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Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke Of Buckingham

Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham

Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (February 3, 1477/8–May 17, 1521) was an English nobleman. He was the son of Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Catherine Woodville. His father was attainted and executed for rebelling against King Richard III of England when Stafford was five. When Henry VII ascended the throne, the attainder was reversed and the wardship of the young duke was given to the King's mother Margaret Beaufort. ( A reason for the reverse of the attainder may be that Edward was first cousin to Queen Elizabeth of York, Henry's wife) As a young man, Stafford was made a Knight of the Garter (1495), and had various ceremonial roles at the royal court. This continued in an even grander way with the accession of Henry VIII: Stafford became lord high constable, and was lord high steward at Henry's coronation in 1509, where he also carried the king's crown. Yet the real power in Henry VIII's court was not with the great nobles but with low-born men such as Thomas Wolsey. Stafford, with his royal blood and numerous connections by descent or marriage with the rest of the aristocracy, became a leader of the disaffected nobles. The ever-suspicious king personally examined various witnesses, and had Stafford arrested in 1521. The charges, such as that Stafford had listened to prophecies regarding when the king would die, are generally considered to be trumped-up. It was once maintained that Wolsey was behind the matter, but there is no hard evidence for this. Stafford was tried before a panel of 17 peers, but with the king's mind already decided, convinction was certain, and he was executed on Tower Hill. He was attainted by act of Parliament on July 31, 1523. Stafford married Alianore Percy, daughter of Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland. They had four children: #Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford, who later recovered some of the forfeited estates. #Elizabeth, who married Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk #Catherine, who married Ralph Neville, 4th Earl of Westmorland #Mary, who married George Neville, 3rd Baron of Bergavenny Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of

1477

Events

- January 5 - Battle of Nancy - Charles the Bold of Burgundy is again defeated, and this time is killed. This marks the end of the Burgundian Wars.
- February 10 - Mary of Burgundy, the daughter of Charles the Bold, is forced by her disgruntled subjects to sign the "Great Privilege," by which the Flemish cities recovered all the local and communal rights which had been abolished by the arbitrary decrees of the dukes of Burgundy in their efforts to create in the Low Countries a centralized state.
- August 18 - Mary of Burgundy marries Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor in Ghent, bringing her Flemish and Burgundian lands into the Holy Roman Empire and detaching them from France.
- Swedish University of Uppsala founded.
- November 18 - William Caxton produces "Dictes or Sayengis of the Philosophres", the first English book printed on a printing press.

Births

- January 14 - Hermann of Wied, German Catholic archbishop (died 1552)
- January 16 - Johannes Schöner, German astronomer and cartographer (died 1547)
- January 25 - Anne of Brittany, queen of Charles VIII of France (died 1514)
- February 3 - Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (died 1521)
- March 20 - Jerome Emser, German theologian (d. 1527)
- Johannes Aventinus, Bavarian historian and philologist (died 1534)
- István Báthory, Hungarian nobleman (died 1534)
- Girolamo del Pacchia, Italian painter (approximate date; died 1533)
- Lambert Simnel, pretender to the throne of England (approximate date; died c. 1534)
- Il Sodoma, Italian painter (died 1549)
- Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl of Wiltshire, English diplomat (died 1539)

Deaths

- January 5 - Charles, Duke of Burgundy (killed in battle) (born 1433) Category:1477 ko:1477년

1478

Events

- February 18 - George, Duke of Clarence, convicted of treason against his older brother Edward IV of England, is privately executed in the Tower of London.
- April 26 - The Pazzi attack Lorenzo de' Medici and kill his brother Giuliano during High Mass in the Florence Cathedral.
- December 28 - Battle of Giornico - Swiss troops defeat the Milanese.
- Lorenzo de' Medici becomes sole ruler of Florence
- Grand Prince Ivan III of Moscow conquers Novgorod
- Vladislav II of Bohemia makes peace with Hungary
- Eskender succeeds his father Baeda Maryam as Emperor of Ethiopia at the age of six.

Births

- February 7 - Thomas More, English statesman and humanist (died 1535)
- March 12 - Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici, ruler of Florence (d. 1516)
- May 26 - Pope Clement VII (died 1534)
- July 22 - King Philip I of Castile (died 1506)
- December 6 - Baldassare Castiglione, Italian writer and diplomat (died 1529)
- Thomas Ashwell, English composer (approximate date)
- Jacques Dubois, French anatomist (died 1555)
- Girolamo Fracastoro, Italian physician (died 1553)
- Vesconte de Maggiolo, Italian navigator and cartographer
- Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés, Spanish historian (died 1557)

Deaths

- February 18 - George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, brother of Edward IV of England and Richard III of England (executed) (born 1449)
- April 26 - Giuliano di Piero de' Medici, son of Piero di Cosimo de' Medici (assassinated) (born 1453)
- November 19 - Emperor Baeda Maryam of Ethiopia (born 1448)
- Donato Acciaiuoli, Italian scholar (born 1428)
- Ludovico II of Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua (born 1412) Category:1478 ko:1478년

1521

Events

- January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem.
- January 28 - Diet of Worms begins, lasting until May 25.
- March 6 - Ferdinand Magellan discovers Guam.
- March 16 - Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Philippines.
- April 7 - Ferdinand Magellan arrives at Cebu.
- April 16 - 18 - Martin Luther is examined before Emperor Charles V and the German Diet of Worms.
- April 26 - Martin Luther leaves Worms and disappears for a year - he is rumored to be murdered but really is in hiding.
- April 27 - Magellan killed in the Philippines.
- May - Outbreak of war between Emperor Charles and the King of France.
- May 20 - Battle of Pampeluna.
- May 25 - The Diet of Worms ends when Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor issues the Edict of Worms, declaring Martin Luther an outlaw.
- June 30 - Battle of Esquiroz - French forces under Henri d'Albret, exiled King of Navarre, are defeated by the Spanish and forced to abandon their attempt to recover Henri's kingdom.
- August 8 - Hernan Cortes and allied local Indians defeat Aztec forces of Cuautemoc, the last Aztec Emperor, in the Battle of Tenochtitlan.
- August 13 - Emperor Cuauhtémoc surrenders to Hernan Cortes.
- August 29 - Capture of Belgrade by the Turkish army of Suleiman I after a brave resistance.
- November 23 - Spanish-German-Papal forces under Prosper Colonna force French Marshal Odet de Lautrec to abandon Milan.
- Berengairo da Garbi notices appendix.

Births

- March 21 - Maurice, Elector of Saxony (d. 1553)
- May 8 - Petrus Canisius, Dutch Jesuit (died 1597)
- August 4 - Pope Urban VII (died 1590)
- December 1 - Takeda Shingen, Japanese warlord (d. 1573)
- December 13 - Pope Sixtus V (died 1590)
- Anne Askew, English protestant martyr (died 1546)
- John Aylmer, English divine (died 1594)
- Thomas Chaloner, English statesman and poet (died 1565)
- Ottavio Farnese, Duke of Parma (died 1586)
- Philippe de Monte, Flemish composer (died 1603)
- Thomas Wyatt the younger, English rebel (died 1554)

Deaths

- April 20 - Zhengde Emperor of China (born 1491)
- April 27 - Ferdinand Magellan, Portuguese explorer
- May 10 - Sebastian Brant, German humanist and satirist (born 1457)
- May 17 - Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (executed)
- June 15 - Tamás Bakócz, Hungarian Catholic cardinal and statesman (born 1442)
- August 27 - Josquin Des Prez, Flemish composer
- December 1 - Pope Leo X (born 1475)
- December 13 - King Manuel I of Portugal (b. 1469)
- Piero di Cosimo, Italian artist (born 1462)
- Leonardo Loredano, Doge of Venice (born 1436)
- Edward Poyning, Lord Deputy to King Henry VII of England (born 1459)
- Juan Ponce de León, Spanish conquistador (born 1460)
- Stephen Hawes, English poet (born 1502) Category:1521 ko:1521년 simple:1521

Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham

Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (4 September 1454–2 November 1483) played a major role in Richard III of England's rise and fall. He is also one of the primary suspects in the disappearance (and presumed murder) of the Princes in the Tower. Buckingham was related to the royal family of England so many different ways that he was his own cousin many times over, but his connections were all through daughters of younger sons. His chances of inheriting the throne would have seemed remote, but eventually the internecine conflicts among the descendants of Edward III of England and within the Houses of Lancaster and York brought Buckingham within striking distance of a crown. Some historians claim Buckingham's deliberate plotting to seize the throne started as early as the reign of Edward IV, and if they are correct then his elaborate and lengthy plan very nearly succeeded.

Early life

Buckingham was born in 1454 during the reign of Henry VI. His father, Humphrey, Earl Stafford, a Lancastrian, was killed at the First Battle of St Albans in 1455 when Henry was an infant, and his grandfather, the First Duke of Buckingham, another leading Lancastrian, was killed five years later, in 1460. In 1465, at the age of 11, he was recognized as Duke of Buckingham. The new Duke eventually became a ward of Queen Elizabeth Woodville, consort of Edward IV of England. The next year he was married to the queen's sister Catherine Woodville — she was 24. Buckingham never forgave Elizabeth for forcing him into that marriage, and he resented his wife and the other Woodvilles, as well. When Edward IV died in 1483, and the Woodvilles struggled with Edward's brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, over the guardianship of the young Edward V, Buckingham first sided with Richard. Parliament subsequently declared Edward V illegitimate offering Richard the throne, and he accepted it, becoming Richard III. After initially supporting Richard, Buckingham subsequently started working with John Morton, Bishop of Ely, in support of Buckingham's second-cousin Henry Tudor against the King, even though this placed him on the same side as his Woodville in-laws.

Reign of Richard III

When Henry Tudor tried to invade England to take the throne from Richard in October 1483, Buckingham raised an army in Wales and started marching east to support Henry. By a combination of luck and skill, Richard put down the rebellion: Henry's ships ran into a storm and had to go back to Brittany, and Buckingham's army was greatly troubled by the same storm and deserted when Richard's forces came against them. Buckingham tried to escape in disguise but was turned in for the bounty Richard had put on his head, and he was convicted of treason and beheaded in Salisbury on 2 November. Following Buckingham's execution, his widow, Catherine, married Jasper Tudor, 1st Duke of Bedford.

The Bohun Estate

Buckingham's motives in these events are disputed. His antipathy to Edward IV and his children probably arose from two causes. One was his dislike for their mutual Woodville in-laws, whom Edward greatly favoured. Another was his interest in the Bohun estate. Buckingham had inherited a great deal of property from his great-great-grandmother, Eleanor de Bohun, wife of Thomas of Woodstock and daughter of the Earl of Hereford, Essex and Northampton. Eleanor's younger sister and co-heir Mary de Bohun married Henry Bolingbroke, who eventually became Henry IV, and her share of the de Bohun estates became incorporated into the holdings of the House of Lancaster, being eventually inherited by Henry VI. When Henry VI was deposed by Edward IV, Edward appropriated that half into the Crown property under the House of York. Buckingham claimed those lands should have devolved to him instead, and it is likely that Richard III promised to settle the estate on Buckingham in return for his help seizing the throne. Indeed, after Richard's coronation he did award the other half of the Bohun estate to Buckingham, but it was conditional on the approval of Parliament. Historians disagree on whether this condition was in fact a way for Richard to appear to keep his promise while actually breaking it, but this may have been a motivation for Buckingham to turn against Richard.

The Princes in the Tower

Richard III is alleged to have consolidated his power by eliminating his brother's children, who preceded him in succession to the throne. However, there is some question about Buckingham's relationship to the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower. According to a manuscript discovered in the early 1980's in the Ashmolean collection, the Princes were murdered "be [by] the vise" of the Duke of Buckingham. There is some argument over whether "vise" means "advice" or "devise," and, if the former, in what sense; for a discussion of the matter, see the article by Richard Firth Green, who discovered the manuscript, in the English Historical Review of 1984. If Richard was responsible for killing the Princes in the Tower, the murders may have caused Buckingham to change sides. On the other hand, Buckingham himself had motivation to kill the Princes, being a Lancastrian contender for the throne with a viable claim potentially equivalent to that of Henry Tudor, depending on one's view of the legitimacy of the Tudor branch of the House of Lancaster. According to this perspective, if Buckingham killed the Princes and blamed Richard, he could foment a Lancastrian rebellion, putting the throne into play with only Henry Tudor as a rival. Indeed, a Lancastrian rebellion followed, but it was Henry Tudor who succeeded in deposing Richard III.

Relationship to Edward III

Three of Buckingham's four grandparents were descended from Edward III of England:
- Buckingham's paternal grandfather was Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham, who was the grandson and senior descendant of Thomas of Woodstock, youngest son of Edward III.
- Buckingham's paternal grandmother Anne Neville was a granddaughter of John of Gaunt through his daughter Joan Beaufort, making her a great-granddaughter of Edward III.
- Buckingham's maternal grandfather Edmund Beaufort was a grandson of John of Gaunt, the youngest son of his son John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset.
- Buckingham's maternal grandmother Eleanor Beauchamp was descended from a daughter of William Marshal but not from Edward III. Buckingham's grandparents Anne Neville and Edmund Beaufort were also first cousins for their respective parents Joan Beaufort and John Beaufort were sister and brother.

