Montfort, Simon de, << MONT fuhrt or mawn FAWR, see MAWN duh >> (1208?-1265), an English statesman and soldier, contributed to the growth of parliamentary government in England. He has been called “the father of the House of Commons.”
For many years, Simon was a favorite of King Henry III. But he lost favor because of his desire for political reform. Henry III wanted to rule as he pleased, and Simon led a rebellion aimed at limiting the king’s power by law. King Henry and his son (later Edward I) took up arms, but Simon captured them both at the Battle of Lewes in 1264. Shortly after, Simon assembled a parliament that won him fame.
Parliament had been only another name for the king’s great council of barons and churchmen, though some commoners had served in the past. Simon wished to give more people a voice in affairs. He called to this Parliament of January 1265 two representatives from each shire and two from each town and borough.
Simon was killed a few months later, on Aug. 4, 1265, in the Battle of Evesham. His tomb became an English shrine.
Simon de Montfort was born in France, probably in 1208. When he was 21, he came to England to claim the lands and title formerly held by his great-grandfather. Ten years later, he received the title Earl of Leicester.
