Council of Wales and the Marches

The Court of the Council in the Dominion and Principality of Wales, and the Marches of the same, commonly called the Council of Wales and the Marches (Welsh: Cyngor Cymru a’r Gororau) was a regional administrative body based in Ludlow Castle within the Kingdom of England between the 15th and 17th centuries, similar to the Council of the North. Its area of responsibility varied but generally covered all of modern Wales and the Welsh Marches of Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Cheshire and Gloucestershire.[1] The City of Bristol was exempted in 1562, and Cheshire in 1569.

The Council was initially responsible for governing the lands held under the Principality of Wales, the lands directly administered by the English crown following the Edwardian conquest of Wales in the 13th century. In 1457, Henry VI created for his son, Prince Edward, a Council to rule Wales and the marches, Cheshire, and Cornwall.

It was re-established by Edward IV of England as a body to counsel and act on behalf of his son, the infant Edward, Prince of Wales. King Edward had recently been restored to the monarchy during the Wars of the Roses, and he and his allies controlled most of the marcher lordships within and adjoining Wales. He established his son at Ludlow Castle, and appointed his allies from the Woodville and Stanley families as leading figures in the Council.