CHAPTER FOUR
The prolific Edward III sired eight sons, four of whom grew to maturity and had sons of their own. The eldest was the Prince of Wales, that Edward known to history as the Black Prince, who was the father of Richard II. Richard, although his entitlement to the throne was without dispute, was nevertheless a weak and unstable ruler. This led to his deposition by Henry of Bolingbroke in 1399, Bolingbroke’s usurpation of the throne, and Richard’s own probable murder the following year.
Bolingbroke, henceforth known as Henry IV, was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, third surviving son of Edward III. In 1399, when Bolingbroke staged his successful coup, the rightful heir to the throne of England was Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March and Ulster, a child of nearly eight. Edmund was the great-grandson of Lionel of Antwerp, Duke of Clarence, second son of Edward III. Lionel’s only child had been a daughter, Philippa, who was Edmund’s grandmother, but in England there was no Salic Law to prevent the crown passing by way of inheritance to or through a female, and there is no doubt that Edmund had a better claim to the throne than Bolingbroke. However, Edmund was a child and Bolingbroke a grown man and a proven soldier: England needed a firm ruler, and so the claim of Edmund Mortimer was set aside while the House of Lancaster usurped the throne. Edmund died in 1425, and his claim to the throne was inherited by his surviving sister Anne’s child, Richard, Duke of York. It was he who first used the surname Plantagenet.
For half a century, the House of Lancaster ruled England under Henry IV, Henry V, and Henry VI. Henry V executed Richard, Earl of Cambridge, who was the husband of Anne Mortimer and the son of Edmund of Langley, Duke of York, fourth surviving son of Edward III; Richard of Cambridge had plotted to overthrow the fifth Henry, but his treason was discovered and he was eliminated on the eve of the campaign that would see the English victorious at Agincourt. Henry V died young, and the House of Lancaster came to grief under his son Henry VI, who was fitted rather for the clerical life than for kingship. Henry VI married the energetic and passionate Margaret of Anjou, but the marriage was childless for eight years. Then, in 1453, the queen produced a son whilst her husband was suffering one of his periodic fits of insanity, which Margaret’s enemies interpreted as an admission that the Queen had foisted a bastard upon the royal line. Nevertheless, the infant was created Prince of Wales the following year. However, it was Henry VI’s ineptitude as a ruler, rather than the rumours about his son’s paternity, that precipitated the dynastic struggle that later came to be known as the Wars of the Roses, after the emblems of the two warring factions: the red rose of Lancaster, and the white rose of York.
York deeply resented the court party headed by the Queen, and promoted himself as the champion of good government; only later did he assert his superior claim to the throne. Thirty years of intermittent strife followed the outbreak of hostilities in 1455. Early battles in the conflict were indecisive. Then, in 1460, York was killed at the Battle of Wakefield, and his cause taken up by his son, Edward, Earl of March, who won a decisive victory at Towton the following Spring. This led to him being accepted as King of England and crowned at Westminster Abbey. Henry VI went into hiding, but was later taken into custody and imprisoned in the Tower.
Edward IV was a strong king, but he made the fatal mistake of making a very unpopular marriage to a commoner called Elizabeth Wydville, who brought instead of a dowry a host of rapacious relatives, eager for lands, honours and wealth. This marriage alienated the great Earl of Warwick, known as ‘the kingmaker’, who had been Edward’s staunchest supporter. Warwick allied himself with Margaret of Anjou and brought about the ‘readeption’ of Henry VI, while Edward fled to the Low Countries. But he soon returned with an army, to march for the final time upon his enemies. Warwick was killed at the Battle of Barnet in April, 1471, and Margaret’s Lancastrian forces routed in the bloody Battle of Tewkesbury in May. On 21 May, Henry VI died in mysterious circumstances in the Tower of London. At last, the House of York was securely established upon the throne.
Edward IV died in 1483, worn out prematurely by the pleasures of the table and the bedchamber, leaving as his heir Edward V, a boy of twelve. The government of the realm was placed in the capable yet treacherous hands of Edward IV’s brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester. After securing the persons of Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York, in the Tower of London, and eliminating his enemies one by one, Gloucester had it announced, on the basis of questionable evidence, that his brother’s marriage to Elizabeth Wydville had been bigamous, and that their children were therefore bastards and unfit to inherit the throne. As a result, the crown was offered to Gloucester, who was crowned King Richard III in July, 1483. Edward V and his brother, the ‘Princes in the Tower’, were never seen alive again, and controversy has raged ever since as to their fate. The evidence strongly suggests that they were murdered on the orders of Richard III, although this has often been disputed.
Richard III did not long enjoy his crown. His son died in 1484, and his wife in 1485. His heir was his sister’s son, John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln. Yet England was never destined to have a King John II. For although the great families who were descended from Edward III and had a strong claim to the throne of England had either died out or been barred from the succession by Act of Attainder, there yet remained in exile in France a scion of the Beauforts, who were the issue of John of Gaunt by his mistress (and later wife) Katherine Swynford. After their parents’ marriage in 1396, the Beauforts were declared legitimate by a Statute of Richard II, but Henry IV added an amendment barring them from the throne, which was of dubious legality. This minor technicality did not, however, deter the ‘unknown Welshman’ called Henry Tudor, who in 1485 invaded England with a foreign army, defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth, and had himself crowned on the battlefield as King Henry VII with the circlet that had fallen from the head of the last Plantagenet King of England and rolled under a hawthorn bush near to where Richard fell, hacked to death in the midst of the fray.
