Simon de Montfort's Parliament
Simon De Montfort's Parliament was the first instance of a parliament in which representatives from towns and the shires were summoned together to discuss matters of national concern. This Parliament is seen as the earliest forerunner of the modern Parliament because of its inclusion of both knights and burgesses, for a reason other than the granting of taxation. This broadened the types of people represented at a high level who were participating in affairs of the nation.
In 2015 the Houses of Parliament, along with the people of the UK, commemorated 750 years since the Simon de Montfort Parliament (1265).
Who was Simon de Montfort?
Simon de Montfort, earl of Leicester, was a French noble who came to England in the 1230s and received lands from King Henry III who was around the same age. Simon controversially married the king's sister at a time when marriages of the aristocracy were strictly controlled by the king. Henry III however, accepted the marriage and Simon became one of King Henry's main advisers.