Wars of the Roses a "sudden narrowing in the direct line of descent" near the end of his reign. His eldest son, Edward, the Black Prince, had died the year before. Edward III was succeeded on the throne by the Black Prince's only surviving son Richard II, who was only 10 years old. Richard's claim to the throne was based on the principle that the son of an elder brother had priority in the succession over his uncles. Since Richard was a minor, had no siblings, and had three living uncles at the time of Edward III's death, there was considerable uncertainty about who
Chevauchée of the Black Prince (1356) of about 9000 men. The French deduce that the Prince of Wales is preparing to repeat his chevauchée in the autumn of 1355. King John II of France, then at the siege of Breteuil in Normandy, sent reinforcements to reinforce the army of the Dauphin Charles, positioned at Bourges, to support the possessions and cities of Languedoc. Chevauchée of the Black Prince (1356) The Chevauchée of the Black Prince in 1356, which began on 4 August 1356 at Bordeaux and ended with the Battle of Poitiers on 19 September 1356, was a devastating raid of Edward of Woodstock, Prince of