Thus was the Tudor dynasty founded, of whom we shall hear more in the next chapter. Henry VII united the rival Houses of York and Lancaster by marrying Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV. The Wars of the Roses ended in 1487 with the Battle of Stoke, when John, Earl of Lincoln, Richard III’s nephew and heir, perished. But the tragedy of the House of York would be drawn out for a further eighty years, during which time its surviving members were either brutally eliminated or neutralised by the usurping, ever-suspicious Tudors.
Henry IV
FATHER: John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster ( 
see here, under Edward III).
MOTHER: Blanche of Lancaster ( see here, under Edward III).
SIBLINGS: ( see here, under Edward III)
HENRY IV
He was born probably on 3 April, or – less probably – on 30 May, 1367, at Bolingbroke Castle, Lincs. He was made a Knight of the Garter on 23 April, 1377, and styled Earl of Derby from 16 July, 1377. He was created Earl of Northampton and (probably) Earl of Hereford in right of his wife on 22 December, 1384. He was created Duke of Hereford on 29 September, 1397, and succeeded his father as Duke of Lancaster, Earl of Leicester and Earl of Lincoln on 3 February, 1399. He usurped the throne of England upon the abdication of Richard II on 30 September, 1399, and was crowned on 13 October, 1399, at Westminster Abbey.
Henry IV married firstly, between 20 July, 1380, and 10 February, 1381, either at Rochford, Essex, or at Arundel Castle, Sussex:
Mary
She was the daughter of Humphrey de Bohun, Earl of Hereford, Essex and Northampton, by Joan, daughter of Richard FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel, a descendant of Henry III. Her sister Eleanor was married to Henry IV’s uncle, Thomas, Duke of Gloucester ( see here, under Edward III). Mary was born around 1369/70. She was made a Lady of the Garter in 1388. She died on 4 June, 1394, at Peterborough Castle, in childbirth, and was buried in St Mary’s Church, Leicester. Her remains were later removed to Trinity Hospital, Leicester.
Issue of marriage:
1 Edward
He was born in April, 1382, and died aged 4 days. He was perhaps buried in Monmouth Castle Chapel.
2 Henry V ( see here).
3 Thomas
He was born on 29 September, 1388, either at Kenilworth Castle, Co. Warwick, or in London. He was made a Knight of the Bath on 12 October, 1399, when the Order was founded by his father, and a Knight of the Garter in c.1400. He was created Duke of Clarence and Earl of Aumale on 9 July, 1412. He was killed on 22 March, 1421, at the Battle of Baugé, France, and was buried in Canterbury Cathedral.
Thomas had the following illegitimate issue:
1 John de Clarence; he was a knight, and was sometimes known as the Bastard of Clarence.
Thomas married, after 10 November, 1411 (date of dispensation) (although no evidence exists as to where):
Margaret
She was the daughter of Thomas Holland, Earl of Kent, son of Joan, Princess of Wales ( see here, under Edward III), by Alice, daughter of Richard FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel, a descendant of Henry III. Margaret was born in c.1381/5. She married firstly John Beaufort, Marquess of Somerset, son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster ( see here, under Edward III), and had issue. She was made a Lady of the Garter in 1399. She died on 30/31 December, 1439, at St Saviour’s Abbey, Bermondsey, London, and was buried in Canterbury Cathedral, Kent.
4 John
He was born on 20 June, 1389. He was made a Knight of the Bath on 11 October, 1399, when the Order was founded by his father, and a Knight of the Garter in c.1400. He was created Earl of Kendal and Duke of Bedford on 16 May, 1414, and Earl of Richmond on 24 November, 1414. He died on the night of 14/15 September, 1435, at his house called ‘Joyeux Repos’ at Rouen, Normandy, and was buried in Rouen Cathedral, Normandy.
John had the following illegitimate issue:
1 Richard.
2 Mary (d. after 1458); she married Peter of Montferrat.
John married firstly by proxy on 13 or 17 April, 1423, at Montbar, France, and in person on 14 June, 1423, at Troyes Cathedral, France:
Anne
She was the daughter of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, by Margaret, daughter of Albert of Bavaria, Count of Hainault, Holland and Zeeland, and she was born around 1404/5 at Arras, Burgundy, France. Anne died on 14 November, 1432, at the Hôtel de Bourgogne, Paris, in childbirth, and was buried in the Church of the Celestines, Paris. Her remains were later removed to the Chartreuse de Champnol, Dijon, Burgundy, France.
Issue of marriage:
(i) Unnamed child
It was born in November, 1432, in Paris, and died shortly after its birth.
John married secondly, on 20 or 22 April, 1433, at the Bishop’s Palace, Thérouanne, France:
Jacquetta
She was the daughter of Peter of Luxembourg, Count of St Pol, by Margaret, daughter of Francis del Balso or Baux, Duke of Andria, and she was born in 1416 (?). After the death of Bedford, she married secondly Richard Woodville or Wydville, 1st Earl Rivers (1405?–executed 1469), between 16 September, 1435, and 23 March, 1436, and had issue:
1 Elizabeth; she married Edward IV ( see here).
2 Anne (1438?–1489); she married firstly William, Viscount Bourchier (killed 1471 or d.1483?), son of Isabella Plantagenet ( see here, under Edward III) and cousin of Edward IV, and had issue. She married secondly Sir Edward Wingfield, and thirdly George Grey, Earl of Kent (d.1503).
3 Margaret (1439?–1490/1); she married Thomas Maltravers, Earl of Arundel (1450?–1524).
4 Anthony, 2nd Earl Rivers (1440/2?–executed 1483); he married firstly Elizabeth (1436?–1473), daughter of Thomas, Baron Scales of Neucelles. He married secondly Mary, daughter of Sir Henry FitzLewes. Anthony had illegitimate issue.
