Key highlights:

Reigned as King of England from November 20, 1272 to July 7, 1307, succeeding his father Henry III.
Conquered Wales (1277–1283) and built an "iron ring" of castles, including Caernarfon, Conwy, Harlech, and Beaumaris, several now UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Earned the title "Hammer of the Scots" for his prolonged wars against Scottish independence, including the defeat of William Wallace at Falkirk (1298) and Wallace's execution in 1305.
Issued the Statutes of Westminster (1275, 1285), Quia Emptores (1290), and the Statute of Mortmain (1279), foundational pieces of English common law that earned him the title "the English Justinian."
Convened the "Model Parliament" of 1295, broadening representation to include knights, burgesses, and lesser clergy alongside nobles.
Issued the Edict of Expulsion in 1290, banishing Jews from England until their readmission under Oliver Cromwell in 1656.
Married Eleanor of Castile, whose death in 1290 prompted him to erect the twelve "Eleanor Crosses" along the route of her funeral procession.
Died at Burgh by Sands in Cumbria on July 7, 1307, while leading another campaign against Robert the Bruce, and was succeeded by his son Edward II.

Edward I, nicknamed "Longshanks" for his unusual height, ruled England from 1272 to 1307 and became one of the most consequential medieval English kings. He is best remembered for his military campaigns in the British Isles. Between 1277 and 1283 he conquered Wales, cementing English control by constructing a ring of formidable stone castles at sites like Caernarfon, Conwy, and Harlech. He then turned north, earning the grim nickname "Hammer of the Scots" through brutal campaigns against Scottish independence leaders William Wallace, whom he had executed in 1305, and Robert the Bruce, who would ultimately outlast him.

At home, Edward proved an equally forceful administrator. He overhauled English common law through landmark statutes such as the Statutes of Westminster, Quia Emptores, and the Statute of Mortmain, which clarified property rights, curbed abuses by local officials, and reshaped the relationship between lords and tenants. His regular use of Parliament, including the famous "Model Parliament" of 1295 that brought together nobles, clergy, knights, and burgesses, helped establish parliamentary procedure as a fixture of English government. These achievements earned him the lofty comparison to the Roman lawgiver Justinian.

Edward's reign also had a darker side, most notably his 1290 Edict of Expulsion, which forced England's Jewish population into exile and remained in effect for more than 350 years. He died in July 1307 while marching north for yet another Scottish campaign, leaving his weaker son Edward II to inherit an unfinished war and a kingdom transformed by decades of reform and conquest.