Origins 1265-1389
Origins
1265-1389 A violent rebellion in the thirteenth century
laid the foundations of the Duchy of Lancaster. The Lancaster inheritance
is created A dispute between King Henry III of England and his powerful
barons led in 1262 to an uprising known as the Barons' War. The King emerged victorious.
He seized the possessions of two of the rebel leaders: Simon de Montfort, Earl
of Leicester and Robert Ferrers, Earl of Derby, granting their estates to his
son, Edmund Crouchback, in 1266. Edmund received from Simon de Montfort interests
in Leicestershire, and from Robert Ferrers estates at Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire
and the forest of Needwood, together with a castle and land at Tutbury in Staffordshire. On
30 June 1267, Edmund received from his father, the honor, county, town and castle
of Lancaster. He was also created the 1st Earl of Lancaster. The name of the Duchy
of Lancaster derives from this part of the inheritance. In that same year
Edmund was given the manor of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, together
with manors and estates at Pickering, Goathland, Cloughton and Scalby in Yorkshire,
and at Myerscough in Lancashire. His mother, Queen Eleanor of Provence,
gave Edmund the manor of the Savoy in London in 1284. The rebel Earl On
Edmund's death, the earldom passed to his son, Thomas. His marriage to Alice Lacy,
daughter of the Earl of Lincoln, brought into the inheritance the Honors of Pontefract
(Yorkshire), Halton (Cheshire), Clitheroe (Lancashire) and Bolingbroke (Lincolnshire).
Thomas extended the inheritance by privately acquiring land in Leicester, Kenilworth
in Warwickshire and elsewhere. To the earldom of Lancaster he added the
earldoms of Lincoln and Salisbury, but he made no alteration to his title, continuing
to be known as Earl of Lancaster (and Leicester.) Thomas's life ended disastrously.
He opposed King Edward II, and was implicated in the murder of Edward's favourite,
Piers Gaveston, and other conspiracies. In 1322 he was declared a rebel, captured
and tried in his own castle at Pontefract before King Edward II. He was condemned
and beheaded, and his estates and lands were forfeited. Henry, 3rd Earl
of Lancaster Thomas's brother Henry had not been involved in this rebellion,
and gradually recovered the family fortunes. Henry petitioned the King for the
earldoms of Lancaster and Leicester, and for his brother's estates. He had some
measure of success by recovering part of the Honor of Leicester, and, in 1323,
the Earldom of Leicester. In December 1326 he was granted, to hold during the
King's pleasure, the Honors of Lancaster, Tutbury and Pickering with their castles
and other former family estates. The important and ancient manor of Ogmore
(South Glamorgan), together with its castle, was brought into the inheritance
through Henry's marriage to Maud, daughter of Patrick de Chaworth. Henry
died in 1345 and was buried in the hospital at Leicester which he had founded
in 1331. The hospital retains a strong affiliation to the Duchy of Lancaster to
this day. Duchy of Lancaster, County Palatine A
famous knight and war hero became the first Duke of Lancaster.
The
warrior Duke Henry Grosmont succeeded his father Henry, 3rd Earl of
Lancaster, to the Lancastrian earldom in 1345. One of the most celebrated noblemen
of his day, Henry was also a diplomat, administrator and soldier who took part
in many of Edward III's military campaigns. To reward him for his chivalric
achievements in France, on 6 March 1351 Edward III created Henry 1st Duke of Lancaster
"in recognition of astonishing deeds of prowess and feats of arms".
Lancashire, County Palatine In the same charter, Edward III
raised Lancaster to a County Palatine for Henry's lifetime. This meant that the
new Duke had sovereign rights in the county in the spheres of justice and administration.
The law courts in Lancashire were under the Duke's administration, and he appointed
the sheriff, judges, justices of the peace and other senior officials. In
medieval England, Palatnate powers were devolved royal powers, for use in regions
where central government was difficult. The creation of Lancashire as a County
Palatine may have been intended by Edward III as a protective barrier against
the Scots. "John of Gaunt, time honoured Lancaster" Henry,
1st Duke of Lancaster died at Leicester Castle in 1361 without a male heir. The
ducal title became extinct, and the palatinate powers reverted to King Edward
III. The inheritance passed to Henry's daughters, Blanche and Maude. Lancaster
was part of Blanche's dowry when she married King Edward III's son, John of Gaunt,
in 1359. Maude died without children in 1362, and her portion of the inheritance
passed to her sister Blanche, reuniting the inheritance. John of Gaunt,
a very powerful man, was created 2nd Duke of Lancaster by Edward III in 1362.
