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Lady Margaret Beaufort
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==Margaret Beaufort in power== [[File:Enrique VII de Inglaterra, por un artista anónimo.jpg|thumb|[[Henry VII of England]], Margaret's only child]] {{Anchor|Countess of Richmond and Derby Act 1491}} {{Infobox UK legislation | type = Act | parliament = Parliament of England | long_title = Pro Comitissa Richemond & Derby. | year = 1491 | citation = [[7 Hen. 7]]. c. 15{{Br}}(Ruffhead c. 8) | repealing_legislation = [[Statute Law Revision Act 1948]] | status = repealed }} After her son's victory at the [[Battle of Bosworth Field]], the Countess was referred to in court as "My Lady the King's Mother". Her son's first Parliament reversed the attainder against her and declared her a ''[[feme sole]]''. This status granted Beaufort considerable legal and social independence from men. She was allowed to own property separately from her husband (as though she were unmarried) and sue in court – two rights denied to contemporary married women.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Seward |first=Desmond |title=The Wars of the Roses: And the Lives of Five Men and Women in the Fifteenth Century |publisher=Constable and Company Limited |date=1995 |location=London |page=326}}</ref> [[File:Coat of arms of Margaret of Beaufort from Christ’s College Book of Donors Cambridge 1623.svg<!-- Do NOT change the spelling of the image file! -->|thumb|Coat of arms of Lady Margaret Beaufort<ref>Christ’s College Book of Donors, Cambridge 1623</ref>]] As arranged by their mothers, Henry married [[Elizabeth of York]]. The Countess was reluctant to accept a lower status than the [[Elizabeth Woodville|dowager queen Elizabeth]] or even her [[Elizabeth of York|daughter-in-law]], the [[List of English royal consorts|queen consort]]. She wore robes of the same quality as the queen consort and walked only half a pace behind her. Elizabeth's biographer, Amy Licence, states that this "would have been the correct courtly protocol", adding that "only one person knew how Elizabeth really felt about Margaret and she did not commit it to paper."<ref>[http://authorherstorianparent.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/elizabeth-of-york-forthcoming-biography.html his story, her story: Interview with Amy Licence], 1 February 2013; accessed 19 August 2013.</ref> Margaret had written her signature as ''M. Richmond'' for years, since the 1460s. In 1499, she changed her signature to ''Margaret R.'', perhaps to signify her royal authority (''R'' standing either for ''regina'' – queen in [[Latin]] as customarily employed by female monarchs – or for Richmond). Furthermore, she included the Tudor crown and the caption ''et mater Henrici septimi regis Angliæ et Hiberniæ'' ("and mother of Henry VII, king of England and Ireland").<ref>Jones & Underwood, 292.</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Krug|2002|p=85}}</ref> Many historians believe the departure from court of dowager queen [[Elizabeth Woodville]] in 1487 was partly at the behest of Henry's influential mother, though this is uncertain.<ref>{{cite book|last=Okerlund|first=Arlene |date=2006|title=Elizabeth: England's Slandered Queen|location= Stroud|publisher= Tempus|page= 245}}</ref> Beaufort exerted considerable political influence within the Tudor court. The power she exercised was evidently obvious; a report from Spanish envoy [[Pedro de Ayala]] dating to 1498 claimed Henry was "much influenced by his mother and his followers in affairs or personal interest and in others." In the earlier years of her son's reign, records indicate Margaret usually accompanied the royal couple when they traveled.<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=257–259}}</ref> While Margaret's position in the royal court was, to some extent, an expression of gratitude by her son, she was likely far less the passive recipient of Henry's favor one might expect. As Gristwood suggests in the following, Beaufort instead actively contrived to further her standing: "A place had to be created for the sort of 'king's mother' Margaret was determined to be. Perhaps if Margaret had become a queen, a role that she clearly felt Fortune had denied her, she would not have felt the need to press for her rights quite so stridently."<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=258}}</ref> However, Lady Margaret's immediate petitions were not for queenly powers of rule over others, but were two succinct demands for independence and liberty of self, which were products of expert legal advice, as opposed to a desperate desire to rule.<ref name="Jones 1992 99">{{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=99}}</ref> The first Act reversed the legislation that had robbed Margaret of her properties under the reign of Richard III, deeming it "entirely void, annulled and of no force or effect".<ref name="Jones 1992 99"/> The second Act of November 1485 stated that she would enjoy all her properties and titles, and could pursue any legal action as any "single unmarried person might or may do at any time", despite still being married.