The uncrowned queen : Alice Perrers, Edward III and political crisis in fourteenth-century England, 1360-1377
Abstract
This thesis is a full political biography of Alice Perrers, the mistress of Edward III from the
early 1360s until his death in June 1377 and mother to three of his children. It argues on the
basis of the progression of her career that after the death of Edward’s queen consort Philippa
of Hainault in August 1369 Alice was able to extend the scope of her power and influence to
the point that she became a ‘quasi’ or ‘uncrowned’ queen and, consequently, that her
contribution to the political crisis of the 1370s can only be fully understood in terms of
queenship. More generally, despite the recent increase on work on Alice, this study suggests
that her life deserves a more thorough and nuanced appraisal than it has so far received.
Various aspects of Alice’s life are explored: her birth, family and first marriage; her early
years as Edward III’s mistress; the change in her status after Philippa of Hainault’s death; her
commercial activity as a moneylender and businesswoman; her accumulation of a landed
estate and moveable goods; what happened to her in the Good Parliament; her trial in 1377;
her marriage to William Wyndesore; and her life after Edward III’s death. By examining
Alice’s career in this fashion it is shown that she took a leading role in the court party during
the 1370s. Ultimately, by taking the original approach of applying ideas about queenship to a
royal mistress this thesis demonstrates that Alice was perceived to have ‘inverted’ or
undermined the traditional role that the queen played in complementing and upholding the
sovereignty and kingship of her husband, something that has implications for the wider study
of not only mistresses, but also queens and queenship and even male favourites.
Type
Thesis, PhD Doctor of Philosophy
Rights
Embargo Date: 2023-10-10
Embargo Reason: Thesis restricted in accordance with University regulations. Print and electronic copy restricted until 10th October 2023
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