Important relatives

Buckingham was the son of Humphrey, Earl Stafford and Margaret Beaufort. Four of Buckingam's first and second cousins became King of England, and two of his second cousins became Queen:
- Edward IV and his brother Richard III were Buckingham's first cousins once removed. Buckingham's father Humphrey, Earl Stafford, was son of Anne Neville (~1411-1480). Anne's sister Cecily, Duchess of York was the mother of Edward IV and Richard III. Edward's son Edward V was thus Buckingham's second cousin, as was the younger Edward's sister Elizabeth of York, later wife and Queen Consort of Henry VII of England.
- Henry Tudor, later King Henry VII was Buckingham's second cousin. Buckingham's mother was Margaret Beaufort (~1427-1474), daughter of Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset. Margaret's first cousin, also named Margaret Beaufort (1443-1509) was the mother of Henry VII, the latter Margaret being the daughter of the 1st Duke of Somerset.
- Anne Neville, in line to become Queen as the wife of Lancastrian Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales, eventually did become Queen as the wife of Richard III of England. Her paternal grandfather Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury was the brother of Buckingham's paternal grandmother (also named Anne Neville) making Buckingham the Queen's second cousin. If you look on the ancestral chart below you will see that two of his great-grandparents were brother and sister (John Beaufort and Joan Beaufort). This made Buckingham's parents second cousins.

The Ancestry of Henry Stafford

Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of

Attainder

An attainder, in British law, was the ending of a person's civil rights after he has been sentenced to death or to outlawry, as an additional penalty. It was frequently imposed in cases of treason. The ending, or "extinction" of a person's capacity to own property carried also the "corruption of blood" — meaning that his children could not inherit his wealth or titles — and the property of an attainted person became owned by the British Crown. Heirs who had lost their expected inheritance could petition the Crown for a reversal of the attainder; this was usually granted to those who had performed some service to the Crown, and did not always result in a complete return of the expected property. The abuse of attainder as a means of garnering income for the Crown was much resented, and the use of bills of attainder was forbidden in the United States by that republic's fundamental law, the United States Constitution.

Examples of cases where a person's property was subject to Attainder

- Thomas Cromwell
- http://www.constitution.org/eng/conpur029.htm Attainder of the Earl of Strafford Category:Legal history Category:Common law

Richard III of England

:For the play Richard III by William Shakespeare, see Richard III (play) Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was the King of England from 1483 until his death and the last king from the House of York. After the death of his brother King Edward IV, Richard briefly governed as a regent for Edward's son King Edward V, but he imprisoned Edward and his brother Richard in the Tower and acquired the throne for himself (crowned on 6 July 1483). A rebellion rose against Richard and he fell in the Battle of Bosworth Field as the last English king to die in battle, when he faced Henry Tudor, 2nd Earl of Richmond (later King Henry VII). William Shakespeare's play Richard III has made his name particularly famous.

Childhood

Richard was born at Fotheringay Castle, the fourth son of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York (who had been a strong claimant to the throne of King Henry VI) and Cecily Neville. The withered arm, limp, and crooked back of legend are most likely fabrications, asserted primarily by Thomas More in his questionable history, which made a deep impression upon Shakespeare. Richard spent much of his childhood at Middleham Castle in Wensleydale, under the tutalege of his uncle Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick. He was involved in ongoing battles between different alliances of the House of Lancaster and the House of York factions during the last half of the 15th Century. At the time of his father's death at the Battle of Wakefield, Richard was still a boy, and at that time he was taken into the care of Warwick, known to history as "The Kingmaker" because of his strong influence on the course of the Wars of the Roses. Warwick was instrumental in deposing Henry VI and replacing him with Richard's eldest brother, Edward. While Richard was at Warwick's estate, he developed a close friendship with Francis Lovell, a friendship that would remain strong for the rest of his life. Another child in the household was Warwick's daughter Anne Neville, whom Richard would later marry.

Marriage

Following the decisive Yorkist victory over the Lancastrians at the Battle of Tewkesbury, Richard married the widowed Anne Neville, younger daughter of the late Earl of Warwick. Anne's first husband had been Edward of Westminster, son of Henry VI. Following his death at the Battle of Tewkesbury in 1471, she disappears from the records for a while, her whereabouts unknown. It is popularly believed that she had fallen under the dubious control of George of Clarence, who had an interest in preventing her from marrying again, because it gave him full control over the joint inheritance of Anne and her elder sister Isabel, George's wife. In a scene straight out of "Cinderella", Richard is said to have found Anne working as a scullery maid in a London chophouse and "rescued" her; but the truth is not known. Their marriage took place on 12 July 1472. Richard and Anne had one son, Edward Plantagenet (also known as Edward of Middleham, 1473 – 9 April 1484), who died not long after being created Prince of Wales. (Richard had two illegitimate children as well, John of Gloucester and a daughter named Kathryn.) Anne also died before her husband.

Reign of Edward IV

During the reign of his brother, King Edward IV, Richard demonstrated his loyalty, as well as his prodigious skill as a military commander, and was rewarded with large estates in Northern England, given the title Duke of Gloucester and the position of Governor of the North, becoming the richest and most powerful noble in England and a loyal aide to Edward IV. (By contrast the other surviving brother, George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, was executed by Edward for treason.) Richard continued to control the north of England until Edward's death. In 1482 Richard recaptured Berwick-upon-Tweed from the Scots, and was noted as being fair and just, endowing universities and making grants to the church.

Accession to the Throne

On the death of King Edward IV, in April 1483, the late King's sons (Richard's young nephews), King Edward V, aged 12, and Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York, aged 9, were next in the order of succession. Appointed Lord Protector of the Realm in his brother's will, Richard was warned by Lord Hastings, that the Woodvilles were intending to isolate Richard from the position and to consolidate their power at Richard's expense. When the boy King's retinue was on its way from Wales to London, for his coronation, Richard and Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham joined them at Northampton. He had the king's guardian, Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers, (brother of Elizabeth Woodville, Edward's Queen Consort) and other advisors arrested and taken to Pontefract Castle, allegedly for planning to assassinate Edward V. Richard then took Edward to stay at the Tower of London (then a royal palace), a move widely supported since much of the country distrusted the former queen's family. Richard called himself Lord Protector and was also made Chief Councillor (head of government). John Morton, Bishop of Ely and later Archbishop of Canterbury, is considered by some to be an important source of the Tudor propaganda against Richard III. According to Sir Thomas More's History, which may be based in part on Morton's accounts, Lord Hastings (a regular visitor to the young Edward V in the Tower of London) was arrested for alleged treason on 13 June 1483 at a meeting of the Royal Council, at the Tower. A few minutes later, he was beheaded on Tower Green, a clear violation of his rights (i.e., execution without due process) as a Peer guaranteed under Magna Carta. It has been argued that Hastings, whose execution was the first recorded at the Tower of London, was indeed arrested on 13 June, but later formally charged with treason, tried, convicted and sentenced, and legally executed on 18 June; no record of such proceedings survives. Edward's younger brother, Richard, was removed to the Tower on 16 June, following Lord Hastings' arrest and (presumed) execution. It is thought that Hastings had allied himself with the Queen Dowager because of the rise in influence of Buckingham and what he saw as Richard's usurpation of the throne. Morton claimed to have been in the council room when Hastings was arrested, and may have been one of several men who were detained for participating in the conspiracy with Hastings. Three other members of the alleged conspiracy — the queen's brother Lord Rivers, her second son Richard Grey, and another chamberlain Sir Thomas Vaughan — were also convicted and executed elsewhere. Jane (or Elizabeth) Shore, who had been a mistress of King Edward IV, and then of his step-son Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset (who avoided prosecution in the conspiracy by going into sanctuary at Westminster with his mother), and was now Hastings's mistress, was convicted of only lesser offences and was made to do public penance and briefly imprisoned. John Morton is also thought to be the source of other accusations against Richard, notably
- the murder of the Princes in the Tower
- the murder of Henry VI himself
- the "private execution" of his brother George, Duke of Clarence
- the murder of his wife's first husband, Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales
- the murder of William, Lord Hastings
- of forcing his wife, Anne Neville, to marry him against her will
- of planning an incestuous marriage to his niece Elizabeth of York (and perhaps killing his wife so he could)
- of accusing his own mother of adultery and his late brother the king of being illegitimate
- of accusing Jane Shore and Elizabeth Woodville of witchcraft in withering his arm
- of being illegitimate himself Each of these stories first appears in writing either in Sir Thomas More's The History of King Richard III, believed by some to be based on Morton's account, or on the writings of someone else who had heard the stories. (Historians are divided on the issue of Morton's importance as a source, some pointing out that More's own father was an Edwardian loyalist and well-connected in the governmentof the City of London.) The question of whether these stories were true was not of great interest to either Morton or More, history then still being regarded as a branch of literature. Not only that, but Morton, having been arrested by Richard III, had fled to exile in Flanders. He only returned when Henry VII was on the throne and was quickly promoted. It was customary for histories to also serve as propaganda on both sides, to support and strengthen one's patron's cause. On June 22, 1483, outside St Paul's Cathedral, a statement was read out on behalf of Richard declaring for the first time that he was taking the throne for himself. When the members of Parliament met on June 25, it apparently heard evidence from a priest that he had conducted a marriage or betrothal between Edward IV and one Lady Eleanor Talbot (or Butler) before his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville. Since even a betrothal was a legally binding "pre-contract" in the customs of the time, Edward IV's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville had been bigamous, therefore all their children were illegitimate. Some of the proceedings of that Parliamentary session survive in a document known as Titulus Regius, which Parliament issued some months later explaining its actions and of which a single copy escaped the destruction of all copies of the Titulus Regius later ordered by Henry VII. The identity of the priest in question - thought to have been Edward IV's sometime Chancellor, Robert Stillington, Bishop of Bath and Wells - is known from only one source, the French political commentator, Philippe de Commines. Despite rumours that Richard's claims were true, evidence was lacking, and until recently it has generally been accepted that Richard's chief motive for taking the crown was that he felt that his own power and wealth would be threatened under Edward V, who was presumably sympathetic to his Woodville relatives. However, a recently-published theory has reopened the question of the additional claim that it was Edward IV who was illegitimate -see was Edward illegitimate? for details.

Coronation

Richard's three elder brothers were all dead. His elder brother George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence had been attainted in connection with a treason charge, meaning that his children Margaret and Edward, Earl of Warwick were also removed from the line of succession - although they were not personally accused of treason and had been given other honors. On July 6 1483, Richard was crowned at Westminster Abbey. Except for three Earls not old enough to participate and a few lesser nobles, the entire peerage attended his coronation. He was the last Plantagenet king.

Death

Richard was, at least outwardly, a devout man and an efficient administrator. However, he was a Yorkist and heirless, and had ruthlessly removed the Woodvilles and their allies; he was therefore vulnerable to political opposition. His apparently loyal supporter, Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, turned against him and was executed late in 1483. Richard's enemies united against him. According to local tradition in Leicester Richard went to see a seer in the town before heading off for the Battle of Bosworth Field on August 22 1485 to meet Lancastrian forces led by Henry Tudor. She told him "where your spur should strike on the ride into battle, your head shall be broken on the return". On the ride into battle his spur struck the bridge stone of the Bow Bridge; as he was being carried back over the back of a horse his head struck the same stone and was broken open. Tudor succeeded Richard to become Henry VII, and cemented the succession by marrying the Yorkist heir, Elizabeth of York. Legends notwithstanding, Richard was abandoned at Bosworth by the Lords William Stanley and Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland, Stanley switching sides, which severely depleted his army's strength. It is said that Richard's body was dragged naked through the streets before being buried at Greyfriars Church, Leicester. According to one tradition, during the Dissolution of the Monasteries his body was thrown into the nearby River Soar, although other evidence suggests that this may not be the case and that his burial site may currently be under a car park in Leicester. There is currently a memorial plaque in the Cathedral where he may have once been buried. A body dragged from Soar and initially believed to be Richard was later found to be an Anglo-Saxon warrior who died nearly 500 years before Richard was killed. This conclusion was made through both carbon dating and the size of the body and the thickness of the bones. Richard is described in contemporary accounts as being rather short and stocky.

Succession

By the time of his last stand against the Lancastrians, he was a widower without a legitimate son. After his son's death, he had initially named his nephew, Edward, Earl of Warwick, Clarence's young son and also the nephew of Queen Anne Neville, as his heir. After Anne's death, however, Richard named another nephew, John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln, as his heir.

Legacy

Richard's Council of the North greatly improved conditions for Northern England, as commoners of that region were formerly without any susbtantial economic activity independent of London. In the wake of the Neville family's Kingmaker and the Council's founding, they became powerful enough to return to open revolts a la Jorvik times. From the Pilgrimage of Grace, the Province of Maryland and Jacobitism as united forces in the Catholic Reformation, the people were initially Tory and also courted the Irish in immigration after Catholic Emancipation. Its descendant position the Secretary of State for the Northern Department, provided a rebirthing in Northern Britain that hadn't existed since the time of the Vikings and sparked the Scottish Enlightenment. The Industrial Revolution in the UK was largely a product of these beginnings. Since his death, Richard III has become one of England's most controversial kings. Modern historians recognise the damage done to his reputation by "historians" of the next reign, and particularly by William Shakespeare. Amongst other things, Richard was represented as physically malformed, which in those days was accepted as evidence of an evil character. However, it has been demonstrated that he could not have carried out most of the crimes attributed to him. The major exception is the question of whether he was responsible for the deaths of his nephews, the "Princes in the Tower". The Richard III Society was set up during the 20th century in an attempt to rehabilitate Richard, and has gathered considerable research material about his life and reign. Its members, known as "Ricardians", hold events, raise monuments and attempt to preserve the king's memory.

Popularity

Richard appears in the 2002 List of "100 Great Britons" (sponsored by the BBC and voted for by the public), alongside such others as David Beckham, Aleister Crowley, and Johnny Rotten. The BBC History Magazine lists him under "doubtful entrants, based on special interest lobbying or 'cult' status", and comments: "On the list due to the Ricardian lobby, but a minor monarch".

