingly shadow of her son, would soon sic him on her various domestic enemies - from those who had been involved in the conspiracy that killed her husband all the way to those who had simply questioned the legality of her marriage with King Alexander, who had not observed the necessary year of mourning before marrying her after the death of his first wife, Joan of France.
Henry took great joy in this, and he soon grew a reputation as a ruthless ruler, whom was otherwise fair in most other matters. Henry did not take much attention to the matters of statesmanship and diplomacy - those, he left to his mother and her allies at court. Henry himself prefered to start his reign with the highly succesful invasion of Southern Ireland, whose myriad of tribes and Kingdoms he would conquer succesfully, cleaning a land connection from Cork to Dublin, greatly reinforcing the position of his Kingdom in the Emerald Isle. Impressed by the violent attitude of many Irish lords and their retinues, Henry would prove great at currying the respect and loyalty of those he had conquered by integrating them into the highly advanced (for the time) military structure of his Kingdom, which alongside the Kingdom of France below the channel were some of the first to form a proper "Royal, Professional Army".
Speaking of France, one cannot speak of Henry's reign without speaking of the long forming rivalry between the House of Plantagenet and the House of Capet. While the Plantagenets had been busy uniting most of the British Isles, the Capetians had been busy turning France into one of the most reformed, centralized Kingdoms of the age. It was not without cause that the emissaries of the Pope commented to the English ambassador "Nothing happens in the lands of the Franks without the knowledge of it's King. Indeed, following the intrigues of Philip the IV, the heirs of his firstborn Louis X - Jean I, Phillipe V, Charles IV and finally Charles V the once amicable relationship between London and Paris had continuously deteriorated, to the point that diplomatic relations between the two states were almost non-existent. The War over Normandy fought between King Alexander and Charles V had resulted in a overwhelming French victory, whom annexed all of Normandy but the port-city of Rouen and the Contentin peninsula. Henry, wishing to avenge the humiliation his father suffered at the hands of the French King, was decided to change that.
The Angevin War of 1409-1416 was, perhaps, both the greatest example of British military ability but also the greatest British military defeat. Henry directed a massive war effort that saw various points of invasion all throughout France itself - He himself landed in Rouen with a vast army, his bastard cousin William of Warwick lead a great chevauchee from Nantes which saw Anjou and the Loire Valley erupt in flames that could be seen from Paris and Henry's sole brother, the Duke of Lancaster John set himself upon Gascogny, reaving most of the land and organizing the two-year siege of Bordeaux.
Despite various early military victories - Such as the battle of Agincourt, where Henry defeated an army led by the Duke of Orleans, outnumbered almost four to one or the siege of Alençon, the French did not hold back and soon greater French numbers and the introductions of new technologies to the French military saw the French defeat the Gascon army, killing the Duke of Lancaster and eventually push ever-northwards, forcing Henry to retreat back to England. The war was a strong military defeat that would forever more darken Henry's reign, as he would be forced to secede all that remained of the once-great Angevin Empire, with only the small city of Calais being allowed to remain in British hands. However, there would be some positives to the war - the Papacy and the French would recognize Henry's claim to the Kingship of Ireland and Blanche of Flanders, niece to the French King and heiress to the rich counties of Flanders and Artois would be forced to marry Henry.
The marriage with Blanche would mark the new start of Henry's reign. Although he never directly controlled the two Counties, British authorities would rapidly assertain some kind of authority over the two provinces, although Blanche and her extremely rich court would resist integration into Britain, as once had been done to Normandy or Brittany, and Henry would be forced to rule through representatives and in accordance with the wishes of the local elites. Neverminding that, trade would explode with the region, and British influence in the Lower Netherlands would increase enormously, with British goods sailing up the Rhine to reach places such as the Palatinate.
Henry would fight more wars during his reign - finishing the conquest of Ireland by 1425 and attempting to expand into Brabant - when the Duchy found itself with no heir, Henry pressed Blanche's "timid" claim, in direct opposition to the Holy Roman Emperor. The Brabatine war of Succession would be a dire affair, with the Holy Roman Emperor eventually managing to secure his candidate's place in Brabant, although Henry would annex many important border cities and castles to the County of Flanders.
With the massive death-toll these wars provoked, not counting the monetary and economical lapse financing his wars caused, Henry has come to be known as "The King who Danced on top of Graves", although recent historians have shed a new light upon Henry - His no-nonsense attitude to ruling in his later years did much to form an uniform bureaucracy for the whole British isles, and he essentially sanctified the position of the monarchy by adopting "Divine Right" and autocracy in the style of the French. In essense, Henry would leave behind after his death by choking in 1434 a vastly centralized, developed and organized realm for his successor, William.
[9] Born in 1417 as the firstborn son of four children that Henry III and Blanche of Flanders had, William was 17 when he became King of Great Britain and Ireland in 1434. Staying out of doing warfare against his neighbours (knowing how that ended up for his father), William instead focused on internal affairs as he supported infrastructure projects and severed as a patron of the arts.
Not forgetting about his new continental holdings, William made many visits to the County of Flanders and made the city of Bruges his place of residence between the months of April and August. He also taught his five children he had with Margaret of Holland to speak both English and Flemish, helping to make them more popular with the people living in Flanders.
William died in 1480 at the age of 63, being mourned by both his British and Flemish subjects. He was succeeded by his son, James.
[10] James was a quiet and nervous boy in childhood, preferring to read and learn. He received the nickname the bookish prince. Unlike most fathers of this time, King William encouraged his son's nature, hoping to make a great author or playwright out of him. He even funded the creation of a royal printing press for his son's personal use. As he grew older, James became less of an introvert, but never lost his love for books. Although, he did write a few plays, his masterpiece was a chronology of his family's history (which included his own dry commentary).