5 Mary (1443?–by 1481); she married William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke and Huntingdon (d.1491), and had issue.
6 Jacquetta (1444/5?–1509); she married John le Strange, Baron Strange of Knockin (d.1479), and had issue.
7 John (1445–executed 1469); he married Katherine (d. after 1483), daughter of Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, by Joan Beaufort ( see here, under Edward III).
8 Lionel, Bishop of Salisbury (1446?–1484).
9 Edward (killed 1488).
10 Richard, 3rd Earl Rivers (d.1491).
11 Thomas; he married Anne Holland.
12 John (d. young).
13 Lewis (d. young).
14 Katherine, Duchess of Buckingham and Bedford ( see here, under Henry V).
15 Martha; she married Sir John Bromley.
16 Eleanor or Joan; she married Anthony Grey, Baron de Ruthin (d.1480), and had issue.
Jacquetta was made a Lady of the Garter in 1435. She died on 30 May, 1472.
5 Humphrey
He was born around August/September, or on 3 October, 1390. He was made a Knight of the Garter in c.1400, and created Duke of Gloucester and Earl of Pembroke on 16 May, 1414. In March, 1423, he assumed the style Count of Holland, Zeeland and Hainault in right of his first wife. He was created Count of Flanders on 30 July, 1436. He died, or was perhaps murdered, on 23 February, 1447, at Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, and was buried in St Albans Abbey, Herts.
Humphrey had the following illegitimate issue:
1 Arthur (d.1447).
2 Antigone; she married firstly Henry Grey, Lord of Powys and Count of Tancarville in Normandy (1419?–1450), and had issue. She married secondly John d’Amancier.
Humphrey married firstly, before 7 March (perhaps in February?), 1422/3, at Hadleigh, Essex (?):
Jacqueline
She was the daughter of William IV, Duke of Bavaria, Count of Holland, Zeeland and Hainault, by Margaret, daughter of Philip the Hardy, Duke of Burgundy, and she was born on 25 July, 1401, at The Hague, Holland. She married firstly John of Viennois, Dauphin of France (1398–1417), in July, 1406 at Compiégne, France, and again in 1415 at The Hague, Holland. She succeeded her father as Duchess of Bavaria and Countess of Holland, Zeeland and Hainault in 1417. She married secondly John IV, Duke of Brabant (1400/3–1426), on 10 March, 1418. This marriage was annulled by the Anti-Pope, Benedict XIII, in 1421/2. She was made a Lady of the Garter in 1423. Her marriage to Humphrey was annulled on 9 July, 1428, by Papal Decree, which also pronounced as valid her marriage to Brabant. She married fourthly Francis or Floris van Borselen, Count of Ostrevant (d.1470), in July, 1432, at Ostende, Flanders. She was dispossessed by the Duke of Burgundy of all her territories save Ostrevant in 1433. She underwent a second marriage ceremony with her fourth husband in July, 1434, at Martensdijk Castle, Holland. Jacqueline died on 8/9 October, 1436, either at Leyden, or at Teilingen, Holland, and was buried at The Hague.
Issue of marriage:
(i) Stillborn child
It was born in 1424.
Humphrey married secondly, in 1428 (?) (before 1431) (although no record exists as to where):
Eleanor
She was the daughter of Sir Reginald Cobham of Sterborough, Kent, by Eleanor, daughter of Sir Thomas Culpeper of Rayal. She was perhaps born at Sterborough Castle, Kent. She became Humphrey’s mistress some time before their marriage, and may have borne him 2 bastard children, possibly those listed above, but no firm details are recorded, and the children, if they existed, may have died young before the marriage took place. Eleanor was made a Lady of the Garter in 1432. In 1441, she was convicted of practising witchcraft upon Henry VI, and was imprisoned for life. She died in either 1446 or 1457 in prison at Peel Castle, Isle of Man, where she is said to have been buried.
6 Blanche
She was born in the spring of 1392 at Peterborough Castle. She married Louis ‘Barbatus’, Duke of Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine (d.1436) on 6 July, 1402, at Cologne Cathedral, Germany, and had issue:
1 Stillborn child (1407).
2 Rupert (1409–1426).
Blanche was made a Lady of the Garter in 1408. She died on 22 May, 1409, at Neustadt, Alsace, in childbirth, and was buried in the Church of St Mary, Neustadt, Alsace.
7 Philippa
She was born on or just before 4 June (not July, as is sometimes stated – her mother died giving birth to her in June), 1394, at Peterborough Castle. She married Eric of Pomerania, King of Sweden (Eric XIII), Denmark (Eric VII), and Norway (Eric III) (1382–1459), on 26 October, 1406, at Lund, Sweden, and had issue:
1 Stillborn child (1429).
Philippa was crowned Queen Consort of Sweden, Denmark and Norway on 1 November, 1406, at Lund, Sweden. She was made a Lady of the Garter in 1408. She died on 5 January, 1430, in the convent of Waldstena, Lingkoping, Sweden, where she was buried.
Henry IV is also said to have had the following illegitimate issue, although there is no contemporary evidence for this:
1 Edmund Labourde (d. young in 1401).
Henry IV married secondly, by proxy on 3 April, 1402, at Eltham
Palace, Kent, and in person on 7 February, 1403, at Winchester Cathedral:
Joan
She was the daughter of Charles II, King of Navarre, by Joan, daughter of John II, King of France, and she was born in c.1370. She married firstly John de Montfort IV, Duke of Brittany (1339–1399) (who had previously been married to Mary, daughter of Edward III), either on 25 August, 1386, at Pampelina, Navarre, or on 11 September, 1386, at Saillé, Navarre, and had issue:
1 Joan (1387–1388).
2 Daughter (name not known) (b.&d.1388).
3 Peter, who took the name and style John V, Duke of Brittany (1389–1422); he married Joan (1391–1433), daughter of Charles VI, King of France, and sister to the wives of Richard II and Henry V, and had issue.
