Uploaded July 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
CHILD BRIDE, BIGAMIST, KIDNAP VICTIM & PRINCESS. Joan of Kent was all four. She was also the daughter of a traitor, the wife of the Black Prince, the mother of Richard II, supposedly the inspiration for the Order of the Garter and a famed beauty, known as the fair maid of Kent. In today’s medieval English royal history documentary from History Calling, we’re going to look at the remarkable life of the first Princess of Wales; a woman who should have been Queen of England, if only her husband hadn’t died before his father. You’ll hear about her birth and upbringing, the execution of her father, Edmund of Woodstock, first Earl of Kent, her royal connections and her life at the court of her future parents-in-law, Edward III and Philippa of Hainault. We’ll also examine her absolutely scandalous first marriage to Sir Thomas Holland which was contracted in secret when Joan was just 12 years old and led to a fight between Thomas and Joan’s second husband, William Montagu, for who would get to be the spouse of this wealthy and beautiful aristocrat, who was the Countess of Kent in her own right after 1352. I’ll also look at the claims that Joan was kidnapped by Montagu and his family and held against her will. We’ll then look at her third marriage to the King’s eldest son, Edward of Woodstock, aka the Black Prince which was also unexpected and scandalous, but which was apparently a rare royal love match. You’ll hear too about Joan’s experiences of motherhood, her time as Princess of Wales and Princess of Aquitaine and how she acted as Regent for her young son, Richard II, after his father’s death in 1376 and his grandfather’s in 1377. She even had to navigate the Peasants’ Revolt in 1381 when the Tower of London was attacked but was so popular she came through this difficult situation unscathed. Finally, I’ll tell you about her final years and death in 1386.
BUY MY BOOK (Find Your Irish Ancestors Online): amzn.to/3Z2ChnG
Website (with 2 FREE DOWNLOADS): historycallingofficial.com
Patreon: patreon.com/historycalling
Amazon storefront: amazon.com/shop/historycalling
Instagram: instagram.com/historycalling
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
WHY THE BLACK PRINCE WAS CALLED THE BLACK PRINCE
youtu.be/RYtoFAKqEl0
STORY OF THE BLACK PRINCE’S RUBY
youtu.be/C6_C9hf_VyE
ROYAL WOMEN PLAYLIST youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLSjVq5Qtb0HnqxlXmoJ1C3iQK3bXNO_g
GEAR USED
Apple MacBook Pro Laptop (for video editing): amzn.to/3S6IoRK
DJI Drone: amzn.to/38h1vXr (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/39hROZm (US LINK)
Go-Pro Hero 10 camera: amzn.to/3EPIK9U (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rTWScL (US LINK)
GoPro 3-Way 2.0 (Tripod/Grip/Arm): amzn.to/37CdC1r (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3vaVxjU (US LINK)
Memory Card: amzn.to/36QvcOQ (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3KeLZZs (US LINK)
Microphone: amzn.to/3MFtoaK (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rYtjH8 (US LINK)
LEARN MORE:
Gary P. Baker, Craig Lambert, David Simpkin (eds), Military Communities in Late Medieval England. Essays in Honour of Andrew Ayton (Woodbridge, Boydell Press, 2018) – this is the book I mentioned in the video which I didn’t buy due to its expense. The chapter which discusses the Order of the Garter is by Clifford Roger. You can read the free review I mentioned of it at reviews.history.ac.uk/review/2274
Copyright information for OpenStreetMap
openstreetmap.org/copyright
NB: Links above may be affiliate links. This means if you make a purchase through one of these links, I earn a small commission. It in no way affects the price you pay.
Creative Commons licenses used see creativecommons.org/licenses
CHILD BRIDE, BIGAMIST, KIDNAP VICTIM & PRINCESS. Joan of Kent was all four. She was also the daughter of a traitor, the wife of the Black Prince, the mother of Richard II, supposedly the inspiration for the Order of the Garter and a famed beauty, known as the fair maid of Kent. In today’s medieval English royal history documentary from History Calling, we’re going to look at the remarkable life of the first Princess of Wales; a woman who should have been Queen of England, if only her husband hadn’t died before his father. You’ll hear about her birth and upbringing, the execution of her father, Edmund of Woodstock, first Earl of Kent, her royal connections and her life at the court of her future parents-in-law, Edward III and Philippa of Hainault. We’ll also examine her absolutely scandalous first marriage to Sir Thomas Holland which was contracted in secret when Joan was just 12 years old and led to a fight between Thomas and Joan’s second husband, William Montagu, for who would get to be the spouse of this wealthy and beautiful aristocrat, who was the Countess of Kent in her own right after 1352. I’ll also look at the claims that Joan was kidnapped by Montagu and his family and held against her will. We’ll then look at her third marriage to the King’s eldest son, Edward of Woodstock, aka the Black Prince which was also unexpected and scandalous, but which was apparently a rare royal love match. You’ll hear too about Joan’s experiences of motherhood, her time as Princess of Wales and Princess of Aquitaine and how she acted as Regent for her young son, Richard II, after his father’s death in 1376 and his grandfather’s in 1377. She even had to navigate the Peasants’ Revolt in 1381 when the Tower of London was attacked but was so popular she came through this difficult situation unscathed. Finally, I’ll tell you about her final years and death in 1386.
BUY MY BOOK (Find Your Irish Ancestors Online): amzn.to/3Z2ChnG
Website (with 2 FREE DOWNLOADS): historycallingofficial.com
Patreon: patreon.com/historycalling
Amazon storefront: amazon.com/shop/historycalling
Instagram: instagram.com/historycalling
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
WHY THE BLACK PRINCE WAS CALLED THE BLACK PRINCE
youtu.be/RYtoFAKqEl0
STORY OF THE BLACK PRINCE’S RUBY
youtu.be/C6_C9hf_VyE
ROYAL WOMEN PLAYLIST youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLSjVq5Qtb0HnqxlXmoJ1C3iQK3bXNO_g
GEAR USED
Apple MacBook Pro Laptop (for video editing): amzn.to/3S6IoRK
DJI Drone: amzn.to/38h1vXr (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/39hROZm (US LINK)
Go-Pro Hero 10 camera: amzn.to/3EPIK9U (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rTWScL (US LINK)
GoPro 3-Way 2.0 (Tripod/Grip/Arm): amzn.to/37CdC1r (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3vaVxjU (US LINK)
Memory Card: amzn.to/36QvcOQ (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3KeLZZs (US LINK)
Microphone: amzn.to/3MFtoaK (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rYtjH8 (US LINK)
LEARN MORE:
Gary P. Baker, Craig Lambert, David Simpkin (eds), Military Communities in Late Medieval England. Essays in Honour of Andrew Ayton (Woodbridge, Boydell Press, 2018) – this is the book I mentioned in the video which I didn’t buy due to its expense. The chapter which discusses the Order of the Garter is by Clifford Roger. You can read the free review I mentioned of it at reviews.history.ac.uk/review/2274
Copyright information for OpenStreetMap
openstreetmap.org/copyright
NB: Links above may be affiliate links. This means if you make a purchase through one of these links, I earn a small commission. It in no way affects the price you pay.
Creative Commons licenses used see creativecommons.org/licenses