Although many preferred his boisterous and charming brother, most came to appreciate the Crown Prince's calm demeanor and quick wit. In his personal life, he was married to Eileen O'Neil in hopes of keeping the peace between the Irish and the English. Despite their marriage being happy, the couple would only have two surviving children.
When King William died, James was already a man in his late thirties. He continued his father's projects, and also began looking for new ventures to persue. To make money for his ventures, he expanded the English trading routes and even made betrothal agreement with Portugal to gain access to theirs.
When a man named Christopher Columbus came seeking a sponsor after being rejected by King Alfonso of Castile, James jumped to the opportunity, eager to start the age of discovery. Sadly, he would not live long to see the fruits of Columbus finding the new world, dying in 1495 of a heart attack, having spent most of his life enjoying fine food with no exercise.
[11] Born to King James and Queen Eileen, Edward of Ghent was from his birth heir to the thrones of Great Britain and Ireland. A talented but quiet boy, Edward was raised primarily during the primacy of Matthew o'Reilly, Duke of Breffny and Earl of Cavan, Lord High Treasurer during the later parts of the reign of his grandfather and during first part of his father's reign. Matthew took great care in directing the education of the then Duke of Inverness, and it was the Irish aristocrat whose became the major influence in the life and personality of young Edward - From Matthew, Edward would absorb a certain sence of rowdyness and stubborn ruthlessness, but also a great degree of political skill and patience. But from Lord Breffny Edward would follow in the dream of once more making Britain a power comparable enough to the French Capets and the Luxembourgian Holy Roman Emperors in Prague, or as respected as the Corvinus Kings of Hungary or the Spanish Habsburgs, (relatives of the Archduke of Austria, often rivals to the Luxembourgians of Bohemia and Hungary whom had recently inherited the combined thrones of Aragon and Castille), or as rich as the Portuguese House of Burgundy and the Sicilian Angevins or the Milanese Visconti's.
When his father, King James died, Edward was Prince of Wales alongside his wife Beatrice of Portugal, the great muse of his life with whom he shared four children by the time of his reign. Beatrice brought with her a large dowry owing due to Portugal's vast holdings in Morocco, West Africa and India (and in the future, Brazil) but mostly brought to England a lot of the sea-faring technologies of the meditteranean, something which would greatly aid in the starting of the Age of Discovery.
Edward would use his holdings in Flanders to start a campaign of great expansion into the Netherlands, something which would last his whole reign. The death of his relatives in Holland left the succession to the counties of Holland, Zeeland and Hainaut in limbo - many claimants appeared but Edward used his grandmother as a base for his claim, and soon became the perhaps-not-very legitimate but certainly the most powerful claimant to the counties, and British soldiers soon occupied castles in all three lands. Edward avoided a major war with France, whom also claimed the County of Hainault should be part of it's Kingdom, by coming to an agreement with King Francis of France on the sale of the southern half of Hainaut to the French crowned for 250000 ducats, a large sum at the time. The French surely accepted, and soon Northern Hainaut, Zeeland and Holland joined with Flanders and Artois as Plantagenet holdings. This was the unofficial start of the "Angevin/Plantagenet Netherlands" as Edward's growing rivalry with Holy Roman Emperor Charles, whom was also Duke of Luxembourg, led him to adopt the title, even if unrecognized, of Lord of the Netherlands.
The House of Brabant had gone into bankruptcy, and rather than face British invasion the Duke sold his titles to the English King in exchange for some 150000 ducats and a noble title and vast estates in England and Ireland. The integration of the very rich and powerful Brabant and most importantly, the port-city of Antwerp allowed for Edward to solidify the revenues of this very rich region into his pockets, making Edward's court one of the most prosperous and illuminated of the age, and soon Edward atracted men such as Michelangelo, da Vinci and Bramante Lazzari to his court in Ghent, whom due to the necessity of his Dutch policy was for the longest his city of residence, although Edward's patronage over many High Renaissance artists left a mark in various of the cities of Britain proper too, such as London, York, Dublin and Edinburgh.
Edward further attempts at expanding his control of the Netherlands went awry as Charles of Luxembourg finally had enough and when Edward attempted to install a Scottish clergyman as Prince-Bishop of Utretcht Charles invaded Brabant with a force of 12000 professional mercenaries which proved a great shock to Edward, as Britain's professional army had degraded since Henry Grave-Dancer and could not fight off these soldiers without levying many Flemish and Dutch militias to amass before more Imperial reinforcements arrived. Despite Edward's best attempts, the war elongated for a period of five years, from 1518 to 1523, as King Edward and Emperor Charles duked it out in places as far as East Frisia. In the end, Edward's money guaranteed him victory as he became able to buy those same mercenaries which dominated Charles' army. The County of Namur and the Duchy of Veluwe and the County of Zutphen were all recognized as holdings of Edward, and the Prince-Bisphops of Utretch as his vassals, but Emperor Charles gained from the pope the lands of the Prince-Bishops of Liege and Guelders, and with a base in Aachen and Cleves in the Northern Rhinelands proved ever a thorn for Edward's rapidly-built rule.
Edward would be blocked at every other turn at expanding his holdings in the Netherlands - His campaigns in Friesland were a humanitarian disaster, his attempt to wrestle Liege from the Emperor went awry as the short-lived Liege War resulted in the death of his Plantagenet cousin and closest friend and councillor, John the Duke of Albany, after which Edward finally ceased his attempts at expansion in the Netherlands. Focusing his last years on cementing the growing colonial reality of the new-world, the Royal Navy would fight a low-intensity conflict with the Spanish navy over control of the Island of Cuba. British settlements in the Bermuda and the Eastern Coast of North America, the place easiest to access and with the less competition, started, especially on the mouth of many important rivers such as the Hudson and Savannah rivers, but the first "colonies proper" were between the Delaware and Potomac rivers.