4 Mary (1391–1446); she married John I, Duke of Alençon (d.1415).
5 Arthur III, Duke of Brittany (1393–1458); he married firstly Margaret (d.1441), daughter of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, and secondly Joan d’Albret, and thirdly Katherine of Luxembourg.
6 Giles, Lord of Chantocé (1394–1412).
7 Richard, Count of Éstampes (1395–1438); he married Margaret (d.1466), daughter of Louis of Valois, Duke of Orléans, and had issue.
8 Blanche (c.1396–c.1418); she married John or Lomagne, Count of Armagnac (d. after 1448).
9 Margaret (1397–1428); she married Alan, Viscount de Rohan.
Joan was crowned Queen Consort on 25/26 February, 1403, at Westminster Abbey. She was made a Lady of the Garter in 1405. She died on 2, 9 or 10 July, 1437, at the Dower House known as Pirgo, on the royal manor of Havering-atte-Bower, Essex, and was buried in Canterbury Cathedral, Kent. There was no issue of her marriage to Henry IV.
HENRY IV
He died on 20 March, 1413, in the Jerusalem Chamber in Westminster Abbey, of a disease resembling leprosy, and was buried in Canterbury Cathedral.
He was succeeded by his son Henry.
Henry V
FATHER: Henry IV ( see here).
MOTHER: Mary de Bohun ( see here, under Henry IV).
SIBLINGS: ( see here, under Henry IV).
HENRY V
He was born probably on 9 August or 16 September, 1387, or – less probably – in August, 1386, at Monmouth Castle. He was created Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall and Earl of Chester, and Prince of Aquitaine on 15 October, 1399, and invested with these honours the same day. He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1399. He was created Duke of Aquitaine on 23 October or 10 November, 1399, and Duke of Lancaster on 10 November, 1399. He succeeded his father as King of England on 21 March, 1413, and was crowned on 9 April, 1413, in Westminster Abbey. He was designated heir to the throne of France on 21 May, 1420, but did not live to enjoy his inheritance.
Henry V married, on 2 June, 1420, at Troyes Cathedral, France:
Katherine
She was the daughter of Charles VI, King of France, by Isabella, daughter of Stephen II, Duke of Ingolstadt-Bavaria. Her sister Isabella had been married to Richard II. Katherine was born on 27 October, 1401, at the Hôtel de St Pol, Paris. She was crowned in Westminster Abbey on 23/24 February, 1421. After the death of Henry V, she either secretly married, or formed a liaison with, a gentleman of her household, Owain ap Maredudd ap Tewdwr (Owen Tudor), son of Maredudd (Meredith) ap Tewdwr by his wife Margaret. This marriage, if it took place at all, was solemnised between 1425 and 1428. Owen Tudor was born in c.1400 at Plas Penmynydd, Wales, and he was executed on 3 February, 1461, by the Yorkists at Hereford. He was buried in Grey Friar’s Church, Hereford. His union with Katherine produced issue as follows, and details are given in full as they are relevant to the succession:
|
(a) |
Owen or Thomas or Edward |
|
He was born on 6 November, 1429, at the Palace of Westminster, and is perhaps to be identified with Edward Bridgewater, a monk at Westminster Abbey from 1468/9 to 1471/2. He died in 1502 at Westminster, and was buried in Westminster Abbey. |
|
|
(b) |
Edmund ( |
|
(c) |
Jaspar |
|
He was born in c.1431 at Hatfield, Herts. He was created Earl of Pembroke probably on 23 November, 1452, certainly before 30 January, 1453. He was made a Knight of the Garter before 23 April, 1459. He was attainted as a traitor by Act of Parliament on 4 November, 1461, and forfeited all his honours, but was styled Earl of Pembroke from October, 1470, until May, 1471, during the readeption of Henry VI. He was created Duke of Bedford on 27 October, 1485, and formally restored to all his honours on 12 December, 1485. He died on 21 or 26 December, 1495, and was buried in Keynsham Abbey, Somerset. |
|
|
Jaspar had the following illegitimate issue: |
|
|
By Mevanvy (d. by 1485?), a Welshwoman: |
|
|
1 Helen or Ellen; she married William Gardiner of London, and had issue. |
|
|
Jaspar married, before 7 November, 1485: |
|
|
Katherine |
|
|
She was the daughter of Richard Wydville, 1st Earl Rivers, by Jacquetta of Luxembourg ( |
|
|
1 Edward, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (1478–executed 1521); he married Eleanor (d.1530), daughter of Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland, and had issue. |
|
|
2 Henry, Earl of Wiltshire (1479?–1523); he married firstly Muriel or Margaret, daughter of Edward Grey, Viscount de Lisle, and secondly Cecilia (d.1529), daughter of William Bonville, Baron Harington. |
|
|
3 Humphrey (d. young). |
|
|
4 Anne; she married first Sir Walter Herbert (d.1507), and secondly George Hastings, Earl of Huntingdon (1488–1544), and had issue. |
|
|
5 Elizabeth (d.1532); she married Robert Radcliffe, Earl of Sussex (d.1542). She was also the first recorded mistress of Henry VIII. After the death of Jaspar, Katherine married thirdly Sir Richard Wingfield of Kimbolton Castle, Hunts. (1468–1525). She died before 1513. |
|
|
(d) |
Daughter (name not known) |
|
Polydore Vergil, Henry VII’s official historian, says she became a nun, and there is no reason to doubt this, although no other source mentions her. |
|
|
(e) |
Margaret or Katherine |
|
She was born in January, 1437, at the Abbey of St Saviour, Bermondsey, London, where she died shortly after her birth. |
Katherine died on 3 January, 1437, at the Abbey of St Saviour, Bermondsey, London, in childbirth, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Issue of marriage:
1 Henry VI ( see here).
HENRY V
He died on 31 August/1 September, 1422, at the Castle of Bois-de Vincennes, France, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
He was succeeded by his son Henry.
