A Young Monarch’s Burden

When Richard II ascended to the English throne, he was merely a boy of ten, thrust into leadership during one of England’s most challenging periods. The year was 1377, and the kingdom still reeled from the recent death of his grandfather, Edward III. The Black Prince, Richard’s father, had preceded his own father in death, creating a complicated succession that would haunt the young king throughout his reign. At fifteen or sixteen, Richard married Anne of Bohemia, a political match that would become one of his few sources of genuine comfort amid the turmoil of his court.

The early years of Richard’s reign were marked by regency governments, first under his uncle John of Gaunt, and later through various councils dominated by powerful nobles. This arrangement, while necessary during the king’s minority, created expectations and power structures that would prove difficult to dismantle when Richard came of age. The royal court became a battleground where competing factions vied for influence, wealth, and control over the young monarch.

The Growing Divide

As Richard matured, he naturally yearned for the independence and authority that rightfully belonged to his position. This brought him into direct conflict with his uncles, particularly John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester. These powerful relatives had grown accustomed to wielding considerable influence during Richard’s minority and were reluctant to surrender their control.

Richard’s mother, Joan of Kent, played a significant role in shaping the young king’s suspicions. She maintained close ties with her son and constantly warned him about his uncles’ alleged schemes against the crown. Her particular distrust focused on John of Gaunt and his son Henry Bolingbroke – suspicions that would prove prophetic in later years. This maternal influence reinforced Richard’s natural inclination to view his relatives as threats rather than allies.

The royal court became increasingly divided between what contemporaries called the “king’s friends” and the “lords appellant.” Richard systematically appointed men without royal blood to key positions, hoping to create a administration loyal primarily to himself. This strategy alienated the traditional nobility, who viewed these appointments as upstarts undermining their ancient privileges and access to power.

The Crisis of 1386

The political tensions reached their breaking point when Richard turned twenty. His uncle Thomas, Duke of Gloucester, had built substantial influence within Parliament and used this platform to challenge the king’s authority directly. Gloucester and his allies succeeded in having several of Richard’s closest advisors removed from office and imprisoned, accusing them of corruption and mismanagement.

Emboldened by these successes, Gloucester proposed a radical solution to Parliament: the appointment of a governing commission that would effectively rule England in the king’s name. This commission would consist of eleven bishops and nobles, with Gloucester himself at its head. The proposal represented nothing less than a constitutional revolution, seeking to transfer executive power from the monarch to a parliamentary committee.

Richard reacted with predictable fury when he learned of this plan. “I am the King of England,” he declared, “and I will govern my realm through officers of my own appointment. I will never consent to have others arranged to rule in my place.” This statement reflected the medieval concept of kingship that Richard had embraced – that monarchs received their authority directly from God and answered to no earthly power for its exercise.

Clashing Visions of Authority

The conflict between Richard and Parliament represented a fundamental disagreement about the nature of royal power in medieval England. The king adhered to the principle that Parliament’s role consisted primarily of voting taxes to meet royal needs, refining laws governing social relations, and approving appointments and salaries for royal administrators. Matters of war and peace, military command, and foreign policy remained, in Richard’s view, the exclusive prerogative of the crown.

Parliament, particularly the House of Commons, held a very different understanding of governance. The representatives of the English people believed that kings ultimately answered to their subjects and that persistent misgovernment could justify intervention, even to the point of deposing a reigning monarch. This theory had been tested before, most notably with Edward II, whose forced abdication in 1327 created a dangerous precedent that haunted his successors.

When Richard refused to accept the proposed governing commission, Parliament reminded him of his great-grandfather’s fate. Some lords went further, warning that continued resistance might cost Richard not only his throne but his life. These were not idle threats – England’s political history demonstrated that medieval kingship, while theoretically absolute, depended ultimately on maintaining the support of the powerful nobility.

The King’s Forced Surrender

Faced with these explicit threats, Richard had little choice but to capitulate. The governing commission was established, with Gloucester as its effective leader. For approximately a year, England witnessed the unusual spectacle of a reigning monarch being sidelined by his own relatives and subjects. Though all official documents continued to bear Richard’s name, real power rested with Gloucester and his allies on the commission.

This humiliation burned deeply in the young king’s heart. While publicly accepting the new arrangement, Richard privately vowed to reclaim his authority at the earliest opportunity. He began laying plans to reverse this constitutional revolution and punish those responsible for what he considered an unforgivable assault on royal prerogative.

The governing period proved challenging for all involved. The commissioners struggled to maintain unity among themselves, while Richard worked tirelessly to undermine their authority behind the scenes. The king’s supporters maintained a shadow network of communication and support, waiting for the right moment to strike back against what they viewed as an illegitimate seizure of power.

The Nottingham Strategy

After enduring the commission’s rule for nearly a year, Richard decided the time had come to reassert his authority. He traveled to Nottingham, away from the political pressures of London, where he secretly convened a group of judges sympathetic to his cause. The location was strategic – Nottingham Castle provided both security and distance from Gloucester’s influence in the capital.