Fiction about Richard III

A lasting mystery surrounding the accession of Richard was the disappearance and presumed death of Richard's nephews, known as the Princes in the Tower. One of the most readable accounts of the evidence on all sides of the question is Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time, written in 1951 (when some of the sources now available had not yet come to light). Another extremely rich view of the reign of Edward IV and Richard III is The Sunne in Splendor, by Sharon Kay Penman. An award-winning novel published in 2003, The Rose of York: Love & War by Sandra Worth, also presents the account of Richard III from the Ricardian viewpoint. Worth argues that Richard III's contribution to shaping a just society by improvements to the legal system was buried by the Tudors because it conflicted with the image of a villainous and hated monarch that they wished to present. The American Branch of the Richard III Society carries out its own review of all the suspects in the case of Richard III, in "Whodunit?" in the online library at http://www.r3.org/bookcase/whodunit.html (external link). Another fictional representation is the 1939 film Tower of London, where Basil Rathbone is Richard and Boris Karloff his evil henchman. Interestingly, while this Richard is clearly the monster of Tudor legend, most of his deformity appears to be transferred to Mort, who almost resembles "Igor" of Frankenstein legends! Additionally, a secret history of Richard III is presented in the British sitcom Blackadder.

Bibliography

Source material on all aspects of Richard's reign is neatly and impartially brought together by Keith Dockray in Richard III: A Reader in History (Sutton, 1988).
- The Trial of Richard III by Richard Drewett & Mark Redhead (ISBN 0862991986)
- Royal Blood by Bertram Fields (ISBN 006039269X)
- Richard III: The Road to Bosworth Field by Peter Hammond & Anne Sutton (ISBN 009466160X)
- Richard the Third by Michael Hicks (Tempus, 2001) (ISBN 0752423029)
- Richard III: A Study in Service by Rosemary Horrox (ISBN 0521407265)
- Richard III and the North edited by Rosemary Horrox (ISBN 0859580660)
- Richard III: The Great Debate edited by Paul Murray Kendall (ISBN 0393003108)
- Richard the Third by Paul Murray Kendall (ISBN 0393007855)
- The Betrayal of Richard III by V.B. Lamb (ISBN 086299778X)
- Richard III and the Princes in the Tower by A.J. Pollard (ISBN 0312067151)
- Good King Richard? by Jeremy Potter (ISBN 0094646309)
- Richard III by Charles Ross (Methuen, 1981) (ISBN 0413295303)
- Richard III: England's Black Legend by Desmond Seward (ISBN 0140266348)
- The Coronation of Richard III by Anne Sutton & Peter Hammond (ISBN 0904387752)
- Richard III's Books by Anne Sutton & Livia VIsser-Fuchs (ISBN 0750914068)
- The Princes in the Tower by Alison Weir (ISBN 0345391780)
- Joan of Arc and Richard III by Charles Wood (ISBN 019506951X)
- History of the English Speaking Peoples by Winston Churchill, Vol. 1, The Birth of Britain

External links

- [http://www.richardiii.net/ Richard III Society, headquartered in London, England]
- [http://www.r3.org/ Richard III Society, American Branch -- includes links to online editions of many primary texts and secondary sources]
- [http://home.cogeco.ca/~richardiii/ The Richard III Society of Canada]
- [http://www.riiinsw.com Richard III Society of New South Wales]
- [http://dmoz.org/Regional/Europe/United_Kingdom/England/Society_and_Culture/History/Monarchy/Plantagenet/Richard_III/ Richard III article at dmoz.org] Category:1452 births Category:1485 deaths Category:Natives of Northamptonshire Category:House of York Category:English monarchs Category:Lord High Admirals Category:Knights of the Garter Category:Wars of the Roses Category:Dukes in the Peerage of England ja:リチャード3世 (イングランド王)

Margaret Beaufort

Margaret Beaufort (May 31 1443 – June 29 1509) was the daughter of John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset, granddaughter of John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset and great-granddaughter of John of Gaunt and his mistress Katherine Swynford; following Gaunt's marriage to Katherine, their children (the Beauforts) were legitimized, but their descendants were barred from ever inheriting the throne, though every monarch since Edward IV of England is their descendant. Edward and his younger brother Richard III of England were sons of Cecily Neville, grandsons to Joan Beaufort, great-grandsons to John of Gaunt and Katherine Swynford. Margaret married four times, but had only one child. That child became Henry VII of England. Margaret's first marriage, to John de la Pole, took place in 1450, when she was still a child, but was annulled after a short time. Her second cousin Henry VI had as yet no children, and considered naming her his heir. He married her to his half-brother, Edmund Tudor, Earl of Richmond. Edmund was the eldest son of the king's mother, dowager Queen Catherine (the widow of Henry V) by her illegal (and so legally invalid) second marriage to a Welsh squire in her household, Owen Tudor. Thus, in one of the great ironies of history, Margaret's son Henry, the Lancastrian claimant to the throne at the end of the Wars of the Roses — the one who won it all and united the two houses by marrying the Yorkist princess Elizabeth of York — had plenty of royal blood but no legal claim to the throne. Edmund died while she was only thirteen and pregnant with their son. The difficult birth left her unable to have any more children. Nevertheless, Lady Margaret soon married her third husband, Sir Henry Stafford, son of the 1st Duke of Buckingham. Following his death in 1471, she took a vow of chastity, but this did not prevent her from marrying Thomas, Lord Stanley, some time between 1473 and 1482. Stanley, who had switched sides repeatedly during the Wars of the Roses, chose to double-cross King Richard on the battlefield at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 and so throw the victory to Margaret's son Henry Tudor. Stanley was later made Earl of Derby, which made Margaret Countess of Derby, and she was still the dowager Countess of Richmond. She was known for her education and her piety, and her son is said to have been devoted to her. Once her son Henry became king, she was the mother of the reigning King but had never been Queen Consort so she could not claim the title of Queen Mother instead she was referred to in court as My Lady the King's Mother. In 1502 she established the Lady Margaret's Professorship of Divinity at the University of Cambridge. Following the death of her third husband and the accession of her son Henry VII to the throne, she refounded and enlarged God's House as Christ's College, Cambridge with a royal charter from the King. She has been honoured ever since as the Foundress of the College. Her signature can be found on one of the buildings (4 staircase, 1994) within the College. Her portrait, at prayer in her richly furnished private closet behind her chamber, is a rare contemporary glimpse into a late Gothic aristocratic English interior. It rewards a close look. The severe black of her widow's weeds contrasts with the splendour of her private apartment, where every surface is patterned, even the floor alternating cream-colored and terracotta tiles. The plain desk at which she kneels is draped with a richly patterned textile that is so densely encrusted with embroidery that its corners stand away stiffly. Her lavishly illuminated Book of Hours is open on a richly worked pillow before her. The walls are patterned with oak leaf designs, perhaps in lozenges, perhaps of stamped and part gilded leather. Against it hangs the dosser of her canopy of estate, with the tester above her head (the Tudor rose at its center) supported on cords from the ceiling. The coats-of-arms woven into the tapestry are of England (parted as usual with France) and the portcullis badge of the Beauforts, which the early Tudor kings would use. Small stained glass roundels in the leaded glass of her lancet windows also carry both England (cropped away here) and Beaufort. Lady Margaret Hall, the first women's college at the University of Oxford, was named in honour of Margaret Beaufort.

External links

- [http://www.guide2womenleaders.com/womeninpower/Womeninpower1450.htm A short profile of Margaret alongside other influential women of her time]
- [http://tudorhistory.org/secondary/beaufort/contents.html E.M.G. Routh, Lady Margaret: A Memoir of Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond & Derby, Mother of Henry VII, 1924:] e-text Beaufort, Margaret Beaufort, Margaret Beaufort, Margaret Beaufort, Margaret

Knight of the Garter

s spell out the motto of the Order on this seventeenth century garter.]] The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an English order of chivalry with a history stretching back to medieval times; today it is the world's oldest national order of knighthood in continuous existence and the pinnacle of the British honours system. Its membership is extremely limited, consisting of the Sovereign and not more than twenty-five full members, or Companions. Male members are known as Knights Companions, whilst female members are known as Ladies Companions (not Dames, as in most other British chivalric orders). The Order can also include certain extra members (members of the British Royal Family and foreign monarchs), known as "Supernumerary" Knights and Ladies. The Sovereign alone grants membership of the Order; the Prime Minister does not tender binding advice as to appointments, as he or she does for most other orders. As the name suggests, the Order's primary emblem is a garter bearing the motto "Honi soit qui mal y pense" (which means "Shame on him who thinks ill of it") in gold letters. The Garter is an actual accessory worn by the members of the Order during ceremonial occasions; it is also depicted on several insignia. Most British orders of chivalry cover the entire kingdom, but the three most exalted ones each pertain to one constituent nation only. The Order of the Garter, which pertains to England, is most senior in both age and precedence; its equivalent in Scotland is The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle. Whilst the Order of the Thistle was certainly in existence by the sixteenth century and possibly has medieval origins (or even, according to more fanciful legends, dates to the eighth century), the foundation of the institution in its modern form dates only to 1687. In 1783 an Irish equivalent, The Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick, was founded, but since the independence of the greater part of Ireland the Order has fallen dormant (its last surviving knight died in 1974).

History

The Order was founded circa 1348 by Edward III as "a society, fellowship and college of knights." Various more precise dates ranging from 1344 to 1351 have been proposed; the wardrobe account of Edward III first shows Garter habits issued in the autumn of 1348. At any rate, the Order was most probably not constituted before 1346; the original statutes required that each member admitted to the Order already be a knight (what would today be called a knight bachelor), and several initial members of the Order were first knighted in that year. Various legends have been set forth to explain the origin of the Order. The most popular one involves the "Countess of Salisbury" (it may refer to Joan of Kent, the King's future daughter-in-law, or to her then mother-in-law, whom Edward is known to have admired). Whilst she was dancing with the King at Eltham Palace, her garter is said to have slipped from her leg to the floor. When the surrounding courtiers sniggered, the King picked it up and tied it to his own leg, exclaiming "Honi soit qui mal y pense." (The French may be loosely translated as "Shame on him who thinks ill of it" (a better translation is: "evil to him who evil thinks"); it has become the motto of the Order.) According to another myth, Richard I, whilst fighting in the Crusades, was inspired by St George to tie garters around the legs of his knights; Edward III supposedly recalled the event, which led to victory, when he founded the Order. A further explanation refers to the medieval veneration of the Virgin Mary's genitalia, being the passage through which Jesus came into the world. The garter is said to represent this.

Composition

Sovereign and Knights

Crusades Crusades Since its foundation, the Order of the Garter has included the Sovereign and Knights Companions. The Sovereign of the United Kingdom serves as Sovereign of the Order. The Prince of Wales is explicitly mentioned in the Order's statutes and is by convention created a Knight Companion; aside from him, there may be up to twenty-four other Knights Companions. In the early days of the Order, women (who could not be knighted), were sometimes associated with the Order under the name "Ladies of the Garter," but they were not full companions. Henry VII, however, ended the practice, creating no more Ladies of the Garter after his mother Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Derby (appointed in 1488). Thereafter, the Order was exclusively male (except, of course, for the occasional female Sovereign) until 1901, when Edward VII created Queen Alexandra (his wife) a Lady of the Garter. Throughout the 20th century women continued to be admitted to the Order, but, except for foreign female monarchs, they were not full members of the Order until 1987, when it became possible, under a statute of Elizabeth II, to appoint "Ladies Companions." In addition to the regular Knights and Ladies Companions, the Sovereign can also appoint "Supernumerary Knights". This concept was introduced in 1786 by George III so that his many sons would not count towards the limit of twenty-five companions set by the statutes; in 1805, he extended the category so that any descendant of George II could be created a Supernumerary Knight. Since 1831, the exception applies to all descendents of George I. Such companions, when appointed, are sometimes known as "Royal Knights." From time to time, foreign monarchs have also been admitted to the Order; and for two centuries they also have not counted against the limit of twenty-five companions, being (like the Royal Knights aforementioned), supernumerary. Formerly, each such extra creation required the enactment of a special statute; this was first done in 1813, when Alexander I, Emperor of Russia was admitted to the Order. Many European monarchs are in fact descended from George I and can be appointed supernumerarily as such, but a statute of 1954 authorises the regular admission of foreign Knights and Ladies without further special statutes irrespective of descent. The appellation "Stranger Knights," which dates to the middle ages, is sometimes applied to foreign monarchs in the Order of the Garter. Generally, only foreign monarchs are made Stranger Knights or Ladies; when The Rt Hon. Sir Ninian Stephen (an Australian citizen) and Sir Edmund Hillary (from New Zealand) joined the Order, they did so as Knights Companions in the normal fashion. The British Sovereign is the head of state of both these countries, which were formerly British colonies. Formerly, whenever vacancies arose, the Knights would conduct an "election," wherein each Knight voted for nine candidates (of which three had to be of the rank of Earl or above, three of the rank of Baron or above, and three of the rank of Knight or above). The Sovereign would then choose as many individuals as were necessary to fill the vacancies; he or she was not bound to choose the receivers of the greatest number of votes. Victoria dispensed with the procedure in 1862; thereafter, all appointments were made solely by the Sovereign. From the eighteenth century onwards, the Sovereign made his or her choices upon the advice of the Government. George VI felt that the Orders of the Garter and the Thistle had become too linked with political patronage; in 1946, with the agreement of the Prime Minister (Clement Attlee) and the Leader of the Opposition (Winston Churchill), he returned these two orders to the personal gift of the Sovereign. Knights of the Garter could also be degraded by the Sovereign, who normally took such an action in response to serious crimes such as treason. The last degradation was that of James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde, who had participated in the Jacobite Rebellion and had been convicted upon impeachment, in 1716. During the First World War, Knights who were monarchs of enemy nations were removed by the "annulment" of their creations; Knights Companions who fought against the United Kingdom were "struck off" the Rolls. All such annulments were made in 1915. the Knights who were removed were: Francis Joseph, Emperor of Austria, William II, Emperor of Germany, Ernst August, 3rd Duke of Cumberland, Prince Albert William Henry of Prussia, Ernest, Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine, William, Crown Prince of Germany and William II, King of Württemberg. The only Knight Companion to be struck off the Rolls was Prince Charles Edward, 2nd Duke of Albany.