The death of his wife, Beatrice in 1526 left behind a heavily depressed Edward, leaving him broken and unable to rule for at least his year of mourning, but however in 1527 British Captains brought to London various African figures, especially from areas of British interest such as the coast of the Benin Empire and such. The most important of Edward's acquaintances of this voyage was a Igbo noblewoman whom English priests had given the name of Mary, and her beauty, quick mastery of English and Latin alongside her humour and wit soon brought the interest of the English King upon her, and she became his lover and remained with him and took care of him in his old age. Mary of Benin, as she was called eventually would give Edward two bastard children and would become one of the most controversial women of the age, with her reputation tilting from "the foreign witch who bewitched good King Edward" to "the African angel whom provoked comfort to the Good King in his final days". Her relationship with Edward's heirs, however, proved sour, as they felt that she was attempting to move into the place of Beatrice of Portugal, non withstanding her controversial conversion to Christianity and her race.
Edward would finally die in 1530, leaving behind a court in turmoil and many enemies.
[12] After the death of King Edward it became unclear who would take his place as King of Britain and Ireland having all but one legitimate child, named James, surviving to adulthood however he would sadly die in a riding accident predeceasing his father. The late King Edward III was an only child and his father, King James II, was the only surviving child amongst his siblings so the next most senior member of the family was the descendant of King Henry III’s second son Charles who was Albert, Duke of Cornwall.
Things would get complicated however after the lover of the late King Edward III, Mary of Benin, would come forth claiming that she and Edward had in fact married in secret before the birth of their second child, Alexander, which, if true, would legitimize him and put him in the line of succession ahead of Albert. This would lead to a succession crisis that the Kingdom had never seen before with many sides coming in and staking their claims.
One major claimant was Robert, 7th Lord of Liddesdale, a descendant of King Robert I‘s second son evidently also named Robert who was given the title after the death of his Uncle also named Robert who was the 1st Lord of Liddesdale and died in battle with no issue so Robert I decided to give the title to his second son who became the 2nd Lord of Liddesdale and the title was passed down through the generations after him. Robert, 7th Lord of Liddesdale’s claim is based on the belief that Alexander II killed his first wife, Joan, in order to marry his second wife, Owena, thus committing treason excluding him and his descendants from the line of succession making him the most senior member of the family if that were the case.
Now with three major claimants to the throne with many supporting their claims the Kingdom would fall into a three way civil war between the claimants not to mention the Kingdom of France intervening to try and place a loyal King on the throne. Eventually one would ascend to the throne that one being Albert, Duke of Cornwall.
[13] Albert, Duke of Cornwall's father had married the Irish heiress Margaret Butler, and he in turn had married Eleanor Grey with whom he had five children) before her death in 1503. He married secondly Catherine Gordon (three children). He was known to have a terrible temper and was quite violent towards those who angered him. Despite having few friends, he was respected for being a skilled military leader. As he had been named heir by his cousin's will and was enraged when Mary of Benin tried to declare her toddler son as the true king. He derisively called Alexander the Negro Bastard, vowing to put his savage mother in her place. Whatever plans he had for the pair, he was distracted by the rise of the Lord of Liddesdale. By the time he had crushed Liddesadale's armies. He then executed the captive Robert himself, using his bloody coat as his banner.
Upon hearing of his brutally, and sensing where the wind was blowing, Mary of Benin fled England with her son, receiving refuge in the King of France's court. The boy Alexander would for years to come insist that he was the true king of England, and make many attempts to gain the crown he believed was rightfully his.
In 1538, Albert was crowned king, but he had no wife by his side as Catherine Gorden died a year earlier. Albert was convinced to marry Anne of Liddesdale, the daughter of his late foe. The marriage was unhappy with countless rumors of Albert forcing himself on her and beating her when she angered him. He was known to be a tempermental ruler, who snuffed out his rivals and those who support the growing Lutheran movement with fire and sword.
In 1546, Anne was discovered having an affair was one of her husband's grooms, Sir Henry Norris, and it was long suspected that the two children she had with Albert were in fact her lover's children. Both she and Sir Norris were beheaded.
Albert decided to look for a fourth wife. However, before he could, he was found dead in his chambers, having been strangled. No one mourned him least of all his son Charles.
Arthur was hard working and capable, he recognized the powers and abilities of his elders, avoiding a number of revolts by his ability to simply listen. John Lackland attempted to ferment rebellion in the North in 1213, Arthur had been taxing the populace but without any continental conflict, his coffers had been swelling and without any expenditure on infrastructure outside of London and the South East. This began a period known as the Second Anarchy as North battled South, meaning England was battling along old divides - Northumbria versus Wessex.
As 1214 came to a close, news reached Arthur on his deathbed that his uncle and challenger had died at Bamburgh, leaving John’s wife, Isabella of Angoulême, challenge him for the throne, in the name of their eldest son, 7 year old, Henry of Winchester. A few short days later, surrounded by his wife and young children, Arthur died and his son, Philip, Duke of Cornwall, succeeded him.
[2] Philip was born the eldest of the three children, ten months after his parents wedding, in 1209 and he was named after his great-great grand uncle, Philip II, King of France.
His education was arranged by his mother, Beatrice of Blois, due to his father being busy commanding his generals in defeating the traitorous, John Lackland.
