The First Princess of Wales The First Princess of Wales The First Princess of Wales (originally published as Sweet Passion's Pain) is a 1984 historical fiction novel by American author Karen Harper. Set during the 14th-century, it follows the romance between Joan of Kent and Edward, the Black Prince. Set during the reign of Edward III of England in the 14th-century, the novel follows the romance between Joan of Kent and Edward's eldest son, Edward, the Black Prince. "The First Princess of Wales" was written by American author Karen Harper and published as her third novel. Harper was inspired to become a writer by the
Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent he had two children: Thomas (b. 1300) and, when the king was sixty-two, Edmund. Edmund was born at Woodstock in Oxfordshire on 5 August 1301, and was therefore referred to as Edmund of Woodstock. Son of the English king, he was also, through his mother, grandson of Philip III of France. On 7 July 1307, before Edmund had turned six, King Edward I died, leaving Edmund's half-brother Edward to succeed as King Edward II. Though not resident in the two boys' household, Edward I had taken great interest in the princes' upbringing and well-being. Before he died, the king had