Editing Edward III of England (section)

=== Six new earls and the first three English dukedoms created ===
Central to Edward III's policy was reliance on the higher nobility for purposes of war and administration. While Edward II had regularly been in conflict with a great portion of his peerage, his son successfully created a spirit of camaraderie between himself and his greatest subjects.{{Sfn|Ormrod|2000|pp=101, 106}} Both Edward I and Edward II had been limited in their policy towards the nobility, allowing the creation of few new peerages during the sixty years preceding Edward III's reign.{{Sfn|Given-Wilson|1996|pp=29–31}} Edward III reversed this trend when, in 1337, as a preparation for the imminent war, he created six new [[earl]]s on the same day.{{Sfn|Given-Wilson|1996|pp=35–36}}

At the same time, Edward expanded the ranks of the peerage upwards, by introducing the new title of [[duke]] for close relatives of the king;{{Sfn|Prestwich|2005|p=364}} creating the first three dukedoms of England (Cornwall, Lancaster, and Clarence). His eldest son, [[Edward the Black Prince]], was created [[Duke of Cornwall]], the first English duke, in 1337. In 1351 the Earl of Lancaster was elevated to the [[Duke of Lancaster]].{{Sfn|Wilkinson|1995|p=134}} In 1362, the second son of King Edward III, [[Lionel of Antwerp, Duke of Clarence|Lionel of Antwerp]], was made the first [[Duke of Clarence]].<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=1|wstitle=Clarence, Dukes of|volume=6|pages=427–428}}</ref>