Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York

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English Royalty
House of Plantagenet

Armorial of Plantagenet
Edward III
   Edward, Prince of Wales
   Lionel, Duke of Clarence
   John, Duke of Lancaster
   Edmund, Duke of York
   Thomas, Duke of Gloucester
   Joan of England
   Isabella, Countess of Bedford
Grandchildren
    Richard II
    Philippa, Countess of Ulster
    Philippa, Queen of Portugal
    Elizabeth, Baroness Fanhope and Milbroke
    Henry IV
    Catherine, Queen of Castile
    Edward, Duke of York
    Richard, Earl of Cambridge
    Constance of York
    Anne, Countess of Eu

Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York (June 5, 1341August 1, 1402) was a younger son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault, the fourth of the five sons of the Royal couple who lived to adulthood. He was the founder of the House of York, but it was through the marriage of his younger son, Richard, that the Yorkist faction in the Wars of the Roses made its claim on the throne.

Like so many medieval princes, Edmund gained his identifying nickname from his birthplace: Kings Langley in Hertfordshire. At the age of twenty-one, he was created Earl of Cambridge. In 1384, Edmund was created Duke of York.

His first wife, Isabella of Castile, Duchess of York, was a daughter of Pedro "the Cruel" of Castile and María de Padilla. They had two sons, Edward (killed in action at the Battle of Agincourt) and Richard, Earl of Cambridge (executed for treason by Henry V), as well as a daughter, Constance (an ancestor of queen Anne Neville).

After Isabella's death in 1392, Edmund married Joan de Holland, his second cousin (she was a daughter of Joan of Kent; Joan of Kent and Edmund were both descendants of Edward I). Langley and Joan produced no children.

Although marriages within the royal family and between royal families are the rule, it is interesting to note Edmund's marital ties to his older brother, John of Gaunt. Edmund's first wife was the sister of John of Gaunt's wife, and Edmund's second wife was the sister of John of Gaunt's daughter-in-law.

[edit] Death

Edmund of Langley died in his birthplace, and was buried there, in the church of the mendicant friars. His dukedom passed to his eldest son, Edward.

Political offices
Preceded by:
Sir Thomas Reines
Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
1376–1381
Succeeded by:
Sir Robert Assheton
Preceded by:
The Lord Beaumont
Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
1396–1398
Succeeded by:
The Marquess of Dorset
Peerage of England
Preceded by:
New Creation
Earl of Cambridge
1362–1402
Succeeded by:
Edward of Norwich
Preceded by:
New Creation
Duke of York
1384–1402