Following the death of his grandfather, Edward Ill in June, 1377, Richard II was crowned King of England at the age of ten. At that time, his uncle John Gaunt was involved in a tussle for power with parliament. As he grew older, Richard, like his uncle and grandfather before him, wanted to rule without being controlled by the parliament. This angered the members of the House of Commons. To make matters worse, Richard granted favours generously to his friends and supporters. The House of Commons disapproved of this, and in 1386, it wanted to impeach both the Chancellor and Treasurer.
Richard at first arrogantly refused to allow the impeachment- in fact he is reported to have said that he would not dismiss even a single kitchen hand at parliament’s request! However, he finally had to give in, and allow the impeachment. Two years later, parliament executed six of the king’s friends and supporters, and for the next ten years, the king was forced to co-operate with parliament. It was a bitter and humiliating lesson for the monarch, and this period saw parliament grow even stronger than before.