Edward II! Oh Gaveston! Oh Gaveston!

‘T’was Piers, Piers Gaveston, his antics of mischief realised our worst, most abominable  fears!

Mention his name in any noble household and you would immediately be deafened by the loudest jeers!’

The cream of the English ruling class departed from Westminster, bemoaning the fare and sights that they had been subjected to at the coronation banquet. Some actually accused Gaveston of deliberately sabotaging the preparations in the royal kitchens to ensure that the food would be foul to the palate, as they knew of his warped sense of humour. How he looked over, grinning and leering as they, with set faces valiantly tackled the unspeakable food. The service at the banquet? Goodness knows, the humble hunting hound in his kennel awaiting the daily dinner slops, received a better delivery of sustenance than that which was offered at the coronation.

‘To be given a meal burnt, over cooked and also under cooked!

T’was an insult to an English noble that could never be overlooked!

To have the food thrown to you as you sat respectfully at table!

As if you were a mere hungry workhorse dwelling in the stable!’

The memories of the king and Gaveston shamelessly fawning over each other at the banquet would linger and fester for a very long time.

King Edward II and Gaveston walking together as courtiers look on.

 However Gaveston, now elevated to the position of earl of Cornwall, was ideally placed to throw his weight around. The earldom of Cornwall had traditionally been bestowed upon a member of the royal family. The fact that it had now been given to a man of relatively low birth was another source of resentment to the nobles. Gaveston was given great influence over patronage, and many believed that he was squandering the treasury’s revenue. Edward dispensed with his father’s experienced advisers and took his cue from the lips of Gaveston. The old guard were besides themselves with fury.

‘Gaveston treats the treasury as if it is his own piggy bank!

He is not an able adviser but an incompetent, foppish crank!’

The situation was clearly intolerable and opposition mounted to the presence of Gaveston in such a post of importance.

‘What to do with Gaveston, a creature so dreadfully and incredibly vile?

The only realistic remedy available to us is to have him placed in exile!’

Gaveston had made himself unbelievably unpopular, acquiring an impressive array of foes in the process. At a parliament held in April of 1308, the barons supported by the French royal family, and the Archbishop of Canterbury demanded that Gaveston be exiled from the realm. At first the king resisted, but under considerable pressure he did eventually agree to exile his favourite courtier. King Edward had Gaveston stripped of his title of earl of Cornwall and in June sent him to Ireland as Lord Lieutenant.  He would oversee English rule in Dublin and the surrounding area known as ‘The Pale’. This was not quite the banishment that had been hoped for, but it did remove him from the levers of power in London. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Winchelsey told Gaveston that if he returned he would be excommunicated from the Church.

‘Gaveston boarded the ship and westwards to Ireland he did sail!

He would reside in Dublin and rule an area, known as The Pale!’

King Edward would have been particularly irritated by this because his father, Edward I had exiled Winchelsey and he had allowed the Archbishop to return.

However, Edward had not totally relented to the demands of the barons. He soon petitioned the Pope to have the threat of excommunication issued by Winchelsey withdrawn.