Poor Knights

At the original establishment of the Order, twenty-six "Poor Knights" were appointed and attached to the Order and its chapel at St. George's Chapel, Windsor. The number was not always maintained; by the seventeenth century, there were just thirteen Poor Knights. At his restoration, Charles II increased the number to eighteen. After they objected to being termed "poor", William IV renamed them the Military Knights of Windsor. Poor Knights were originally impoverished military veterans. They were required to pray daily for the Sovereign and Knights Companions; in return, they received a salary, and were lodged in Windsor Castle. Today the Military Knights, who are no longer necessarily poor, but are still military pensioners, participate in the Order's processions, escorting the Knights and Ladies of the Garter, and in the daily services in St George's Chapel. They are not actually members of the Order itself, nor are they necessarily actual knights: indeed few if any have been knights.

Officers

The Order of the Garter has six officers: the Prelate, the Chancellor, the Registrar, the King of Arms, the Usher and the Secretary. The offices of Prelate, Registrar and Usher were created upon the Order's foundation; the offices of King of Arms and Chancellor were created during the fifteenth century, and that of Secretary during the twentieth. The office of Prelate is held by the Bishop of Winchester, traditionally one of the senior bishops of the Church of England. The office of Chancellor was formerly held by the Bishop of the diocese within which Windsor fell— at one point, the Bishop of Salisbury, but after boundary changes the Bishop of Oxford. Later, the field was widened so that, for example, the Stuart courtier Sir James Palmer served as Chancellor from 1645 although he was neither a prelate nor even a companion (although he was a Knight Bachelor). Today, however, one of the companions serves as Chancellor. The Dean of Windsor is, ex officio, the Registrar. Garter King of Arms is the head of the College of Arms (England's heraldic authority) and thus the "principal" herald for all England (along with Wales and Northern Ireland). As his title suggests, he also has specific duties as the heraldic officer of the Order of the Garter, attending to the companions' crests and coats of arms, which are exhibited in the Order's chapel (see below). The modern (1904) office of Secretary has also been filled by a professional herald. The Order's Usher is the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod. He is also the Serjeant-at-Arms of the House of Lords (although his functions there are more often performed by his deputy, the Yeoman Usher). The title of his office comes from his staff of office, the Black Rod.

Vestments and accoutrements

Sovereign and Knights

House of Lords For the Order's great occasions, such as its annual service each June in Windsor Castle, as well for coronations, the Companions wear an elaborate costume:
- Most importantly (although hardly visible), the Garter is a buckled velvet strap worn around the left calf by men and on the left arm by women. Originally light blue, today the Garter is dark blue. Those presented to Stranger Knights were once set with several jewels. The Garter bears the Order's motto in gold majuscules.
- The mantle is a blue velvet robe. Knights and Ladies Companions have worn mantles, or coats, since the reign of Henry VII. Once made of wool, they had come to be made of velvet by the sixteenth century. The mantle was originally purple, but varied during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries between celestial blue, pale blue, royal blue, dark blue, violet and ultramarine. Today, mantles are dark blue in colour, and are lined with white taffeta. The mantles of the Sovereign and members of the Royal Family end in trains. Sewn onto the left shoulder of the mantle is a shield bearing St George's cross, encircled by a Garter; the Sovereign's mantle is slightly different, showing instead a representation of the star of the Order (see below). Attached to the mantle over the right shoulder are a crimson velvet hood and surcoat, which have lost all function over time and appear to the modern observer simply as a splash of colour. Today the mantle, which includes two large gold tassels, is worn over a regular suit or military uniform.
- The hat is of black velvet, and bears a plume of white ostrich and black heron feathers.
- Like the mantle, the collar was introduced during Henry VII's reign. Made of pure gold, it weighs 30 troy ounces (approximately 0.933 kilograms). The collar is composed of gold knots alternating with enamelled medallions showing a rose encircled by the blue garter. During Henry VII's reign, each garter surrounded two roses—one red and one white—but he later changed the design, such that each garter now encircles just one red rose. The collar is worn around the neck, over the mantle.
- The George, a three-dimensional figurine of St George on horseback slaying a dragon, colourfully enamelled, is worn suspended from the collar. collar Aside from these special occasions, however, much simpler insignia are used whenever a member of the Order attends an event at which decorations are worn.
- The star, introduced by Charles I, is an eight-pointed silver badge; in its centre is an enamel depiction of the cross of St George, surrounded by the Garter. (Each of the eight points is depicted as a cluster of rays, with the four points of the cardinal directions longer than the intermediate ones.) It is worn pinned to the left breast. Formerly, the stars given to foreign monarchs were often inlaid with jewels. (Since the Order of the Garter is the UK's senior order, a member will wear its star above that of other orders to which he or she belongs; up to four orders' stars may be worn.)
- The broad riband, introduced by Charles II, is a four inch wide sash, worn from the left shoulder to the right hip. (Depending on the other clothing worn, it either passes over the left shoulder, or is pinned beneath it.) The riband's colour has varied over the years; it was originally light blue, but was a dark shade under the Hanoverian monarchs. In 1950, the colour was fixed as "kingfisher blue". (Only one riband is worn at a time, even if a Knight or Lady belongs to several orders.)
- The badge (sometimes known as the Lesser George) hangs from the riband at the right hip, suspended from a small gold link (formerly, before Charles II introduced the broad riband, it was around the neck). Like the George, it shows St George slaying the dragon, but it is flatter and monochromatically gold. In the fifteenth century, the Lesser George was usually worn attached to a ribbon around the neck. As this was not convenient when riding a horse, the custom of wearing it under the right arm developed. However, on certain "collar days" designated by the Sovereign, members attending formal events may wear the Order's collar over their military uniform or eveningwear. The collar is fastened to the shoulders with silk ribbons. They will then substitute the broad riband of another order to which they belong (if any), since the Order of the Garter is represented by the collar. Upon the death of a Knight or Lady, the insignia must be returned to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood. The badge and star are returned personally to the Sovereign by the nearest male relative of the deceased.

Poor Knights

Poor Knights originally wore red mantles, each of which bore the cross of St George, but did not depict the Garter. Elizabeth I replaced the mantles with blue and purple gowns, but Charles I returned to the old red mantles. When the Poor Knights were renamed Military Knights, the mantles were abandoned. Instead, the Military Knights of Windsor now wear the old military uniform of an "army officer on the unattached list": black trousers, a scarlet coat, a cocked hat with a plume, and a sword on a white sash.

Officers

The officers of the Order also have ceremonial vestments and other accoutrements that they wear and carry for the Order's annual service. The Prelate's and Chancellor's mantles are blue, like that of the knights (but since the Chancellor is now a member of the Order, he simply wears a knight's mantle), those of other officers crimson; all are embroidered with a shield bearing the Cross of St George. Garter King of Arms wears his tabard. Assigned to each officer of the Order is a distinctive badge that he wears on a chain around his neck; each is surrounded by a representation of the garter. The Prelate's badge depicts St George slaying a dragon; the Garter within which it is depicted is surmounted by a bishop's mitre. The Chancellor's badge is a rose encircled by the Garter. The badge of Garter Principal King of Arms depicts the royal arms impaled (side-by-side) with the cross of St George. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod's badge depicts a knot within the Garter. The Registrar has a badge of a crown above two crossed quills, the Secretary two crossed quills in front of a rose. The Chancellor of the Order bears a purse, embroidered with the royal arms, containing the Seal of the Order. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod carries his staff of office, the Black Rod. At the Order's great occasions, Garter Principal King of Arms bears his baton of office as a king of arms; he does not usually wear his crown.

Chapel

king of arms, shown here — process through Windsor Castle to St. George's chapel.]] The Chapel of the Order is St. George's Chapel, Windsor, located in the Lower Ward of Windsor Castle. It was founded for the Order in 1475. The order once held frequent services at the Chapel, but they became rare in the eighteenth century. Discontinued after 1805, the ceremony was revived by George VI in 1948 and it has become an annual event. On a certain day each June, the members of the Order (wearing their ceremonial vestments and insignia) meet in the state apartments in the Upper Ward of Windsor Castle, then (preceded by the Military Knights) process on foot down through the castle to St George's Chapel for the service. If there are any new knights, they are installed on this occasion. After the service, the members of the Order return to the Upper Ward by carriage. Each member of the Order, including the Sovereign, is allotted a stall in the quire of the chapel, above which his or her heraldic devices are displayed. Perched on the pinnacle of a knight's stall is his helm, decorated with a mantling and topped by his crest. Under English heraldic law, women other than monarchs do not bear helms or crests; instead, the coronet appropriate to the Lady's rank is used (see coronet). The crests of the Sovereign and Stranger Knights who are monarchs sit atop their crowns, which are themselves perched on their helms. Below each helm, a sword is displayed. Above the crest or coronet, the knight's or lady's heraldic banner is hung, emblazoned with his or her coat of arms. At a considerably smaller scale, to the back of the stall is affixed a piece of brass (a "stall plate") displaying its occupant's name, arms and date of admission into the Order. Upon the death of a Knight, the banner, helm, mantling, crest (or coronet or crown) and sword are taken down. No other newly admitted Knight may be assigned the stall until (after the funeral of the late Knight or Lady) a ceremony marking his or her death is observed at the chapel, during which Military Knights of Windsor carry the banner of the deceased Knight and offer it to the Dean of Windsor, who places it upon the altar. The stall plates, however, are not removed; rather, they remain permanently affixed somewhere about the stall, so the stalls of the chapel are festooned with a colourful record of the Order's Knights (and now Ladies) throughout history.

Precedence and privileges

coat of arms Knights and Ladies of the Garter are assigned positions in the order of precedence, coming before all others of knightly rank, and above baronets. (See order of precedence in England and Wales for the exact positions.) Wives, sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights of the Garter also feature on the order of precedence; relatives of Ladies of the Garter, however, are not assigned any special precedence. (Generally, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their mothers or wives.) The Chancellor of the Order is also assigned precedence, but this is purely academic since today the Chancellor is always also a Knight Companion, with a higher position by that virtue. (In fact, it is unclear whether the Chancellor's tabled precedence has ever come into effect, since under the old system the office was filled by a diocesan bishop of the Church of England, who again had higher precedence by virtue of that office than any that the Chancellorship could bestow on him.) Knights Companions prefix "Sir," and Ladies Companions prefix "Lady," to their forenames. Wives of Knights Companions may prefix "Lady" to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Ladies Companions. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when the names of the former are written out in their fullest forms. Knights and Ladies use the post-nominal letters "KG" and "LG," respectively. When an individual is entitled to use multiple post-nominal letters, KG or LG appears before all others, except "Bt" (Baronet), "VC" (Victoria Cross) and "GC" (George Cross). The Sovereign, Knights and Ladies Companions and Supernumerary Knights and Ladies may encircle their arms with a representation of the Garter; and since it is Britain's highest order of knighthood, the Garter will tend to be displayed in preference to the insignia of any other order, unless there is special reason to highlight a junior one. (They may further encircle the Garter with a depiction of Order's collar, but this very elaborate version is seldom seen.) Stranger Knights, of course, do not embellish the arms they use at home with foreign decorations such as the Garter; likewise, while the UK Royal Arms as used in England are encircled by the Garter, in Scotland they are surrounded by the circlet of the Order of the Thistle instead. (In Wales and Northern Ireland, the English pattern is followed.) Knights and Ladies are also entitled to receive heraldic supporters. These are relatively rare among private individuals in the UK. While some families claim supporters by ancient use and others have been granted them as a special reward, only peers, Knights and Ladies of the Garter and Thistle, and Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights Grand Commanders of certain junior orders are entitled to claim an automatic grant of supporters (upon payment of the appropriate fees to the College of Arms).

Current members and officers

References

- Ashmole, E. (1672). Institution, Laws and Ceremonies of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
- Begent, P. J. and Chesshyre, H. (1999). The Most Noble Order of the Garter: 650 Years. London: Spink and Son Ltd.
- [http://www.heraldicsculptor.com/Garters.html Brennan, I. G. (2004). "The Most Noble Order of the Garter."]
- [http://www.churchill-society-london.org.uk/garter.html The Churchill Society. (2004). "The Most Noble Order of the Garter."]
- [http://www.geocities.com/noelcox/Garter_Dress.htm Cox, N. (1999). "The ceremonial dress and accoutrements of the Most Noble Order of the Garter." Heraldry News. (Vol. 22, pp. 6-12 and vol. 23, pp. 7-11).]
- "Knighthood and Chivalry." (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed. London: Cambridge University Press.
- [http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page490.asp "Order of the Garter." (2005). Official Website of the British Monarchy.]
- [http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/ St George's Chapel, Windsor. (2004). Home Page.]
- [http://www.heraldica.org/topics/britain/order_precedence.htm Velde, F. R. (2003). "Order of Precedence in England and Wales.]
- [http://www.guardian.co.uk/monarchy/story/0,2763,845889,00.html Guardian newspaper article on the Marian cult explanation of the Order's name.] Category:British honours system
- Order of the Garter Garter, Order of the Garter, Order of the Garter, Order of the ja:ガーター勲章

Thomas Wolsey

Thomas Cardinal Wolsey, PC (circa 1475 – November 29, 1530), born Thomas Wulcy in Ipswich, Suffolk, England, was an English statesman and a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the most powerful person in England, besides the King, for many years. He was a son of Robert Wulcy of Ipswich (1438 – 1496) and Joan Daundy Wulcy. His father is reported by various later sources as a butcher but this is not certain. Wolsey was educated at Magdalen College, Oxford and then headed the Magdalen College School before becoming a personal chaplain, first to the Archbishop of Canterbury, and then to the governor of Calais where he met Henry VII. In due course he became Henry's personal chaplain before being appointed the Dean of Lincoln. When Henry VIII became king in 1509, Wolsey's affairs prospered. He became Canon (priest) of Windsor, Berkshire in 1511, the same year in which he became a member of the Privy Council. His political star was in the ascendant, and he soon became the controlling figure in all matters of state. In 1514, he was made Bishop of Lincoln, and then Archbishop of York. Pope Leo X made him a cardinal in 1515, with the Titulus S. Caecilae. In 1523, he was made Prince-Bishop of Durham. Wolsey loved display and wealth, although it is generally accepted that, as the King's principal servant, such things were necessary to present a good image to foreign diplomats and kings. He lived in royal splendour in his palace at Hampton Court, which was made the seat of Henry VIII after his fall. There is a theory that his long-term ambition was to become Pope, although much evidence discredits this. The idea that he aligned English foreign policy to that of the Papacy does not explain why he was often involved in wars in continental Europe, even if they were not on behalf of the Papacy. There is also the fact that he never attempted to build up support in the Papal Curia, which was necessary to obtain the Papal Tiara. Around 1525, Wolsey used his powers as papal legate to dissolve abbeys in Oxford and Ipswich to establish his own university colleges. The college in Oxford was originally named Cardinal College, but was renamed King's College after his fall. Today it is known as Christ Church.

