John of Gaunt
1340 – 1399 · Generation XVII · Duke of Lancaster · House of Plantagenet
John of Gaunt (1340–1399). Duke of Lancaster. Married Blanche of Lancaster in 1359. Married Katherine Swynford in 1396. Never king, but ancestor of every English monarch after 1399 — through both his marriages. Born at Ghent — the origin of his byname — to Edward III and Philippa of Hainault, he gained the vast Lancaster inheritance through his first wife, Blanche, was created duke in 1362 and became the richest man in England. His daring mounted raid of 1373 from Calais to Bordeaux gained almost nothing and cost him much of his army. With his father and the Black Prince failing, he effectively governed England, overturning the Good Parliament’s reforms and forcing through the first poll tax, and in 1381 the rebels burned his Savoy Palace to the ground. Through his second wife, Constance of Castile, he claimed the Castilian crown, landing in Spain in 1386 before giving up the claim in 1388; the venture was bound up with an alliance with Portugal, sealed by his daughter Philippa’s marriage. He died at Leicester Castle and was buried beside Blanche in St Paul’s.
Place in the family
- John of Gaunt was a great-great-great-grandfather of King Henry VIII.
- John of Gaunt was the second of 3 children of King Edward III and Philippa of Hainault recorded in this archive.
- The archive records 131 of his descendants, across 23 generations.
One of 26 people of House of Plantagenet (1126–1485) in this archive. The longest-reigning English house, counting its Angevin beginning and the rival Lancaster and York branches that fought the Wars of the Roses.
Line of descent: King William I The Conqueror → King Henry I → Matilda the Empress → King Henry II → King John → King Henry III → King Edward I Longshanks → King Edward II → King Edward III → John of Gaunt.
Parents
- King Edward III (1312 – 1377)
- Philippa of Hainault (1310 – 1369)
Siblings
- Edward the Black Prince (1330 – 1376)
- Edmund of Langley (1341 – 1402)
Partners
- Married Blanche of Lancaster (1342 – 1368) in 1359 — one child together
- Married Katherine Swynford (1350 – 1403) in 1396 — 2 children together
Children
- King Henry IV (1367 – 1413)
- John Beaufort (1373 – 1410)
- Joan Beaufort (1379 – 1440)
Life
- 1340 — Born
- 1359 — Married Blanche of Lancaster
- 1396 — Married Katherine Swynford
- 1399 — Died