John recovered many of the Lancaster possessions that had been lost in 1322. He
also made valuable additions to the Duchy, including the Honors of Tickhill, Knaresborough,
Pevensey and High Peak, which he received in exchange for surrendering the Earldom
of Richmond in North Yorkshire to his father in 1372. On 28 February 1377,
Edward III recreated the Palatinate for John's lifetime. In 1390, this grant was
extended to include John's heirs. The Duke of Lancaster had become one of the
most important figures in the country. Duke and Monarch 1399
Dramatic events at the end of the fourteenth century brought a Duke
of Lancaster to the throne of England. Bolingbroke's revenge When
Edward III died in 1377, his ten-year-old grandson, Richard II, came to the throne.
The young king was heavily influenced by his powerful uncle, John of Gaunt, who
acted effectively in the role of regent. John of Gaunt was so powerful that he
became a key target for the rebels who during the Peasants' Revolt, destroyed
his Palace of the Savoy. But John of Gaunt's fortunes changed. His son,
Henry Bolingbroke, made an enemy of King Richard II, and was banished in 1398
from the kingdom for six years. When John of Gaunt died in 1399, Richard II confiscated
the enormous Lancaster inheritance and extended Henry's banishment to a life sentence. Bolingbroke
exacted a swift revenge. In 1399, Richard II was campaigning in Ireland, Henry
returned to England to claim his inheritance. Supported by leading families, he
regained control of Lancastrian strongholds and captured Richard II. The king
abdicated and was imprisoned in Pontefract Castle. Duke and King Henry
Bolingbroke was crowned Henry IV on 13 October 1399. His first act was to stipulate
the conditions under which the Lancaster inheritance should be held. The
regulating charter was known to contemporaries as the Charter of Duchy Liberties.
Later the Great Charter of the Duchy specified that the inheritance should be
held separately from all other Crown possessions, and should descend to Henry's
male heirs. Henry was anxious that the Lancaster possessions should not
merge with other Crown interests, and be lost to his family should he lose the
throne. Keeping the inheritance separate was a shrewd move to protect his descendants'
inheritance. The Duchy in the 15th and 16th Centuries
In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the Duchy of Lancaster went
from strength to strength.
Wealth and warfare Henry IV left
the direction of Duchy policy and administration mostly in the hands of Duchy
officers, but it remained an important asset. Henry IV often used the private
Duchy revenues for military purposes and to reward his followers. The Duchy castles
around the country provided security and strengthend his precarious position. The
inheritance descended to his son, Henry V. Duchy tenants served as men-at-arms
and archers in Henry V's famous French campaign, ending with the victory at Agincourt
in 1415. Henry V's son, Henry VI, became King in 1422. During his reign,
a number of grants were made using Duchy revenues, including Eton College (founded
1440) and King's College, Cambridge (founded 1441). Lancaster vs. York Towards
the end of his reign, fighting erupted between Yorkists and Lancastrians. In 1461
after many years of war, Edward IV of York became King. Although he had no Lancastrian
blood, it was reasoned that Henry VI's possessions - including the Duchy - were
forfeited and legally held in the hands of the new King. Edward IV retained
the arrangement by which the Duchy was kept separately from other Crown possessions.
By Act of Parliament, he incorporated the Duchy possessions under the title "The
Duchy of Lancaster" to be held "for ever to us and our heirs, Kings
of England, separate from all other Royal possessions." "The
Queen's ancient inheritance" The accession of Henry VII united
the houses of Lancaster and York. A charter of 1485 confirmed the Duchy
as a distinct entity to be enjoyed by subsequent Sovereigns, separate from other
Crown lands, and under its own management. There has been no fresh settlement
since. A number of foundations were endowed through the proceeds from the
Duchy during Henry VII's reign. Henry built a hospital for "pouer, nedie,
people" on the ruins of John of Gaunt's Savoy Palace. The only part which
survives today is thought to be incorporated within The Queen's Chapel of the
Savoy. Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries left the Duchy of Lancaster
with obligations to meet certain stipends, including those of the guides over
the Kent and Leven sands in northern Lancashire. By the reign of Elizabeth
I, Duchy revenues were greater than ever, and the post of Chancellor was occupied
by important figures such as Sir Thomas More and Sir Francis Walsingham. In 1556
the Duchy was described as "one of the most famous, princeliest and stateliest
pieces of the Queen's ancient inheritance". The Duchy in the 17th
and 18th Centuries In the turmoil of the seventeenth century,
the Duchy of Lancaster fell on difficult times. Attempts to abolish the
Duchy The extravagant Stuart kings - especially James I and Charles
I - sold large parts of the Duchy to raise money. Lavishness and controversial
decisions led to widespread dissatisfaction with the monarchy. Charles I was executed
in 1649. Parliament passed an act abolishing kings and disabling the king's issue
from the Crown and its possessions, including the Duchy of Lancaster. Many Crown
and Duchy lands were sold to pay for the war. As a landed estate, the Duchy ceased
to exist, although Cromwell did preserve the jurisdiction of the County Palatine
of Lancaster. The Restoration of the monarchy in May 1660 included the
return of the Crown's succession to the Duchy. Much Duchy land was recovered,
but the revenues of the Duchy had been badly depleted. For a century, the
Duchy was in reduced circumstances. Under Charles II and William III, sales or
grants of Duchy lands continued. The low state of the Duchy's fortunes made it
a target for reformers and abolitionists. Hard times In 1702,
the Crown passed to Queen Anne. In the first year of her reign, an Act was passed
preventing further sales of Crown lands, to shore up the capital available to
the Sovereign. The Duchy remained in crisis for the next 60 years. In fact,
during the first half of the century, the Duchy was almost bankrupt. In 1760-61,
profits amounted to ?16.18s.4d. No revenues had been paid to the Privy Purse of
the Sovereign for many years. An age of improvement In the
same year, George III surrendered his other hereditary estates (except the Duchy
of Cornwall) in return for the Civil List, an annual payment from Parliament to
manage his household. www.crownestate.co.uk The Duchy of Lancaster, however, was
not mentioned in this arrangement. This may have been because its revenues were
not thought worth taking, or because the Duchy was seen as separate from the hereditary
revenues of the Crown. George III's long reign saw many changes in the Duchy.
