On 1 January 1370 Prince Edward sustained a heavy loss in the death of his friend Chandos. Several efforts were made by Edward to conciliate the Gascon lords, but they were fruitless and can only have served to weaken the prince's authority. It is probable that John of Gaunt was working against him at the English court, and when he was sent out in the summer to help his elder brother, he came with such extensive powers that he almost seemed as though he had come to supersede him.