Simon de Montfort: A true revolutionary

Simon de Montfort born in 1208, was born in Montfort in France. The youngest son of his father, also called Simon, the young French nobleman was not set to inherit any of his fathers lands but, that wouldn't stop young Simon becoming one of the most well known and influential men of the 13th century.

Drawing of a stained glass window of Chartres Cathedral, depicting Simon de Montfort SOURCE: Public domain

Early life and the Albigensian Crusade

Little is known about Simon’s childhood, even his date of birth is up for debate, with the first official mention of Simon de Montfort coming as late as 1217, when his mother made a grant of money to him. Young Simon was quickly shown just how brutal the 13th century was, joining his father and older brothers Guy and Amaury on the Albigensian Crusade, an attack on supposed Cathar heretics in the south of France. The crusade was first called by Pope Innocent III in 1209, calling on all of the staunchly Catholic Northern French lords and barons to take up arms against the southern heretics. Simon’s Father, was amongst the nobleman to join in the noble quest for complete Catholic control over France.

As with most of the crusades off the 11th-13th centuries, the crusade against the Cathars ultimately fell through, failing to remove the heretical group completely but, the attacks did allow the French Crown to more or less, fully control the southern region of Languedoc, centred around Toulouse. On a personal level, the Crusade was a complete tragedy for young Simon, who at the age of just 10, he saw the death of his own father at the siege of Toulouse, when a projectile fired from a mangonel hit him in the head, killing him instantly. If that wasn’t bad enough, just two years later, in 1220, Simon’s older brother Guy was also killed at the siege of Castelnaudary. Surprisingly, the deaths of his father and older brother didn’t see Simon elevated to the position of heir to the de Montfort lands and fortune, his brother Amaury was instead to inherit all of their fathers French lands leaving little to Simon. even though Simon was French through and through, de Montfort’s family had a claim to the Earldom of Leicester through his  paternal grandmother, Amicia de Beaumont. His older brother Amaury, agreed with Henry III of England that if Simon gave up his claim to all the French lands, he could claim Leicester and take his place as an English baron.

Earl of Leicester

By 1229, Simon was on his way to England to claim his inheritance and soon climbed the ranks of Henry’s court, quickly becoming one of the kings favourites, a point of contention during the reign of Henry III who had been encouraged by his wife, Eleanor of Provence, to grant political offices and important titles to her foreign family. Simon was seen by many, as just another foreign lord, looking to take advantage of the easily manipulated Henry III, but Simon was to trump them all as Earl of Leicester.

A portrait of Henry III ( 1902) SOURCE: Public domain

As previously mentioned, Simon had inherited the Earldom of Leicester through his paternal grandmother, but even before he was officially named Earl, de Montfort was styling himself as such, managing to upset the well established ruling class in England. further stirring the pot, Simon was so popular with the King that he was married to Henry’s own sister, Eleanor in 1238, a point off serious contention for the lords and barons of England. There are several reasons why this marriage was so controversial, the first being the fact that Eleanor had already been married to William Marshall and upon his death,  took a vow of chastity and refused to remarry. Moreover, the barons were frustrated because they were not consulted on such an important engagement that would put de Montfort, a minor French lord, well within reach of the King and the royal family, with his potential children having a claim to the English throne.

Simon de Montfort spent the next two decades acquiring more power and wealth, taking advantage of both the kings good nature and unfortunately, the Jewish people of Leicester expelling, them from the city for ‘the good of his soul.’  De Montfort took out a series of loans that he and no intention of paying back, using the king as his guarantee which obviously was a liberty he could not take. As quick as the relationship blossomed between king and baron, it then began to sour, leading to more than just a poor relationship between Henry and his friend.

By 1239, Henry (more likely his wife and other barons) were sick to death of de Montfort’s unmatched ability to take liberties, choosing to turn his attention away from the money he owed and instead, to his marriage to Eleanor. Since its inception, the marriage was far from popular but, in august of 1239, an all mighty argument occurred between the one time friends. Henry is reported to have said "You seduced my sister" and “when I discovered this, I gave her to you, against my will, to avoid scandal”, implying that Simon had relations with the King’s sister and Henry, to protect them both, decided to have them married.

