Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster
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Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster (January 16, 1245 – June 5, 1296) was the second surviving son of Eleanor of Provence and King Henry III of England.
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[edit] Childhood
Edmund was born in London. He was a younger brother of Edward I of England, Margaret of England, and Beatrice of England, and an older brother of Katherine of England.
In 1253 he was invested by Pope Innocent IV in the Kingdom of Sicily and Apulia. At about this time he was also made Earl of Chester. These were of little value as Conrad IV of Germany, the real King of Sicily, was still living and the Earldom of Chester was transferred to his elder brother Edward.
[edit] Political Career
Edmund soon obtained, however, important possessions and dignities, for soon after the forfeiture of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester in 1265, Edmund received the Earldom of Leicester and of Lancaster and also the honour of the Stewardship of England and the lands of Nicolas de Segrave. In 1267 he was granted the lordship of Builth Wells in opposition to the then holder, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd. To help him conquer the land he was also granted his elder brother's lordships of the Trilateral of Skenfrith, Grosmont and White Castle together with Monmouth.
In 1271 he accompanied his elder brother Edward on the Ninth Crusade to Palestine. Some historians, including the authors of the Encyclopedia Britannica article on him, state that it was because of this that he received the nickname Crouchback (which they say means "cross back") indicating that he was entitled to wear a cross on his back.
On his return from the Crusade he seems to have made Grosmont Castle his favoured home and undertook much rebuilding there. His son Henry Plantagenet, 3rd Earl of Lancaster was apparently born there in 1281.
[edit] Family
He was married twice, first on 8 April 1269 to Lady Aveline de Forz, the daughter of William de Forz, Count of Aumale and Isabel de Reviers, Countess of Aumale. She died just 4 years after the marriage, at the age of 15, and was buried at Westminster Abbey. The couple had no children, though some sources believe she may have died in childbirth or shortly after a miscarriage.[citation needed]
He married a second time in Paris, on February 3, 1276 to Blanche of Artois, daughter of Robert I of Artois and Matilda of Brabant. That same year he became the Count of Champagne and Brie in France. With Blanche he had four children:
| English Royalty |
|---|
| House of Plantagenet |
 Armorial of Plantagenet |
| Henry III |
| Edward I Longshanks |
| Margaret, Queen of Scots |
| Beatrice, Duchess of Brittany |
| Edmund, Earl of Lancaster |
- Thomas Plantagenet, Second Earl of Lancaster (b. 1278)
- Henry Plantagenet, 3rd Earl of Lancaster (b. 1281)
- John Plantagenet, Lord of Beaufort, (c. 1282 - 1327)
- Mary Plantagenet (c. 1284 - c. 1289)
He died while besieging Bordeaux for his brother on June 5, 1296 in Bayonne, and was interred on July 15, 1296 at Westminster Abbey, London, England.
[edit] Titles, styles, honours and arms
[edit] Arms
Edmund bore the arms of the kingdom, differenced by a label France of three points (that is to say azure three fleur-de-lys or, each).[1]
[edit] References
Remfry, P.M., Grosmont Castle and the families of Fitz Osbern, Ballon, Fitz Count, Burgh, Braose and Plantagenet of Grosmont (ISBN 1-899376-56-9)
[edit] External links
| Honorary titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Humphrey de Bohun |
Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports 1264 |
Succeeded by Henry de Sandwich |
| Preceded by The Earl of Leicester |
Lord High Steward 1265–1296 |
Succeeded by The Earl of Leicester and Lancaster |
| Peerage of England | ||
| Preceded by New Creation |
Earl of Leicester and Lancaster | Succeeded by Thomas |
