Chronicles

In England, there was a conflict between Richard II and his uncles along with the Archbishop of Canterbury. The cause of the conflict was the advice Richard II was receiving from the Duke of Ireland, Robert de Vere. Froissart blames de Vere’s commoner origins, writing, “It always happens that, when a poor man rises in the world and is honored by his master, he becomes corrupt and ruins the people and the country” (316). In particular, de Vere caused a scandal by divorcing his wife to marry one of the queen’s ladies-in-waiting.

Richard II was pressured into summoning the Parliament of England and allowing them to investigate de Vere embezzling state funds. As a result of the investigation, the king’s former tutor, Simon Burley, is imprisoned on charges of hoarding gold and silver. Charged with treason, Burley was convicted and beheaded. After another ally of Richard II, the Archbishop of York, is stripped of his post as treasurer and exiled from London, Richard II and de Vere in Bristol raised an army against his uncles. Also, Richard II sent one of his chamberlains, Robert Tresilian, to London to investigate the situation. Tresilian was captured by one of Richard II’s uncles, the