The famine and the Scottish policy were felt to be a punishment from God, and complaints about Edward multiplied, one contemporary poem describing the "Evil Times of Edward II". Many criticised Edward's "improper" and ignoble interest in rural pursuits. In 1318, a mentally ill man named John of Powderham appeared in Oxford, claiming that he was the real Edward II, and that Edward was a changeling, swapped at birth. John was duly executed, but his claims resonated with those criticising Edward for his lack of regal behaviour and steady leadership. Opposition also grew around Edward's treatment of his royal favourites.