When his father died aged 27, there were rumours of fail play and 5 year old Philip was pronounced King, with his mother as regent, because of the war being commanded Beatrice and Isabella, it became known as the War of Mothers.
Luckily the war didn’t last long, especially when King Philip II of France, sent his cousin, veteran commander, Robert II, Count of Dreux, with a small army to support, Beatrice.
The northern lords, knowing they didn’t stand a chance against the south, supported by the French, arrested Isabella, bringing her down to London, under a white banner.
The Treaty of Westminster would state that:
- Beatrice would be Queen Regent for Philip, the rightful King of England.
- The late, Prince John Lackland, was posthumously declared a traitor to the Crown of England.
- Isabella of Angoulême, was declared a traitor, but rather than executed, she was sent to the court of Philip II of France, where she would become his chamber maid and mistress.
- The children of John and Isabella, Princes Henry and Richard & Princesses Joan and Isabella, being deemed too young to be classed as traitors, would grow up within the royal household.
- The would be a limitations on feudal taxes called on by the Crown, based on the treasury size.
- Better representation of Northern Lord at court.
For the next 11 years, the regency was strong with peace between the two Duchy of Brittany & Normandy and the Kingdom of France, with Philip II of France dealing with kingdoms in Iberia to the South West and German states in the East.
Once the boy King came of age, his mother would stay at court as an advisor. As well as his mother, Philip created new titles for northern lords to stand as advisors.
With these new lords, he promised to give them more power to request infrastructure developments by naming the Archbishop of York, as Lord Chancellor of the North. In England’s French holdings, Philip placed Archbishop of Rouen as Lord Chancellor of Normandy & Brittany, while the Archbishop of Canterbury would just be Lord Chancellor of the South.
With the interior affairs dealt with, 20 year old, Philip looked to find a wife and this came in the form of Elizabeth of Brabant, daughter of Henry, Duke of Brabant and his wife, Princess Marie, herself a daughter of King Philip II of France.
This marriage would be fruitful with five children being born to them both.
While Philip would have many more children with numerous of women around him.
His reign was renowned for being peaceful and prosperous. His 66 year reign came to an end with his death at age 71, during the night, came as a funny antidote, especially as he would continue to introduce himself to new members at court, as the oldest boy king.
[3] Philip's son Geoffrey had hoped to gain glory by conquering Wales. Unfortunately, he died in battle thanks to a stray arrow. (Many suspect it was his cousin Edward Longshanks who shot the arrow deliberately). Thankfully, Geoffrey's wife, Isabelle of Luxemburg was later found to be pregnant. She birthed a son and named him Edward after her husband's dearest friend and cousin (she was one of the few who did not believe in the rumors of Edward's supposed culpability in her husband's death and went out of her way to make to clear despite the same people making insinuations about her own relationship with the man).
Edward grew up rather coddled and sheltered. It certainly didn't help that some people were spreading rumors about his paternity. His grandfather died when he was eleven-years-old. He was meek and clinging to his mother's skirts. Many had low opinions of him, not to mention his mother who acted as his regent, and it was often whispered he should be put aside for his cousin. Things came to a head in 1283 when Edward's supporters stormed the palace, taking the boy king captive and declaring him a bastard and therefore unfit to rule. Edward Longshank should be crowned.
[4] Edward Longshanks was the eldest of the five children of Arthur of Leicester and Isabella of Scotland. At a young age he was betrothed to Elizabeth de Burgh, a wealthy heiress. They would have two daughters, the younger of which, Elizabeth died birthing.
Edward left England after his wife’s death, leaving this daughters in the care of his cousin and close friend Henry, Archbishop of Canterbury. Edward gained significant renown as a military leader fighting in the Crusade of James of Aragon. (1) Significantly taller than the average man, Edward was both skilled in combat and a clever tactician. Edward grew very close to James of Aragon, while on crusade, and returned to England married to James’s youngest daughter Eleanor. Edward and Eleanor had four children who lived to adulthood. One would be named for Edward’s dearest friend Henry, Archbishop of Canterbury.
After his uncle Philip’s death, Edward watched as people grew more and more dissatisfied with Edward I as king. Rumors spread that Edward I was a bastard, and the two greatest adult members of House Plantagent were the rumored fathers: Arthur of Lancaster and Edward Longshanks. For the first year or so of the reign of Edward I, Edward Longshanks tried to deny he was the father of Edward I. But Edward Longshanks soon found the only way to get people to truly believe he wasn’t the king’s father, was to name Arthur of Lancaster as the father of Edward I.
But, once committed to his path, Edward Longshanks was committed. He swiftly switched from denying Edward I was a bastard to naming him as one and Arthur of Lancaster as father. This conveniently made Arthur of Lancaster a traitor and Edward Longshanks the rightful King.
In 1283, war broke out and Edward Longshanks quickly won. He would be crowned by his dearest friend and cousin Henry, Archbishop of Canterbury. The dethroned young Edward, would be given over to Henry’s keeping and while rarely seen again, in his few public appearance he appeared to be in good health and humor. Arthur of Lancaster would be held captive for several years, before dying of dysentery.
Edward would face several challenges to his reign from other claimants: the children of Arthur of Lancaster and the son of Constance of England who wed Philippa of England, but he would win these battles without too great an issue.
In 1302, the Scottish king died without clear heir, and Edward, as grandson of Alexander II, felt he had the obvious claim. Leading the English armies into battle to press in claim, Edward waged war against his distance Scottish cousin and rival claimant for several years before dying in 1305 in battle, leaving his heir, Prince James, to deal with the war in Scotland.
