by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2018
Arms of the Duchy of Lancaster; Credit – By Jr JL – This file was derived from: Duchy of Lancaster-coa.png: CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39911069
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England and is held in trust for the Sovereign to provide income for the use of the British monarch. The other royal duchy is the Duchy of Cornwall which provides a similar purpose for the eldest son of the reigning British monarch. The monarch, regardless of gender, has the style of Duke of Lancaster. The duchy comprises 46,000 acres and includes urban developments, historic buildings, farmland in many parts of England and Wales, and large holdings in Lancashire. The Sovereign is not entitled to the capital of the Duchy’s portfolio or to capital profits. Revenue profits are distributed to the Sovereign and are subject to income tax.
John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, circa 1593, probably modeled after John of Gaunt’s tomb effigy; Credit – Wikipedia
The Duchy of Lancaster came into the British royal family via the marriage of one of King Edward III’s sons, John of Gaunt. John of Gaunt was the fourth son but the third surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. It is through John’s first marriage that the Duchy of Lancaster eventually became a possession of the British Crown. John is also quite important in royal genealogy. His daughter Catherine of Lancaster married King Enrique III of Castile, which made John the grandfather of King Juan II of Castile and the ancestor of all subsequent monarchs of Castile and a united Spain. His daughter Philippa of Lancaster married King João I of Portugal making all future Portuguese monarchs descendants of John. Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and her predecessors since King Henry IV are descended from John of Gaunt. In fact, most European monarchies are descended from John. The Houses of Lancaster, York, and Tudor were all descended from three of John of Gaunt’s children:
- King Henry IV (Lancaster: father of King Henry V, grandfather of King Henry VI)
- Joan Beaufort (York: grandmother of King Edward IV and King Richard III)
- John Beaufort (Tudor: great-grandfather of King Henry VII)
Following his father’s plan for his sons to marry wealthy heiresses, John of Gaunt married Blanche of Lancaster on May 19, 1359, in the Queen’s Chapel at Reading Abbey. The bride was fourteen-years-old and the groom was nineteen-year-old. Blanche’s father was Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster, a great-grandson of King Henry III. Blanche had only one sibling, an elder sister Maud. Blanche and John were third cousins, both being great-great-grandchildren of King Henry III. This was an excellent match for both Blanche and John. Blanche was marrying into the royal family and John’s wealth was greatly increased by marrying one of the richest heiresses in England.
The marriage of John of Gaunt and Blanche of Lancaster in Reading Abbey on 19 May 1359 by Horace Wright (1914); Credit – Wikipedia
Description of above painting from the Reading Museum where the painting is on display: In this painting John of Gaunt and his bride walk from beneath a gilded canopy towards the officiating Bishop of Salisbury. Four lords support the wedding canopy. The one nearest to Blanche is her father, Henry Duke of Lancaster. Close by is the poet Chaucer, clothed in black and bearing a scroll. On the throne is John’s father, King Edward III, beneath a crimson canopy decorated with the lions of England. Beside the King are two of the royal princes, Edward the Black Prince and Prince Lionel.
Blanche’s father died in 1361 and her sister died in 1362, making Blanche the sole heiress. At this time, it was common for extinct titles of heiresses’ fathers to pass to their husbands. John of Gaunt was created Duke of Lancaster on November 13, 1362. By that time, his wealth was immense. He owned thirty castles and estates in England and France. His household was comparable in size and organization to that of a monarch and his annual income was between £8,000 and £10,000 a year which would be several million pounds in today’s terms. This was the beginning of today’s Duchy of Lancaster which descended to John of Gaunt’s eldest son King Henry IV and has remained in the British Crown ever since.
This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.