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Canterbury Christ Church University’s repository of research outputs http://create.canterbury.ac.uk Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given e.g. Armstrong, A. (2018) The daughters of Henry III. Ph.D. thesis, Canterbury Christ Church University. Contact: [email protected] THE DAUGHTERS OF HENRY III by Abigail Sophie Armstrong Canterbury Christ Church University Thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2018 ii Abstract This thesis examines Henry III and Eleanor of Provence’s three daughters: Margaret, Beatrice and Katherine. It is a comparative study of their lives and relationships with their parents, arguing that the English king and queen cared greatly for the welfare and prosperity of their daughters from birth. These close family bonds continued after the daughters’ marriages and departures for their husbands’ courts, and both Henry and Eleanor continued to be strong influences in their daughters’ adult lives. This study contributes to the historiography concerning the role of medieval royal daughters. It demonstrates that Margaret and Beatrice were not forgotten about by their natal family following their nuptials but, rather, these relationships continued, and their new marital families were quickly integrated within the larger English royal family. Henry’s parental concern for his daughters also strongly influenced his politics. In marriage, Henry was prepared to forego alliances if he did not feel that his daughters would be suitably provided for as wives that befitted their status as the English king’s daughters. Similarly, these concerns continued into married life, as Henry and Eleanor intervened in the minority government of Scotland when they felt that Margaret’s rights and liberties were being infringed. Henry and Eleanor’s strong, emotional attachment to their daughters is most apparent in the short life of Katherine, whose death caused her parents inconsolable grief, demonstrating that parents formed strong attachments to their infant children and were not prepared for their deaths. This thesis adds to our understanding of the lives of royal women, as well as Henry III as a king and as a father. Moreover, it demonstrates the interconnectivity of familial concerns and politics in the thirteenth century. iii iv Acknowledgements The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the award of a three-year Graduate School Scholarship from Canterbury Christ Church University. The Royal Historical Society also kindly provided me with a generous Research Expenses Grant which permitted me to undertake archival research in Paris. I am indebted to my supervisors, Professor Louise Wilkinson and Dr Michael Bintley, for their unwavering guidance and support throughout this process. I would also like to thank Professor David Carpenter, Dr Judith Everard, Professor Lindy Grant, Dr Emily Guerry, Dr Kathleen Neal and Dr Paul Webster for providing me with feedback or responding to my queries. Dr Jessica Nelson and Dr Sally Dixon-Smith also provided me with copies of their theses which have proved invaluable to this study. The medieval history community has been most warm and welcoming as I have undertaken this research. The fledgling but growing Noblewomen Network and the Family and Power Conference in 2017, organised by myself and Dr Harriet Kersey, allowed spaces for discussion which have helped shape my research. My thanks go to Sally Spong and Dr Emily Ward for reading my sections of my work. Additionally, I would like to thank the post-graduate community at CCCU, particularly Harriet, Paul Anderson, Matt Bain, Deanna Demetriou and Keli Jenner for their friendship and collegiality. Special mention also goes to our enclave of thirteenth- century medievalists, a.k.a the ‘School of Wilkinson’. Finally, I would like to thank my parents for their constant support. v vi Abbreviations AD Archives Départementales AM Annales Monastici, ed. H.R. Luard (London: Longman, Rolls Series, 1864–9), 5 volumes Articles Articles ordained by King Henry VII for the regulation of his Household in A Collection of Ordinances and Regulations for the Government of the Royal Household (London, 1790) BL British Library CChR Calendar of the Charter Rolls (London: HMSO, 1903–8), 3 volumes CCR Calendar of the Close Rolls (London: HMSO, 1900–38), 16 volumes CDPF Calendar of Documents Preserved in France, ed. J.H. Round (London: HMSO, 1899) CDRS Calendar of Documents Relating to Scotland (Edinburgh, 1881– 8), 4 volumes CFR Calendar of the Fine Rolls, Volume I: Edward I, 1272–1307 (London: HMSO, 1911) CLR Calendar of the Liberate Rolls (London: HMSO, 1916–64), 6 volumes CM Chronica Majora, ed. H.R. Luard (London: Longman, Rolls Series, 1872–83), 7 volumes CPR Calendar of the Patent Rolls (London: HMSO, 1893–1913), 8 volumes CR Close Rolls of the Reign of Henry III (London, 1902–75), 14 volumes vii Fine Rolls Fine Rolls of Henry III: available online as part of the Henry III Fine Roll Project at http://www.finerollshenry3.org.uk/content/calendar/calendar. html Flores Flores Historiarum, ed. H.R. Luard (London: Longman, Rolls Series, 1890), 3 volumes Foedera Foedera, conventiones, litterae et cujuscunque generis acta publica, ed. T. Rymer (London, 1816) Fordun Johannis de Fordun, Chronica Gentis Scotorum, ed. W.F. Skene (Edinburgh: Edmonston and Douglas, 1871) HMSO Her Majesty’s Stationer’s Office Layettes Layettes du Trésor des Chartes (Paris, 1863–1902), 4 tomes Letters Royal and Other Historical Letters Illustrative of the Reign of Henry III, ed. W.W. Shirley, (London: Longman, 1862–6), 2 volumes ODNB Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Preuves Memoires pour servir de preuves à l’histoire ecclesiastique et civile de Bretagne, ed. Dom. H. Morice, Tome I (Paris: Charles Osmont, 1742) PROME The Parliament Rolls of Medieval England, Volume II: Edward I 1294–1307, ed. P. Brand (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2012) TNA The National Archives viii Contents Abstract........................................................................................................................................................ iii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................... v Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................................... vii Family Trees ............................................................................................................................................ xiii Note on Names ........................................................................................................................................ xix Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 21 Historiography and Methodology ................................................................................................ 21 Sources ................................................................................................................................................... 37 Chronicles ......................................................................................................................................... 37 Records of Royal Government .................................................................................................. 42 Scottish and Breton Records ..................................................................................................... 47 Literary Sources ............................................................................................................................. 48 Structure ................................................................................................................................................ 49 Chapter I: Entry into the World .................................................................................................... 53 Birth and Name Choice .................................................................................................................... 53 Queenly Childbearing ....................................................................................................................... 68 Ritual and Ceremony: Churching and Purification ........................................................... 68 Eleanor of Provence’s Pregnancies ........................................................................................ 74 Chapter II: Childhood: The Royal Nursery at Windsor ..................................................... 85 Henry and Eleanor’s Parental Attachment ............................................................................... 85 The Children’s Households ............................................................................................................. 87 Provisioning the Households ...................................................................................................