The judges, whose loyalty Richard had carefully cultivated, were asked to rule on the legality of Parliament’s governing commission. Unsurprisingly, given their selection and the nature of medieval justice, they returned the verdict Richard desired: the commission was declared illegal, and Parliament had exceeded its authority in creating it. This legal ruling provided Richard with the justification he needed to dissolve the commission and resume personal control of the government.

The Nottingham judgment represented more than just a political victory for Richard. It reflected his growing understanding of how to wield the tools of governance to his advantage. By seeking legal sanction for his actions, Richard demonstrated a sophisticated approach to kingship that went beyond mere assertion of divine right.

The Aftermath and Continuing Struggles

Richard’s reclamation of power did not end the political conflicts that plagued his reign. The events of 1386-1388 created lasting resentments on all sides. The king never forgot the humiliation of being forced to surrender his authority, while the lords appellant remained suspicious of Richard’s intentions and his reliance on advisors they considered unworthy.

The political landscape had been fundamentally altered. A precedent had been set for parliamentary intervention in royal governance, while Richard’s determination to avoid future constraints would shape his policies for years to come. The king increasingly sought ways to make his authority independent of the traditional power structures that had frustrated his will.

These tensions manifested in various ways throughout the remaining years of Richard’s reign. The court remained divided, with the king’s loyalists competing for influence with the traditional nobility. Regional power bases became increasingly important, as different factions built support outside London. The political stability that England desperately needed remained elusive.

The Personal Toll

The constant political struggles took a significant personal toll on Richard. His relationship with his uncles deteriorated beyond repair, particularly with Thomas of Gloucester, whom the king came to view as a personal enemy rather than merely a political opponent. Even John of Gaunt, who had sometimes attempted to mediate between the factions, found himself increasingly distrusted by the king.

Richard’s marriage to Anne of Bohemia provided his main source of emotional support during these difficult years. Contemporary accounts suggest theirs was a genuinely affectionate partnership, unusual in an age of political marriages. Anne occasionally attempted to intercede in political conflicts, though with limited success. Her death in 1394 would remove one of the few moderating influences on Richard’s behavior.

The king’s personality appears to have been shaped by these early political battles. Having experienced powerlessness during his minority and the governing commission period, Richard developed an almost obsessive determination to secure his authority against any potential challenge. This mindset would ultimately contribute to his downfall.

Broader Historical Context

Richard’s struggles occurred against the backdrop of significant changes in English society and governance. The Black Death of the previous generation had fundamentally altered the relationship between landowners and laborers, leading to social tensions that culminated in the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. The Hundred Years’ War with France continued intermittently, creating financial pressures and demanding leadership that Richard struggled to provide.

The English Parliament was still evolving as an institution during this period. The events of Richard’s reign contributed significantly to defining its role and powers. The confrontation between king and Parliament in the 1380s established important precedents that would influence constitutional developments for centuries to come.

Meanwhile, the nature of kingship itself was changing across Europe. The medieval concept of the king as first among equals was gradually giving way to more abstract notions of sovereignty and royal authority. Richard’s attempts to strengthen the crown placed him at the forefront of these developments, though his methods often provoked resistance from traditionalists.

Legacy of Conflict

The events surrounding the governing commission of 1386-1388 set in motion a chain of events that would ultimately lead to Richard’s deposition in 1399. The resentments and suspicions generated during this period never fully dissipated, despite occasional periods of apparent reconciliation. The king’s determination to prevent any future challenges to his authority grew increasingly extreme, leading to actions that alienated even his natural supporters.

When Henry Bolingbroke returned from exile in 1399 to claim his inheritance, he found substantial support among nobles who feared Richard’s increasingly autocratic tendencies. The king’s earlier conflicts with Parliament and his relatives had created a power vacuum that Bolingbroke skillfully exploited. Richard’s deposition marked the first time since the Norman Conquest that an English king had been removed from power by his subjects.

The reign of Richard II represents a critical transitional period in English history. The conflicts between royal authority and parliamentary power, between traditional nobility and royal favorites, would continue to shape English politics for generations. Richard’s story serves as a powerful reminder of the limitations of medieval kingship, even as he struggled to expand its boundaries.

Conclusion

Richard II’s reign stands as a compelling study of power, ambition, and the complex relationship between monarchs and their subjects in medieval England. His early struggles with his uncles and Parliament revealed fundamental tensions within the English system of governance that would take centuries to resolve. The young king’s determination to assert his authority, while understandable, ultimately proved self-defeating when pursued without regard for political realities.

The events of the 1380s demonstrated that even the most exalted concepts of royal power had to accommodate the practical realities of governance. Richard’s failure to recognize this truth would cost him his throne and his life, but the constitutional questions raised during his reign would continue to echo through English history. His story remains relevant today as a case study in the challenges of leadership and the perpetual tension between authority and accountability.