Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March facts for kids

Arms of Mortimer family

Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March (born 1391, died 1425) was an important English nobleman. He was a potential heir to the throne of England.

Edmund was a great-great-grandson of King Edward III of England. This made him a possible successor to King Richard II of England. However, Richard II was removed from power. Henry IV then became king instead.

Edmund Mortimer's claim to the throne caused many problems. It led to rebellions and plots against King Henry IV and his son, Henry V. Later, this claim was used by the House of York in the Wars of the Roses. Even so, Edmund Mortimer himself was a loyal supporter of Henry V and Henry VI. He was the last person from the Mortimer family to hold the title of Earl of March.

Early Life of Edmund Mortimer

Born into a Powerful Family

Edmund Mortimer, the 5th Earl of March, was born on November 6, 1391. His birthplace was New Forest in Westmeath, one of his family's estates in Ireland. His parents were Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, and Eleanor Holland.

Edmund had a younger brother named Roger. He also had two sisters. Anne married Richard, Earl of Cambridge. Eleanor married Sir Edward de Courtenay.

A Royal Family Tree

Edmund's mother, Eleanor, was the daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent. Thomas Holland's mother was Joan of Kent. Joan was a granddaughter of King Edward I. She was also the mother of King Richard II.

More importantly, Edmund was a descendant of King Edward III of England. This was through his grandmother, Philippa of Clarence. Philippa was the only child of King Edward III's second son.

Heir to the Throne

King Richard II of England had no children. Because of this, Edmund's father, Roger Mortimer, was the next in line to the throne. When Roger died in 1398, Edmund became the rightful heir. He was only seven years old at the time.

However, things changed quickly. On September 30, 1399, King Richard II was removed from power. Henry Bolingbroke became the new king. Henry IV made his own son, the future King Henry V, the next in line.

King Henry IV placed young Edmund and his brother Roger under guard. They were kept at Windsor and Berkhamsted castles. But they were treated well. For some time, they even grew up with the King's own children.

Challenges for Edmund Mortimer

Rebellion Against Henry IV

In 1402, Edmund's uncle, Sir Edmund Mortimer, was captured. He was taken by a Welsh rebel leader named Owain Glyndŵr. King Henry IV refused to pay a ransom for Sir Edmund. He also took away Sir Edmund's property.

Sir Edmund then married Glyndŵr's daughter. In December 1402, he declared that his nephew Edmund was the true heir to the throne.

Sir Edmund's sister was married to Henry "Hotspur" Percy. In 1403, the Percys started a rebellion. They joined forces with Glyndŵr and Sir Edmund. Hotspur was defeated and killed in battle.

The Abduction Plot

The alliance of Glyndŵr, Sir Edmund, and the Percys continued. In 1405, they planned to divide the kingdom into three parts. This plan was linked to a plot to free Edmund and his brother Roger. They wanted to take the boys to Wales.

On February 13, 1405, the boys were taken from Windsor Castle. But they were quickly caught again. A woman named Constance of York was blamed. She said her brother, the Duke of York, was involved. He was then put in prison.

Because of this failed plot, Edmund and Roger were placed under stricter guard. They stayed at Pevensey Castle until 1409. After that, they were put in the care of the King's son, the Prince of Wales. They remained under guard for the rest of Henry IV's reign.

Loyalty to King Henry V

Freedom and Marriage

When Henry V became king in 1413, he set Edmund Mortimer free. On April 8, 1413, Edmund and his brother Roger were made Knights of the Bath. This was the day before the new King's coronation.

On June 9, 1413, the King gave Edmund control of his family's lands. Edmund later received permission to marry a relative. He married his second cousin, Anne Stafford. She was also a descendant of King Edward III. The King was not happy about this marriage. He made Edmund pay a very large fine.

A Trusted Advisor

Despite this small disagreement, Edmund Mortimer was completely loyal to Henry V. He never tried to claim the throne for himself. He became one of Henry V's most trusted advisors.

In April 1415, Mortimer was part of the council that decided to go to war with France. In July 1415, he was a witness to the King's will.

The Southampton Plot

While preparing for the invasion of France, some nobles planned a conspiracy. This was called the Southampton Plot. They wanted to take Mortimer to Wales and declare him king. The main plotter was Edmund's brother-in-law, the Earl of Cambridge.

When Mortimer learned about this plan, he told the King immediately. He then helped to judge and condemn the plotters. They were executed in August. The King officially pardoned Mortimer for any small involvement in the plot.

Fighting in France

Mortimer joined Henry V's army in France. He was already deeply in debt. He fought in several battles in Normandy. He got sick during the Siege of Harfleur and had to return to England.

He later returned to France. He was part of the army that conquered Normandy in 1417 and 1418. In 1420, he was at the siege of Melun.

In February 1421, Mortimer went back to England with the King and his new wife, Catherine of Valois. He carried the sceptre at Catherine's coronation. He returned to France with Henry V in June 1421. He was at the Siege of Meaux, where the King became very ill. Henry V died on August 31, 1422.

Edmund's Final Years

Trim Castle, where Edmund Mortimer died.

Henry V's son, King Henry VI, was only nine months old when he became king. On December 9, 1422, Mortimer was appointed to the council that would rule the country for the young king.

In May 1423, he was made the King's representative in Ireland. At first, he sent someone else to do the job. But after an argument with the King's uncle, Mortimer was sent to Ireland himself.

He arrived in Ireland in the autumn of 1424. On January 18 or 19, 1425, he died of plague at Trim Castle. He was buried at Stoke-by-Clare, Suffolk. He had started a religious college there in 1414.

Edmund Mortimer had no children. When he died, the Mortimer family line of the Earls of March ended. The heir to his lands and titles was his nephew, Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York (1411–1460). Richard was the son of Edmund's sister Anne.

Richard also inherited Mortimer's claim to the throne. He eventually used this claim, which helped start the Wars of the Roses.

Edmund's wife, Anne, married again in 1427. She died in 1432.

Shakespeare and the Mortimers

The famous writer Shakespeare wrote about events involving Edmund Mortimer's uncle, Sir Edmund Mortimer. This was in his play Henry IV, Part 1. In the play, Shakespeare correctly shows that Sir Edmund was Hotspur's brother-in-law. But he also incorrectly calls him "Earl of March," confusing him with his nephew.

The Southampton Plot is also shown in Shakespeare's play Henry V. However, the play does not explain why the plot happened correctly. It also completely leaves out Edmund Mortimer's role in telling the King about the plot and judging the plotters.

Edmund Mortimer also appears in Henry VI, Part 1. In this play, he is incorrectly shown as an old man who has been in prison for a long time. In a made-up scene, Mortimer explains his family's claim to the throne to his nephew Richard. He encourages Richard to pursue his own claim. In real life, Richard was only thirteen when his uncle died. He was also being raised in northern England at the time.

Images for kids

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  Clare Priory, burial place of Edmund Mortimer

See also

In Spanish: Edmundo Mortimer, V conde de la Marca para niños