Edward, the Black Prince

Edward, the Black Prince (Woodstock Palace, Oxfordshire, 15 June 1330 – Westminster Palace, 8 June 1376) was the eldest son of King Edward III of England.

Edward the Black Prince
Portrait c. 1430s
Prince of Wales
15 June 1330 - 8 June 1376
12 May 1343
Predecessor	Edward of Caernarfon
Successor	Richard of Bordeaux
Born	15 June 1330
Died	8 June 1376 (aged 45)
Spouse	Joan of Kent (m. 1361 - 1376)
Father	Edward III of England

The Black Prince's coat of arms, as heir-apparent to the English throne.

Effigy on tomb of Edward in Canterbury Cathedral

Edward was born at Woodstock Palace, near Oxford. He was made Prince of Wales in 1343, and followed his father into battle against France. He became a famous soldier, helping win the Battle of Crécy and commanding the Battle of Poitiers. He was a founding member of the Order of the Garter. In 1361, he married his cousin, Joan of Kent. They had two sons, Edward and Richard. The older son, Edward, died when he was only six.

Edward of Woodstock has become known in history as "the Black Prince", but no one is quite sure of the reason for the nickname. He died at the age of 45, and was buried at the Canterbury Cathedral. As his father was still living, he never became king himself. He asked his father to give the title Prince of Wales to his son Richard, who later became King Richard II of England.

Edward, The Black Prince Media

• 

  The Black Prince at Crécy by Julian Russell Story, 1888, shows the prince contemplating his slain opponent, King John of Bohemia. Telfair Museums, Savannah, Georgia

• 

  Battle of Poitiers, from the Grandes Chroniques de France

• 

  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

• 

  Nineteenth-century illustration of the Black Prince's march through Roncesvalles

• 

  The siege of Limoges in 1370

• 

  Edward's tomb in Canterbury Cathedral

• 

  Edward's heraldic achievements on display in Canterbury Cathedral

• 

  The coat of arms of Edward the Black Prince at Canterbury Cathedral

• 

  Signet ring of the Black Prince found in Montpensier, France in 1866. Louvre, Paris.

• 

  A 19th-century illustration of the Black Prince