C.P. Addition: Margaret Beaufort, wife of Humphrey Stafford and Sir Richard Darrell
Douglas Richardson
In the late medieval period in England, there were two contemporary
members of the noble Beaufort family in England both named Margaret
Beaufort. One was the well known Margaret Beaufort, Countess of
Richmond and Derby, who was the mother of King Henry VII of England.
The other lady was her first cousin, Margaret Beaufort, Countess of
Stafford (died 1480). By a curious set of circumstances, the two
women were respectively married to Henry (or Harry) Stafford and
Humphrey Stafford, full brothers to one another. Wikipedia alleges
the two women "are often confused with each other, since both had
fathers who were titled First Duke of Somerset, and both had sons
called Henry who were claimants to the throne in 1485 and 1483
respectively." However, I haven't found the printed literature
confused about the two women at all. While the two women were living
during the same time period, they had distinctly different
personalities and occur in surviving records in such a way as to
clearly indicate which woman is intended in what record.
A pedigree chart of the Beaufort family which includes both women is
found in the interesting and well researched book, The King's Mother,
by Michael K. Jones and Malcolm G. Underwood. This chart may be
viewed at the following weblink:
This particular post concerns the history of the second Margaret
Beaufort (died 1480), wife successively of Humphrey Stafford, styled
Earl of Stafford, and Sir Richard Darrell. The authoritative Complete
Peerage, 2 (1910): 389 (sub Buckingham) has an extremely brief account
of Margaret Beaufort's first husband, Humphrey Stafford. Regarding
his marriage to Margaret Beaufort, the following information is
provided:
"He married Margaret, daughter (and in her issue heir) of Edmund
(Beaufort), Duke of Somerset, by Eleanor, 2nd daughter of Richard
(Beauchamp), Earl of Warwick. He died v.p., being slain on the
Lancastrian side at the first battle of St. Albans, 22 May 1455. His
widow married Sir Richard Darell." END OF QUOTE.
While the above information is certainly accurate, no citation or
documentation is provided for any of these statements by Complete
Peerage. Likewise, the date of Humphrey Stafford and Margaret
Beaufort's marriage is not given. Traditionally, Humphrey and
Margaret are assigned one child, Henry Stafford, who was born
posthumously 4 September 1455 following his father's death. However,
VCH Stafford, 5 (1959): 82–100 indicates that young Henry Stafford had
a "brother" named Humphrey Stafford who occurs in 1464 and 1465. The
source cited for this statement is Cal. Patent Rolls, 1461-1467, pp.
324, 463. If Henry Stafford's brother, Humphrey, was legitimate, it
can only mean that the two brothers were twins and born at the same
time. Whatever the case, the younger Humphrey Stafford must have died
young, as he is not included as a child of Margaret Beaufort in the
Tudor dated pedigree of the Beaufort family published in Collectanea
Top. et Gen. 1 (1834): 308–309, which pedigree may be viewed at the
following weblink:
http://books.google.com/books?id=C80KAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA308&dq=Margaret+Countess+Stafford&lr=
The second marriage of Margaret Beaufort to Sir Richard Darrell is
stated by Complete Peerage, but no date is given for this marriage.
Sir Richard Darrell was sub-Treasurer of England and Sheriff of
Wiltshire. His land holdings included property at Ower or Paltons (in
Eling) and Leckford, Hampshire, East Sutton, Kent, Ramsbury,
Wiltshire, etc. He was a younger son of William Darrell, Esq., of
Littlecote (in Ramsbury) and Axford, Wiltshire, by Elizabeth, daughter
and heiress of Thomas Calstone. As for when Margaret Beaufort and Sir
Richard Darrell married, it appears that Margaret Beaufort was still
unmarried in 1463, when she presented to the church of Wells, Norfolk
in 1463, as “Margaret, Countess of Stafford.” [Reference: Parkin, An
Essay Towards a Topog. Hist. of the County of Norfolk 9 (1808): 285].
