Perrers, Alice (d. 1400)

Mistress of the English king Edward III. Name variations: Alice de Windsor; Lady of the Sun. Died in 1400; married Sir William de Windsor, deputy of Ireland (died 1384).

Alice Perrers, who was the mistress of the English king Edward III, probably belonged to the Hertfordshire family of Perrerses, though there was some talk that she was of more humble origins, possibly the daughter of a tiler from Essex. She entered royal service as a woman of the bedchamber to Queen Philippa of Hainault sometime before 1366. Perrers' intimacy with the king began around that time, and during the next few years she received several grants of land and gifts of jewels from him. After Philippa's death in 1369, Perrers became more powerful. Not content with the great influence which she had over Edward, Alice interfered in the proceedings of the courts of law to secure sentences in favor of friends, or of those who paid for her help, actions which induced the Parliament of 1376 to forbid all women from practicing in the law courts. Though Alice was banished, John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster, allowed her to return to court, and the Parliament of 1377 reversed the sentence against her.

But Perrers once again attempted to influence the courts. Tried by the peers, she was banished after the death of Edward III in June 1377 (it is said that, following her bedside vigil, she tried to pry the rings off his fingers before rigor mortis set in). This sentence was annulled two years later, and Alice regained some influence at court. Her time, however, was mainly spent in lawsuits, one being with William of Wykeham, bishop of Winchester, and another with her dead husband's nephew and heir, John de Windsor.