The Lord President of Wales, also known as the Lord President of the Marches of Wales, was the head of the Council of Wales and the Marches, and the de jure head of the administration and government of Wales.
The Lord President was responsible for governing of Wales and the Welsh Marches, and ruled from their residence at Ludlow Castle until the council and office was disbanded in 1689 as a result of the political changes of The Glorious Revolution.
History
Early History
While early Lord Presidents were seated at Shrewsbury, Ludlow Castle became the seat of the Lord President of Wales for much of its history.
It is unclear when an office of President or Lord President of Wales was first established but the "Lordship of the Marchers" was established sometime during the two centuries of on-going struggle to subdue the Welsh following the Norman Invasion of Wales. One of the first written records is in the Brut y Tywysogion which states that Henry I of England made Richard de Belmeis I the "President" and "Lieutenant" of Wales early in the eleventh century and that he continued in these positions for a long time at Shrewsbury.[1]
The English crown made many attempts to establish a level of governance not only over the Welsh, but also over the Marcher Lords whose actions in Wales fell outside the jurisdiction of England. The Lords enjoyed a unique level of independence and power from the English crown, with the Earl of Gloucester even stating that he ruled "sicut regale" (as a king) in Wales, although Norman hegemony was never permanently effective and even the areas under their control were more characteristically a lawless and violent frontier society.[2]
These issues reached a nadir for the English crown during the Second Barons' War when many Welsh fought with the Barons against king Henry III of England and the Welsh Marches had been the scene of some of the heaviest fighting. This prompted a re-establishment of authority over the Lords with Henry commanding Geoffrey de Geneville, who held lands at Ludlow, to repair the local defences and prevent any future incursions by Welsh forces. Over the following year orders would be issued from Ludlow Castle to all Marcher Lords in Roger de Mortimer campaign against the Welsh.[3]
Consolidation of power
Following the Conquest of Gwynedd (the last independent kingdom in Wales), the King of England now directly controlled the governance of the Principality of Wales (which included its own institutions and counties), while the rest of Wales was indirectly under his control via the fealty of the Marcher Lords. Around 141 such powerful Lordships existed from this time, and were notably unruly causing problems for many English kings up until the Tudor period.[4]
Repression of the Welsh followed the Glyndŵr rebellion, and the institution of The Penal Laws continued until the accession of Henry VII to the English throne. Henry, who was of Welsh ancestry is said to have wanted to end the oppression of the Welsh people, and he is known to have made numerous attempts to reform the jurisdiction of Wales.[3] Henry also sent his son, Arthur Prince of Wales to establish his royal household within Ludlow Castle.[5][6]
Arthur's authority was extended over both the Lord Presidency and Council of Wales, and he was given new powers such as the ability to appoint justices of oyer and terminer. By 1501 Arthur and his new wife, Catherine of Aragon were an active part of the administration at Ludlow, until Arthur died just six months later aged fifteen. Henry seems to have given his second son, the future Henry VIII of England few of the responsibilities Arthur had, and the Royal court at Ludlow came to an end. By April 1502 Governance of Wales and the Marches once again reverting to administration by the Council and a new Lord President, with full responsibility for the exercise of royal power.[7][8]
The authority and power of the Lord President would be further consolidated in English law during the reign of Henry VIII. The Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542 (also known as the Acts of Union) ended the piecemeal governance of Wales by abolishing the Marcher Lords and organising all territory in Wales and the Marches into English style "shires" under English Law. The act gave statutory responsibility for the governance of these new entities to the Court of the Lord President of Wales and the Council of Wales and the Marches, with both being officially seated at Ludlow Castle. The changes also saw all legal cases deemed "Nisi Prius" or of civil right tried at Ludlow before the Lord President.[9]
In consolidating the power of the Lord President, these acts finally striped the Marcher Lords of their jura regalia power and independence.[3]
The title page of John Milton's Comus, first performed in 1634 for the Lord President of Wales at Ludlow castle
Civil War and abolishment
As an effective viceroy for Wales, the office of Lord President was suspended with the outbreak of the First English Civil War and remained as such until the Restoration, when it was re-established at Ludlow under the Welsh nobleman, Richard Vaughan, 2nd Earl of Carbery. Vaughan appointed the poet Samuel Butler as his secretary and it is known that Butler wrote at least part of Hudibras at Ludlow. Vaughan's twelve years as Lord President is marked by turmoil. He made an unsuccesful attempted to extend the jurisdiction of his office over Gloucestershire before being removed from office in 1672 on the account of numerous charges brought against him of ill-treatment of his servants and tenants at his ancestral home of Dryslwyn.[10]
Henry Somerset was accompanied on his 1684 Presidential tour of Wales by Thomas Dineley who's account of the progress recorded the opulent conditions that the later Presidents enjoyed.
Vaughan was succeeded by Henry Somerset, 1st Duke of Beaufort who was notable for his Presidential tour of Wales. Somerset was accompanied on this "official progress" by Thomas Dineley, who's journal of the sumptuous entertainments the progress enjoyed (originally kept under the title of Notitia Cambro-Britannica), was later published as The Account of the Official Progress of His Grace Henry, the First Duke of Beaufort through Wales in 1684.[11] Somerset's time as President also marks the beginning of the Glorious Revolution.[12]
Finally, with the succession of William III of England in 1689, Charles Gerard, 1st Earl of Macclesfield was appointed President. The succession of the new king saw many constitutional changes and the continuation of a Presidency of Wales was brought into question. A petition for the end of the office and court drew 18,000 signatures from inhabitants of Wales, while the ever increasing cost of the Presidential office and court were vexatious to the new administration. As such, both the Presidency and the Court would be abolished within a year.[3]
Eure's presidency was marked by a campaign from Sir Herbert Croft to remove the council's jurisdiction over a number of English counties.[13]authority over the English counties was relaxed in 1606 but restored by royal decree in 1609
↑ Thurley, Simon (2019). Houses of Power: the Places that Shaped the Tudor World. Black Swan. p.91.
↑ Cunningham, Sean (2016). Prince Arthur: the Tudor King Who Never Was. Gloucestershire: Amberley Publishing.
↑ Lehman, H. Eugene (2011). Lives of England's reigning and consort queens: England's history through the eyes of its queens. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse. p.258. ISBN978-1-4634-3057-3.
↑ Scarisbrick, J. J. (2011). Henry VIII. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. p.6. ISBN0-3000-7158-2.
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