Dogs of Lust

On the 21st September, 1327 King Edward II died. The circumstances surrounding his death have been disputed for centuries and sordid accounts suggesting that he was tortured and humiliated before his death have not been historically verified. However his final years were marred by controversy and infamy, and rumours of sexual deviancy. Many historians have questioned the veracity of these rumours, and maintain that this was just malicious gossip and black propaganda from his rivals and enemies.

It is easy to see the origin of these lurid tales. Edward made the deliberate decision to co-operate with the nobles, a starkly different style of rule from his predecessor, his father King Edward I. His close affinity to the nobles sparked suspicion, it was unlike a King to present such an affable nature, it looked weak, and it was a challenge to his supremacy. The nobles, in turn, competed with each other to be the King’s favourite. They knew how to flatter and to fawn for their own advantage.

However it was clear from the very start who the King favoured, Piers Gaveston. Gaveston was amply rewarded for his loyalty and friendship, but raised the hackles of his wife, Isabella when he gave him her jewels as a present. Isabella herself was no ordinary Queen. She became a legend in her own right, appropriating traditionally male traits. She was ruthless and indomitable and was renowned for her lust for ultimate power. Consequently she received public opprobrium and the nickname “she-wolf”. Although she initially accommodated Gaveston into the court, she grew increasingly frustrated by him and plotted to have him removed. Gaveston was initially banished to Ireland to bolster support for the King in that realm.

On his return the King sought to consolidate his power in Scotland and Wales. Gaveston abhorred his rivals. He scorned them because he sought the King’s affection solely for himself. He called the other nobles childish names like Burst Belly, the Cuckold’s Bird and the Black Dog of Arden. Such insults only hardened their resolve to destroy Gaveston. In March 1313 a warrant was issued for his arrest. Gaveston and the King tried to escape but they were captured by the earl of Warwick, the so-called “Black Dog” who had offended him so much. Warwick and four other nobles condemned him to death and he was beheaded at Blacklow Hill, just outside Warwick.

Edward had lost his closest confidante and was humiliated. He tried to regain his power in his pursuit to acquire Scotland, but he was no match for the Scots and he lost the battle of Bannockburn. At this time, Isabella and Edward were estranged. Isabella acquired a new circle of loyalists, including Hugh Despenser and a secret lover, Roger Mortimer the earl of March. She fled to France with Mortimer and her son and heir, the future King Edward III.

She was planning a coup, while her husband was imprisoned at Berkeley Castle. This was where the murky murder took place. Some accounts claim that he was pressed down upon a table by heavy weights until he suffocated. The most notorious account which is still widely believed, was that he was disembowelled by a red hot poker. However the whole sorry affair simply illustrates the gruesome nature of power in medieval England, which we are too inclined to forget.