Henry VI
FATHER: Henry V ( see here).
MOTHER: Katherine of France ( see here, under Henry V).
SIBLINGS: Henry VI did not have any legitimate siblings.
HENRY VI
He was born on 6 December, 1421, at Windsor Castle. He is said to have been designated Duke of Cornwall from birth. He succeeded his father Henry V as King of England on 1 September, 1422, and his grandfather, Charles VI of France, as King of France on 11 October, 1422, in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Troyes (1420) which settled the French succession upon Henry V and his heirs. Henry VI was crowned at Westminster Abbey on 5/6 November, 1429, and at the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris on 16/17 December, 1431. He assumed personal rule on 12 November, 1437.
Henry VI was deposed in favour of Edward, Duke of York (Edward IV), on 4 March, 1461. He was restored to the throne on 30 October, 1470 – this was known as ‘the Readeption’ – but deposed again in favour of Edward IV on 11 April, 1471.
Henry VI married, by proxy on 24 May, 1444, at the Cathedral of St Martin, Tours, France, and in person on 23 April, 1445, at Titchfield Abbey, Hampshire:
Margaret
She was the daughter of René, Duke of Anjou and King of Naples and Sicily, by Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine, daughter of Charles I, Duke of Lorraine, and she was born on 23 March, 1429, at Pont-à-Mousson, Lorraine. She was crowned on 30 May, 1445, inWestminster Abbey. She died on 25 August, 1482, at Château Dampierre, Anjou, and was buried in St Maurice’s Cathedral, Angers, Anjou.
Issue of marriage:
1 Edward
He was born on 13 October, 1453, at the Palace of Westminster, and was Duke of Cornwall from birth. He was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 15 March, 1454, and invested with the principality of Wales on 9 June, 1454, at Windsor Castle. He was also made a Knight of the Garter. He was killed, or perhaps murdered by the Yorkists, on 4 May, 1471, at the Battle of Tewkesbury, and was buried in Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucs.
Edward married on 13 December, 1470, at Château d’Amboise, France:
Anne
She was the daughter of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, by Anne, daughter of Richard de Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, and she was born on 11 June, 1456, at Warwick Castle. After the death of Edward, she married Richard, Duke of Gloucester ( see here, under Richard III, for further details of her life).
HENRY VI
He was murdered on 21 May, 1471, almost certainly on the orders of Edward IV. Henry was buried in Chertsey Abbey, Surrey, but was removed to St George’s Chapel, Windsor, in 1485. He had already been succeeded by his distant cousin Edward IV.
Edward IV
FATHER: Richard
He was the son of Richard, Earl of Cambridge (son of the fourth surviving son of Edward III), by Anne Mortimer (great-granddaughter of the second surviving son of Edward III), and he was born on 21 September, 1411/12. He married Cecily Neville before 18 October, 1424. Although the dukedom of York had been forfeited when his father was executed in 1415, Richard was allowed to style himself Duke of York from 2 February, 1425. He was not formally restored in blood to the dukedom of York until 19 May, 1426, and was recognised as Earl of March, Earl of Ulster and Earl of Cambridge by hereditary right on 12 May, 1432. He was made a Knight of the Garter on 22 April, 1433. In 1448, he assumed the surname Plantagenet, which had not been used since it was borne as a nickname by Geoffrey of Anjou, father of Henry II, in the 12th century; during the Wars of the Roses, York would use this surname to emphasise that his claim to the throne was stronger than that of Henry VI. York was attainted on 20 November, 1459, and all his titles and honours were declared forfeit. The Attainder against him was nullified in October, 1460, when he was restored to all his titles and honours, but he continued to press his claim to the throne, and was killed on 30 December, 1460, at the Battle of Wakefield. He was buried at Pontefract, but was later removed to the Collegiate Church of Fotheringhay, Northants.
MOTHER: Cecily
She was the daughter of Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, by Joan Beaufort, daughter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster ( see here, under Edward III), and she was born on 3 May, 1415, at Raby Castle, Co. Durham. She died a Benedictine nun on 31 May, 1495, at Berkhamstead Castle, Herts., and was buried in the Collegiate Church of Fotheringhay, Northants.
SIBLINGS:
1 Joan
She was born in 1438, and died the same year.
2 Anne
She was born on 10/11 August, 1439, at Fotheringhay Castle, Northants. She married firstly Henry Holland, 4th Duke of Exeter (1430–drowned at sea 1475), before 30 July, 1447, and had issue.
1 Anne (c.1455–1475); she married Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset (1455?–1501), son of Elizabeth Wydville, wife of Edward IV.
Anne was divorced from her first husband on 12 November, 1472. She married secondly Sir Thomas St Leger (executed 1483) in 1472/3, and had issue:
2 Anne (1476?–1526); she married George Manners, Lord Roos (d.1513).
Anne died on 12 or 14 January, 1476 (or 1482?), in childbirth (?), and was buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
3 Henry
He was born on 9/10 February, 1441, at Hatfield, Herts., and died young.
