De Montfort Defeats King Henry: Parliament's Seeds Sown
Simon de Montfort's rebel barons engaged King Henry III's larger royal army at Lewes and won a decisive victory that temporarily placed the English monarch under baronial control. De Montfort used his leverage to summon England's first elected parliament in 1265, calling not just nobles and clergy but also elected burgesses from the towns. Though de Montfort was killed at the Battle of Evesham months later, his parliamentary experiment established a precedent that shaped English governance permanently.
May 12, 1264
762 years ago
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