born March 1340, Ghent
died Feb. 3, 1399, London, Eng.
English prince, the fourth son of Edward III .
John's additional name, "Gaunt" (a corruption of the name of his birthplace, Ghent), was not used after he was three years old; it became the popularly accepted form of his name, however, through its use in Richard II . John served as a commander in the Hundred Years' War against France, then returned to become an important influence in his father's last years as king and in the reign of his nephew {{link=Richard">Richard II . Through his first wife, John acquired the duchy of Lancaster in 1362, and he was the immediate ancestor of the three 15th-century monarchs of the house of Lancaster : Henry IV , Henry V , and Henry VI .