The Rise to Power of Thomas Wolsey

Christ Church For many he epitomized all that was corrupt and heretical about the English Church prior to reformation, unpopular among most historians, contemporary and past, for his ostentatious display of wealth and gluttony, and his ruthless and unscrupulous nature, indifferent to the many lives he destroyed in his ambitious quest for power. However, no historian can deny Thomas Wolsey’s remarkable rise to power from such humble origins, certainly coupled with his high level of intelligence and organization and an extremely industrious nature, fueled by a driving ambition for power. Furthermore, it is perhaps no coincidence that his rise to power happened to coincide with the ascension of a new monarch, whose policies and diplomatic mindset were completely separate from those of his father. Wolsey's rise to power can be seen in two stages. The ultimate position of power he attained was Lord Chancellor and Cardinal in 1515, becoming Henry VIII’s first minister, enjoying great freedom and often depicted as alter rex (second king). However, the first crucial stepping stone in Wolsey’s rise to power was in 1509, when he first came to the attention of the new king and appointed to the post of Almoner, which not only gave him the opportunity to create a rapport with Henry and show off his intellectual muscle, but it also gave him a seat on the council, beginning his political career. Wolsey essentially reached this peak through sheer intelligence and intuition, first by getting his name known in intellectual circles, resulting in his talents being singled out and recognized by those who mattered, such as Sir Richard Nanfan, who recommended Wolsey to King Henry VII. Much to Wolsey’s favour, Henry VII distrusted the nobility and deliberately sought to favour those from more humble backgrounds for positions of prominence, and so, being the son of a butcher may have influenced Wolsey’s appointment to Royal Chaplain. In this position, Wolsey was secretary to Bishop Fox, who was important for encouraging Wolsey’s career, recognizing Woolsey's innate ability and dedication and the fact that Woolsey always took on more work than was necessary, never backing down from tedious tasks, and thus bringing him to the new king’s attention after the death of Henry VII and the rise of Henry VIII in 1509. Without completing this first objective and coming to Henry’s attention through determination, and despite Wolsey’s ability to please him, he would never have advanced in politics. Henry would have simply chosen someone else. Another crucial aspect for Wolsey’s ascension can certainly be attributed to the character of Henry VIII. Henry VII was a calculating and administrative financier with a very passive outlook in foreign policy, understanding that a war would only wreck the national finances. He held the nobility in low esteem, both in taxing much of their wealth and property, and being very infrequent in bestowing of titles. Henry VIII did not want his reign to be hindered by displeasing the nobility, who essentially controlled Parliament and would be the deciding factor in whether he could fulfill his quest for war with France. As well as inheriting a stabilized economy, Henry also inherited his father’s counsellors, who were cautious and conservative, advising the king to be an administrator like his father. Henry understood that in his venture for popularity he would need to restock his council with like-minded, war-mongering individuals, so that he could unite the nobility behind him in an invasion of France to gain the glory and honour of the French crown, emulating his idols Henry V and the legendary King Arthur, among others. For the early years of his reign, these counsellors were Bishop Fox and William Warham, Archbishop of Canterbury, and they acted like a couple of schoolmasters, nagging Henry to spend more time at the court and less time gallivanting around with his noble chums, playing tennis, jousting, composing songs and sonnets to woo the ladies of the court. However, it was the King’s Almoner, Thomas Wolsey, who urged otherwise. The more the bishops scolded Henry to apply himself, the more Wolsey persuaded him to do the contrary, which delighted Henry and caused him to have great affection and love for Wolsey, who was put in high favour, given greater amounts of responsibility. When it came for Henry’s annual clearing out of the council, Wolsey got off scot-free. Furthermore, it should be noted that it is a tribute to the distractible nature of Henry VIII that Wolsey was given opportunity to assume such unprecedented responsibility. Under the tight personal monarchy of Henry VII, Wolsey would not have been given nearly as much trust and responsibility. Henry VII oversaw nearly all aspects of government, particularly concerning finances, in which the king took personal supervision under a method known as ‘household government’. During his reign he would have had no need for the controlling and ambitious Cleric, thus Wolsey would certainly have never reached his pinnacle. His rise, therefore, could be attributed to a king who, though in admiration of his father’s efficient governing, was too distracted by the upholding of the majesty and glory of his position in English culture, reveling in follies of war and women, left Wolsey alone to work his magic. Moreover, Henry VIII, who,upon attaining his majority, never expected to become king, had little political and governmental tutoring prior to ascending to the throne, and, acknowledging his own inexperience in the field of economy and domestic affairs, was much contented to have someone like Wolsey handle the fundamentals for him. For a long time Wolsey was Henry’s like-minded fix-it man, and as time progressed, Henry trusted Wolsey more and more. To some extent this could be attributed to Wolsey’s integrity and talent at getting the job done. He often opted for the tedious tasks shunned by others and was always willing to overstep the boundaries of what his job as almoner entailed, flexing his muscles in both domestic and legal affairs, and foreign polices, leaving an impression of the king’s counsellors and the king himself. Wolsey knew the risks of climbing the political ladder, and when the king expressed his enthusiasm about an invasion of France, despite moral and economic reservations, Woolsey was able adapt to the king's mindset and exploit the war as much to his own benefit as possible. Wolsey, after all, was an opportunist, whereas Warham and Fox failed to share the king’s enthusiasm and accordingly fell from power, allowing for the rise of Woolsey to fill their places. The affection Henry had for Wolsey perhaps went further than Wolsey’s ability to get the job done. Henry VIII was known for filling his court with men not only of like mind but also of similar build and presence. It is perhaps no coincidence that Wolsey was a gross, corpulent fellow with a physique Henry would later wholeheartedly adopt. Moreover, both men were greedy, extroverted, ostentatious, and somewhat pretentious creatures, reveling in lavish displays of their wealth and power. This rapport was a vital key in the ascension of Wolsey. Henry’s ambitions for war were very much linked to the political situation in Europe in the early 16th century. Wolsey greatly exploited those ambitions in the English campaign against France as a means of justification to ensure a victory, leading to his rise. As a man of the church, a viable justification for going to war would be a plea for help from the Pope, which came in 1511 from Pope Julius II, who was beginning to feel threatened by France. This also allowed England to form an alliance with Ferdinand of Spain, and Maximilain, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, giving England strong support, at least in theory. Without this climate of hostility against France, a war supported by strong allies would not have been possible. The war against France in 1512-13 was the most significant event that permitted Wolsey to effectively show off his talents for organization and military strategy. However, it is crucially linked with the ambitious nature of the King and the political climate in Europe, coupled with papal support, and, without which, a war might not have been possible. Although the first campaign against France was not a success, partly due to an unreliable alliance with Ferdinand, Wolsey no doubt learned from the mistakes of this campaign and, in 1513, still with papal support, launched a joint attack on France, successfully capturing two French cities and causing the French to retreat. The whole charade pleased Henry, who was able to achieve his aims of proving his mettle in Europe and acquire some prestige by chasing after a few Frenchmen, At the centre of it all was Wolsey, his military dynamism at the fore-front, particularly in his ability to keep such a large number of troops supplied and equipped for the duration of the war. Furthermore, to Henry’s pleasure, was Wolsey’s key role in skillfully negotiating the face-saving Anglo-French treaty of 1514 that secured a temporary peace between the two nations, particularly in allowing the French king, Louis XII to marry Henry’s young sister, Mary. It also established England as the victor of this conquest. This allowed England to keep the captured city of Tournai and also receive a hefty pension from France. For his contribution, Wolsey was placed in higher favour, and Henry gave him greater responsibilities and awarded numerous bishoprics, including the very powerful position of Archbishop of York in 1514. As tribute to his successful campaign in France and his fair negotiations for peace, Wolsey was rewarded by both the king and the church, and, in 1915, he became Cardinal Wolsey. To further consolidate his power, he was appointed as Lord Chancellor in the same year. Nevertheless, despite having won the favour of the king, Wolsey’s ascendancy to chancellor would certainly have been compromised had he not taken care of those within the council who held grudges against this ambitious butcher’s son from Ipswich. Wolsey assertively cemented his name in the council, letting all know of his intentions and overshadowing all objections. Perhaps this is why, under the amounting pressure directed from Wolsey, Warham resigned as chancellor in 1515, leaving the gap open for Wolsey to readily fill. There were a few nobles in the party who did pose a threat to the stability of Wolsey’s position, such as the Dukes of Norfolk and Buckingham, whom he passively ignored, eventually muting their resistance. However, in the case of the Duke of Suffolk, Wolsey attempted to win his favour instead, when the duke was secretly wed to Henry’s sister, much to the king’s displeasure. Wolsey, supposedly, advised the king not to execute the newlyweds, but embrace them. With Suffolk indebted to Wolsey, the cardinal had made the necessary precautions in consolidating his power. Ultimately, Henry probably could not have afforded to not appoint Wolsey to Lord Chancellor in 1915 out of fear that he may have grow restless playing second fiddle to Warham and may have resigned his services, which had proved to be so crucial both domestically and in foreign affairs, coupled by the strong rapport between the king and Wolsey, as at this point Wolsey had become so rich and powerful in his own right that he didn’t need to be employed in the king’s services. The chancellorship was a means of securing Wolsey’s loyalty to the king first, then the church.

