Editing Lady Margaret Beaufort (section)

== Involvement in the Wars of the Roses ==

=== Reign of Edward IV ===
Years of Yorkist forces fighting Lancastrian for power culminated in the [[Battle of Towton]] in 1461, where the Yorkists were victorious. [[Edward IV]] was King of England. The fighting had taken the life of Margaret's father-in-law and forced Jasper Tudor to flee to Scotland and France to muster support for the Lancastrian cause.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |publisher=Basic Books |date=2013 |location=New York |page=70}}</ref> Edward IV gave the lands belonging to Margaret's son to his own brother, the [[George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence|Duke of Clarence]]. Henry became the ward of [[William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (died 1469)|Sir William Herbert]]. Again, Beaufort was allowed some visits to her son.

In 1469 the discontented Duke of Clarence and [[Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick|Earl of Warwick]] incited a rebellion against Edward IV, capturing him after a defeat of his forces. Beaufort used this opportunity to attempt to negotiate with Clarence, hoping to regain custody of her son and his holdings.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jones & Underwood |first=Michael & Malcolm |title=The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby |date=1992 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |page=49}}</ref> Soon, however, Edward was back in power.

Warwick's continued insurrection resulted in the brief reinstallation of the Lancastrian Henry VI in 1470–71, which was effectively ended with the Yorkist victory at the [[Battle of Barnet]]. Faced with York rule once again, Margaret allegedly begged Jasper Tudor, forced to flee abroad once more, to take 13-year-old Henry with him.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |date=2013 |publisher=Basic Books |location=New York |page=114}}</ref> It would be 14 years before Beaufort saw her son again.

In 1471, Margaret's husband, Lord Stafford, died of wounds suffered at the [[Battle of Barnet]], fighting for the Yorkists. At 28 years old, Margaret became a widow again.<ref>Jones & Underwood, 58.</ref>

In June 1472, Margaret married [[Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby|Thomas Stanley]], the [[Lord High Constable of England|Lord High Constable]] and [[King of Mann]]. Jones and Underwood have suggested that Margaret never considered herself a member of the Stanley family.<ref>{{Harvnb|Jones|Underwood|1993|p=144}}</ref> Their marriage was primarily one of convenience; marrying Stanley enabled Margaret to return to the court of [[Edward IV]] and [[Elizabeth Woodville]]. Indeed, Gristwood speculates Beaufort organized the marriage with the sole aim of rehabilitating her image and securing herself a prime position from which to advocate for her son.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |date=2013 |publisher=Basic Books |location=New York |pages=126–135}}</ref> Evidently her efforts were successful; Margaret was chosen by [[Elizabeth Woodville|Queen Elizabeth]] to be godmother to one of her daughters.

Holinshed, a Tudor chronicler, claims King Edward IV later proposed a marriage between Beaufort's son and his own daughter, [[Elizabeth of York]], intending to force Henry Tudor out of his safe haven on the continent. Poet Bernard Andre seems to corroborate this, writing of Tudor's miraculous escape from the clutches of Edward's envoys, allegedly warned of the deception by none other than his mother.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |date=2013 |publisher=Basic Books |location=New York |page=163}}</ref>

=== Reigns of Edward V and Richard III ===
[[File:MargaretBeaufort LoRez.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Statue of Margaret Beaufort in the Chapel of [[St John's College, Cambridge]], which she founded]]
Following Edward IV's death in April 1483 and the seizure of the throne in June by [[Richard III]] from [[Edward V]], Margaret was soon back at court serving the new queen, [[Anne Neville]]. Margaret carried Anne's train at the coronation.<ref>[http://www.westminster-abbey.org/our-history/royals/coronations/richard-iii Westminster Abbey: Coronation of Richard III], westminster-abbey.org; accessed 17 August 2013.</ref> Seeking her son's return to England, Margaret appears to have negotiated with Richard.

Despite what these negotiations may suggest, Lady Margaret is known to have conspired with [[Elizabeth Woodville]], mother of the two York princes whom Richard confined to the Tower of London, after rumours spread of the boys' murder. It was at this point, according to Polydore Vergil, that Beaufort "began to hope well of her son's fortune".

Beaufort is believed to have initiated discussions with Woodville, via mutual physician, Lewis Caerleon, who conveyed secret correspondences between the two women. Together they conspired to supplant King Richard and by joint force replace him with Margaret's son, Henry Tudor. Their solidified alliance further secured the subsequent dynasty by the agreed betrothal of Henry to [[Elizabeth of York]]. They hoped this proposal would attract both Yorkist and Lancastrian support.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |publisher=Basic Books |date=2013 |location=New York |pages=195–196}}</ref>

As to the fate of the princes, it is widely held that [[Richard III]] ordered the death of his two nephews to secure his own reign. Gristwood, however, suggests that another was responsible; Henry Tudor's path to the throne was certainly expedited by their disappearance, perhaps motive enough for his mother – his "highly able and totally committed representative" – to give the order.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |publisher=Basic Books |date=2013 |location=New York |page=200}}</ref>

