The House of Beaufort - The story of England's overlooked dynasty by Jake Newitt

The Beaufort’s origins were not humble, they were far from it. However, the Beaufort family itself ultimately stemmed from an illicit extramarital affair between the powerful Duke of Lancaster, John of Gaunt, son of Edward III, and his mistress and governess of his children, Katherine Swynford (de Roet) of Hainault, in the modern day European lowlands. The first child, John was born sometime in 1373. Due to the name given to this bastard son, many speculate that him and the following three children Henry, Thomas and Joan were all born in France. Nathen Amin, a biographer of the family however believes that their children’s origins lay in Lincolnshire on Katherine’s estates. This affair was met with scorn by most of the English nobility and only added to the Duke’s unpopularity. The relationship would last a decade before the two split, but John still took care of his much beloved mistress and his children by her. The eldest, John had foreseen a career as a soldier and competed in some of the grandest jousts on the European stage alongside his legitimate half-brother Henry, Earl of Derby. John’s performance in the joust was noted, and he later took part in the Barbary Crusade. John began to shine on the European as well as the world stage and he also started to find royal favour back home from his cousin, King Richard II. By 1394, John was betrothed to Margaret Holland, the daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent and half-brother to the king. Though assumingly no titles would be bequeathed to John, his military career had kickstarted and he found himself in a politically advantageous marriage a with a plethora of lands throughout England. Whilst John rose, his brother Henry was making headway in the church, studying at Queen’s College, Oxford to further his religious studies. Like most women in this period, the only sister in the family, Joan was married off early, in or around 1392 to Sir Robert Ferrers, giving birth to their first child soon afterwards. This would have made Joan only fourteen years at the birth of her first child, Elizabeth. Though this illegitimate brood had found themselves enjoying good careers both in the military and in the church as well as advantageous marriages, their bastardy still barred them from truly furthering themselves. The wheel of fortune however was soon to turn in their favour. As grey clouded the skies over Leicester, Constance of Castile, the second wife of John of Gaunt breathed her last breath at Leicester Castle, in March 1394. Though a difficult time for the children that John and Constance shared, it unexpectedly opened the doors for the Duke’s illegitimate children. At the age of 54, John was available to marry for the third time in his life. Though the first two marriages had been for political gain, the third, taking place two years later, would be for personal affection. In January 1396, John married his former mistress Katherine Swynford in Lincoln Cathedral. Though the news of the marriage caused outrage at the court, the marriage was approved by the Pope in the form of a Papal Bull. With the marriage approved by the Pope, John sent requests to Rome as well as Westminster to see his Beaufort offspring legitimized. The Church first gave consent and further ratified by the convening of parliament in January 1397, which also consented to the legitimising of the Duke's sons and daughter. As parliament closed in the February of 1397, the progeny of John was legitimately established as part of the royal family. The Beauforts had arrived. After their legitimatisation, the Beauforts became major players in the English nobility and court, with titles bestowed upon them for generations. The eldest of the family John was created the Earl of Somerset. This title would become a dukedom, under his son John later on. His children as well as his siblings would also find themselves being granted a plethora of titles. John’s daughter Joan even became Queen of Scotland as the formidable wife of James I and Mother of James II. Henry became Cardinal during the reign of his nephew, Henry V. Though bestowed, titles and lands, the Beauforts would make some powerful enemies on their way up to the top, notably, Richard, 3rd Duke of York and his family.

