The first known elephant in England arrived in 1255. It was made a gift to Henry III by Louis IX of France, who himself had received it from his former captor, the Sultan of Egypt. Chronicler Matthew Paris drew a picture of it, noting that it was 10 years old and 10 feet tall. It was housed at the Tower of London […]
The Cosmati pavement at the high altar of Westminster Abbey, one of the wonders of the medieval world. In these intricate shapes and swirls, Henry III sought to represent the creation of the universe as it emerges from a nebula-like center disc. He also devised a formula, based on the life expectancy of living creatures, both real and imagined, to determine the age […]
When Henry III invested Simon de Montfort with the title Earl of Leicester in 1239, the two men were standing on the dais (platform) next to the west wall of Winchester Hall, where the round table crafted during the reign of Henry’s son Edward hangs today […]
Richard of Cornwall, younger brother of Henry III and the only Englishman to wear the crown of Germany, was born on this day of the 5th of January in 1209 in Devizes. Richard and Henry were the only contemporary brother kings in English history, yet both have been squeezed out of their rightful place […]
Henry III was born in Winchester in 1207. Henry was very much attached to Winchester and often held his colourful Christmas courts there. He built the Great Hall that still stands there, and yet the city remains indifferent to his memory […]
Volume 2 of David Carpenter’s biography of Henry III for the Yale English Monarchs Series is out, and so is […]
The BBC has naturally weighed in on the controversy of the Spare memoir about to come out. Their correspondent writes that there are “historical templates” for the rivalry between royal siblings. “Think of Bad King John versus Good King Richard” in a “power struggle between brothers”. Completely laughable […]
The sons of King John, Henry III and Richard of Cornwall, were close to their sister Empress Isabella, who died […]
Next Wednesday, the 16th of November, marks 750 years since Henry III died at his palace in Westminster. The legacy […]
The reign of King Henry III began on this day of the 28th of October in 1216. Just a nine-year-old […]
On the 20th of January in 1236, Eleanor of Provence was crowned queen of England. A mounted troop and the […]
On this 14th of January in 1236, Henry III married Eleanor of Provence in Canterbury. A fanciful story has come […]
Henry III died on this day of 16 November in 1272 in his chamber at Westminster Palace. His last months […]
The annals of Tewkesbury reports that on this St Michael’s Day in 1258, Salisbury Cathedral was consecrated in the presence […]
Sometime in the late hours of this day in 1239, Eleanor of Provence gave birth to a boy she and […]
The battle of Lewes was fought on this day of 14 May in 1264. After being stomped about by Henry […]
Henry III and Simon de Montfort were about the same age, in their early twenties, both were unmarried and as […]
So how did Simon (VI) de Montfort come to settle in England in the first place? The answer is a […]
When Charles of Anjou moved in to conquer the kingdom of Sicily in 1265, he chose Philip II de Montfort […]
The de Montfort family of the 13th century held lordships from Wales to the Holy Land. That gave them ample […]
