John of Gaunt John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 13403 February 1399) was an English prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the third of the five sons of King Edward III of England who survived to adulthood. Due to his royal origin, advantageous marriages, and some generous land grants, Gaunt was one of the richest men of his era, and an influential figure during the reigns of both his father, Edward, and his nephew, Richard II. As Duke of Lancaster, he is the founder of the royal House of Lancaster, whose members would ascend to the throne
John of Gaunt after his death. His birthplace, Ghent, corrupted into English as "Gaunt", was the origin for his name. When he became unpopular later in life, scurrilous rumours and lampoons circulated that he was actually the son of a Ghent butcher, perhaps because Edward III was not present at the birth. This story always drove him to fury. John's early career was spent in France and Spain fighting at the Hundred Years' War. He made an abortive attempt to enforce a claim to the Crown of Castile that came courtesy of his second wife, and for a time styled himself as King