(1) Earlier, shorter and more successful than OTL
[5] The second son of Edward and Eleanor of Aragon, James was born in 1287. Named for his maternal grandfather, he was named Earl of Richmond at birth and groomed to hold the northern border for his older brother, Edward, who was five years his elder.
Edward’s death at thirteen in a riding accident, however, catapulted the eight-year-old James into the position of heir to the throne, and by the time of his father’s death in 1305, James knew he would have to ensure he stepped out from under the older man’s shadow if he was ever to be respected by his courtiers.
To that end, he led a crippling invasion of Scotland and spent three years battling his distant cousin, Robert the Bruce, for power in Scotland, having sworn he would never be crowned in either Scone or Westminster until he had both countries fully under his control.
James eventually won a pyrrhic victory at Stirling in 1308, and was crowned at Scone as James I of Scotland on the strength of it, although he had to promise to take Robert’s younger sister, Matilda, as his Queen to shore up his rule.
The two of them moved south to York, where James was crowned King of England by his younger brother Henry at Easter 1309, the younger Prince having risen to the rank of Bishop the previous year.
James and Matilda liked York so much that they set up their capital there, although they also spent large amounts of time in Nantes and St Malo, the latter port city being a favourite of theirs when they wanted to spend time with their family undisturbed.
And they had a large family. Matilda was almost constantly pregnant between 1310 and 1325, giving James thirteen children, of whom eight survived to adulthood. James used this to his advantage when it came to his continental holdings, matching his children to royals and nobles throughout the continent, particularly those whom he thought would be able to help him hold Brittany against the intrigues of the French King, Phillip IV. Most notable among those matches were that of his second daughter, Eleanor, who married Louis, Count of Flanders, and his fifth, Constance, who married Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
James was so confident in his ability to hold off the French, in fact, that in 1327, he sailed for Bordeaux, determined to use his new continental alliances to win back his ancestors’ glorious Empire, the one that stretched from Scotland to the Pyrenees.
It was while besieging the Gascon capital, Auch, that James was struck in the neck by an arrow, passing away a few hours later from the shock and the blood loss.
The news reached England a week later, and James’s heir, his son, Robert, was proclaimed monarch in his stead.
[6] The second son and eldest surviving son of James I and Matilda, Countess of Ross, Robert was born 1311. Named after his Maternal Uncle, Robert the Bruce, his mother had hoped he would have embrace more of his Scottish roots than his older brother which he would.
Robert‘s older brother James, who was born the year before him, would die of smallpox in 1316 making Robert heir apparent to the throne. Robert would ascend to the throne at the age 17 and his first act as king would be to sign a white peace with France where they would get war reparations from England and not be allowed to declare war on each other for 10 years.
Robert would focus on regional development for most of his reign and also increased control and peace in Scotland by lightning taxes and taking many trips there gaining often wearing a kilt gaining the respect of the Scottish population earning him the nickname: “The Scottish.”
Robert would also appoint many Scottish nobles to his court gaining him distrust from the English nobles. He would also increase relations with the Kingdom of France after the war.
Robert would improve relations further with the Scottish by marrying his Maternal First Cousin, Elizabeth Bruce, Daughter of his Uncle, Robert the Bruce who he was very close with until his death in 1329. Robert and Elizabeth would have 6 children together.
Robert’s reign would be mostly peaceful with a few revolts from angry English nobles who believed he was being too soft with the Scottish. Robert would further show his respect for the Scottish by uniting the two crown in 1352 with the 50th anniversary of the annexation of the Scottish Kingdom into the greater kingdom declaring the United Kingdom of Great Britain strengthening the Kingdom as a whole.
Robert would die a few years later in 1369 at the age of 58 of natural causes. He would be succeeded by his son, Alexander.
{7] Despite being the first Alexander to rule England, the young king choose to go by the Scottish numbering, stating it was far easier to just go by whoever had the large number of kings.
Alexander was twenty-five when his father died and already he had great plans for his kingdom, declaring his objective to rule the four kingdoms of Britain, putting together an empire. As Wales was closer (and already partially taken), Alexander started off conquering the lands of the Welsh. It was there he met Owena of Pembroke, the last living descendant of the great prince Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. It was love at first sight for the couple. Alexander and Owena came up with a grand scheme, she would be declared Princess of Wales and their first born son would gain their title.
Their was only one flaw with the plan. Alexander was already married. To a French princess named Joan. They had three daughters, but no sons. It was an unhappy marriage as Alexander had never been fond of the French and had a wandering eye. He decided to ask for an annulment, claiming he had been forced into the marriage (technically true from a modern standpoint as he had loudly decried being forced to marry a French shrew).
Queen Joan for her part did not like her husband much for obvious reasons, but she refused to be thrown to the side for, in her words, an uncouth wild haired savage. She sent letters to her brother Charles, calling upon him for support. Alexander retaliated by gaining the backing of Peter of Castile who just so happened to be his brother in law.
However, before the fighting would start, Queen Joan died suddenly in November 1373, of a fever. By April 1374, England would crown a new queen, already visibly pregnancy. This did not help the rumors that Joan's death was no mere fever. Despite the black gossip and the frosty reception Queen Owena received, she and Alexander would go on to have nine children.
In the meantime, Alexander continued conquering Wales, finally finishing in 1383. He decided to consolidate his rule before turning his sights on Ireland. He invited many Welsh nobles to court, in hopes of integrating them with the English and Scottish nobles. However, his efforts were cut short when in 1387, France attacked Normandy, decrying Alexander as a murderer and his wife a vile sorceress who had killed Queen Joan either by poison or by the dark arts.
