Posted on 02/17/2008 6:44:21 PM PST by blam
Abbey body identified as gay lover of Edward II
By Laura Clout
Last Updated: 1:06am GMT 18/02/2008
A mutilated body found in an abbey graveyard has been identified as that of a notorious medieval villain rumoured to have been the gay lover of Edward II.
The remains, which bear the hallmarks of having been hanged, drawn and quartered, are thought to be those of Sir Hugh Despenser the Younger, who was executed as a traitor in 1326.
Sir Hugh was executed after Edward II [above] was deposed from the throne in 1326
Sir Hugh had been favourite of Edward II - who was widely believed to have been homosexual - but was brutally executed before a mob after the king was ousted from the throne.
The decapitated remains, buried at Hulton Abbey, Staffs, have intrigued experts since they were uncovered during the 1970s and now Mary Lewis, an anthropologist, says she has uncovered compelling evidence of their true identity.
The manner of execution, carbon-dating of the bones, and the absence of several parts of the body all point towards Sir Hugh being the victim, she said.
"If the remains are those of Sir Hugh Despenser the Younger, then this is the first time such an execution victim has been identified," she added.
Sir Hugh insinuated himself into the king's favour by backing him in his battles with the barons. Through a series of ruthless deals, he consolidated a huge fortune, winning himself a legion of enemies in the process, including Edward's wife, Queen Isabella.
His downfall came when the queen and her ally, Roger Mortimer, deposed the king in 1326.
Sir Hugh was judged a traitor and a thief. He was hanged and, still conscious, castrated, disembowelled and then quartered before his head was displayed on London Bridge.
Miss Lewis, a biological anthropologist at the University of Reading, found that the Staffordshire skeleton had been beheaded and chopped into several pieces with a sharp blade, suggesting a ritual killing.
There was also evidence of a stab wound to the stomach.
She said: "This form of public execution was high theatre that aimed to demonstrate the power of government to the masses. High treason dictated that the perpetrator should suffer more than one death."
Radiocarbon analysis dated the remains to between 1050 and 1385 and subsequent tests suggested that the male was over 34 years old. Sir Hugh was 40 when he was killed.
"Dating of the Hulton Abbey skeleton indicates that he died no later that 1385, when this brutal and very public form of execution was handed out only to the most notorious political prisoners. This suggests that the skeleton at Hulton Abbey was a well-known political figure," Miss Lewis added.
Sir Hugh's wife asked for his bones to be buried on his family's Gloucestershire estate but only the head, a thigh bone and a few vertebrae were returned to her. These are the bones that are missing from the Hulton Abbey skeleton.
In addition, the abbey formed part of the estate of Sir Hugh's brother-in-law, Hugh Audley, and it is thought the family may have chosen to bury what remained of their disgraced relative there.
I believe the lover who was tossed out the window was Piers Gaveston.
A hugh dispenser sounds very series ... and painful.
Having fathered 4 legitimate and 1 illegitimate children in his reign, that seems an odd rumor. Probably only written by the peerage to discredit the man.
There are plenty of cases of homosexual men siring children, so Edward III could have been a son of Edward II.
James VI & I was another one and he had several children.
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You are correct about King James, but from what I have read about Edward II, he despised women, especially Isabella. And she had no problem replacing him.
One look at the reign of Edward III and the career of his eldest son quickly leads one to connect him with his grandfather, Edward I.
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One look at Edward III and you see his ambitious mother as well.
Oh good grief, that is the best movie EVER!
I'm wondering if Mel got the idea of an illegitimate Royal pregnancy from the rumored illegitimacy of King Edward IV. According to historic research, Edward IV's parents Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York and Cecily Neville were 200 miles apart when he was supposed to have been conceived. His real father may have been an archer.
There was a program a few years ago titled "The Real King of England." It covered the historical research and followed the family line through to the present day, tracking the man who really should be King, finding him living in Australia.
Here's a link to an article about King Mike:
OMG LOLOLOLOL
The union between Isabella and Edward II supposedly produced two sons and two daughters, but since there will never be any DNA tests done, we’ll never know for sure who the father was.
Yes. They would do the deed and think of England, lol. Homosexuals can father children, and the concern of most Royal families was to have an heir to secure the throne. Witness Henry VIII’s extreme attempts to find a wife who would give him a son as heir.
The union between Isabella and Edward II supposedly produced two sons and two daughters, but since there will never be any DNA tests done, we’ll never know for sure who the father was.
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You are right. Any other king, I would believe did his duty. But with THIS king and THIS queen, I am doubtful.
"They're finally here to rescue me father!"
If they decided to do this in the San Fransicko Barf Area for being homo, they'd need to build a couple more bridges to accomodate them all.
OTOH, it might help restore the crab fishery.
Is that Roy Fitz James, or James Fitz Roy?
That looks awkward.
I don’t know all the details of Stuart genealogy, but James I had an older son Prince Henry, for whom Cape Henry in Virginia is named, and a second son Charles, later King Charles I (because Henry died before his father), and a daughter who married Frederick “the Winter King” and who was the ancestor of King George I. There may have been some more.
bfl
Always enjoyed The Prisoner. The last episode was rather strange I thought.
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