Edward II inherited Aquitaine — or Guyenne as the duchy was more commonly called by his reign — under conditions of almost permanent friction with the French crown. The groschen tournois type was an unambiguous imitation of the French royal gros tournois, itself established by Louis IX in 1266, and Edward's mints at Bordeaux and elsewhere were producing these pieces largely to satisfy a local economy that already trusted the Capetian prototype. Striking a recognizable imitation was pragmatic monetary policy in a region where loyalty to the English king was always contingent on trade.
Edward's tenure as Duke ended effectively at Pavia in 1325 when his son, the future Edward III, received homage obligations for the duchy — a transfer arranged partly to sidestep the humiliating personal submissions Philip IV had extracted from Edward II himself.
Edward II inherited Aquitaine — or Guyenne as the duchy was more commonly called by his reign — under conditions of almost permanent friction with the French crown. The groschen tournois type was an unambiguous imitation of the French royal gros tournois, itself established by Louis IX in 1266, and Edward's mints at Bordeaux and elsewhere were producing these pieces largely to satisfy a local economy that already trusted the Capetian prototype. Striking a recognizable imitation was pragmatic monetary policy in a region where loyalty to the English king was always contingent on trade.
Edward's tenure as Duke ended effectively at Pavia in 1325 when his son, the future Edward III, received homage obligations for the duchy — a transfer arranged partly to sidestep the humiliating personal submissions Philip IV had extracted from Edward II himself.