The seeds of rebellion are sewn

With mounting debts and his relationship with the king deteriorating, de Montfort decided it was time for a crusade. Joining Richard of Cornwall on the so called ‘Barons Crusade’ (1239-1241), de Montfort followed his family tradition of crusading. Returning to Henry in 1241, spending the next decade and a half ruling parts of Henry’s dwindling French lands. Henry was spending money like it was going out of fashion and to make things worse, his beloved wife, was despised. The Queen was seen as both a bad influence on the King and, more importantly, a foreigner desperate to take land and titles from English barons. in 1254, Henry made perhaps his greatest blunder, attempted to capture the throne of Sicily, a plan concocted by the Pope. Seeing an opportunity to give his second son, Edmund an inheritance, Henry embarked on the incredibly expensive venture, returning home by 1255 with no crown and even less money.

A miniature showing Eleanor of Provence (Left) and Henry (right) by Matthew Paris (around 1250) SOURCE: Public domain

The king had asked for money many times in the past, most of the time the lords and barons agreed to pay (as long as Magna Carta was reissued) but this time, it was too far. By 1258, Henry was desperate for money, even begging the church for it, managing to raise roughly £40,000 or half of what he owed the Pope for the chance to take Sicily but this wasn’t enough to please a now rebellious parliament.

The Provisions of Oxford

By 1258, the king had no friends or money left, managing to upset both the papacy and his court at home. Once again the king went back to parliament for the rest of the money but rather than just saying no, the barons had a counter argument. The king was presented with the single most revolutionary document of the entire middle ages, the barons presented the king with ‘the Provisions of Oxford’ and would go on to change the way the world did politics forever. The provisions placed the king under the authority of a Council of Fifteen, to be chosen by twenty-four men made up of twelve nominees of the king, and twelve nominees of the reformers. The chief ministers, the Justiciar and Chancellor were to be chosen by and responsible to the Council of Fifteen, and ultimately to the community of the realm at regular parliaments to be held three times a year. This built on the ideals put forward by Magna Carta but crucially, for the first time, included the ‘commons’ in the decision making process. The leader of these revolutionaries was the kings own brother in law, Simon de Montford, he and the other barons would help the king make any and all decisions. 

The relationship between Simon and Henry continued to disintegrate and after a short rebellion, Simon would take over full control of the country. De Montfort would rule as de facto king until 1265 after defeating Henry and his son, Edward at the battle of Lewes in 1264 effectively outlawing the royal family. Simon de Montfort spent the next decade building on the provisions set out in 1258, giving us the basis of modern democracy, with land owners in towns and cities allowed to elect representatives to go along with the knights of the shires, forming the basis for the Parliamentary houses of Commons and Lords.

There is no getting away from the fact that de Montfort was a dictator, discarding, imprisoning or killing those who disagreed with him forcing many back in to the arms of the royal family. Prince Edward, who had been imprisoned since the battle fo Lewes had escaped captivity and was soon surrounded by leading Englishmen, all keen to knock Simon de Montfort of his now very high pedestal.

The Battle of Evesham

At the battle of Lewes in 1264, the baronial army, led by de Montfort, had been hopelessly outnumbered relying not on superior tactics but, instead on religious fervour and divine rage, wearing white crosses on their clothing and armour but at Evesham, the royal army led by Edward, painted red crosses on their armour, showing that divine will was with them.

An image showing Simon de Montfort (left) fighting the royal army (see the red crosses), By James William Edmund Doyle (1864) SOURCE: Public domain

The battle at Evesham would later be described as ‘an episode of noble bloodletting’ unprecedented since the Conquest, with many leading barons slain on the battlefield including de Montford’s son Henry and, most importantly, Simon himself. Simon de Montfort’s body was mutilated and a paraded around as prizes of war. In the aftermath of the battle, most of the rebellious barons had been killed or financial ruined leaving the door open for Henry and the royal family to return to government.

Aftermath and legacy

After the death of de Montfort, the ideas and laws put in place under his government didn’t go away. the Provisions of Oxford still form part of he very loose constitution of the United Kingdom, with the importance of representation as important then as it is now. Simon de Montfort’s legacy should be one of violence and manipulation, as much as it is about law and order. A man who committed or at least ordered several pogroms against the Jewish people of Leicester died as he had lived, covered in blood, surrounded by some of the greatest men of the age.

The ‘father of Parliament’ lives on in the form of De Montfort University in Leicester and, more surprisingly, on the wall of the US house of Representatives, as one of the 23 famous law givers from history.

One of the 23 images from the US House of Representatives, Gaetano Cecere (1950) SOURCE: Public domain

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