Three medieval kings shaped the fate of England. Discover how Edward III, the Black Prince, and Richard II made and lost a kingdom.
The story of medieval England is a tale of glory and tragedy — and at its heart stand three kings whose triumphs and failures shaped the fate of a kingdom. This is the story of how England was made, and lost, across three remarkable reigns.
Edward III: the king who made England great
Crowned at just fourteen, Edward III would become one of England’s most successful warrior kings. He transformed England into a formidable military power, founded the Order of the Garter, and launched the long conflict with France that became known as the Hundred Years’ War. His victory at the Battle of Crécy in 1346 stunned Europe and announced England as a force to be feared.
The Black Prince: the greatest king England never had
Edward’s son, known as the Black Prince, was the finest warrior of his age. He won glory at Crécy as a teenager and later captured the King of France himself at the Battle of Poitiers. Brave, chivalrous, and beloved, he seemed destined for the throne — but he died before his father, and England was robbed of the king he might have been.
Richard II: the king who lost it all
The crown instead passed to the Black Prince’s son, Richard II, crowned at just ten years old. As a boy of fourteen he showed astonishing courage, riding out to face the leaders of the Peasants’ Revolt in person. But as he grew, his reign became marked by conflict with his nobles. His decisions turned the powerful against him, and in 1399 he was deposed and lost his throne — and soon his life.
The making and unmaking of a kingdom
Together, these three reigns tell a sweeping story. Edward III raised England to greatness. The Black Prince embodied its golden ideal — then was lost too soon. And Richard II, through pride and miscalculation, undid much of what his family had built, plunging England towards the Wars of the Roses.
Three kings. One made England, one was the king it never had, and one lost it all. Their intertwined fates remind us how quickly glory can turn to tragedy in the story of a nation.
Watch the full immersive documentary, “The 3 Kings Who Made and Lost Medieval England,” on our YouTube channel.