Barons' War definition of Barons' War in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

Barons' War, in English history, war of 1263–67 between King Henry III Henry III, 1207–72, king of England (1216–72), son and successor of King John.

Reign

Early Years

Henry became king under a regency; William Marshal, 1st earl of Pembroke , and later Pandulf acted as chief of government, while
..... Click the link for more information. and his barons. In 1261, Henry III renounced the Provisions of Oxford Provisions of Oxford, 1258, a scheme of governmental reform forced upon Henry III of England by his barons. In 1258 a group of barons, angered by the king's Sicilian adventure and the expenditures it entailed, compelled Henry to accept the appointment of a committee
..... Click the link for more information. (1258) and the Provisions of Westminster (1259), which had vested considerable power in a council of barons, and reasserted his right to appoint councilors. The barons led by Simon de Montfort Montfort, Simon de, earl of Leicester, 1208?–1265, leader of the baronial revolt against Henry III of England.

Early Life

He was born in France, the son of Simon de Montfort , leader of the Albigensian Crusade.
..... Click the link for more information. , earl of Leicester, finally resorted to arms in 1263 and forced the king to reaffirm his adherence to the Provisions. In 1264 a decision in favor of the crown by Louis IX of France as arbitrator led to a renewal of war, but Montfort defeated Henry's forces in the battle of Lewes, and the king once again submitted to government by council. Early in 1265, Montfort summoned his famous representative Parliament Parliament, legislative assembly of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Over the centuries it has become more than a legislative body; it is the sovereign power of Great Britain, whereas the monarch remains sovereign in name only.
..... Click the link for more information. to strengthen his position, which was threatened by the possibility of an invasion by Henry's adherents abroad. The invasion did not take place, but an uprising against Montfort of the Welsh "Marchers" (Englishmen along the Welsh border) led to his defeat by the king's son (later Edward I Edward I, 1239–1307, king of England (1272–1307), son of and successor to Henry III .

Early Life

By his marriage (1254) to Eleanor of Castile Edward gained new claims in France and strengthened the English rights to Gascony.
..... Click the link for more information. ) at Evesham. Montfort was killed in the battle, but some baronial resistance continued until 1267. The barons had failed to establish their own control over the crown, but they had helped prepare the way for the constitutional developments of the reign of Edward I.

Bibliography

See R. F. Treharne, The Baronial Plan of Reform (1932, repr. 1972); F. M. Powicke, King Henry III and the Lord Edward (1947).