Henry IV
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After Henry VI’s death in 1471, Henry IV’s legitimate line was extinct but his sister’s senior descendant was her grandson, Afonso V, King of Portugal (1432 r.1438-81). He was, therefore, the principal Lancastrian claimant to the English throne, although Edward IV had become Duke of Lancaster by then as a result of Henry IV merging…
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This 1988 volume reads very well and is an excellent summary of the life of the second (or first) son of John of Gaunt by his mistress Catherine de Roet. The language is very modern although the plain cover is a little reminiscent of many older books. There is relatively little material about Henry Beaufort’s…
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After the fall of Harlech Castle in February 1409, various members of Owain Glyndwr’s family were taken to the Tower. Among them was his grandson, Lionel ap Edmund (or Lionel Mortimer) the young son of Sir Edmund Mortimer and his wife Catrin ferch Owain. This boy cannot have been older than six at the uttermost,…
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The Strange Death of Lancastrian England
“Beauforts”, Azincourt, Bauge, Blanche, Burgundy, Cambridge Plot, Cardinal Beaufort, Catherine de Valois, Charles VI, Charles VII, Congress of Arras, Edward of Lancaster, Eleanor Cobham, France, Henry IV, Henry V, Henry VI, Humphrey of Gloucester, John of Bedford, Lancastrians, Margaret of Anjou, Richard Duke of York, Richard II, Rupert of Germany, Sir Hugh Swynford, Thomas of Clarence, Treaty of Troyes, Verneuil, WakefieldWhen Henry IV had his final succession statute passed through Parliament he made no provision for the throne beyond his children and their offspring. Neither the Beauforts, the Yorks, or even the Hollands got so much as a line. This was quite understandable, given that he had four sons and two daughters. No one could…
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The “official” version of Richard II’s death is straightforward. After his deposition he was imprisoned in Pontefract Castle, and, following a rebellion of his followers in early January 1400, starved to death. The date of death is usually given as 14th February 1400. His body was subsequently taken by stages to London, being publicly exhibited…
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The Lonely Death of Duke Humphrey
Azincourt, Cambridge, Charles VII, Duke of Orleans, Edmund, Eleanor Cobham, French wars, Henry IV, Henry V, Henry VI, Humphrey of Gloucester, Lord Protector of the Realm, Maine, Margery Jourdemayne, Parliament, Richard Duke of York, Roger Bolingbroke, St. Albans, Thomas Southwell, Treaty of Troyes, William Duke of Suffolk{Humphrey of Gloucester’s quarters marked by a plaque, now near Bury St. Edmunds’ Tesco and opposite the railway station.} Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, was the youngest son of Henry IV (Bolingbroke) and so the youngest brother of Henry V, with whom he fought at Agincourt.After the death of Henry V, he became Protector (in England)…
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Page 69 of Ashdown-Hill’s Royal Marriage Secrets indicates that an Act of Parliament was passed in 1427, forbidding the re-marriage of a royal widow without the consent of an adult king. It has also been clearly established that Catherine de Valois, the widow of Henry V at whom the legislation was surely aimed, died in…
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DUKE RICHARD THE 3RD DUKE OF YORK (3): heir to the throne
“Loveday”, Bastard of Fauconberg, Blore Heath, Edmund Duke of Somerset, Edward II, Edward of Lancaster, Henry Holland Duke of Exeter, Henry IV, Henry VI, Jack Cade, Lord Clifford, Margaret of Anjou, Northampton, Richard Duke of York, Richard II, Richard of Salisbury, St. Albans, Succession rights, Thomas Neville, War, Waurin, William Duke of SuffolkThe she-wolf of France, but worse than wolves of France Whose tongue more poisons than an adders tooth How ill beseeming it is in thy sex To triumph like an amazon trull” (Henry VI Part 3) St Albans and its significance The first battle of St Albans represents a landmark in the dispute between York…
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One of our members visited Canterbury Cathedral and its environs recently. He found statues and tombs to the likes of Henry IV and Edward the Black Prince but he couldn’t find the remains of (Cardinal) John Morton. How ironic that, just as Richard III’s remains have been identified beyond reasonable doubt despite the lurid stories…
