1st Duke of York Edmund of Langely

Notes:

Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, was the fourth surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. Like many medieval English princes, Edmund gained his nickname from his birthplace: Kings Langley Palace in Hertfordshire. He was the founder of the House of York, but it was through the marriage of his younger son, Richard of Conisburgh, 3rd Earl of Cambridge, to Anne de Mortimer, great-granddaughter of Edmund's elder brother Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, that the House of York made its claim to the English throne in the Wars of the Roses. The other party in the Wars of the Roses, the incumbent House of Lancaster, was formed from descendants of Edmund's elder brother John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, Edward III's third son.

EDMUND OF LANGLEY, DUKE OF YORK, fifth son of Edward III, was born at King's Langley in Hertfordshire on the 5th of June 1341. He accompanied his father on a campaign in France in 1359, was created Earl of Cambridge in 1362, and took part in expeditions to France and Spain, being present at the sack of Limoges in 1370. After marrying Isabella (d.1393), daughter of Peter the Cruel, King of Castile, he was appointed one of the English lieutenants in Brittany, whither he led an army in 1375. A second campaign in Brittany was followed in 1381 by an expedition under the earl's leadership to aid Ferdinand, King of Portugal, in his struggle with John I, King of Castile; but after a period of inaction Edmund was compelled to return to England as Ferdinand had concluded an independent peace with Castile.

Accompanying Richard II on his march into Scotland, he was created Duke of York in August 1385, and subsequently on three occasions he acted as regent of England. In this capacity he held a parliament in 1395, and he was again serving as regent when Henry of Lancaster, afterwards Henry IV, landed in England in July 1399. After a feeble attempt to defend the interests of the absent king, York joined the victorious invader; but soon retired from public life, and, in the words of Froissart as translated by Lord Berners, "Jaye styll in his castell, and medled with nothynge of the busynesse of Englande." He died at King's Langley on the 1st of August 1402. York was a man who preferred pleasure to business, and during the critical events of his nephew's reign he was content to be guided by his more ambitious brothers, the Dukes of Lancaster and Gloucester.
His second wife was Joan, or Johanna (d.1434), daughter of Thomas Holland, Earl of Kent, but his only children were two sons [see Richard of York, Earl of Cambridge] and a daughter, Constance (d.1416), by his first wife.

Family/Spouse: Isabella of Castille. Isabella was born in 1355; died on 23 Dec 1392. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Anne Mortimer. Anne was born on 27 Dec 1390; died on 22 Sep 1411. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York (21 September 1411 – 30 December 1460), also named Richard Plantagenet, was a leading English magnate, a great-grandson of King Edward III through his father, and a great-great-great-grandson of the same king through his mother. He inherited vast estates and served in various offices of state in Ireland, France, and England, a country he ultimately governed as Lord Protectorduring the madness of King Henry VI. His conflicts with Henry's wife, Margaret of Anjou, and other members of Henry's court, as well as his competing claim on the throne, were a leading factor in the political upheaval of mid-fifteenth-century England, and a major cause of the Wars of the Roses. Richard eventually attempted to take the throne, but was dissuaded, although it was agreed that he would become king on Henry's death. But within a few weeks of securing this agreement, he died in battle. Two of his sons, Edward IV and Richard III, later ascended the throne.

Family/Spouse: Cecily Neville. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Unknown. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]