4 Edmund
He was born on 17 or 27 May, 1443, at Rouen, France. He was created Earl of Rutland on 29 January, 1446. He forfeited his earldom by Act of Attainder in 1459, but was restored to it in October, 1460. He was killed on 30 December, 1460, at the Battle of Wakefield, Yorks., and was buried at Pontefract. His remains were later removed to the Collegiate Church of Fotheringhay, Northants.
5 Elizabeth
She was born on 22 April, 1444, at Rouen, France. She married John de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk (d.1491), in c.August, 1461 (or, less probably, before October, 1460), and had issue:
1 John, Earl of Lincoln (1462/4?–1487: killed at the Battle of Stoke); he married Margaret (d. after 1493), daughter of Thomas FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel, and had issue.
2 Edmund, Earl of Suffolk (1471/2?–executed 1513); he married Margaret (d.1515), daughter of Sir Richard Scrope, and had issue.
3 Humphrey, Rector of Leverington, Cambs., and of Hingham, Norfolk (1474?–1513).
4 Edward, Archdeacon of Richmond, Yorks. (d.1485?).
5 Richard, styled ‘Earl of Suffolk’ or ‘The White Rose’ (killed at the Battle of Pavia in 1525).
6 Geoffrey.
7 William (1478?–1539), a knight; he married Katherine (d.1521), daughter of William, 2nd Baron Stourton.
8 Anne (d. after 1495); she was a nun at Sion Abbey, Middlesex.
9 Katherine; she is said to have married William, Baron Stourton (1457–1524).
10 Elizabeth (d. after 1489); she married Henry Lovell, Baron Morley (d.1489).
11 Dorothy (d. unmarried).
Elizabeth died between 7 January, 1503, and 3 May, 1504, and was buried in Wingfield Church, Suffolk.
6 Margaret
She was born on 3 May, 1446, at Fotheringhay Castle, Northants., and married Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy (1433–killed at the Battle of Nancy, 1477), on 3 July, 1468, at Damme, Flanders. She died on 16 April or 28 November, 1503, at Malines, Flanders, and was buried in the Church of the Cordeliers, Malines.
7 William
He was born on 7 July, 1447, at Fotheringhay Castle, Northants., and died young.
8 John
He was born on 7 November, 1448, at The Neyte, a house near Westminster, and died young.
9 George
He was born on 21 October, 1449, at Dublin Castle, Ireland. He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1461, and a Knight of the Bath on 27 June, 1461. He was created Duke of Clarence on 28 June, 1461. He was created Earl of Salisbury and Earl of Warwick, in right of his wife, on 25 March, 1472. He was attainted on 8 February, 1478, and by this Act of Attainder forfeited all his estates and titles and the rights of himself and his heirs to the succession. He was privately executed on 18 February, 1478, in the Tower of London: tradition has it that he was drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine. He was buried in Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucs.
George married, on 11 July, 1469, at the Church of Our Lady, Calais, France:
Isabella
She was the daughter of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, by Anne, daughter of Richard de Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick; her sister Anne married firstly Edward, Prince of Wales, son of Henry VI, and secondly Richard III. Isabella was born on 5 September, 1451, at Warwick Castle. She died, it was rumoured by poison, on 21 December, 1476, at Warwick Castle, and was buried in Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucs.
Issue of marriage:
|
(i) |
Anne (?) |
|
She was born on 16 April, 1470, in a ship off Calais. She was either born dead or died soon after birth, and was buried at Calais. Some sources state that the child born at sea in 1470 was a son. |
|
|
(ii) |
Margaret |
|
She was born on 14 August, 1473, at Farleigh Castle, near Bath, Wilts. She married Sir Richard Pole (d.1505) on 22 September, 1494, and had issue: |
|
|
1 Henry, Marquess of Montagu (1495?–executed 1538); he married Jane (d.1538), daughter of George Neville, Lord Bergavenny, and had issue. |
|
|
2 Reginald, Cardinal-Archbishop of Canterbury (1500–1558). |
|
|
3 Geoffrey, a knight, of Lordington, Sussex (1501–1558); he married Constance, daughter of Sir John Pakenham, and had issue. |
|
|
4 Ursula (d.1570); she married Henry, Lord Stafford (1501–1563), and had issue. |
|
|
5 Arthur (d.1570); he married Jane, daughter of Sir Roger Lewkmor, and had issue. |
|
|
Margaret was restored to her father’s earldom of Salisbury on 14 October, 1513. She was attainted on 12 May, 1539, and all her titles were declared forfeit. She was executed on 28 May, 1541, in the Tower of London, and was buried in the Royal Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula within the Tower. |
|
|
(iii) |
Edward |
|
He was born on 21 or 25 February, 1475 (or 1474?), at Warwick Castle, and was styled Earl of Warwick from birth, in right of his mother. He succeeded his mother as Earl of Salisbury in December, 1476, but was never so styled. He was confirmed as Earl of Warwick in 1490. He spent the greater part of his life in confinement, Henry VII resenting his proximity to the throne, and was executed for treason on 24 or 28 November, 1499, on Tower Hill, London. He was buried in Bisham Abbey, Berks. |
|
|
(iv) |
Richard |
|
He was born on 6 October, 1476, at Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucs., and died on 1 January, 1477, at Warwick Castle. He was buried in Warwick Church, by the Castle. |
10 Thomas
He was born in 1450/1, and died young.
11 Richard III ( see here).
12 Ursula
Described as the youngest child, she was born on 22 July, 1455, at Fotheringhay Castle, Northants., and died young.