Her marriage to Sir Richard Darrell, however, had occured before 1465,
when he presented to the same church in right of his wife, Margaret
[Reference: Ibid.]. The references to Parkin may be viewed at the
following weblink:
Margaret Beaufort and Sir Richard Darrell had one child, Margaret
Darrell, who married James Tuchet , K.B., 7th Lord Audley [Reference:
Coll. Top. et Gen. 1 (1834): 308–309 (Beaufort pedigree); VCH
Hampshire 4 (1911): 546–558; Misc. Gen. et Heraldica 4th Ser. 5
(1914): 291 (re. Darrell family)]. Margaret Beaufort was apparently
non compos mentis in 1466 [Reference: VCH Stafford, 5 (1959): 82–
100]. She was subsequently co-heiress in 1471 to her brother, Edmund
Beaufort, styled Duke of Somerset.
Complete Peerage gives no death date for Margaret Beaufort, then wife
of Sir Richard Darrell, but VCH Stafford 5 (1959): 86–87 states that
she died in 1480, when her dower lands were returned to her son and
heir, Henry Stafford. The source cited for this statement is Cal.
Patent Rolls, 1476–1485, pg. 217. The VCH Stafford reference may be
viewed at the following weblink:
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=53401
Following her death, Sir Richard Darrell married (2nd) before 31 May
1481 Jane Baron, widow of Walter Wrottesley, Knt. (died 10 April
1473), of Wrottesley, Staffordshire, and daughter and heiress of
William Baron, Esq., of Reading, Berkshire, one of the Tellers of the
Exchequer. In 1481 he and his wife, Jane, released all their right in
the manors of Wrottesley and Butterton, Staffordshire to her son,
Richard Wrottesley, in return for an annual rent of £5 [Reference:
Wrottesley, Fam. of Wrottesley (Colls. Hist. Staffs. n.s. 6(2))
(1903): 244–266]. The proof of Sir Richard Darrell's marriage to Jane
Baron which has been little noticed may be viewed at the following
weblinks:
http://books.google.com/books?id=mfUGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA259&dq=Richard+Darrell+Wrottesley#PPA245,M1
http://books.google.com/books?id=mfUGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA259&dq=Richard+Darrell+Wrottesley#PPA258,M1
http://books.google.com/books?id=mfUGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA259&dq=Richard+Darrell+Wrottesley#PPA259,M1
http://books.google.com/books?id=mfUGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA259&dq=Richard+Darrell+Wrottesley#PPA260,M1
http://books.google.com/books?id=mfUGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA259&dq=Richard+Darrell+Wrottesley#PPA261,M1
Sir Richard Darrell was present at the Coronation of King Richard III
in 1483 [Reference: Sutton, Coronation of Richard III (1983): 332
(biog. of Sir Richard Darell)]. He died in 1489 [Reference: VCH
Hampshire 4 (1911): 446–449]. His heir was his daughter, Margaret's
son, John Audley, afterwards Lord Audley.
For interest's sake, the following is a list of the 17th Century New
World immigrants who descend from Margaret Beaufort and her 1st
husband, Humphrey Stafford, Knt., styled Earl of Stafford:
St. Leger Codd, Edward Digges, Warham Horsmanden, Katherine Saint
Leger, Mary Johanna Somerset
Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah
Douglas Richardson
As a followup to my post earlier today, I might note that Google Books
indicates that there is a reference in one of the volumes of the List
and Index Society to Joan, wife of Richard Darrell, Kt., "late wife of
Walter Wrottesley, kt., and daughter of William Baron, Esq." See the
following weblink for that citation:
Unfortunately, no volume or page number is provided by Google, nor is
the title of the individual volume supplied. The volume was allegedly
published in 1991, which information may or may not be correct. I
assume that the item in question is dated after 1480, as I find
references to Jane (or Joan) Baron's father, William Baron, Esq., up
through that year in the A2A Catalogue. If anyone has access to the
List and Index Society volumes and can locate this reference, I'd
appreciate it if they would post an abstract of the item here on the
newsgroup.
Next, interested parties may wish to consult the biography of Jane (or
Joan) Baron's first husband, Sir Walter Wrottesley (died 1473), which
was published in 1900 in the Dictionary of National Biography (DNB).
This biography may be viewed at the following weblink:
http://books.google.com/books?id=uTsJAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA168&dq=William+Baron+Reading
Sadly, no mention is made of Jane Baron's second marriage to Sir
Richard Darrell in that source, nor is there any mention of Sir
Richard Darrell's previous marriage to Margaret Beaufort, Countess of
Stafford.
