Sir Henry Stafford

Sir Henry Stafford ( – 4 October 1471) was the second son of Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Lady Anne Neville, daughter of Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, and Lady Joan Beaufort. Henry's elder brother, also named Humphrey, died before their father, and so it was Henry's nephew, also Henry, who became the 2nd Duke of Buckingham.

Stafford was the third husband of Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond. The marriage was relatively long and successful and coincided roughly with the minority of Margaret's son, the future Henry VII of England. Both Sir Henry and Lady Margaret were descended from John of Gaunt and were supporters of Henry VI, the head of the House of Lancaster, in the early stages of the Wars of the Roses. However, Stafford later switched his allegiance to the House of York and towards the end of his life contributed to the restoration of Edward IV.

Birth and early life

The date of Henry's birth is unknown, but since his parents were married some time before 18 October 1424 and he was their second son, it is thought that he was born round about 1425. His youngest brother, John Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire, was born on 24 November 1427. The place of Henry's birth is not certain, but the family was closely associated with the town of Stafford, from which it took its name. At the time of Henry's birth his father was 6th Earl of Stafford and had been born in the town, not becoming Duke of Buckingham until 1444.

Marriage

On 3 January 1458 Henry married Margaret Beaufort, who, although still young, was the widow of Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond. This marriage had lasted only about a year and Margaret had given birth to her son, Henry Tudor, after Edmund's death.

The wedding of Sir Henry and Lady Margaret is thought to have taken place at Maxstoke Castle, which had been acquired by Henry's father in 1437. She was 14 years old and he was in his early thirties. Since Stafford and Margaret were second cousins, it was necessary to obtain a dispensation for the marriage and this was granted on 6 April 1457. In his will Henry's father settled 400 marks' worth of land on the couple, but the main part of their income came from Margaret's estates. This is said to have been in celebration of the marriage of Henry's nephew, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, to Catherine Woodville, sister of the queen consort. The substantial manor house, known variously as Woking Old Hall became the principal residence of Henry and Margaret and its position allowed Henry to enter more into political life.

In the autumn of 1470, Warwick and Clarence returned to England and King Edward was forced to flee into exile. Henry Stafford was arrested, but was soon released following a petition from his wife.

In March 1471 Edward IV landed with a small army. The leading Lancastrian commander, the Duke of Somerset, visited Henry and Margaret, his first cousin, at Woking in an attempt to persuade Henry to join the Lancastrian army which was being mustered. Henry was reluctant to commit himself, and adopted delaying tactics. However, on 12 April he made a firm decision to support Edward and to join him, accompanied by his Steward, John Gilpyn, and other retainers. Although ill-prepared, Henry and his men travelled to Barnet, where the Yorkists won a decisive victory on 14 April 1471. The previous day Henry had made a hastily drafted will, in which he referred to Margaret as "".

Illness

Henry is believed to have suffered from the skin disease erysipelas, also known as "St Anthony's Fire" and thought at the time to be a form of leprosy.

Death Although he had chosen the winning side, Henry was seriously wounded at Barnet and did not return to London with the victorious army. On 17 April, Margaret hurried from Woking to London and sent a rider to Barnet for news of her husband. Henry was taken home, but never recovered from his wounds and died in his bed on 4 October 1471. Reginald Bray organized his burial at Pleshey.

In historical fiction and television

Henry appears as a character in Philippa Gregory's series of novels The Cousins' War and is played by Michael Maloney in the BBC drama The White Queen, which is based on the novels. Stafford's relationship with Margaret is portrayed in the TV series as heavily strained, with Stafford torn between his obvious concern for his wife's well-being and his exasperation with her fanatical nature, given that he supported the Yorkists despite his wife's loyalty to the Lancastrians.

References and notes