RICHARD II. (1367-1400), king of England, younger son of Edward the Black Prince by Joan "the Fair Maid of Kent," was born at Bordeaux on Jan. 6, 1367. He was brought to Eng 'The remains of Richard, together with those of Henry II. and his queen Eleanor, were removed in the 17th century from their tombs to another part of the church. They were rediscovered in 1910 during the restoration of the abbey undertaken by the French Government.
land in 1371, and after his father's death was, on the petition of the Commons in parliament, created prince of Wales on Nov. 20, 1376. When Edward III. died, on June 21, 1377, Richard became king. Popular opinion had credited John of Gaunt with designs on the throne. This was not justified; nevertheless, the rivalry of the boy-king's uncles added another to the troubles due to the war, the Black Death and the prospect of a long minority. At first the government was conducted by a council appointed by parliament. The council was honest, but the difficulties of the situation were too great. The ill-considered poll-tax of 1381 was the occasion, though not the real cause, of the Peasants' Revolt in that year. The ministers were quite unequal to the crisis, and when Wat Tyler and his followers got possession of London, Richard showed a precocious tact and confidence in handling it. He met and temporized with the rebels on June 13 at Mile End, and again next day at Smithfield; and with courageous presence of mind, he saved the situation when Tyler was killed, by calling on them to take him for their leader.
From this time Richard began to assert himself. His chief ministers, appointed by parliament in 1382, were the earl of Arundel and Michael de la Pole. Arundel Richard disliked, and dismissed next year, when he began his personal government. Pole, whom he retained as chancellor and made earl of Suffolk, was a well-chosen adviser. But others, and especially his youthful favourite Robert de Vere, promoted to be marquess of Dublin and duke of Ireland, were less worthy. Further, Richard made his own position difficult by lavish extravagance and by outbursts of temper. He chafed under the restraint of his relatives, and there
fore encouraged John of Gaunt in his Spanish enterprise.
Thereupon, Thomas of Gloucester, supported by Arundel, attacked his nephew's ministers in the parliament of 1386, and by open hints at deposition forced Richard to submit to a council of control. When Richard, with the aid of his friends and by the advice of subservient judges, planned a reversal of the parliament, Gloucester, at the head of the so-called lords appellant, anticipated him. Richard had been premature and ill-advised. Gloucester had the advantage of posing as the head of the constitutional party. The king's friends were driven into exile or executed, and he himself forced to submit to the loss of all real power (May 1388). Richard changed his methods, and when the lords appellant had lost credit, asserted himself constitutionally by dismissing Gloucester's supporters from office, and appointing in their place well-approved men like William of Wykeham. In the next parlia ment of 1390 the king showed himself ready to meet and conciliate his subjects. The simultaneous return of John of Gaunt from Spain put a check on Gloucester's ambition. For seven years Richard ruled constitutionally and on the whole well.
In Jan. 1383 Richard had married Anne of Bohemia (1366 '394), daughter of the emperor Charles IV. Her death on June 7, 1394 was a great shock to Richard, and incidentally had important consequences. Richard sought distraction by an expedition to Ireland, the first visit of an English king for more than two cen turies. In his policy there he showed a wise statesmanship. At the same time he was negotiating for a permanent peace with France, which was finally arranged in Oct. 1396 to include his own marriage with Isabella, daughter of Charles VI., a child of seven. Gloucester criticized the peace openly, and there was some show of opposition in the parliament of Feb. 1397.