Alexander was forced to put his planned invasion of Ireland on hold as he lead his men to the defense of his French lands. The war would last for ten years, ending with most of the duchy of Normandy to be returned to France. It was a heavy blow, and Alexander returned demoralized, scrapping all plans for his war in Ireland and instead focusing on strengthening his defense and refilling his empty coffers.
In 1405, Alexander and Owena would be traveling from Pembroke to Ludlow when their entourage was ambushed. Owena and a few of her ladies managed to escape and hid, but Alexander died fighting his way out of the ambush. Thankfully, Henry was brought to safety and would crowned once the conspirators behind this deceitful attack were captured and beheaded.
[8] The firstborn of Alexander and Owena, Henry of Westminster was from his young childhood completely dedicated to the martial arts. Brought under the tutelage of the best Welsh, Scottish and English military leaders, robust Harri as he was called by his Welsh Longbowmen, to whom he took a deep liking from a young age, became a enormous, arrogant braggart of a man whom would soon plunge Great Britain into a reign of constant warfare, making various enemies that would never cease haunting him.
With the death of his father, Henry was crowned in Canterbury under the tutelage of his mother, whom remained a deeply influential figure all-throughout his reign. Queen Owena, hiding beneath the Kingly shadow of her son, would soon sic him on her various domestic enemies - from those who had been involved in the conspiracy that killed her husband all the way to those who had simply questioned the legality of her marriage with King Alexander, who had not observed the necessary year of mourning before marrying her after the death of his first wife, Joan of France.
Henry took great joy in this, and he soon grew a reputation as a ruthless ruler, whom was otherwise fair in most other matters. Henry did not take much attention to the matters of statesmanship and diplomacy - those, he left to his mother and her allies at court. Henry himself prefered to start his reign with the highly succesful invasion of Southern Ireland, whose myriad of tribes and Kingdoms he would conquer succesfully, cleaning a land connection from Cork to Dublin, greatly reinforcing the position of his Kingdom in the Emerald Isle. Impressed by the violent attitude of many Irish lords and their retinues, Henry would prove great at currying the respect and loyalty of those he had conquered by integrating them into the highly advanced (for the time) military structure of his Kingdom, which alongside the Kingdom of France below the channel were some of the first to form a proper "Royal, Professional Army".
Speaking of France, one cannot speak of Henry's reign without speaking of the long forming rivalry between the House of Plantagenet and the House of Capet. While the Plantagenets had been busy uniting most of the British Isles, the Capetians had been busy turning France into one of the most reformed, centralized Kingdoms of the age. It was not without cause that the emissaries of the Pope commented to the English ambassador "Nothing happens in the lands of the Franks without the knowledge of it's King. Indeed, following the intrigues of Philip the IV, the heirs of his firstborn Louis X - Jean I, Phillipe V, Charles IV and finally Charles V the once amicable relationship between London and Paris had continuously deteriorated, to the point that diplomatic relations between the two states were almost non-existent. The War over Normandy fought between King Alexander and Charles V had resulted in a overwhelming French victory, whom annexed all of Normandy but the port-city of Rouen and the Contentin peninsula. Henry, wishing to avenge the humiliation his father suffered at the hands of the French King, was decided to change that.
The Angevin War of 1409-1416 was, perhaps, both the greatest example of British military ability but also the greatest British military defeat. Henry directed a massive war effort that saw various points of invasion all throughout France itself - He himself landed in Rouen with a vast army, his bastard cousin William of Warwick lead a great chevauchee from Nantes which saw Anjou and the Loire Valley erupt in flames that could be seen from Paris and Henry's sole brother, the Duke of Lancaster John set himself upon Gascogny, reaving most of the land and organizing the two-year siege of Bordeaux.
Despite various early military victories - Such as the battle of Agincourt, where Henry defeated an army led by the Duke of Orleans, outnumbered almost four to one or the siege of Alençon, the French did not hold back and soon greater French numbers and the introductions of new technologies to the French military saw the French defeat the Gascon army, killing the Duke of Lancaster and eventually push ever-northwards, forcing Henry to retreat back to England. The war was a strong military defeat that would forever more darken Henry's reign, as he would be forced to secede all that remained of the once-great Angevin Empire, with only the small city of Calais being allowed to remain in British hands. However, there would be some positives to the war - the Papacy and the French would recognize Henry's claim to the Kingship of Ireland and Blanche of Flanders, niece to the French King and heiress to the rich counties of Flanders and Artois would be forced to marry Henry.
The marriage with Blanche would mark the new start of Henry's reign. Although he never directly controlled the two Counties, British authorities would rapidly assertain some kind of authority over the two provinces, although Blanche and her extremely rich court would resist integration into Britain, as once had been done to Normandy or Brittany, and Henry would be forced to rule through representatives and in accordance with the wishes of the local elites. Neverminding that, trade would explode with the region, and British influence in the Lower Netherlands would increase enormously, with British goods sailing up the Rhine to reach places such as the Palatinate.
Henry would fight more wars during his reign - finishing the conquest of Ireland by 1425 and attempting to expand into Brabant - when the Duchy found itself with no heir, Henry pressed Blanche's "timid" claim, in direct opposition to the Holy Roman Emperor. The Brabatine war of Succession would be a dire affair, with the Holy Roman Emperor eventually managing to secure his candidate's place in Brabant, although Henry would annex many important border cities and castles to the County of Flanders.
With the massive death-toll these wars provoked, not counting the monetary and economical lapse financing his wars caused, Henry has come to be known as "The King who Danced on top of Graves", although recent historians have shed a new light upon Henry - His no-nonsense attitude to ruling in his later years did much to form an uniform bureaucracy for the whole British isles, and he essentially sanctified the position of the monarchy by adopting "Divine Right" and autocracy in the style of the French. In essense, Henry would leave behind after his death by choking in 1434 a vastly centralized, developed and organized realm for his successor, William.
