ANST - Musing on June 23rd -- Eddie and the Cruisers

[j'lynn yeates]

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todays musings from Sir B. takes us from political and religious
intrigues of france (with a correction from todays datastream that i
passed along ... the guy works fast & reads his mail (g)) to scotland
the brave with a bit of french on the side ....

'wolf



Dear Folks,

On this date June 23, 1314 Edward II crossed the Bannockburn on his
way
to beat on the Scots. He was in for a rude surprise.

Edward II just wasn’t the macho dude that his father, Eddie I
(Longshanks, was and failed miserably as king. He inherited his
father's war with Scotland and displayed a rather "ineptitude" as a
soldier. Disgruntled barons (them barons can get gruntled and dis
very
easily even in the West), already wary of Eddie as Prince of Wales,
sought to check his power from the beginning of his reign. He really
hacked off the nobility by lavishing money and other rewards upon his
male favorites. Such extreme unpopularity would eventually cost Eddie
II his life.

Edward I's dream of a unified British nation quickly disintegrated
under his weak son. Baronial rebellion opened the way for Robert
Bruce
to reconquer much of Scotland. In 1314, Bruce defeated English forces
at the battle of Bannockburn and ensured Scottish independence until
the union of England and Scotland in 1707. Bruce also incited
rebellion
in Ireland and reduced English influence to the confines of the Pale
(England proper).

Edward's preference for surrounding himself with outsiders just was
not
the thing to do. The most notable was Piers Gaveston, a young Gascon
exiled by Edward I for his undue influence on the Prince of Wales
and,
most likely, the new king's homosexual lover. Okay, it wasn’t just
that
Gaveston was French and gay, it was that he was haughty. The English
could bear haughtiness in themselves much better than they ever could
in the French. The magnates, alienated by the relationship, rallied
in
opposition behind the king's cousin, Thomas, Earl of Lancaster; the
Parliaments of 1310 and 1311 imposed restrictions on Edward's power
and
exiled Gaveston. The barons revolted in 1312 and Gaveston was
murdered
(shed a tear, he was thrown from the battlements) - full rebellion
was
avoided only by Edward's acceptance of further restrictions. Although
Lancaster shared the responsibilities of governing with Edward, the
king came under the influence of yet another despicable favorite,
Hugh
Dispenser. In 1322, Edward showed a rare display of grit and gathered
an army to meet Lancaster at the Battle of Boroughbridge in
Yorkshire.
Edward to the surprise of most won and executed Lancaster. He and
Dispenser ruled the government but again acquired many enemies - 28
knights and barons were executed for rebelling and many exiled.  It
is
not healthy to say no to certain kings.

Eddie sent his queen, Isabella, to negotiate with her brother, French
king Chuck IV, regarding affairs in Gascony. She fell into an open
romance with Roger Mortimer (aww, ain't love grand?), one of Edward's
disaffected barons, and persuaded Eddie to send their young son to
France. The rebellious couple invaded England in 1326 and imprisoned
Eddie. The king was deposed in 1327, replaced by his son, Eddie III,
and murdered in September at Berkeley castle.  Rumor has it that it
was
done by a hot poker in a tender place. Unfortunate end for a weak
king.

Sir Richard Baker, said about Edward I in A Chronicle of the Kings of
England, "His great unfortunateness was in his greatest blessing; for
of four sons which he had by his Queen Eleanor, three of them died in
his own lifetime, who were worthy to have outlived him; and the
fourth
outlived him, who was worthy never to have been born."

What can we learn from this?  Avoid haughty Frenchmen? A son is not
required to worship at the altar of his father? Don’t go to Scotland
and just expect to kick butt? When spiders (or barons) unite, they
can
tie down a lion? Maybe although it is good to be the King, sometimes
the Queen rules the day.

BTW, I have to confess an error. Kate's dad was not Lorenzo the
Magnificent (that was her great grandpa). Her dad was Lorenzo,
though.
Sorry. Thanks folk out in Texas. Miss ya'll.

As ever, being careful of kings,
Ellsworth

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