Lord Strange, Chancellor from 1762 to 1771, set in motion a programme of improvement.
Methods of farming were being revolutionised, and the ban on land sales of was
gradually being relaxed. Enclosures and agricultural improvements were introduced.
Canals, railways and roads were constructed across the various lands, making it
easier for Duchy officers to travel across the estate. The result of these improvements
was increasing revenues for the king. The Reign Of Queen Victoria
In the nineteenth century, the unique status of the Duchy came
under increasing scrutiny.
Attacks on the Duchy The accession
of William IV in 1830 raised the question of parliamentary interference to the
Duchy once more. In his speech from the throne on 2 November 1830, William IV
declared that he surrendered his interest in the hereditary revenues of the Crown.
Many members of the House of Commons took the surrender to include the two Duchies.
The matter was only settled the following year with clarification of the private
nature of the Duchy revenues. The issue had been finally resolved. Parliamentary
attacks arose again after William IV's death in 1837. Radical politicians targeted
sinecures and extravagant establishments; the Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster
were among their targets. Following the accession of Queen Victoria, the Chancellor
of the Exchequer considered giving up the Duchies to the public purse. The Duchy
Council successfully argued against it, proving that, far from lessening the expense
to the public, transfer of the Duchy of Lancaster would actually increase it. To
satisfy critics, it was decided that accounts of the receipts and disbursements
of both Duchies would be submitted and presented by the Treasury to both Houses
of Parliament. The Duchy continues to publish a full financial report today. Reform
and consolidation Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert, took
a personal interest in promoting improvement in the Duchy. In the 1850s, the Duchy's
Chancellor, Lord Granville, realised that the estate was inefficient because it
was spread across so many areas. At the time, the Duchy had 38,301 acres in sixteen
counties. Consolidation would make supervision more efficient and increase the
revenues reaching the Queen. Although the Duchy had restricted powers of
sale, the Duchy of Lancaster Lands Act of 1855 permitted the disposal, on suitable
terms, of land not deemed convenient to be held with other possessions, across
a large number of counties. The effect of this, together with improved methods
of administration, was a gradual increase in the net revenues which were paid
into the Sovereign's Privy Purse. In 1838 it was a mere ?5,000 but by 1896 it
had risen to ?60,000. The 20th Century to Present During
the twentieth century, the Duchy evolved into a modern, commercial portfolio. The
Modern Duchy The Duchy of Lancaster was in a prosperous position when
Queen Victoria died in 1901. In the previous year, the payment to the Privy Purse
had reached ?61,000, the highest figure yet. The twentieth century saw changes
in the Duchy's income. Revenue from minerals declined sharply following the nationalisation
of the coal industry in 1938. This was balanced by income from agricultural estates
purchased with compensation from nationalisation. The Second World War affected
the Duchy of Lancaster more than the First World War. The Savoy Chapel was bombed
in 1940; some Duchy property was occupied for war purposes; and half of the Duchy
woodlands were felled for the war effort, requiring a major replanting programme
after the war. With the return of peace, the Duchy estates were reorganised
as part of a modernisation initiative. The estates were grouped into divisions
named 'Surveys'. Money was invested in improving the supply of water, electricity
and sanitation. The area of Enfield Chase in Greater London was sold by
agreement to form part of the original Metropolitan Green Belt, and the proceeds
were invested in more agricultural land. Purchases were mostly made near the Duchy's
historic holdings. "The Queen, Duke of Lancaster!" The
present Queen retains a keen interest in the Duchy of Lancaster, which provides
a regular income for Her Majesty to manage her commitments. Throughout her reign,
she has made regular visits to the estate, and has strengthened the Duchy's charitable
work. www.royal.gov.uk Seven centuries after it began, today's Duchy is
a modern, professional organisation looking confidently towards the future. All
business decisions are made with the aim of ensuring that this unique and resilient
institution remains in existence for centuries to come.
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