Editing Edward the Black Prince (section)

==Further campaigns (1355–64)==
{{Further information|Black Prince's chevauchée of 1355|Black Prince's chevauchée of 1356}}

===Aquitaine===
When Edward III determined to renew the war with France in 1355, he ordered Edward to lead an army into [[Aquitaine]] while he, as his plan was, acted with the king of Navarre in Normandy, and the Duke of Lancaster upheld the cause of [[John of Montfort]] in Brittany. Edward's expedition was made in accordance with the request of some of the Gascon lords who were anxious for plunder. On 10 July the king appointed him his lieutenant in Gascony and gave him powers to act in his stead and to receive homages.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=93}} cites ''Fœdera'', iii. 302, 312.</ref> Edward left London for Plymouth on 30 June, was detained there by contrary winds, and set sail on 8 September with about 300 ships, in company with four earls (Thomas Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, [[William de Ufford, 2nd Earl of Suffolk|William Ufford, Earl of Suffolk]], [[William de Montagu, 2nd Earl of Salisbury|William Montagu, Earl of Salisbury]], and John Vere, Earl of Oxford) and in command of 1,000 men-at-arms, 2,000 archers, and a large body of Welsh foot soldiers.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=93}} cites Avesbury, p. 201.</ref> At [[Bordeaux]] the Gascon lords received him with much rejoicing. It was decided to make a short campaign before the winter, and on 10 October he set out with 1,500 lances, 2,000 archers, and 3,000 light foot. Whatever scheme of operations the king may have formed during the summer, this expedition of Edward was purely a piece of marauding. After grievously harrying the counties of Juliac, [[Armagnac (province)|Armagnac]], [[Astarac]], and part of [[Comminges]], he crossed the [[Garonne]] at Sainte-Marie a little above [[Toulouse]], which was occupied by [[John I, Count of Armagnac]], and a considerable force. The count refused to allow the garrison to make a sally, and Edward passed on into the [[Lauragais]]. His troops stormed and burnt [[Montgiscard]], where many men, women, and children were ill-treated and slain,<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=93}} cites Froissart, iv. 163, 373</ref> and took and pillaged [[Avignonet]] and [[Castelnaudary]]. The country was "very rich and fertile" according to Edward,{{Sfn|Taylor|2018}} and the people "good, simple, and ignorant of war", so the prince took great spoil, especially of carpets, draperies, and jewels, for "the robbers" spared nothing, and the Gascons who marched with him were especially greedy.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=93}} cites Jehan le Bel, ii. 188; Froissart, iv. 165).</ref>  The only castle to resist the English forces was [[Montgey]].  Its [[châtelain]]e defended its walls by pouring beehives onto the attackers, who fled in panic.{{Sfn|Taylor|2018}}

[[Carcassonne]] was taken and sacked, but Edward did not take the citadel which was strongly situated and fortified. [[Ourmes]] (or Homps, near [[Narbonne]]) and [[Trèbes]] bought off his army. He plundered [[Narbonne]] and thought of attacking the citadel, for he heard that there was much booty there, but he gave up the idea on finding that it was well defended. While there a messenger came to him from the papal court, urging him to allow negotiations for peace. He replied that he could do nothing without knowing his father's will.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=93}} cites Avesbury, p. 215.</ref> From Narbonne he turned to march back to Bordeaux. The Count of Armagnac tried to intercept him, but a small body of French having been defeated in a skirmish near Toulouse the rest of the army retreated into the city, and the prince returned in peace to Bordeaux, bringing back with him enormous spoils. The expedition lasted eight weeks, during which the prince only rested eleven days in all the places he visited, and without performing any feat of arms did the French king much mischief.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=93}} cites a letter of Sir John Wingfield, in Avesbury, p. 222.</ref> During the next month, before 21 January 1356, the leaders under his command reduced five towns and seventeen castles.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=94}} cites another letter of Sir J. Wingfield, in Avesbury, p. 224).</ref>

====Battle of Poitiers====
{{Main|Battle of Poitiers}}
[[File:Poitiers 1356.jpg|thumb|[[Battle of Poitiers]], from the ''[[Grandes Chroniques de France]]'']]
On 6 July 1356 Edward set out on another expedition, undertaken with the intention of passing through France to Normandy and there giving aid to his father's Norman allies, the party headed by the king of Navarre and Geoffrey d'Harcourt. In Normandy he expected to be met by his father.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=94}} cites a letter of the prince dated 20 October, ''Archæologia,'' i. 212; Froissart, iv. 196.</ref> He crossed the [[Dordogne]] at [[Bergerac, Dordogne|Bergerac]] on 4 August<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=94}} states for itinerary of this expedition see ''Eulogium'', iii. 215 sq.</ref> and rode through [[Auvergne]], Limousin, and Berry, plundering and burning as he went until he came to [[Bourges]], where he burnt the suburbs but failed to take the city. He then turned westward and made an unsuccessful attack on [[Issoudun]] on 25–27 August. Meanwhile, King John II was gathering a large force at [[Chartres]], from which he was able to defend the passages of the [[Loire]] and was sending troops to the fortresses that seemed in danger of attack. From Issoudun Edward returned to his former line of march and took [[Vierzon]]. There he learnt that it would be impossible for him to cross the Loire or to form a junction with Lancaster, who was then in Brittany. Accordingly he determined to return to Bordeaux by way of Poitiers, and after putting to death most of the garrison of the castle of Vierzon he set out on 29 August towards [[Romorantin-Lanthenay|Romorantin]].{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=94}}

