Hugh Despenser the Younger

Lore & Background

Hugh le Despenser the Younger was the son and heir of Hugh Despenser, Earl of Winchester, and Isabel Beauchamp. He was knighted at the Feast of the Swans in May 1306 alongside Prince Edward, and that summer married Eleanor de Clare, daughter of Gilbert de Clare and Joan of Acre. Through Eleanor's inheritance after her brother's death at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, Despenser gained the Lordship of Glamorgan and other properties, transforming him from a landless knight into one of the wealthiest magnates in the kingdom. He became royal chamberlain in 1318, managing the king's domestic finances and court affairs, and displaced the previous favourite, Roger d'Amory. His greed and influence earned him enemies across society, including Queen Isabella and the barons, leading to a plot to kill him by sticking his wax likeness with pins. In August 1321, the barons forced Despenser and his father into exile, but they returned early the following year after Edward II crushed the rebellion at the Battle of Boroughbridge. Despenser was reinstated as favourite, and the period that followed was marked by unchecked maladministration.

Reader's Guide

Hugh Despenser the Younger's significance lies in his role as a central figure in the political turmoil of Edward II's reign. As chamberlain and royal favourite, he wielded extraordinary influence, managing the royal household and accumulating vast estates in Wales and England through marriage and royal grants. His actions, including the seizure of lands from his wife's co-heirs and the extrajudicial killing of Llywelyn Bren, generated widespread hostility. The accusation of sodomy, recorded by the chronicler Jean Froissart and Bishop Adam Orleton, further tarnished his reputation and was cited at his execution, where his penis was severed and burned. His downfall came with the invasion of Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer in 1326; he was captured, tried for high treason, and executed. His legacy is that of a divisive and ultimately doomed favourite whose greed and ambition contributed to the collapse of Edward II's rule.

Did You Know?

• Despenser was accused of having Llywelyn Bren hanged, drawn and quartered on his own authority in 1318, though this may have been done at the command of King Edward himself.
• During his exile in 1321, Despenser spent time as a pirate in the English Channel, robbing merchants.
• He was accused of robbing two great ships to the value of £60,000.
• At his execution, his penis was severed and burned as punishment for sodomy and heresy, according to Jean Froissart.