Safety to the state

The story of Floris V came to an abrupt end on 27 June 1296, when he was assassinated by a group of his own nobles. There are several versions of what happened, and the motive. One Holland chronicler wrote that Floris was murdered by one of his ministers, Gherard de Valsen. Floris had, allegedly, ordered Gherard to marry one of his former mistresses. When Gherard refused, Floris raped his wife. If true, the murder was an act of vengeance. Other accounts say the killing was the result of a conspiracy among several nobles of Holland and Zeeland, including Gherard, Gijsbert IV of Amstel, Herman of Woerden and Jean de Renesse. All of these men had been humiliated or dispossessed by Floris. There are also suspicions of Edward I's involvement. Floris had taken large sums of English money, then broken faith and defected to the French. When Edward warned him of the consequences, Floris laughed off the king's threats. A letter written by Edward to the King of Germany, Adolf of Nassau, hints at what was afoot. He complains bitterly of the ingratitude of Floris, and beseeches Adolf to do nothing to harm the interest of the Count of Holland's heir, John. He added: “For we hope that rather in the person of the son than the father, safety to the state may be found.” John was in Edward's custody, betrothed to marry the king's daughter, Elizabeth of Rhuddlan. It seems Edward contacted the disaffected nobles in Holland, and a conspiracy was hatched to kidnap Floris and smuggle him over to England. There he would be forced to renounce the French alliance, or give up his title in favour of his son. And then it all got very messy. © 2024 History Stuff 548 Market Street PMB 72296, San Francisco, CA 94104 Unsubscribe