Berkhamsted of the monastic order of Bonhommes, in 1283. In 1300, after Edmund died, Edward I - aka 'Longshanks' took the castle and subsequently granted it to his second queen, Margaret of France. In 1309, Edward I and Margaret's son, Edward II, granted Berkhamsted to his favourite, Piers Gaveston; afterwards In 1317, the castle was given to Edward II's queen, Isabella of France. Edward III further developed the castle and gave it to his son, Edward, the Black Prince, who expanded the hunting grounds. By tradition, Berkhamsted Castle still belongs to the eldest son of the reigning English monarch, via the
Edward the Black Prince steel". Richard Barber suggests that the name's origins may have lain in pageantry, in that a tradition may have grown up in the 15th century of representing the prince in black armour. He points out that several chronicles refer to him as Edward the IV (the title he would have taken as King had he outlived his father): this name would obviously have become confusing when the actual Edward IV succeeded in 1461, and this may have been the period when an alternative had to be found. Edward's reputation for brutality in France is also well documented, and it is