Wolsey’s Foreign Policy 1515-1529

A complex network of constantly changing, intemperate alliances occupied Europe in 16th century; an environment of immense hostility between nations, where each nation was continually enforcing her sovereignty and supremacy over other nations in the ruthless power struggle that was foreign policy. Prior to Henry VIII’s accession England had done well in steering clear of the foreign conflicts, where Henry VII was wholly satisfied with his annual pension from France. Henry VIII’s rule broke free from his father’s skepticism towards European diplomacy and sought to boost the minimal influence of this isolated, uninteresting island nation in the convoluted European scene. Considering the inexperience of the king and his Lord Chancellor, Cardinal Wolsey, and their lack of clear, specific aims, their accomplishments in making England a desirable ally to be sought after by the two pioneers of the European diplomacy, France and Spain, and becoming a significant power in her own right, should not be berated. Even the annual French pension was significantly increased. However, Wolsey, for all his ambition and organization, lacked the crucial skills of diplomacy, and once too often let England be exploited by her unreliable allies. Wolsey was perhaps trying to please everyone all at once; his king, his allies, his pope, sacrificing the overall gains for England, and thus he was unable to fully satisfy anyone. Foreign Policy was Henry VIII’s doing. It was Wolsey’s task to fulfill his master’s aims, which, to an extent, he successfully accomplished. What Wolsey understood was that when there was peace between France and Spain, England became isolated, as it was pointless for her to ally with one of the two as she was not needed. Therefore it was beneficial for England, in the hope of gaining new territory and influence that there was continual conflict between the two powers. Between 1515 and 1517 England was very much isolated because of the peaceful relations between France and Spain. Wolsey had to assert English influence through another means, so he conveniently chose peace. The Treaty of London (1518) showed Wolsey as the arbiter of Europe, organizing a massive peace summit involving 20 nations. This put England at the forefront of European diplomacy and drew her out of isolation, making her a desirable ally. This is illustrated through the Anglo-French treaty signed 2 days afterwards. Furthermore Wolsey may have had other ulterior motives, linked with my initial point, in devising the treaty. Ironically it was partly this peace treaty which caused the desired conflict between France and Spain. In 1519, when Charles ascended to Holy Roman Emperor, Francis, the king of France, was infuriated as he had invested enormous sums of money in bribing the electorate to elect him as emperor, and thus he used the Treaty of London as a justification for the Habsburg-Valois conflict. Now Wolsey was able to mediate between the two powers, both who were vying for England’s support. Another of Wolsey’s diplomatic triumphs was the Fields of Cloth of Gold (1520). He assiduously organized every detail of this grandiose meeting between the French king, Francis, and Henry, accompanied by some 5000 followers. Though it did seemingly open the door for peaceful negotiations with France, if that was the direction the king wished to go in, it was more a lavish display of English wealth and power to the rest of Europe, cementing her reputation. With both France and Spain vying for England’s allegiance Wolsey was given the opportunity chose the ally which best suited his policies. Wolsey wisely and selfishly chose Charles since, quite simply, England's economy would suffer from the loss of the lucrative cloth trade industry between England and the Netherlands. Furthermore Henry had closer links with Charles than with Francis, as he was married to Charles’ aunt, and, as the king had yet to produce a male heir, a marriage between Henry’s daughter, Mary, and Charles would ensure the security and influence of England after Henry’s death. Equally, in keeping with his duty to the pope who was strictly anti-French, this alliance had complete papal support. Some historians would argue that Wolsey’s foreign policy was influenced by that of the pope, perhaps reflecting his papal ambitions. In some respects this angle of foreign policy was successful. In 1517 Pope Leo X sought for peace in Europe in order to form a crusade against Turkey. In 1518 Wolsey was made Papal Legate in England and thus was able to extrapolate the pope’s desires for peace by organizing the Treaty of London. Whether this pleased the pope personally is another matter; however it showed Wolsey’s foreign policy in good light and no doubt drew him closer to Rome. Moreover, similar ties with Rome can be seen in the formulation of the League of Cognac in 1526, which, though England was not a part of, Wolsey helped organize, under papal support. Wolsey’s plan was that the League, which was composed of an alliance between France and some Italian states, would challenge Charles’ League of Cambrai and rescue the pope, Clement VII, who had been held captive by Charles in the sacking of Rome. However this initiative was not merely a gesture of allegiance to Rome. It was also following through on Henry’s desire for an annulment from Catherine of Aragon, an aspect which was beginning to dominate foreign policy. This was yet another ingenious strategy, devised by Wolsey, in an attempt to please everybody. Analyzing the failure of Wolsey’s foreign policy is somewhat more complicated as there are multiple roots and causes involved in its ultimate ineffectiveness, where its partial success is largely attributed to the ingenuity of Wolsey. To one extent it was not entirely his fault, but the product of a recurring series of unfortunate setbacks. For example the poorly timed turnover of rulers in Europe greatly diminished England’s influence. Peace with France in 1514 was a true achievement for Wolsey and the king. With Henry’s sister Mary married to the French King, Louis XII, the prospect of perpetual peace was open. However only a year later Louis died and was replaced by the young, ambitious, war-mongering Francis I, who had no intention of continuing an alliance with England and became a significant rival to Henry VIII, stirring up tensions. Furthermore Mary decided not to be married off to the new king and married the Duke of Suffolk instead. Out of anxiety Wolsey proposed an alliance with Spain and the Holy Roman Empire against France. However further bad luck came in the form of the death of King Ferdinand of Spain, England’s closest ally, and father-in-law of Henry VIII. He was replaced by Charles V, who immediately proposed peace with France, and was soon followed by his grandfather, Maximillian, the Holy Roman Empire. Therefore, by 1517, England was diplomatically isolated and Wolsey’s polices had failed. Further instances of bad fortune for Wolsey’s foreign policy occurred during the 1522-23 wars with France. Though it is true that Henry’s aims were drastically overambitious in these campaigns and the invasion was certainly not as well organized and thought through as the 1513-14 invasion had been, fate was certainly not on Wolsey’s side. All England’s hopes rested on the disgraced French noble Bourbon leading a revolt which would distract the French defense from the English invasion in August 1523. However the revolt failed. It was truly unfortunate how long it took for messages to be sent from one country to another. Without any modern commutation systems it took weeks for a message from France to reach England. No doubt this also played a part in the failed attack. Furthermore Charles, who had promised to come to England’s aid, decided to stay out of the affair due to a lack of funds. The situation was further exacerbated by bad weather, which was critical in the English defeat. This was an extremely costly disaster and parliament had to most begrudgingly raise additional taxes to cover the expenses. Parliament played a decisive part in burdening Wolsey’s foreign policy. Particularly after the disastrous campaigns of 1522-23 there was little enthusiasm for war. It had become obvious to many members of the nobility that England’s losses in Europe were outweighing her gains, and they began to distrust and criticize the actions of Wolsey in particular. Wolsey equally disliked parliament and let his resent show. However in 1525, when Charles won a decisive battle at Pavia and captured the French king, a realistic opportunity for Henry to seize power of the French crown presented itself. All that stood in the way of victory was parliament, which ultimately refused to raise anymore money by taxation. This accordingly led to Wolsey devising the Amicable Grant, which was met with even more hostility, and ultimately led to his own downfall. With no money there was no invasion of France. Charles became tired of his fruitless alliance with England and the “Great Enterprise” crumbled. The final blow to Wolsey’s foreign policy, which was ultimately out of his hands and partially just bad luck, was in 1529 when the French made peace with Charles, shattering Wolsey’s ambitions for the League of Cognac. With peace between France and Charles there was no one to free the pope of Charles’ supremacy, thus he would be unable to grant Henry an annulment from Charles’ aunt, Catherine. Since 1527 Wolsey’s foreign policy had been dominated by trying to secure an annulment for his master, and by 1529 his policy had failed. Nevertheless it would be foolish to ignore Wolsey’s lack of diplomatic experience. Rarely did Wolsey have any clear and concise aims, and often what they achieved from their experiences in Europe was more a consequence of the times rather than Wolsey acting on and following through on specific aims. Wolsey is often praised as being the arbiter of Europe, however often these initiatives for a balance of power were more a consequence of England’s diplomatic isolation than of true and honest concerns for peace. For example The Treaty of London (1518) is often regarded as Wolsey’s finest moment, however it was ultimately an excuse for England to assert some influence in Europe and its half-hearted aspirations for peace were abandoned within a year. Wolsey more or less endorsed the rejection of the treaty by allying with Charles in 1520, in the conflict against France, equally snubbing the Anglo-French treaty of 1520. A further example can be seen in 1525, when England made peace with France at the Treaty of the More, only after Charles had abandoned England as an ally. Isolated and in a financial crisis after the wars of 1522-23, Wolsey felt forced to negotiate with France. This feeble attempt to make the best of a bad situation failed to enthrall France who then went behind Wolsey’s back and made peace with Charles, shattering all of Wolsey’s ambitions for a papal annulment. Therefore this lax attitude of not following through on policies and treaties directly resulted in the failure of Wolsey’s foreign policy. Moreover, Wolsey’s inability to have clear objectives in foreign policy is evident in his pointless and fruitless switching of allegiances between France and Charles. This is particularly apparent in 1520 when, in June, Francis and Henry had their first meeting at the lavish Field of Cloth of Gold. This was an extremely costly venture and ended in Henry pledging his eternal allegiance to Francis. However both before in the meeting, in May, and afterwards, in July, Wolsey met with Charles to propose a “Great Enterprise” between the two nations, both against France. This made everything that was ‘achieved’ in June, with France, pointless. This was reiterated in the Calais conference of 1521, which was supposed to have mediated peace between the three nations, however, later that same month, Charles was formally joined in an alliance with England. The Calais conference became null and void. Wolsey’s foreign policy was one of confusion and indecision, where little overall progress was made. This is equally prevalent in Wolsey’s organizing the League of Cognac in 1526, essentially allying England with France and against Charles. This virtually undermined everything Wolsey had worked on, throughout the past decade, in improving relations with Charles. Admittedly relations with Charles had deteriorated anyway, however Wolsey’s would have been much better off resigning England from European diplomacy. However he was far too concerned with seeking for papal support for Henry’s annulment. Therefore he underestimated the devastating effects of posing as an enemy to the most powerful empire in Europe. Though no war was fought between England and Charles, the wool trade suffered heavily. England’s principal customers were either provinces of the Charles’ empire or surrounded by his territory. As an adversary, Charles ceased trade with England. With little income from the wool trade, tax revenue declined, affecting the entire nation. Wolsey failed to show concern for such domestic qualms as this; however the popular resentment his policies had created would ultimately lead to his downfall. Where it was unfortunate that in 16th century England had few reliable friends abroad, Wolsey seemed to have a knack for allying with bigger, more dominant nations who took advantage of England’s vulnerability and Wolsey’s naivety. Admittedly, in 1515, Wolsey was new to the diplomacy game and can be forgiven for handing out vast amounts of money to Maximillian, the Holy Roman Emperor, and the Swiss, to secure their loyalty to their alliance against the new French king, Francis, with England. Maximillian obviously did nothing to deserve this money. However Wolsey failed to learn from his mistake and in 1517, when Charles ascended to the Spanish throne and allied with France, Wolsey gave more money to Maximillian, who would only deceive Wolsey by allying with France. Charles, like his grandfather Maximillan, proved to be a poor ally. By entering into the “Great Enterprise” England was dragged into the wars of 1522-23 which had no possible gain for England. Charles intended to use and discard his ally. These wars were a disaster for England; however the support allowed Charles the upper hand. Charles was plainly an unreliable ally and did not repay his gratitude for England’s effort, most evidently in the war of 1523 when Charles refused to come to England’s aid. After his success at the battle of Pavia, in 1525, Charles had no further need for England as an ally and quickly discarded her. By 1525 England was just as isolated as she had been in 1515 and had achieved very little, largely down to the unreliability of Charles. Wolsey was not a diplomat at heart. In his attempts to please those who at the time mattered, he had a habit of stepping on the toes of those who mattered less. He had an inability to foresee a possible reversal of favour, where those whom he angered and harboured resentment toward him may someday have the power to destroy him and his foreign policy. One of the most significant examples is France. France had always been the traditional enemy of England and in the wars of 1513-14 England had shown their worth in capturing the city of Tournai. No doubt this humiliation frustrated the French; however they did not retaliate, and simply increased the annual pension given to England, which was further increased in 1518. It must have also aggravated them when, in 1520-21, England persisted to toy with and deceive them, by, at the Field of Cloth of Gold, pledging eternal support, whilst really allying with their enemy, Charles. Charles, remember, had robbed Francis of his desired position of Holy Roman Emperor. Though the English gain of the wars of 1522-23 was minimal, their contribution certainly aided Charles in his defeat of the French, particularly in 1525 at Pavia. Now, after all this, in 1525, Wolsey suggests making peace with France. It is, therefore, no surprise that the French, who must have had enormous contempt toward the English, in 1529, deceived Wolsey by making peace with Charles, dissolving Wolsey’s beloved League of Cognac as well as his hopes for a papal annulment. Furthermore the French continued to honour the Auld alliance with Scotland, continuing to stir up hostilities much closer to England. Another instance of long-term resentment can be seen in the relationship between Wolsey and Rome. Despite having loyalties to the papacy, Wolsey was strictly Henry’s servant. Though the Treaty of London was an elaboration on the pope’s ambitions for European peace, it was seen in Rome as a vain attempt by England to assert her influence over Europe and steal some of the pope’s thunder. Furthermore, Wolsey’s initiative for peace prevented the combined crusade of Turkey, which was the catalyst for the pope’s desire for European peace. In addition to this, Cardinal Campeggio, the papal envoy, who represented the pope at the Treaty of London, was kept waiting for many months in Calais before being allowed to sail the channel and join the festivities in London. This was merely Wolsey asserting his authority over Rome. However Campeggio was still around in 1529 and by this point even more powerful. His resentment, as well as the resentment for the Treaty of London, was instrumental in the refusal of an annulment, the most significant failure of Wolsey’s foreign policy. Ultimately Wolsey’s biggest shortcoming was his failure to acknowledge that, particularly after 1518, England’s influence was seriously declining, and realistically she could not compete with the formidable strength of France or Charles’ empire. Instead of being the desirable, influential ally who had the upper-hand, England was exploited by her allies, who later discarded her. By 1525 England was once again isolated, and, despite her decade of featuring at the forefront of European diplomacy, had no material gains.

Did Wolsey successfully realize what he sought to achieve in his domestic policy?