[9] Born in 1417 as the firstborn son of four children that Henry III and Blanche of Flanders had, William was 17 when he became King of Great Britain and Ireland in 1434. Staying out of doing warfare against his neighbours (knowing how that ended up for his father), William instead focused on internal affairs as he supported infrastructure projects and severed as a patron of the arts.
Not forgetting about his new continental holdings, William made many visits to the County of Flanders and made the city of Bruges his place of residence between the months of April and August. He also taught his five children he had with Margaret of Holland to speak both English and Flemish, helping to make them more popular with the people living in Flanders.
William died in 1480 at the age of 63, being mourned by both his British and Flemish subjects. He was succeeded by his son, James.
[10] James was a quiet and nervous boy in childhood, preferring to read and learn. He received the nickname the bookish prince. Unlike most fathers of this time, King William encouraged his son's nature, hoping to make a great author or playwright out of him. He even funded the creation of a royal printing press for his son's personal use. As he grew older, James became less of an introvert, but never lost his love for books. Although, he did write a few plays, his masterpiece was a chronology of his family's history (which included his own dry commentary).
Although many preferred his boisterous and charming brother, most came to appreciate the Crown Prince's calm demeanor and quick wit. In his personal life, he was married to Eileen O'Neil in hopes of keeping the peace between the Irish and the English. Despite their marriage being happy, the couple would only have two surviving children.
When King William died, James was already a man in his late thirties. He continued his father's projects, and also began looking for new ventures to persue. To make money for his ventures, he expanded the English trading routes and even made betrothal agreement with Portugal to gain access to theirs.
When a man named Christopher Columbus came seeking a sponsor after being rejected by King Alfonso of Castile, James jumped to the opportunity, eager to start the age of discovery. Sadly, he would not live long to see the fruits of Columbus finding the new world, dying in 1495 of a heart attack, having spent most of his life enjoying fine food with no exercise.
[11] Born to King James and Queen Eileen, Edward of Ghent was from his birth heir to the thrones of Great Britain and Ireland. A talented but quiet boy, Edward was raised primarily during the primacy of Matthew o'Reilly, Duke of Breffny and Earl of Cavan, Lord High Treasurer during the later parts of the reign of his grandfather and during first part of his father's reign. Matthew took great care in directing the education of the then Duke of Inverness, and it was the Irish aristocrat whose became the major influence in the life and personality of young Edward - From Matthew, Edward would absorb a certain sence of rowdyness and stubborn ruthlessness, but also a great degree of political skill and patience. But from Lord Breffny Edward would follow in the dream of once more making Britain a power comparable enough to the French Capets and the Luxembourgian Holy Roman Emperors in Prague, or as respected as the Corvinus Kings of Hungary or the Spanish Habsburgs, (relatives of the Archduke of Austria, often rivals to the Luxembourgians of Bohemia and Hungary whom had recently inherited the combined thrones of Aragon and Castille), or as rich as the Portuguese House of Burgundy and the Sicilian Angevins or the Milanese Visconti's.
When his father, King James died, Edward was Prince of Wales alongside his wife Beatrice of Portugal, the great muse of his life with whom he shared four children by the time of his reign. Beatrice brought with her a large dowry owing due to Portugal's vast holdings in Morocco, West Africa and India (and in the future, Brazil) but mostly brought to England a lot of the sea-faring technologies of the meditteranean, something which would greatly aid in the starting of the Age of Discovery.
The House of Brabant had gone into bankruptcy, and rather than face British invasion the Duke sold his titles to the English King in exchange for some 150000 ducats and a noble title and vast estates in England and Ireland. The integration of the very rich and powerful Brabant and most importantly, the port-city of Antwerp allowed for Edward to solidify the revenues of this very rich region into his pockets, making Edward's court one of the most prosperous and illuminated of the age, and soon Edward atracted men such as Michelangelo, da Vinci and Bramante Lazzari to his court in Ghent, whom due to the necessity of his Dutch policy was for the longest his city of residence, although Edward's patronage over many High Renaissance artists left a mark in various of the cities of Britain proper too, such as London, York, Dublin and Edinburgh.
Edward further attempts at expanding his control of the Netherlands went awry as Charles of Luxembourg finally had enough and when Edward attempted to install a Scottish clergyman as Prince-Bishop of Utretcht Charles invaded Brabant with a force of 12000 professional mercenaries which proved a great shock to Edward, as Britain's professional army had degraded since Henry Grave-Dancer and could not fight off these soldiers without levying many Flemish and Dutch militias to amass before more Imperial reinforcements arrived. Despite Edward's best attempts, the war elongated for a period of five years, from 1518 to 1523, as King Edward and Emperor Charles duked it out in places as far as East Frisia. In the end, Edward's money guaranteed him victory as he became able to buy those same mercenaries which dominated Charles' army. The County of Namur and the Duchy of Veluwe and the County of Zutphen were all recognized as holdings of Edward, and the Prince-Bisphops of Utretch as his vassals, but Emperor Charles gained from the pope the lands of the Prince-Bishops of Liege and Guelders, and with a base in Aachen and Cleves in the Northern Rhinelands proved ever a thorn for Edward's rapidly-built rule.