13 Katherine (?)
14 Humphrey (?)
Katherine and Humphrey are described by Cecily as her children in her will, although they are not included in any other contemporary list of the children of Richard, Duke of York. The entry in Cecily’s will may therefore refer in fact to her grandchildren, Humphrey and Katherine de la Pole, the issue of Cecily’s daughter Elizabeth.
EDWARD IV
He was born on 28 April, 1442, at Rouen, France. He was styled Earl of March during his father’s lifetime. In November, 1459, he forfeited all his honours by Act of Attainder, but was restored to them in October, 1460. He succeeded his father as Duke of York, Earl of Ulster and Earl of Cambridge on 30 December, 1460. He was proclaimed King of England by Parliament on 4 March, 1461, after the deposition of Henry VI, and was crowned on 28 June, 1461, at Westminster Abbey.
Edward IV was deposed in favour of Henry VI on 3 October, 1470, but restored to the throne on 11 April, 1471.
Edward IV married, on 1 May, 1464, at the Manor of Grafton Regis, Northants.:
Elizabeth
She was the daughter of Richard Wydville (or Woodville), 1st Earl Rivers, by Jacquetta of Luxembourg (v, see here), and she was born in c.1437 at Grafton Regis, Northants. She married firstly Sir John Grey of Groby (killed 1461) in c.1452, and had issue:
1 Thomas, Marquess of Dorset (c.1455–1501); he married firstly Anne (c.1455–1475), daughter of Henry Holland, Duke of Exeter, by Anne, sister of Edward IV. He married secondly Cecilia, Baroness Bonville and Harington (d.1529), daughter of William Bonville, Baron Harington, and had issue.
2 Richard (1456?–executed 1483), a knight.
Elizabeth was crowned Queen Consort on 26 May, 1465, at Westminster Abbey. Her marriage to Edward IV was declared invalid by Act of Parliament in 1484, on the basis of Edward’s alleged precontract to Lady Eleanor Butler; her children were at the same time declared illegitimate, and unfit to inherit the crown. The marriage was ultimately recognised as valid in October, 1485, by the first Parliament of Henry VII, and its issue were restored in blood accordingly. Elizabeth died on 8 June, 1492, at St Saviour’s Abbey, Bermondsey, London, and was buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
Issue of marriage:
1 Elizabeth
(under Henry VII, whom she married, see here).
2 Mary
She was born on 11 August, 1467, at Windsor Castle. She was made a Lady of the Garter in 1480. She died on 23 May, 1482, at Greenwich Palace, Kent, and was buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
3 Cecily
She was born on 20 March, 1469, at the Palace of Westminster. She married firstly John Welles, 1st Viscount Welles, K.G. (d.1498), between 25 November, 1487, and 1 January, 1488, and had issue:
1 Elizabeth (d. young before 1498).
2 Anne (d. young in c.1499).
Cecily married secondly Thomas Kyme, Kymbe or Keme, either of Wainfleet and Friskney, Lincs., or of the Isle of Wight, between 13 May, 1502, and January, 1504, by whom she may have had issue, although the earliest evidence for this is as late as 1602, and may be suspect:
3 Richard; he married a lady called Agnes, and had issue.
4 Margaret or Marjorie; she married John Wetherby, and had issue.
Cecily was made a Lady of the Garter in 1480. She died on 24 August, 1507, at Quarr Abbey, Isle of Wight, where she was buried.
4 Edward V ( see here).
5 Margaret
She was born on 10 April, 1472, at Windsor Castle, and died on 11 December, 1472. She was buried in Westminster Abbey.
6 Richard
He was born on 17 August, 1473, at the Dominican Friary, Shrewsbury, Shropshire. He was created Duke of York on 28 May, 1474, thereby establishing the tradition (which continues to this day) that the second son of the sovereign is always made Duke of York. He was made a Knight of the Garter on 15 May, 1475, and a Knight of the Bath during that same year. He was created Earl of Nottingham on 12 June, 1476, and Duke of Norfolk and Earl of Surrey and Warenne on 7 February, 1477. He was declared illegitimate and deprived of his titles by Act of Parliament in January 1484. York was probably murdered with his brother Edward V ( see here) on the night of 3 September, 1483, in the Tower of London, on the orders of Richard III. In 1674, bones discovered in the Tower were thought to be those of the two Princes, and were reburied in 1678 in Westminster Abbey.
Richard married, on 15 January, 1478, at St Stephen’s Chapel in the Palace of Westminster:
Anne
She was the daughter of John Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk, by Elizabeth, daughter of John Talbot, 2nd Earl of Shrewsbury, and she was born on 10 December, 1472, at Framlingham Castle, Suffolk. She was recognised and styled as Countess of Norfolk in her own right on 16/17 January, 1476, after the death of her father. She died between 16 January, and 19 November, 1481, at Greenwich Palace, and was buried in Westminster Abbey. When Henry VII’s Chapel was under construction, her body was moved to the Minoresses’ Convent at Stepney, where her coffin was found during excavations in 1965. She was then reburied in Westminster Abbey.
7 Anne
She was born on 2 November, 1475, at the Palace of Westminster. She married Lord Thomas Howard (afterwards Earl of Surrey, then Duke of Norfolk) (1473–1554) on 4 February, 1495, at Greenwich Palace, and had issue:
1 Thomas (c.1496 or 1508–1509).
2 Son (d. young before baptism).
3 Daughter (d. young before baptism).
4 Daughter (d. young before baptism).
Anne died after 22 November (23 November?), 1511, and before 1513, and was buried in Thetford Priory, Norfolk. Her remains were later removed to Framlingham Church, Suffolk.