Some French knights who skirmished with the English advanced guard retreated into Romorantin, and when Prince Edward heard of this he said: "Let us go there; I should like to see them a little nearer".{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=94}} He inspected the fortress in person and sent his friend Chandos to summon the garrison to surrender. The place was defended by Boucicault and other leaders, and on their refusing his summons he assaulted it on 31 August. The siege lasted three days, and the prince, who was enraged at the death of one of his friends, declared that he would not leave the place untaken. Finally he set fire to the roofs of the fortress by using [[Greek fire]], reduced it on 3 September.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=94}}

On 5 September Edward proceeded to march through Berry. On 9 September King John II, who had gathered a large force, crossed the Loire at Blois and went in pursuit of them. When the king was at [[Loches]] on 12 September he had as many as 20,000 men-at-arms, and with these and his other forces he advanced to [[Chauvigny]]. On 16 and 17 September his army crossed the [[Vienne (river)|Vienne]].{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=94}} Meanwhile, Edward was marching almost parallel to the French and at only a few miles distance from them. From 14 to 16 September he was at [[Châtellerault]], and 17 September as he was marching towards Poitiers, some French men-at-arms skirmished with his advance guard, pursued them up to the main body of his army, and were all slain or taken prisoners. The French king had outstripped him, and his retreat was cut off by an army at least 50,000 strong, while Edward he about 7,500 men. Lancaster had endeavoured to come to his relief but had been stopped by the French at [[Les Ponts-de-Cé|Pont-de-Cé]].<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=94}} cites ''Chronique de Bertrand du Guesclin'', p. 7.</ref>

When Prince Edward knew that the French army lay between him and Poitiers, he took up his position on some rising ground to the south-east of the city in the [[Mignaloux-Beauvoir|commune of Beauvoir]] and remained there that night. On 18 September Cardinal [[Hélie de Talleyrand-Périgord (cardinal)|Hélie Talleyrand]] endeavoured to make peace. Edward was willing to come to terms and offered to give up all the towns and castles he had conquered, to set free all his prisoners, and not to serve against the king of France for seven years, besides, it is said, offering a payment of 100,000 francs. King John, however, was persuaded to demand that Edward and 100 of his knights should surrender themselves as prisoners, and to this Edward would not consent. The cardinal's negotiations lasted the whole day and were protracted in the interest of the French, for John was anxious to give time for further reinforcements to join his army. Considering the position of Edward, it seems probable that the French might have destroyed his army by hemming it in with a portion of their host, and so either starving it or forcing it to leave its strong station and fight in the open with the certainty of defeat. John made a mistake in allowing Edward respite during the negotiations, during which he employed his army in strengthening its position. The English front was well covered by vines and hedges; on its left and rear was the ravine of the Miausson river and a good deal of broken ground, and its right was flanked by the wood and abbey of Nouaillé. All through the day the army was busily engaged in digging trenches and making fences, so that it stood, as at Crécy, in a kind of entrenched camp.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=94}} cites ''Froissart'', v. 29; {{sc|Matt. Villani}}, vii. c. 16.</ref>

Prince Edward drew up his men in three divisions, the first being commanded by the earls of Warwick and Suffolk, the second by himself, and the rear by Salisbury and Oxford. The French were drawn up in four divisions, one behind the other, and so lost much of the advantage of their superior numbers. In front of his first line and on either side of the narrow lane that led to his position the prince stationed his archers, who were well protected by hedges, and posted a kind of ambush of 300 men-at-arms and 300 mounted archers, who were to fall on the flank of the second battle of the enemy, commanded by the [[Dauphin of France|Dauphin]], [[Charles V of France|Charles, Duke of Normandy]].{{sfn|Hunt|1889|pp=94–95}}

