The Royal Daughters of England: The Office of Princess-ship 1270-1530

Abstract

This thesis will examine the ideology and expectations surrounding English medieval princesses between 1270 and 1530. It aims to compare the experiences of the young women who occupied this unique position at the top echelon of medieval society to draw wider conclusions about medieval women and politics. This thesis is not intended as a narrative of royal daughters’ lives but rather as an analytical study of the office of ‘princess-ship’, acknowledging its corollary with queenship. Such a cohesive study of medieval princesses does not exist, with hardly any detailed study undertaken since Mary Anne Everett Green’s volumes of 1849-1855. This study argues that the royal daughters of England had a distinctive political role to play both on the domestic and international stage, which was utilised through their unique status as a princess. Firstly, I will examine how a princess was raised and educated, identifying why her education was integral to spreading the crown’s influence, while also preparing her for marriage. Next, the alliances created through the marriages of royal daughters will be explored to understand the intercessory role they played on the wider political stage and their distinctive part to play in the success of their family dynasties. Finally, my third chapter contains a discussion of the role that princesses played in succession crises for the English crown and the complexities that a second marriage caused for succession. It also examines the political repercussions of the two princesses who joined the Church. Case studies have been selected from among the English princesses from the period who lived beyond infancy. This thesis will not attempt to deal in detail with each of these, but rather compare them to draw connections and identify trends across time. This thesis examines official records such as administrative documents, letters, as well as contemporary chronicles, which are then contextualised through wider studies of youth in the Middle Ages, family dynamics, politics and discussions of femininity and gender.