Edmund, Earl of Lancaster and Aveline de Forz

Soldier

Prince Edmund "Crouchback", Earl of Lancaster and his wife Aveline de Forz were the first royal couple to be married in the newly built Westminster Abbey in April 1269. His father Henry III had begun to rebuild the old Abbey of St Edward the Confessor in 1245 in the newest architectural style and the eastern section had been completed and richly decorated by the time of the marriage. Both have monuments on the northern side of the High Altar, although the altar screen was not in existence at the period of their burials.

Edmund 'Crouchback'

The monument

Edmund has a large monument with his effigy in mail armour with crossed legs. His long surcoat has traces of the arms of the earldom, the head is supported by two angels and his feet rest on a lion. Traces of flesh coloured paint can be seen around his face. Traces of paint under his foot show that the tomb slab was painted green and his surcoat was red. On the edge of the slab on which the effigy lies is the remains of an inscription which can be translated "Here lies Edmund...". The monument has been attributed to Alexander of Abingdon or Michael of Canterbury and was probably constructed between 1296 and 1301. A series of male and female weepers (or statuettes) with shields of arms are shown around the base and on the northern base are the remains of paintings of knights (unfortunately damaged in the 1960s by an oil bomb thrown by a student).

The tomb originally had a tester above the elaborate canopy (visible in the 1532 Islip roll drawing) but this probably disappeared in the 18th century. All three presbytery tombs had been obscured by wainscotting and tapestries until 1775. In the canopy gables on both sides Edmund is depicted as a praying knight on horseback. On the figure of the praying knight on the north side there are remains of red paint and depictions of the three lions of England on his back and the back of his saddle. A small green man (a face with foliage coming from his mouth) is also included on the canopy structure. On the tomb there are considerable remains of original colour and decoration, possibly by Master Walter of Durham, the King's painter, to show that it was once a magnificent structure. The top pinnacles had sustained damage by 1820 but were restored by 1835.

A colour sketch by John Carter, drawn in 1782, of the knights on the base of his tomb is preserved in Westminster Abbey Library.

His life

Edmund was born in London on 16th January 1245, second son of Henry III and his queen Eleanor of Provence. His brother became Edward I. He was created Earl of Leicester and in 1267 Earl of Lancaster. Pope Innocent IV in 1252 nominated him as King of Sicily but he never took possession of that kingdom. He left on crusade to the Holy Land in 1271 and his nickname of Crouchback (or cross back) probably originated from the surcoat with a cross on the back worn by Crusaders.

After Aveline's death he married Blanche, widow of Henry, King of Navarre and daughter of Robert, Count of Artois. Their sons were Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, Henry 3rd Earl of Lancaster and John, Lord of Beaufort. Their daughter Mary died young. Crouchback was employed actively in England, Wales and France by his brother Edward.

He died at Bayonne on 5th June 1296 during the siege of Bordeaux. His body was embalmed and kept at the church of the Friars Minor there for six months before being returned to England. On 24th March 1301 it was taken from the convent of the Minoresses in London, where it had lain since coming to England, to St Paul's cathedral and then to the Abbey for burial, in the presence of the king and nobles. Edward I was buried just to the east of Edmund, in the chapel of St Edward the Confessor, but in a totally plain tomb chest. Their father had been buried to the north side of the Shrine of St Edward.

Dimensions: 22 feet 10 inches high, 13 feet 6 inches wide.

Aveline de Forz

The monument

Her monument, which seems to have been erected about twenty years after her death, is separated from Edmund's by that of Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke. It was probably not erected until after her mother's death when Edward I acquired the vast de Forz estates. Her recumbent effigy is dressed in a long mantle and she wears a close coif and wimple. Her head is supported by two angels and two small dogs (denoting loyalty) lie at her feet. The tomb is possibly by one of the same sculptors who made Edmund's tomb. Her tomb was once richly coloured but is not as tall and has been more injured and is closed at the back by masonry. Some designs still remain on the small pillars. There are vine leaves and shields as decoration, and weepers (probably representing her male ancestors) on the south side. The shields of arms above the weepers are now erased. No inscription remains on the tomb.

A carved shield for de Forz still remains in the north aisle of the nave of the Abbey. This series of carved and painted shields represents families or individuals who were benefactors to the building of Henry III's new Abbey from 1245.

Her life

Aveline was the daughter and heiress of William de Forz, Count of Aumale in Normandy, Lord of Holderness in Yorkshire and of much land elsewhere in the north of England. On her mother's side she was heiress presumptive to the Earldom of Devon and Lordship of the Isle of Wight. She died childless in 1274. It is now thought she may be buried under a slab with Cosmati work in St Edward the Confessor's chapel but the inscription is mostly obscured by Henry V's chantry. This is the northern slab with indents for two shields (probably the arms of de Forz and Lancaster).