The Beaufort family were at the heart of this and would ultimately be one of the major sides that helped ignite the Wars of the Roses. The Beaufort family at this point was headed by Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset who had formed a deadly rivalry with one of the king’s leading noblemen, Richard, Duke of York. As a result of Somerset’s close kinship with Henry, he was part of the king’s inner circle and his right-hand man. The Duke however was a deeply unpopular figure. As the Hundred Years’ War started to tilt drastically towards a French victory, Somerset had been in control of the significant Norman city of Rouen. Under his captaincy however, the city had surrendered to the marauding French troops. Upon Somerset’s and his family’s return to England, the country had seen full scale rebellion break out from the south. York, who had recently returned from his role as Lieutenant in Ireland, looked to bring order back to the kingdom. He blamed the King’s key advisor, Somerset for much of the country’s ills. However, the Duke of Somerset had allied himself to the King’s domineering wife, Margaret of Anjou, even leading to rumours swirling that the two were in bed together. As tensions heated close to boiling point, York gathered troops from one of his main bases at Ludlow Castle and marched South, looking to take over the reins of power from his mortal enemy. As York and his army reached close to the King’s encampment at Dartford, he ordered Somerset be put on trial. The King, looking to keep the peace, agreed as long as York disbanded his men. As the Duke entered the King's camp, he found Somerset in his old place, standing next to the King. It had been a trap. The ruse only worsened the relationship between the two Dukes, further compounded when York was forced to embarrassingly swear an oath of allegiance at St Paul’s Cathedral, London. For now, Somerset and his family looked safe at the King’s side as well as being favourites of his queen, Margaret. However, the wheel of fortune would soon turn in their disfavour. The war in France had been going terribly wrong and by 1453, only the old Plantagenet lands of Gascony and the foothold of Calais remained. However, after a crushing French victory at the Battle of Castillon, Gascony was lost as well as the war that had been fought between the countries for nearly 120 years. Upon hearing this, the fragile Henry VI had a complete mental collapse, entering a catatonic stupor, one of which he would not wake from for 17 months. Whilst the king was incapacitated, York was viewed as the best man to rule the kingdom in the King’s stead, much to embitterment of the queen. Somerset, on York’s orders was arrested and sent to the Tower of London, in which he would languish for over a year. However, in December 1454, a Christmas miracle occurred. Henry woke up. One of his first acts was to order the release of the Duke of Somerset as well as reversing many of York’s decrees. For the somewhat arrogant duke, this was the last straw. In May 1455, the King called for a great council to meet at the old Lancastrian city of Leicester. It was feared by York and his allies, Warwick and Salisbury that they would be persecuted and Somerset would have his revenge. The nobles took action and gathered an army to march south, cutting off Leicester. York’s intent was undoubtedly to rid himself of his enemy once and for all. By the time Somerset heard of the gathering of his enemies’ men, it was too late, and he could only muster around 2,000, insignificant to York’s 3,000. Somerset and the King arrived at the old Cathedral city of St Albans first. Ordering barricades to be hastily built, York entered the city soon after. Several hours of negotiations all but failed and the Duke ordered his men to attack. As the sweat dripped from the helm of Somerset’s head, he would have heard the small and winding alleyways echoing with the sound of war, knowing he was their intended target. Somerset dragged his badly wounded son, Henry to the Castle Inn, where a force soon started to gather. The Duke looked to go out fighting and killed four men before he himself was cut down. The Duke of York was rid of his enemy for now. However, being whisked away in a cart was Somerset’s eighteen-year-old son and he would prove to be the death of York. Though only nineteen at the time and badly injured, Henry Beaufort, now the 3rd Duke of Somerset, vowed vengeance on the murder of his father. Young, hot headed and occasionally rash, this new Duke of Somerset fitted right in with his Lancastrian allies, who were also sore at having lost their fathers and friends to the skirmish. The realm had once again been fractured and embittered as a result of the battle at St Albans, the King had gone under the care of York and his faction and Somerset had very little way at biting back against his enemies. In October 1456, another great council was convened, once again in the great Lancastrian heartlands, this time at Coventry. Somerset brought a large and armed retinue, for one reason only, to confront York and his allies Salisbury and Warwick. The Duke provoked the Yorkists, and a scuffle broke out between the two rival sides. The King was again looking for a peaceful solution to his country’s continuing problem of friction and infighting, and so as a result organised the infamous ‘Love Day’. The spectacle took place in 1458, as warring members of differing factions held hands through the streets of London with Somerset was amongst the members. This however proved to