At daybreak on 19 September Prince Edward addressed his army, and the fight began. An attempt was made by 300 picked men-at-arms to ride through the narrow lane and force the English position, but they were shot down by the archers. A body of Germans and the first division of the army which followed were thrown into disorder; then the English force in ambush charged the second division on the flank, and as it began to waver the English men-at-arms mounted their horses, which they had kept near them, and charged down the hill. Edward kept Chandos by his side, and his friend did him good service in the fray. As they prepared to charge he cried: "John, get forward; you shall not see me turn my back this day, but I will be ever with the foremost", and then he shouted to his banner-bearer, "Banner, advance, in the name of God and St. George!".{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=95}} All the French except the advance guard fought on foot, and the division of the Duke of Normandy, already wavering, could not stand against the English charge and fled in disorder. The next division, under [[Philip, Duke of Orléans]], also fled, though not so shamefully, but the rear under King John fought with much gallantry. The prince, "who had the courage of a lion, took great delight that day in the fight".{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=95}} The combat lasted until a little after 3&nbsp;pm, and the French, who were utterly defeated, left 11,000 dead on the field, of whom 2,426 were men of gentle birth. Nearly 100 counts, barons, and [[banneret]]s and 2,000 men-at-arms, besides many others, were made prisoners, and the king and his youngest son Philip were among those who were taken. The English losses were not large.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=95}}

When King John was brought to him, Edward received him with respect, helped him to take off his armour, and entertained him and the greater part of the princes and barons who had been made prisoners at supper. He served at the king's table and would not sit down with him, declaring that "he was not worthy to sit at table with so great a king or so valiant a man",{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=95}} and speaking many comfortable words to him, for which the French praised him highly.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} Froissart, v. 64, 288.</ref> The next day Edward continued his retreat on Bordeaux; he marched warily, but no one ventured to attack him.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=95}}

At Bordeaux, which Prince Edward reached on 2 October, he was received with much rejoicing, and he and his men tarried there through the winter and wasted in festivities the immense spoil they had gathered. On 23 March 1357 Edward concluded a two years' truce, for he wished to return home. The Gascon lords were unwilling that King John should be carried off to England, and the prince gave them 100,000 crowns to silence their murmurs. He left the country under the government of four Gascon lords and arrived in England on 4 May, landing at Plymouth.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} Knighton, c. 2615; ''Eulogium'', iii. 227; Walsingham, i. 283; ''Fœdera'', iii. 348, not at Sandwich as Froissart, v. 82 states.</ref> When he entered London in triumph on 24 May with King John as his prisoner.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} cites Matt. ''Villani'', vii. c. 66.</ref>

====England, tournaments and debts====
After his return to England, Prince Edward took part in the many festivals and tournaments of his father's court, and in May 1359 he and the king and other challengers held the lists at a joust proclaimed at London by the mayor and sheriffs, and, to the great delight of the citizens, the king appeared as the mayor and the prince as the senior sheriff.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} cites {{harvnb|Barnes|1688|p=564}}.</ref> Festivities of this sort and the lavish gifts he bestowed on his friends brought him into debt, and on 27 August, when a new expedition into France was being prepared, the king granted that if he fell his executors should have his whole estate for four years for the payment of his debts.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} cites ''Fœdera'', iii, 445.</ref>

=== Reims campaign ===
In October 1359 Prince Edward sailed with his father to Calais and led a division of the army during the [[Reims campaign]]. At its close he took the principal part on the English side in negotiating the [[Treaty of Brétigny]], and the preliminary truce arranged at Chartres on 7 May 1360 was drawn up by proctors acting in his name and the name of Charles, Duke of Normandy, the regent of France.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} cites ''Fœdera'', iii, 486; Chandos, l. 1539</ref> He probably did not return to England until after his father,<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|pp=95}} cites James, ii. 223 ''n''.</ref> who landed at [[Rye, East Sussex|Rye]] on 18 May. On 9 July he and Henry, Duke of Lancaster, landed at Calais in attendance on the French king. As, however, the stipulated instalment of the king's ransom was not ready, he returned to England, leaving King John in the charge of Sir [[Walter Manny, 1st Baron Manny|Walter Manny]] and three other knights.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=95}} ''Froissart'', vi. 24.</ref> He accompanied his father to Calais on 9 October to assist at the liberation of King John and the ratification of the treaty. He rode with John to Boulogne, where he made his offering in the [[Basilica of Notre-Dame, Boulogne|Church of the Virgin]]. He returned with King Edward to England at the beginning of November.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|pp=95–96}}