Edward would be blocked at every other turn at expanding his holdings in the Netherlands - His campaigns in Friesland were a humanitarian disaster, his attempt to wrestle Liege from the Emperor went awry as the short-lived Liege War resulted in the death of his Plantagenet cousin and closest friend and councillor, John the Duke of Albany, after which Edward finally ceased his attempts at expansion in the Netherlands. Focusing his last years on cementing the growing colonial reality of the new-world, the Royal Navy would fight a low-intensity conflict with the Spanish navy over control of the Island of Cuba. British settlements in the Bermuda and the Eastern Coast of North America, the place easiest to access and with the less competition, started, especially on the mouth of many important rivers such as the Hudson and Savannah rivers, but the first "colonies proper" were between the Delaware and Potomac rivers.
The death of his wife, Beatrice in 1526 left behind a heavily depressed Edward, leaving him broken and unable to rule for at least his year of mourning, but however in 1527 British Captains brought to London various African figures, especially from areas of British interest such as the coast of the Benin Empire and such. The most important of Edward's acquaintances of this voyage was a Igbo noblewoman whom English priests had given the name of Mary, and her beauty, quick mastery of English and Latin alongside her humour and wit soon brought the interest of the English King upon her, and she became his lover and remained with him and took care of him in his old age. Mary of Benin, as she was called eventually would give Edward two bastard children and would become one of the most controversial women of the age, with her reputation tilting from "the foreign witch who bewitched good King Edward" to "the African angel whom provoked comfort to the Good King in his final days". Her relationship with Edward's heirs, however, proved sour, as they felt that she was attempting to move into the place of Beatrice of Portugal, non withstanding her controversial conversion to Christianity and her race.
Edward would finally die in 1530, leaving behind a court in turmoil and many enemies.
[12] After the death of King Edward it became unclear who would take his place as King of Britain and Ireland having all but one legitimate child, named James, surviving to adulthood however he would sadly die in a riding accident predeceasing his father. The late King Edward III was an only child and his father, King James II, was the only surviving child amongst his siblings so the next most senior member of the family was the descendant of King Henry III’s second son Charles who was Albert, Duke of Cornwall.
Things would get complicated however after the lover of the late King Edward III, Mary of Benin, would come forth claiming that she and Edward had in fact married in secret before the birth of their second child, Alexander, which, if true, would legitimize him and put him in the line of succession ahead of Albert. This would lead to a succession crisis that the Kingdom had never seen before with many sides coming in and staking their claims.
One major claimant was Robert, 7th Lord of Liddesdale, a descendant of King Robert I‘s second son evidently also named Robert who was given the title after the death of his Uncle also named Robert who was the 1st Lord of Liddesdale and died in battle with no issue so Robert I decided to give the title to his second son who became the 2nd Lord of Liddesdale and the title was passed down through the generations after him. Robert, 7th Lord of Liddesdale’s claim is based on the belief that Alexander II killed his first wife, Joan, in order to marry his second wife, Owena, thus committing treason excluding him and his descendants from the line of succession making him the most senior member of the family if that were the case.
Now with three major claimants to the throne with many supporting their claims the Kingdom would fall into a three way civil war between the claimants not to mention the Kingdom of France intervening to try and place a loyal King on the throne. Eventually one would ascend to the throne that one being Albert, Duke of Cornwall.
[13] Albert, Duke of Cornwall's father had married the Irish heiress Margaret Butler, and he in turn had married Eleanor Grey with whom he had five children) before her death in 1503. He married secondly Catherine Gordon (three children). He was known to have a terrible temper and was quite violent towards those who angered him. Despite having few friends, he was respected for being a skilled military leader. As he had been named heir by his cousin's will and was enraged when Mary of Benin tried to declare her toddler son as the true king. He derisively called Alexander the Negro Bastard, vowing to put his savage mother in her place. Whatever plans he had for the pair, he was distracted by the rise of the Lord of Liddesdale. By the time he had crushed Liddesadale's armies. He then executed the captive Robert himself, using his bloody coat as his banner.
Upon hearing of his brutally, and sensing where the wind was blowing, Mary of Benin fled England with her son, receiving refuge in the King of France's court. The boy Alexander would for years to come insist that he was the true king of England, and make many attempts to gain the crown he believed was rightfully his.
In 1538, Albert was crowned king, but he had no wife by his side as Catherine Gorden died a year earlier. Albert was convinced to marry Anne of Liddesdale, the daughter of his late foe. The marriage was unhappy with countless rumors of Albert forcing himself on her and beating her when she angered him. He was known to be a tempermental ruler, who snuffed out his rivals and those who support the growing Lutheran movement with fire and sword.
In 1546, Anne was discovered having an affair was one of her husband's grooms, Sir Henry Norris, and it was long suspected that the two children she had with Albert were in fact her lover's children. Both she and Sir Norris were beheaded.
Albert decided to look for a fourth wife. However, before he could, he was found dead in his chambers, having been strangled. No one mourned him least of all his son Charles.
[14] Charles was born in 1494 as the second child but first son of Albert I and his first wife Eleanor Grey. A nine-year-old when his mother died, Charles' personality changed for the worse, going from being a happy little boy to a cold somber man whose relationship with his siblings and father soured the years. So by the time Albert died in 1547, Charles was mentioned in documents from the time as not crying at all.
Charles was rightly paranoid that he would be overthown, as he began to execute any people he thought could threaten his power. This caused his popularity to plummet and when news arrived of Alexander of Benin landing Dover to launch another invasion of Great Britain in 1551 Charles assured himself that this will end the same as the pretender’s previous attempts.
He was wrong.
Alexander became greatly supported by the people for his leadership skills and love for the common man, both things Charles didn’t have. The “True King” as Alexander was known as eventually made it to London where he gave Charles the chance to willingly abdicate. Before Charles could answer he was shot in the back by a skilled archer, and in the resulting chaos ___________ was crowned the new King.