For his fourteen years of chancellorship, Cardinal Wolsey had more power than any other man in English history, beside that of the monarch. As long as he was in the king’s favour, Wolsey had the freedom to reform England how he saw fit, and had his hand in nearly every aspect of its ruling. For much of the time, Henry VIII had complete confidence in him, and, as the king’s interests favoured more towards foreign policy, was willing to give Wolsey a free hand in reforming the management of domestic affairs, which Wolsey indeed had grand plans for. Superficially his reforms were concentrated around carrying out the king’s wishes and enforcing his principle of fair justice for all, no doubt influenced by the Christian ethos he was bound to, as a man of the church. Nevertheless, there were always impediments, obscuring the path of the complete realization of his reforms, whether it was through his own shortcomings or by the action of those who resented Wolsey’s influence over the king. A good example of Wolsey’s combining of obligations to the king and the sense of moral duty is Wolsey’s devising, with the treasurer of the Chamber John Heron, of the ‘Subsidy’. This was a revolutionary form of tax which was based upon accurate valuations of the taxpayer’s wealth, where one shilling was taken per pound from the income of the taxpayer. This tax, which is the foundation of today’s income tax, replaced the rather inefficient fixed tax of 15ths and 10ths. As a fixed tax, the latter incurred that those who earned very little money had to essentially pay as much in tax as those with a lot. With an income tax the poorer members of society paid much less and their quality of life was greatly improved. Furthermore, with a more efficient form of taxation, Wolsey was able to successful rise enough money for the king’s foreign escapades, bringing in over £300 000. Wolsey was also able to raise considerable amounts of capital through other means, such as through ‘benevolences’, enforced donations from the nobility, which, in 1522, raised £200 000. As a legal administrator Wolsey had a good sense of natural justice and was genuinely concerned with opening up justice for all, and stamping out those who attempt to pervert justice, regardless of wealth or social standing. Therefore he reinvented the equity court, whereby the verdict was decided by the judge on the basis of what seemed most fair. Acting as an alternative to the Common Law courts, Wolsey reestablished the position of the prerogative courts of the Star Chamber and the Court of Chancery, which Wolsey was freely able to monopolize. Both courts operated under a system of quick and inexpensive cases, as well as promising impartial justice. Wolsey also established the Court of Request for the poor, where no fees were required. Wolsey’s legal reforms proved to be immensely popular and overflow courts were required to attend to all the cases. Many high powered individuals who felt themselves to be invincible to the long arm of the law were convicted by Wolsey. For example, in 1515, the Earl of Northumberland was sent to fleet prison and in 1516 Lord Burgavenny was accused of illegal retaining. Wolsey also used his courts to tackle national controversies, such as the pressing issue of enclosures. Wolsey genuinely wished to restore peace to the countryside, which had been thrown into a frenzy over the wickedness of landlords, who greedily enclosed areas of land and converting from arable farming to pastoral farming, which does not require as many workers. The Tudors believed that enclosures were directly linked to rural unemployment and depopulation, vagrancy, food shortages and, accordingly, inflation. The Tudor valued stability above all else, and this mass urban migration proved to be a serious crisis for them. Therefore Wolsey conducted national enquires in 1517, 1518 and 1527 into the presence of enclosures. Over the course of his administration he used the court of Chancery to prosecute 264 landowners, including peers, bishops, knights, religious heads, and Oxford colleges. Furthermore, Wolsey used the Star Chamber to enforce his 1518 policy of “Just Price”, which attempted to regulate the price of meat in London and other major cities. Those who were found to be charging excessive amounts were prosecuted by the Chamber. Moreover, after the bad harvest of 1527, Wolsey had the virtuous initiative to buy up all the surplus grain and sell it off cheaply to the needy. This act of generosity greatly eased disorder and became common practice after a disappointing harvest. This Christian philosophy of communal righteousness is certainly a product of Wolsey’s position as papal legate for the church in England. He took his job seriously and made marginal efforts for improving the reputation of the church. For example, throughout the anti-clerical mood of the parliament of 1515, he defended the church right to the end, and refused to permit the resigning of the law which diminished the “Benefit of the Clergy”, despite being in the wake of the murder of Richard Hunn by his clergymen jailers. Wolsey was forced to kneel down to the king and assure him that the “Benefit” would be of no threat to his authority. Moreover, Wolsey was aware of the ongoing corruption in the Catholic Church and he made certain steps to reform its heretical ways. For instance in 1524 and 1527 he dissolved 30 decayed monasteries, where corruption had run rife, and used the income to found a grammar school in Ipswich and Cardinal’s College in Oxford, generously giving something back to the communities which had nurtured him. Furthermore, in 1528, he began to limit the benefit of the clergy, and, in the same year, stood up to Henry by disapproving of his choice of a woman of dubious virtue for the position of Abbess of Wilton. Wolsey had honest concern for the reputation of the Church, however, as in many cases, he was not willing to pursue his reforms to their completion, as that would ultimately threaten his ultimate influence over the king. A common trend, throughout all of Wolsey’s ventures, is the inability to effectively realize his reforms and make a lasting impact, due to the enormous overall responsibility Wolsey took on. Wolsey’s principal preoccupation throughout his fourteen years as Lord Chancellor was maintaining power. This meant both reducing the influence of others over the king, who may turn Henry away from Wolsey, and refusing to impart lesser responsibilities to others, as this may have jeopardized his overall control. Essentially this paranoia led him to become overrun with the day-to-day problems of running a country, as well pursuing his own initiatives. Wolsey’s position in power solely relied on keeping good relations with Henry. Therefore it is understandable why Wolsey would have been concerned about whom the king surrounded himself with. The Gentlemen of the Privy, or Minions, were in daily contact with the king, and, due to their youthful, athletic characteristics, were very popular with him. Wolsey grew increasingly suspicious of the minions, particularly after infiltrating one of his own men into the group, and attempted many times to dispel them from court, giving them jobs which took them to Europe and far from the king. Nevertheless, after the failure of the Amicable Grant, the minions once again began to stir up trouble. Consequently Wolsey devised a grand plan of administrative reforms, incorporating the infamous Eltham Ordinances of 1526. This limited the cleverly reduced the members of the Privy from 12 to 6, removing trouble makers such as William Compton. As soon as Wolsey’s influence had been secured he dropped the plan of reforms. Wolsey had no intention of reforming the government if it would compromise his own position of power. This could also be said for many of Wolsey’s other initiatives, particularly in his quest to abolish enclosure. Despite spending a significant time and effort in investigating into the state of the countryside and prosecuting numerous offenders, Wolsey freely surrendered his policy during the parliament of 1523, in order to win the favour of parliament, in the hope that they would pass his proposed taxes for Henry’s war in France. Consequently enclosures continued to cause trouble in the countryside for many years to follow. One of Wolsey’s greatest impediments was his lack of popularity amongst the nobles at court and in parliament. There are countless instances where Wolsey, the retched butcher’s son whose unprecedented rise to power and envious wealth was much resented, upset the nobility. Whether their hatred stemmed from Wolsey’s excessive demands for money in the form of the Subsidy or through Benevolences, or through the Act of Resumption (1515), where many nobles were forced to give back lands which the king had given to them as a gift. Or by making the nobility responsible for their crimes, like a mere commoner, through his policy against enclosures and the prosecution of the nobility through the Star Chamber. Or many simply disliked his monopolization of the court and his concealing of information from the council. They were only going to tolerate Wolsey for so long, and, in 1525, when they had endured about as much as they could, it is unsurprising why there was unanimous hostility and rejection to the forced benevolence of the Amicable Grant. If Wolsey had made any prior attempts to nurture a possible rapport with the nobility perhaps they would not have been so unreceptive to his demands. However this was not the case, and mass riots broke out in East Anglia, under the supervision of the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, sworn enemies of Wolsey. Henry was quick to denounce the grant, and the king quickly began to lose faith in his chief minister. Wolsey ultimately failed the primary objective of his domestic policy, which was to deliver what the king wanted. Despite his genuine talent for administration and organization, there were many instances where Wolsey simply overreached, beyond his ability and understanding. A prime example of this was his confused crusade against enclosure. Admittedly the majority of Tudor England knew no better than Wolsey, failing to see that enclosure was not the actual cause of inflation. Ironically inflation was actually the cause for enclosure. Due to the relatively peaceful period which Tudor England had been enjoying since the War of the Roses, the population of the nation had accordingly increased. With more folks demanding and nothing more to supply, the price of food increased. In order to make up for the additional cost of living, landowners were forced to enclose land and convert to pastoral farming, which brought in more profit, as pastoral farming requires fewer workers than arable. Therefore Wolsey’s quest against enclosure was fruitless in regard to restoring the stability of the economy, as he failed to see the big picture. Furthermore, the horrors of enclosures were significantly hyperbolized. In truth there were relatively few enclosures, and, even after Wolsey’s labours, the countryside was still ripe with enclosure. This may have been partly down to Wolsey’s decision to have the J.P’s enforcing the laws of conduct, yet they themselves were the landowners who were enclosing land. In any case, all Wolsey managed to do was agitate a great many nobles. The same can be said for Wolsey’s legal reforms. By making the fount of justice accessible to all and encouraging more people bring their cases to Wolsey’s courts, the system was ultimately abused. The courts became overloaded with incoherent, tenuous cases, which would have been far too expensive to have rambled on in the Common Law courts. Wolsey ultimately became disillusioned with delivering justice for all, and, in 1528, ordered all minor cases out of the Star Chamber. Once again, the overriding product of this venture was reinvigorated resentment from the nobles and gentry, who had suffered at the impartial hand of Wolsey, and also the lawyers, who regarded Wolsey as stealing their business. The only people who may have respected him were the commoners; however their influence was insignificant in comparison with those who detested Wolsey. As well as juggling the convoluted matters of state, Wolsey attempted to stamp his influence over the church in England. As Cardinal and, from 1524, having lifetime legateship, Wolsey was continually vying for control over the church. His principal rival was Wareham, the archbishop of Canterbury, which was unlike his control over the state, which was uncontested. Therefore it was understandably more difficult for Wolsey to follow through with his plans for reform; however, considering he was still significantly powerful, he made few attempts to even try to reform the church from within. Despite making promises to reform the bishoprics of England and Ireland, and, in 1519, encouraging monasteries to embark on a programme of reform, he did nothing to enforce either issue. Moreover, he refused to promote others to instigate the reforms for fear of losing his precious influence over the church. Many historians see Wolsey’s handling of the church as his greatest failure. Wolsey epitomized all that was corrupt and heretical about the church prior to reformation. Wolsey is often seen as quite the hypocrite, condemning the debauchery of corrupt clergymen, yet himself partaking in the crimes of pluralism, absenteeism (he was archbishop of York, yet never visited the city until 1529), simony (for example, even when appointed, Bishops and abbots could not take up their posts unless they had been “confirmed” by Wolsey, at a price), ostentatious display of wealth, sexual relations, nepotism, and ordination of minors (the latter three illustrated through the premature rise to power of his illegitimate son). Wolsey effectively used his position in the church for his own ends, such as awarding bishoprics to those Wolsey sought to keep loyal to the crown, illustrated by the appointment of Cardinal Campeggio to Bishop of Salisbury, in 1524, as a means of securing Campeggio’s role as papal curia for England. This is also an example of Wolsey extorting the money from these bishoprics, which were bequeathed to foreigners, without their knowing it. Wolsey was not a good advertisement for Catholicism, and his depravity made it easier for reformists to condemn the Church and win the public over to the Lutheran ideology. Considering that Wolsey was acting as Papal Legate for England, Wolsey had the duty to uphold the moral values which the pope promoted, as God’s Earthly representative. However, bearing in mind Wolsey’s lecherous reputation, many doubts would have certainly surfaced in the minds of those questioning the pope’s judgment and whether he was an effective figurehead for their faith. These were the doubts which fueled the campaign of the Lutheran reformists. Wolsey’s greatest fault in supervising the church, and in a sense reflected through his administration of the state, was the belief in absolute supremacy. As papal legate he believed himself to be the uncontested figurehead of the church in England, and he sought to consolidate this power by reducing the number of bishops controlling the church, and populating the remaining bishoprics with bishops under his influence. Effectively Wolsey was ruling as a dictator, which caused cataclysmic problems once Wolsey was removed from power, and the church was left without the leader it was dependant upon, with virtually no influence at all. It is hardly surprising that the reformists were met with very little opposition from the weakened body of the Catholic Church. Moreover, Wolsey was criticized, particularly by Thomas More, for failing to stamp out the threat of Lutheran heresy, during the 1520s. Despite threatening heretics with reproof and forcing them to recant, Wolsey refused to resort to prison sentences and execution, thus Lutheran ideology spread around the country, paving the way for reformation. Wolsey certainly did not wish for the church, for which he had devoted a good part of his life to, to be destroyed, however his ignorance, in believing that power and influence reigned supreme, made this inevitable. The greatest criticism of Wolsey’s domestic policy is that considering, apart from the monarch, that Wolsey possessed more power than any other figure in British history, we can only be disappointed with what little he actually achieved. Thomas Cromwell, Wolsey’s successor, did not have anywhere near as much power, yet he was able to achieve so much, and drastically reform nearly every aspect of administration, in almost half the time Wolsey had. All that can be deduced from Wolsey’s ‘reign’ is a wasted opportunity. Nevertheless, one has to admit that Wolsey was the last of a generation of medieval administrators, who shared the Tudor mindset of fearing change and favouring stability. It is also true that in the political upheaval of the Reformation administrative changes were essential, and Wolsey was not given the opportunity to work in this environment. No doubt Wolsey had the ability to work in this environment, as his reformation of the legal system and introduction of the subsidy were revolutionary initiatives, and both were adopted by later administrations.

Trivia

One of the world's oldest textile manufacturers Wolsey, which was established in 1755, is named after Cardinal Wolsey - the connections being the location of thieer factory near buiral place at Leicester Abbey and a pun based on their products being largely based on wool.

Biographies

- Naked to Mine Enemies: The Life of Cardinal Wolsey (2 volumes, ©1958) by Charles W. Ferguson
- The King's Cardinal: The Rise and fall of Thomas Wolsey, by Peter Gwyn, pub 1990
- The Life and Death of Cardinal Wolsey, by George Cavendish (gentleman usher to Thomas Wolsey)
- In the Lion's Court: Power, Ambition, and Sudden Death in the Reign of Henry VIII, by Derek Wilson, New York, St. Martin's Press, 2001
- Wolsey, by A. F. Pollard, pub 1929 Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas Wolsey, Thomas

July 31

July 31 is the 212th day (213th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 153 days remaining, as the final day of July.