====Marriage to Joan====
On 10 October 1361 Edward married his cousin [[Joan of Kent|Joan, Countess of Kent]], daughter of [[Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent|Edmund of Woodstock, Earl of Kent]] (younger son of [[Edward I of England|Edward I]], and [[Margaret of France, Queen of England|Margaret]], daughter of [[Philip III of France]]) and widow of [[Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent]] and the mother of three children. Because Edward and Joan were related in the third degree (and since Edward was the godfather of Joan's elder son [[Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent|Thomas]]) a dispensation was obtained for their marriage from [[Pope Innocent VI]].<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites ''Fœdera'', iii. 626.</ref> The marriage was performed at [[Windsor Castle|Windsor]] in the presence of King Edward III by [[Simon Islip]] [[Archbishop of Canterbury]]. According to [[Jean Froissart]] the contract of marriage (the engagement) was entered without the knowledge of the king.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites Froissart, vi. 275, Amiens.</ref> Edward and Joan resided at [[Berkhamsted Castle]] in [[Hertfordshire]]{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=96}} and held the manor of [[Princes Risborough]] from 1343; though local history describes the estate as "his palace", many sources suggest it was used more as a hunting lodge.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.chilternsaonb.org/ccbmaps/1317/137/the-black-prince.html | accessdate=13 September 2021 | title=The Black Prince | website=Chilterns Conservation Board | archive-date=16 October 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016213819/https://www.chilternsaonb.org/ccbmaps/1317/137/the-black-prince.html | url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Prince of Aquitaine and Gascony===
[[File:Edward III Black Prince 14thc.jpg|thumb|Edward is granted Aquitaine by his father King Edward III. Initial letter "E" of miniature, 1390; [[British Library]], [[shelfmark]]: Cotton MS Nero D VI, f.31]]
[[File:Signet-ring Black Prince Louvre OA9597.jpg|thumb|Edward's [[signet ring]], found in [[Montpensier]], France in 1866. Now in the [[Louvre]], Paris.]]
On 19 July 1362 Edward III granted Prince Edward all his dominions in Aquitaine and Gascony, to be held as a principality by liege homage on payment of an ounce of gold each year, together with the title of Prince of Aquitaine and Gascony.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites ''Fœdera'', iii. 667.</ref> During the rest of the year he was occupied in preparing for his departure to his new principality, and after Christmas he received the king and his court at Berkhamsted, took leave of his father and mother, and in the following February sailed with Joan and all his household for Gascony, landing at [[La Rochelle]].{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=96}}

At La Rochelle the prince was met by John Chandos, the king's lieutenant, and proceeded with him to Poitiers, where he received the homage of the lords of Poitou and [[County of Saintonge|Saintonge]]; he then rode to various cities and at last came to Bordeaux, where from 9 to 30 July he received the homage of the lords of Gascony. He received all graciously and kept a splendid court, residing sometimes at Bordeaux and sometimes at [[Angoulême]].{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=96}}

The prince appointed Chandos constable of [[Guyenne]] and provided the knights of his household with profitable offices. They kept much state, and their extravagance displeased the people.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites ''Froissart'', vi. 82.</ref> Many of the Gascon lords were dissatisfied at being handed over to the dominion of the English, and the favour the prince showed to his own countrymen, and the ostentatious magnificence they exhibited, increased this feeling of dissatisfaction. [[Arnaud Amanieu, Lord of Albret]], and many more were always ready to give what help they could to the French cause, and [[Gaston III, Count of Foix|Gaston, Count of Foix]], though he visited the prince on his first arrival, was thoroughly French at heart and gave some trouble in 1365 by refusing to do homage for Bearn.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites ''Fœdera'', iii. 779.</ref> Charles V, who succeeded to the throne of France in April 1364, was careful to encourage the malcontents, and the prince's position was by no means easy.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=96}}

In April 1363 Edward mediated between the Counts of Foix and Armagnac, who had for a long time been at war with each other. He also attempted in February 1364 to mediate between [[Charles, Duke of Brittany|Charles of Blois]] and John of Montfort, the rival competitors for the [[Duchy of Brittany]]. Both appeared before him at Poitiers, but his mediation was unsuccessful.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=96}}

In May 1363 the prince entertained [[Peter I of Cyprus|Peter, King of Cyprus]], at Angoulême and held a tournament there. At the same time he and his lords excused themselves from assuming the cross—that is, they declined to join Peter's proposed [[Crusades|crusade]]. During the summer the lord of Albret was at Paris, and his forces and several other Gascon lords held the French cause in Normandy against the party of Navarre. Meanwhile, war was renewed in Brittany; the prince allowed Chandos to raise and lead a force to succour the party of Montfort, and Chandos won the [[Battle of Auray]] (29 September 1364) against the French.{{sfn|Hunt|1889|p=96}}

As the leaders of the free companies which desolated France were for the most part Englishmen or Gascons, they did not ravage Aquitaine, and the prince was suspected, probably not without cause, of encouraging or at least of taking no pains to discourage their proceedings.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites ''Froissart'', vi. 183.</ref> Accordingly on 14 November 1364 Edward III called upon him to restrain their ravages.<ref>{{harvnb|Hunt|1889|p=96}} cites ''Fœdera,'' iii. 754.</ref>