Douglas Richardson
There is an abstract of an interesting lawsuit involving Sir Richard
Darrell and his first wife, Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Stafford,
which was published in Collections for a History of Staffordshire,
n.s. 4 (1901): 141. This item may be viewed at the following weblink:
The lawsuit is dated Hilary term, 5 Edward IV [i.e., 1466]. According
to the published abstract, Richard Darrell (here spelled Darelle),
"late of Litelcote," Wiltshire, then an esquire, was summoned at the
suit of Alexander Darrell, executor of the will of Elizabeth Darrell,
in a plea that he should pay to him a sum of 45 marks, which he
unjustly withheld, and Alexander stated that on the 1st August, 3
Edward IV [1463], the said Richard had placed Margaret, the Countess
of Stafford, to board with the said Elizabeth during her lifetime,
paying to her for each week for which the Countess was at board with
her the sum of 13s. 4d. for her diets, and notwithstanding the said
Countess had remained at board with her from the said 1st August for
tthe 45 weeks following, the said Richard had not paid Elizabeth
during her life for the said arrears, and had refused to pay her
executor. Richard Darrell appeared by attorney, and denied he had
detained the money, as stated by Alexander, and appealed to a jury
which was to be summoned for the Quindene of Easter Day.
The editor of this law abstract adds the following editorial note:
"The peerages are silent respecting the identity of this Margaret,
Countess of Stafford, but she was probable the widow of Humfrey, Earl
of Stafford, who was killed at St. Albans in 1455. She had apparently
married Richard Darell and was an embecile. Richard Darell, who was
afterwards knighted, subsequently married Jane, the widow of Sir
Walter Wrottesley, who died in 1472. (Deeds at Wrottesley)." END OF
QUOTE.
The editor, Mr. Wrottesley, is correct is his belief that Margaret,
Countess of Stafford, is identical with Margaret Beaufort, widow of
Humphrey Stafford,Knbt., styled Earl of Stafford, who was killed in
1455. As for her subsequent marriage to Sir Richard Darrell, this is
established by at least three pieces of evidence. As for the date of
Margaret and Richard's marriage, in my first post I presented
evidence which showed that Margaret Beaufort and Richard Darrell were
married before 1465, when he presented to the church of Wells, Norfolk
in her right. The above lawsuit , however, indicates the marriage
took place before 1 August 1463, when Richard placed Margaret in the
household of Elizabeth Darrell, presumably his own mother.
The editor states that Margaret Beaufort, wife of Richard Darrell, was
an "embecile." This comment was followed in print by VCH Stafford, 5
(1959): 82-100, which claimed that Margaret Beaufort was "apparently
non compos mentis" in 1466, based on this same lawsuit (see
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=53401).
Regardless, there is nothing whatsoever in the lawsuit which indicates
that Margaret Beaufort was mentally ill or an embecile, either in 1463
or 1466. Rather, the lawsuit merely discusses the financial
arrangements that Richard Darrell made for lodging his wife with
Elizabeth Darrell, which Elizabeth was presumably his widowed
mother. As for Alexander Darrell who was Elizabeth Darrell's
executor, I can identify him as Sir Richard Darrell's own brother.
That Margaret Beaufort was not an embecile in 1463, is proven by the
fact that she presented to the church of Wells, Norfolk in her own
right in that year [see Parkin, An Essay Towards a Topog. Hist. of the
County of Norfolk 9 (1808): 285]. My own thought is that Margaret
Beaufort was placed by her husband with her mother-in-law in 1463, due
to Margaret being pregnant with her daughter, Margaret. At the end of
the pregnancy and post-partum period (45 weeks), Margaret Beaufort
left the care of her mother-in-law.
Lastly, we see above that the editor, Mr. Wrottesley, correctly stated
back in 1901, that Sir Richard Darrell married (2nd) Jane, widow of
Sir Walter Wrottesley. Yet this information was ignored by Complete
Peerage. This is a similar pattern to the forgotten research of
Hermentrude, who published in Notes and Queries that Margaret Neville,
the first wife of Sir William Lucy, was the daughter of Sir John
Neville and his wife, Elizabeth Holand; only to have her findings also
be ignored by Complete Peerage.