Thomas of Brotherton and Edmund of Woodstock – the youngest sons of Edward I by his second wife, Margaret of France – were born on 1 June 1300 and 5 August 1301 respectively. Between 1301 and 16 December 1312 (on which latter date Thomas was created earl of Norfolk), the two young princes were brought up within a royal household which had been created by the king in order to cater for their needs. Since this household was subject to audit on a regular basis, a considerable number of its financial and administrative records have survived amongst the governmental documents of the period. Although the existence of these records (which number about forty in total) has been known of for many decades, they have never previously been systematically analysed as a whole. The intention of the present article is, therefore, to use this series of documents in conjunction with contemporary correspondence and chronicles to investigate three particular areas of the childhood and household of Thomas of Brotherton and Edmund of Woodstock: the structure and organization of their hospicium; the character of their early relationships with their father and half-brother; and the nature of their upbringing and life-style.

The documents pertaining to Thomas and Edmund's household were never, of course, intended to be used as a social record of their upbringing, but nevertheless they are invaluable in the details they provide as to the structure of the household itself, as well as the kinds of necessities and luxu-ries provided for the two princes.