be a hollow peace. With Lancastrians and Yorkists once again back at each other’s throats, war resumed later in 1459, which saw the Duke of York couped up in Ludlow Castle as the royal army surrounded the mighty fortress. In the middle of the night however, he as well as his sons and allies ran for it, with the Duke and his youngest son Edmund fleeing to Ireland whilst his eldest went to France. Lancaster's Yorkist problem looked as though for now it had been dealt with. As their enemies were abroad, Somerset was appointed the command of captain of Calais, and looked to put it into use with immediate effect, crossing the murky waters of the English channel. He found the city however barred to him and he alongside his soldiers would fight multiple skirmishes looking to take control of this important foothold. In his absence however, turmoil had returned to England, as Edward, Earl of March, eldest son of York and his cousin the Earl of Warwick won a crushing victory at Northampton, once again capturing the King. York returned from Ireland in September 1460, and formally laid claim to the crown of England. The Duke did not receive the crown he now craved, but was made the King's heir. Somerset returned to England and joined forces with the formidable Queen Margaret and marched towards York who was in Sandal Castle for the Christmas of 1460. However, for reasons still unknown, York alongside his armed retinues stormed out of his castle and was immediately attacked by Somerset’s army. The Yorkist forces were crushed, and Somerset’s enemy vanquished as his head was pierced on a spike. The ridicule of a bloodied paper crown was placed a top of York’s head, mocking his ambition for the throne. The House of York itself however had not been vanquished and Edward soon replaced his father as it's head. Somerset and the Lancastrian army would go to win a consecutive battle against the Earl of Warwick at St Albans, Somerset further avenging his father as well as recapturing the king. This luck however was soon to run out. On 29 March, Somerset led the army to what would be Britain’s bloodiest battle at Towton with 28,000 – 30,000 men never leaving the field. As snow fell, the colour of blood stained the white fields. It proved to be a complete rout for the Lancastrians, as Edward IV ascended the throne. Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou went into hiding, as did Somerset. With opposition forces tailing them into the north, it was during this time that his support of the House of Lancaster began to dwindle and he soon pledged his allegiance to Edward IV. The Duke enjoyed favour from his cousin, even sharing the King’s bed (a medieval tradition). Somerset however soon returned to the Lancastrians and joined up with their bases in the north. They gathered an army to make one last push for the crown. Their forces however were largely wiped out in the skirmish at Hedgley Moor and then later at the battle of Hexham. In the latter, Somerset was captured, and the kKng was no longer in the reconciliatory mood he had been, and the Duke was executed in the town square. The Somerset title passed to Henry’s brother Edmund, who at the time was living in France. He however would soon have an important part to play.

In 1470, the Yorkist king Edward IV was driven from his throne due to an internal plot led by the Earl of Warwick and Henry VI’s Queen, Margaret of Anjou. Their goal was to see Henry back on the throne. As a result of the resurgent Lancastrian regime, Edmund returned to England, alongside his brother John, Marquess of Dorset. The two were die hard Lancastrians and so naturally joined the fight when news a year later broke that Edward had returned from exile in Burgundy to retake his throne. The Duke was ordered to hold the capital city against Edward’s marauding army, however Somerset failed, allowing the Yorkist’s to take the city. This was to prove to be a critical mistake. Soon after, a battle took place outside the town of Barnet with Edward facing off against his mentor, the Earl of Warwick. The former won a decisive battle with the Earl being killed in the action. News of this reached Somerset, who raced to Wales where Lancastrian forces were gathering. Their forces were met with that of Margaret of Anjou’s, however Edward was hot on their heels and soon reached the Lancastrian army. The following battle would prove to be the end of the House of Beaufort. As the Battle of Tewkesbury commenced the two sides slashed and hacked at each other with the Yorkists soon gaining a heavy advantage. As the Lancastrian lines cracked under pressure, many started to flee and a rout followed, with many being hunted down and slaughtered. Amongst those killed was Edmund's younger brother John, Marquess of Dorset. He died fighting beside his brother. Somerset himself found sanctuary at Tewkesbury Abbey. After two days he was dragged out of the place of worship and beheaded in the town’s square. The male line of the Beaufort family had been extinguished; the seed had been crushed. A noble family who had been one of the dominant forces in English politics for over a hundred years was no more. However, though the male line had been wiped out there still lived a boy with Beaufort blood pumping through his veins. His name was Henry Tudor and though at the time of Tewkesbury it could not have been imagined, this boy would destroy the House of York and sit upon the English throne, ultimately winning the Wars of the Roses, not only for the Lancastrians but more importantly for the Beauforts.