Despite this suggestion, no contemporary sources corroborate the implication, whilst most contemporary accounts outline "her outstanding qualities, her courage, presence of mind, family loyalty, and a deeply felt awareness of the spiritual responsibilities of high office," as clarified by Jones and Underwood.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jones |first=Michael K. |title=The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1992 |location=New York |page=259}}</ref> Before Jones and Underwood, there was no consensus within the scholarly community regarding Margaret's role or character: historiographical opinions ranged from celebrating her to demonizing her.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jones |first=Michael K. |title=The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1992 |location=New York |page=4}}</ref>

It was not until the 17th century that religious retrospective speculations began to criticize Lady Margaret, but even then only as a "politic and contriving woman,"<ref>{{Cite book |last=Buck |first=George |title=The History of the Life and Reigne of Richard the Third |publisher=Creative Media Partners, LLC |date=1619 |location=London |pages=36}}</ref> and never anything beyond shrewd or calculating. All things considered, the words of her own contemporaries, such as Tudor historian Polydore Vergil, continue to extol Lady Margaret's noble virtues as "the most pious woman,"<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vergil |first=Polydore |title=Anglica Historia |date=1555}}</ref> further removing her from accusations of wickedness.

[[Erasmus]], in writing about his friend the Bishop, [[Saint John Fisher]], praised Margaret's support of religious institutions and the Bishop,<ref>{{Cite book |title=Extracts Regarding Margaret, Countess of Richmon |publisher=Lansdowne Manuscripts |page=83}}</ref> further attesting the simultaneously pragmatic and charitable nature testified in the funerary sermon dedicated by the Bishop himself, as laid out in a following section.

In 1483 Margaret was certainly involved in – if not the mastermind behind – [[Buckingham's rebellion]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ronald H. Fritze |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=INmdwCSkvIgC&pg=PA77 |title=Historical dictionary of late medieval England, 1272–1485 |last2=William Baxter Robison |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |date=2002 |isbn=978-0-3132-9124-1 |page=77 |access-date=5 April 2013}}</ref> Indeed, in his biography of Richard III, historian [[Paul Murray Kendall]] describes Beaufort as the "Athena of the rebellion".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kendall |first=Paul |title=Richard the Third |publisher=Norton |date=2002}}</ref> Perhaps with duplicitous motives (as he may have been desirous of the crown for himself), [[Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham|Buckingham]] conspired with Beaufort and Woodville to dethrone Richard. Margaret's son was to sail from Brittany to join forces with him, but he arrived too late.

In October, Beaufort's scheme proved unsuccessful; the Duke was executed and Tudor was forced back across the English Channel. Beaufort appears to have played a large role in financing the insurrection. In response to her betrayal, [[Richard III of England|Richard]] passed an act of Parliament stripping Margaret of all her titles and estates, declaring her guilty of the following:

{{blockquote|Forasmoch as Margaret Countesse of Richmond, Mother to the Kyngs greate Rebell and Traytour, Herry Erle of Richemond, hath of late conspired, consedered, and {{sic|comit|ted|hide=y}} high Treason ayenst oure Soveraigne Lorde the King Richard the Third, in dyvers and sundry wyses, and in especiall in sendyng messages, writyngs and tokens to the said Henry... Also the said Countesse made chevisancez of greate somes of Money... and also the said Countesse conspired, consedered, and imagyned the destruction of oure said Soveraign Lorde...<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Parliament |date=1483 |title=6. An Act for the Attaynder of Margaret Coutesse of Richmond |journal=Rotuli Parliamentorum}}</ref>}}

Richard did, however, stop short of a full [[attainder]] by transferring Margaret's property to her husband, [[Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby|Lord Stanley]]. He also effectively imprisoned Margaret in her husband's home with the hope of preventing any further correspondence with her son. However, her husband failed to stop Margaret's continued communication with her son. When the time came for Henry to press his claim, he relied heavily on his mother to raise support for him in England.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gristwood |first=Sarah |title=Blood Sisters: The Women Behind the Wars of the Roses |publisher=Basic Books |date=2013 |location=New York |page=226}}</ref>

Margaret's husband Stanley, despite having fought for Richard III during the Buckingham rebellion, did not respond when summoned to fight at the [[Battle of Bosworth Field]] in 1485, remaining aloof from the battle, even though his eldest son, George Stanley (styled [[Lord Strange#1299 creation|Lord Strange]]), was held hostage by Richard. After the battle, it was Stanley who placed the crown on the head of his stepson (Henry VII), who later made him Earl of Derby. Margaret was then styled "Countess of Richmond and Derby".<ref name="Norton2012">{{Cite book |last=Elizabeth Norton |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BDGIAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA35-IA38 |title=Margaret Beaufort: Mother of the Tudor Dynasty |date= 2012 |publisher=Amberley Publishing Limited |isbn=978-1-4456-0734-4 |pages=35ff}}</ref> She was invested as a [[Lady of the Order of the Garter]] (LG) in 1488.
{{Wars of the Roses family tree}}