Events

- 781 - The oldest recorded eruption of Mt. Fuji (Traditional Japanese date: July 6, 781)
- 1009 - Pietro Boccapecora becomes Pope Sergius IV
- 1423 - Hundred Years War: Battle of Cravant - The French army is defeated at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne.
- 1498 - On his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, Christopher Columbus becomes the first European to discover the island of Trinidad.
- 1588 - The Spanish Armada is spotted off the coast of England.
- 1667 - The Treaty of Breda ends the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
- 1703 - Daniel Defoe is placed in a pillory for the crime of seditious libel after publishing a politically satirical pamphlet, but is pelted with flowers.
- 1777 - The US Congress passed a resolution that services of Marquis de Lafayette "be accepted, and that, in consideration of his zeal, illustrious family and connexions, he have the rank and commission of major-general of the United States."
- 1790 - First US patent issued; granted to inventor Samuel Hopkins for a potash process.
- 1856 - Christchurch, New Zealand chartered as a city.
- 1917 - The Third Battle of Ypres starts in Flanders.
- 1919 - German national assembly adopts the Weimar constitution (to enter into force August 14)
- 1930 - The radio mystery program The Shadow airs for the first time.
- 1936 - The International Olympic Committee announces that the 1940 Summer Olympics were to be held in Tokyo. However, the games were given back to the IOC after the Second Sino-Japanese War broke out, and were eventually cancelled altogether because of World War II.
- 1941 - Holocaust: Under instructions from Adolf Hitler, Nazi official Hermann Göring, orders SS general Reinhard Heydrich to "submit to me as soon as possible a general plan of the administrative material and financial measures necessary for carrying out the desired final solution of the Jewish question."
- 1945 - Pierre Laval, fugitive former leader of Vichy France, surrenders to Allied soldiers in Austria.
- 1948 - At Idlewild Field in New York, New York International Airport (later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport) is dedicated.
- 1951 - Japan Airlines is established.
- 1954 - First ascent of K2, by an Italian expedition led by Ardito Desio.
- 1956 - Jim Laker sets extraordinary record at Old Trafford in the fourth Test of taking nineteen wickets in a first-class match (the previous best was seventeen.
- 1961 - At Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, the first All-Star Game tie in major league baseball history occurs when the game is stopped in the 9th inning due to rain.
- 1964 - Ranger program: Ranger 7 sends back the first close-up photographs of the moon, with images 1,000 times clearer than anything ever seen from earth-bound telescopes).
- 1971 - Apollo program: Apollo 15 astronauts become the first to ride in a lunar rover.
- 1973 - A Delta Air Lines jetliner crashes while landing in fog at Logan Airport, Boston, Massachusetts killing 89
- 1975 - In Detroit, Michigan, Teamsters Union president Jimmy Hoffa is reported missing.
- 1976 - NASA releases the famous Face on Mars photo, taken by Viking 1
- 1987 - A rare, class F-4 tornado rips through Edmonton, Alberta, killing 27 people and causing $330 million in damage.
- 1992 - A Thai Airways Airbus A300-310 crashes into mountain south of Kathmandu, Nepal killing 113.
- 1996 - MIL-STD-1750A is declared inactive for use in new designs.
- 1999 - NASA intentionally crashes the Lunar Prospector spacecraft into the Moon, thus ending its mission to detect frozen water on the moon's surface.

Births

- 1143 - Emperor Nijo of Japan (d. 1165)
- 1396 - Philip III, Duke of Burgundy (d. 1467)
- 1527 - Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, (d. 1576)
- 1598 - Alessandro Algardi, Italian sculptor and architect (d. 1654)
- 1702 - Jean Denis Attiret, French Jesuit missionary and painter (d. 1768)
- 1704 - Gabriel Cramer, Swiss mathematician (d. 1752)
- 1718 - John Canton, English physicist (d. 1772)
- 1724 - Noël François de Wailly, French lexicographer (d. 1801)
- 1803 - John Ericsson, Swedish inventor and engineer (d. 1889)
- 1816 - George Henry Thomas, American general (d. 1870)
- 1835 - Henri Brisson, French statesman (d. 1912)
- 1843 - Peter Rosegger, Austrian poet (d. 1918)
- 1860 - Mary Vaux Walcott, American artist and naturalist (d. 1940)
- 1887 - Hans Freyer, German sociologist (d. 1969)
- 1901 - Jean Dubuffet, French painter and sculptor (d. 1985)
- 1904 - Brett Halliday, American writer (d. 1977)
- 1911 - George Liberace, American musician (d. 1983)
- 1912 - Milton Friedman, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1912 - Irv Kupcinet, American newspaper columnist (d. 2003)
- 1914 - Louis de Funès, French actor and comedian (d. 1983)
- 1916 - Bill Todman, American game show producer (d. 1979)
- 1918 - Paul D. Boyer, American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1918 - Hank Jones, American pianist
- 1919 - Curt Gowdy, American sports announcer
- 1919 - Primo Levi, Italian author and chemist (d. 1987)
- 1921 - Whitney Young, American civil rights activist (d. 1971)
- 1923 - Ahmet Ertegun, Turkish-born record company executive
- 1929 - Don Murray, American actor
- 1929 - José Santamaria, Uruguayan footballer
- 1930 - Oleg Popov, Russian clown
- 1931 - Kenny Burrell, American guitarist
- 1933 - Cees Nooteboom, Dutch writer
- 1939 - France Nuyen, French actress
- 1941 - Amarsinh Chaudhary, Indian politician
- 1943 - William Bennett, U.S. Secretary of Education
- 1943 - Susan Flannery, American actress
- 1944 - Geraldine Chaplin, American actress
- 1944 - Robert Carhart Merton, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1946 - Bob Welch, American musician
- 1950 - Steve Miller, American writer
- 1951 - Evonne Goolagong, Australian tennis player
- 1951 - Barry Van Dyke, American actor
- 1952 - Alan Autry, American football player, actor, and Mayor of Fresno, California
- 1952 - Helmuts Balderis, Latvian hockey player
- 1952 - João Barreiros, Portuguese writer
- 1958 - Bill Berry, American musician (R.E.M.)
- 1958 - Mark Cuban, American businessman, producer, and basketball team owner
- 1959 - Stanley Jordan, American jazz guitarist
- 1962 - Wesley Snipes, American actor
- 1962 - Kevin Greene, professional American football player
- 1964 - Jim Corr, Irish singer and musician (The Corrs)
- 1965 - John Laurinaitis, American professional wrestler
- 1965 - J. K. Rowling, English novelist
- 1966 - Dean Cain, American actor
- 1967 - Minako Honda, Japanese singer and musical actress (d. 2005)
- 1969 - David Cash (Kid Kash), American professional wrestler
- 1971 - Gus Frerotte, American football player
- 1974 - Emilia Fox, English actress
- 1974 - Jonathan Ogden, American football player
- 1976 - Annie Parisse, American actress
- 1977 - Tim Couch, American football player
- 1978 - Justin Wilson, English race car driver
- 1979 - Jade Kwan, Hong Kong actress
- 1979 - Per Kroldrup, Danish footballer
- 1981 - Ira Losco, Maltese singer
- 1981 - M. Shadows, American Singer (Avenged Sevenfold)

Deaths

- 1099 - El Cid, Spanish warrior (b. 1044)
- 1108 - King Philip I of France (b. 1052)
- 1396 - William Courtenay, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1342)
- 1508 - Na'od, Emperor of Ethiopia (killed in battle) (b. 1494)
- 1547 - King Francis I of France (b. 1494)
- 1556 - Ignatius Loyola, Spanish priest and founder of the Jesuits
- 1653 - Thomas Dudley, Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony (b. 1576)
- 1726 - Nicolaus II Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (b. 1695)
- 1750 - King John V of Portugal (b. 1689)
- 1784 - Denis Diderot, French philosopher and encylopedist (b. 1713)
- 1875 - Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the United States (b. 1808)
- 1886 - Franz Liszt, Hungarian composer (b. 1811)

1900 to Present

- 1914 - Jean Jaurès, French politician (d. 1859)
- 1917 - Francis Ledwidge, Irish poet (b. 1881)
- 1944 - Antoine de Saint-Exupery, French pilot and writer (b. 1900)
- 1953 - Robert Taft, U.S. Senator from Ohio and Presidential candidate (b. 1889)
- 1972 - Paul-Henri Spaak, Prime Minister of Belgium (b. 1899)
- 1980 - Mohd. Rafi, Indian playback singer (b. 1924)
- 1993 - King Baudouin I of Belgium (b. 1930)
- 2001 - Poul Anderson, American author (b. 1926)
- 2003 - Guido Crepax, Italian comics artist (b. 1933)
- 2005 - Wim Duisenberg, Dutch banker and 1st president of the European Central Bank (b. 1935)

Holidays and observances

- La Hae Hawai‘i - Hawaiian Flag Day
- Republic of the Congo - Upswing of the Revolution
- Feast day of Saint Ignatius of Loyola

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/31 BBC: On This Day] ---- July 30 - August 1 - June 30 - August 31 -- listing of all days ko:7월 31일 ms:31 Julai ja:7月31日 simple:July 31 th:31 กรกฎาคม

1523

Events

- April - Battle of Villalar - Forces loyal to Emperor Charles V defeat the Comuneros, a league of urban bourgeois rebelling against Charles in Spain.
- June 6 - Gustav Vasa becomes King of Sweden, establishing finally its full independence from Denmark.

Births

- April 5 - Blaise de Vigenère, French diplomat and cryptographer (died 1596)
- Anna the Jagiellonian, daughter of Sigismund I of Poland
- Barbara Radziwill, queen of Poland (died 1551)
- Crispin van den Broeck, Flemish painter (died 1591)
- Gabriele Falloppio, Italian anatomist and physician (died 1562)
- Martín Cortés, Spanish conquistador (died 1589)
- Richard Edwards, English poet (died 1566)

Deaths

- May 7 - Franz von Sickingen, German knight (born 1481)
- May 23 - Ashikaga Yoshitane, Japanese shogun (born 1466)
- August 13 - Gerard David, Flemish artist
- September 14 - Pope Adrian VI (born 1459)
- Alessandro Alessandri, Italian jurist (born 1461)
- William Cornysh, English composer (born 1465)
- Ulrich von Hutten, Lutheran reformer (born 1488)
- Henry Marny, 1st Baron Marny, English politician
- Bartolommeo Montagna, Italian painter (born 1450)
- Vicente Yáñez Pinzón, Spanish navigator (born 1460)
- Thomas Ruthall, Chancellor of the University of Cambridge Category:1523 ko:1523년

Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford

Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford (18 September 1501-30 April 1563) was born in Penshurst, Kent, England the eldest son and second child of Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Alianore Percy, Duchess of Buckingham. Alianore was the daughter of Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland and Maud Herbert, Countess of Northumberland. He was created Baron Stafford in 1547.

Marriage and children

Henry married Ursula Pole, Baroness Stafford the daughter of Margaret Pole, 8th Countess of Salisbury and Sir Richard Pole. Margaret was a daughter of George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence and Isabella Neville. Henry and Ursula had the following children:
- Henry Stafford, 2nd Baron Stafford (bef 1534-1 January 1565) who married Elizabeth Davy before 25 September 1557.
- Edward Stafford, 3rd Baron Stafford (17 January 1535-18 October 1603). He was buried on 21 October 1603at St. Mary's Church, Stafford. He had married Maria Stanley, Baroness Stafford, daughter of Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby and Dorothy Howard, Countess of Derby. Dorothy was daughter of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk and Agnes Tilney. They were parents to:
- Edward Stafford (b. 27 January 1568) buried on the 1 February 1568 at St. Mary's Church, Stafford.
- Edward Stafford, 4th Baron Stafford (1572-1625) who married Isabel Forster in about 1595.
- Dorothy Stafford (b. about 1572).
- Richard Stafford who married Mary Corbet, daughter of John Corbet and Anne Booth . They were parents to:
- Roger Stafford (Floyde), 5th Baron Stafford (about 1572-1640) who died very poor.
- Jane Stafford (about 1581-after 1637.
- Thomas Stafford (1531-4 May 1557) who was captured and executed for High Treason in Scarborough.
- Walter Stafford (about 1539-after 1571).
- William Stafford.
- Elizabeth Stafford who married Sir William Neville (b. about 1524).
- Dorothy Stafford (about 1526-23 September 1603) who married Sir William Stafford of Grafton after July 1543. They were parents to:
- Sir Edward Stafford of Grafton.
- Sir John Stafford of Marlwood Park.
- William Stafford.
- Elizabeth Stafford.
- Anne Stafford who married Sir Henry Williams (1516-1551). Sir Henry was buried on the 20 August 1551 in London. Stafford, Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford, Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford, Henry Stafford, 1st Baron

Category:1477 births

Category:Tudor people

The House of Tudor ruled England from 1485 to 1603 and the Tudor period forms a distinct part of the history of England. Category:English people

Category:Knights of the Garter

Category:Knights Garter Garter Garter

Category:Lord High Stewards

This category lists all holders of the office of Lord High Steward, the highest of the Great Offices of State. Category:Great Officers of State

Category:Lord High Constables

Category:Great Officers of State

Robert W. Schiefler

Robert W. Scheifler (born 1954) is a computer scientist. He is most notable for leading the development of the X Window System from the project's inception in 1984 until the closure of the MIT X Consortium in 1996. He later became one of the architects of the Jini architecture at Sun Microsystems. Scheifler gained a B.S. in Mathematics and an M.S. in computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Scheifler, Bob Scheifler, Bob

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Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego
Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego (GZI WP) - Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army, was a name of a first military Police and counterespionage organ in communist Poland after the World War 2. Also well known as Informacja Wojskowa (Military Information).

History and responsibilities

Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego (GZI) was establish in 1944 as part of Polish Military in the

Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham

1477

Events

Births

Deaths

1478

Events

Births

Deaths

1521

Events

Births

Deaths

Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham

Early life

Reign of Richard III

The Bohun Estate

The Princes in the Tower

Relationship to Edward III

Important relatives

The Ancestry of Henry Stafford

Attainder

Examples of cases where a person's property was subject to Attainder

Richard III of England

Childhood

Marriage

Reign of Edward IV

Accession to the Throne

Coronation

Death

Succession

Legacy

Popularity

Fiction about Richard III

Bibliography

External links

Margaret Beaufort

External links

Knight of the Garter

History

Composition

Sovereign and Knights

Poor Knights

Officers

Vestments and accoutrements

Sovereign and Knights

Poor Knights

Officers

Chapel

Precedence and privileges

Current members and officers

See also

References

Thomas Wolsey

The Rise to Power of Thomas Wolsey

Wolsey’s Foreign Policy 1515-1529

Did Wolsey successfully realize what he sought to achieve in his domestic policy?

Trivia

Biographies

July 31

Events

Births

Deaths

1900 to Present

Holidays and observances

External links

1523

Events

Births

Deaths

Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford

Marriage and children

Category:1477 births

Category:Tudor people

Category:Knights of the Garter

Category:Lord High Stewards

Category:Lord High Constables

Robert W. Schiefler

History and responsibilities