Chester was captured by the Earl of Derby, who held it for the Crown during the war between Henry III. and the barons. The contest was ended with the defeat of the barons at the battle of Evesham, close to Worcester. Here, in 1300, it was that the Welsh chieftains paid homage to the first English Prince of Wales, the infant son of Edward I. Richard II., by Act of Parliament, erected the earldom of Chester into a principality to be held only by the eldest son of the King. This was rescinded in the next reign. In fact, Richard II. was made captive by Henry of Lancaster, and was imprisoned in a tower over the gateway of the Castle. The city suffered greatly during the Wars of the Roses. It was visited by Queen Margaret of Anjou, the wife of Henry VI. This queen played a prominent part with regard to the claim to the English throne. She was daughter to Réné, who was a relation of the King of France. He was titular king of Sicily, but without territories. Though Margaret brought to Henry a rich dower, he was persuaded to consent to the deduction of a large portion of Maine and Anjou to her father Réné. During the Duke of Gloucester's life, who had strongly opposed the royal marriage, Margaret and her coadjutor, the Duke of Suffolk, had not dared to carry into effect the agreement they had extracted from Henry. The Duke of York, who was regent in France, through his integrity, was also a serious obstacle. She and Suffolk had him recalled, and the regency given to Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, nephew to Cardinal Beaufort. York felt injured, and took revenge by asserting his claim to the Crown. By his father he was descended from Edward III.'s fourth son. From his mother, the last of the Mortimers, he inherited that family's claim from Lionel, the second son of the same king. On the other hand, John of Gaunt, from whom Henry VI. was descended, was Edward's third son. Thus York, through his mother, had a prior claim. These rival claims caused confusion and tumult throughout England. In the meantime the English possessions in France were lost one after the other, till in 1451 only Calais remained. The misgovernment of the regency in France under Somerset contrasted most unfavourably with that of York.