8 George
He was born perhaps in March, 1477 (certainly before January, 1478), either at Windsor Castle, or at the Dominican Friary, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, and was perhaps styled Duke of Bedford. He died in March, 1479, at Windsor Castle, and was buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
9 Katherine
She was born on 14 August, 1479, at Eltham Palace, Kent. She married William Courtenay, later Earl of Devon (1475–1511), in c.October, 1495, and had issue:
1 Henry, Marquess of Exeter (1496?–executed 1538); he married firstly Elizabeth (d.1516?), daughter of John Grey, Viscount Lisle, and secondly Gertrude (d.1558), daughter of William Blount, 4th Baron Mountjoy, and had issue.
2 Edward (1497?–1502).
3 Margaret (1499?–1519?); she married William, Baron Herbert.
Katherine took a vow of perpetual chastity upon her widowhood in 1511. She died on 15 November, 1527, at Tiverton Castle, Devon, and was buried in Tiverton Parish Church.
10 Bridget
She was born on 10 or 20 November, 1480, at Eltham Palace, Kent. She became a nun at Dartford Priory, Kent, in c.1487 (and certainly before 1492). She died probably before 1513. John Weaver, writing in the 17th century, states she died in 1517, but Thomas More, writing in 1513, does not say that she is alive, although he mentions that her only surviving sister, Katherine, was then still living. Bridget was buried in Dartford Priory, Kent.
Edward IV also had the following illegitimate issue:
By Eleanor Talbot or Butler (d.1468), to whom Edward is alleged to have been precontracted:
1 Edward de Wigmore (d. in infancy, 1468).
By Elizabeth Lucy (née Waite), or Elizabeth (sometimes, but erroneously, called Jane) Shore:
2 Arthur Plantagenet, Viscount Lisle (1461/4–1542); he married firstly Elizabeth Grey, Baroness Lisle (d.1525/6), and had issue. He married secondly Honora (1493/5–1566), daughter of Sir Thomas Grenville.
3 Elizabeth (b.c.1464); she perhaps married Thomas Lumley. It is thought that Elizabeth Lucy was her mother.
By an unknown mother:
4 Grace (alive in 1492).
EDWARD IV
He died on 9 April, 1483, at the Palace of Westminster, and was buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
He was succeeded by his son Edward.
Edward V
FATHER: Edward IV ( see here).
MOTHER: Elizabeth Wydville (under Edward IV, see here).
SIBLINGS: ( see here, under Edward IV).
EDWARD V
He was born on 2 November, 1470, in the Sanctuary, Westminster Abbey. He was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 25/26 June, 1471, and Duke of Cornwall on 17 July, 1471. He was made a Knight of the Garter on 15 May, 1475, and created Earl of March and Earl of Pembroke on 8 or 18 July, 1479. He succeeded his father as King of England on 9 April, 1483.
Edward V was deposed on 25 June, 1483, and declared illegitimate by Act of Parliament in 1484 ( under Edward IV). He was probably murdered with his brother, Richard, Duke of York, on the night of 3 September, 1483, in the Tower of London, on the orders of Richard III. In 1674, bones discovered in the Tower were thought to be those of the two Princes, and were reburied in 1678 in Westminster Abbey, by order of Charles II. Edward V was succeeded by his uncle, Richard of Gloucester.
Richard III
FATHER: Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York ( see here, under Edward IV)
MOTHER: Cecily Neville ( see here, under Edward IV)
SIBLINGS: ( see here, under Edward IV)
RICHARD III
He was born on 2 October, 1452, at Fotheringhay Castle, Northants. He was created Duke of Gloucester on 1 November, 1461, and made a Knight of the Garter before 4 February, 1466. He acceded to the throne of England on 26 June, 1483, after the deposition of his nephew, Edward V, and was crowned on 6 July, 1483, in Westminster Abbey.
Richard III married, on 12 July, 1472, in Westminster Abbey or St Stephen’s Chapel, Westminster:
Anne
She was the daughter of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, by Anne, daughter of Richard de Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, and she was born on 11 June, 1456, at Warwick Castle. She married firstly Edward, Prince of Wales, son of Henry VI, probably on 13 December, 1470, at the Château of Amboise, France. She was crowned Queen Consort on 6 July, 1483, at Westminster Abbey. She died on 16 March, 1485, at the Palace of Westminster, probably of tuberculosis, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Issue of marriage:
1 Edward
He was born in Spring, 1476, at Middleham Castle, Yorkshire, and was created Earl of Salisbury on 15 February, 1478. He became Duke of Cornwall upon his father’s accession to the throne on 26 June, 1483, and was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 24 August, 1483, being invested as such on 8 September, 1483, at York Minster. He died on 9 April, 1484, at Middleham Castle, Yorkshire, and was perhaps buried in Sheriff Hutton Church, Yorkshire.
Richard III also had the following illegitimate issue:
By unknown mothers:
1 John of Gloucester, or of Pontefract, Captain of Calais (c.1470–murdered? 1499?).
2 Richard Plantagenet of Eastwell, Kent (1469–1550).
3 Katherine; she married William Herbert, Earl of Huntingdon (1455?–1491).
4 Stephen Hawes (?).
5 Unnamed child (?).
6 Unnamed child (?).
7 Unnamed child (?).
RICHARD III
He was killed on 22 August, 1485, defending his crown and his kingdom against the forces of Henry Tudor at the Battle of Bosworth Field in Leicestershire. He was buried in the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Leicester. His grave was despoiled during the Reformation. Richard was the last Plantagenet King of England. He was succeeded by his distant cousin Henry Tudor.