<ref name=bp1>{{Cite book |title=The Parliament Rolls of Medieval England |publisher=The Boydell Press |date=2005 |location=Woodbridge, London |pages=126–127}}</ref> Moreover, as with many decisions made to secure the new dynasty, these Acts of Parliament passed appear to be a collaborative effort, mutually beneficial to both mother and son, as by granting Margaret the status of a femme sole, Henry and his Parliament made it possible to empower the King's Mother without giving further leverage to the Stanleys, since Margaret could use any wealth granted to her for her own purposes, thereby circumventing the prevailing idea of [[coverture]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ward |first=Jennifer C. |title=English Noblewomen in the Later Middle Ages |publisher=Longman |date=1992 |location=University of California |page=102}}</ref> In his chronicle, Polydore Vergil assessed the partnership between the Tudor king and his mother, noting that Henry gave her a share of most of his public and private resources, contrary to any assertion that Margaret desired greater power.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vergil |first=Polydore |title=The Anglica Historia of Polydore Vergil, A.D. 1485–1537, edited by D. Hay |publisher=University of Toronto Press |date=2018 |location=University of Toronto |page=411}}</ref> Or, as King Henry Tudor states in a letter to his mother: "...not only in this but in all other things that I may know should be to your honour and pleasure, and will of your self, I shall be as glad to please you as your heart can desire."<ref>{{Cite book |title=Letter by Henry VII |publisher=SJLM D 91.23 |date=1504 |location=Saint John's College, Annapolis |pages=110–111}}</ref> Lady Margaret's wardship of brothers, [[Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham]], and [[Henry Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire]], is one of many examples of how her unique position allowed her in varying aspects to operate beyond the scope of any queen, a position which, instead of hindering or irritating her at all, proved advantageous to the state of the Crown and delineated her as a helpful and happy agent of its course, as she refused monetary recompense for her stewardship in this arena and successfully secured the allegiance of the Duke of Buckingham to King Henry Tudor, a loyalty that would fade away from the Crown once she and her son were gone.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brown |first=Rawdon |title=Calendar of State Papers Relating to English Affairs in the Archives of Venice Volume 2 |publisher=Her Majesty's Stationery Office |date=1519 |location=London |pages=556–565}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Campbell |first=William |title=Materials for a History of the Reign of Henry VII |publisher=Bibliolife DBA of Bibilio Bazaar II LLC |date=1886 |location=New York |page=532}}</ref> Later in her marriage, the Countess preferred living alone. In 1499, with her husband's permission, she took a vow of chastity in the presence of [[Richard FitzJames]], [[Bishop of London]]. Taking a vow of chastity while being married was unusual but not unprecedented. The Countess moved away from her husband and lived alone at [[Collyweston]], Northamptonshire (near [[Stamford, Lincolnshire|Stamford]]). She was regularly visited by her husband, who had rooms reserved for him. Margaret renewed her vows in 1504.<ref name="Jones 1993 pages=181–84">{{Harvnb|Jones|Underwood|1993|pages=181–184}}</ref> From her principal residence at [[Collyweston]], she was given a special commission to administer justice over the Midlands and the North.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Harris |first=Barbara |date=1990 |title=Women and Politics in Early Tudor England |journal=The Historical Journal |volume=33 |issue=2 |page=269 |doi=10.1017/S0018246X00013327 |s2cid=154533002 }}</ref> Beaufort was also actively involved in the domestic life of the royal family. She created a proper protocol regarding the birth and upbringing of royal heirs. Though their relationship is often portrayed as antagonistic, Beaufort and her daughter-in-law Elizabeth worked together when planning the marriages of the royal children. They wrote jointly of the necessary instruction for [[Catherine of Aragon]], who was to marry Elizabeth's son [[Arthur, Prince of Wales|Prince Arthur]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tallis |first=Nicola |title=Uncrowned Queen: The Fateful Life of Margaret Beaufort, Tudor Matriarch |publisher=Michael O'Mara Books Limited |date=2020 |isbn=978-1-7892-9258-9 |location=London |page=221}}</ref> Both women also conspired to prevent Elizabeth and Henry's daughter [[Margaret Tudor|Margaret]] from being married to the Scottish king at too young an age; in this matter, Gristwood writes, Beaufort was undoubtedly resolved that her granddaughter "should not share her fate".<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=281}}</ref> After Elizabeth's death in 1503, Margaret became the principal female presence at court. When Arthur died, Margaret played a part in ensuring her grandson [[Henry VIII of England|Henry]], the new heir apparent, was raised appropriately by selecting some members of his new household.<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=310}}</ref> The Countess was known for her education and her piety. Biographers Jones and Underwood claim the entirety of Beaufort's life can be understood in the context of her "deeply-felt love and loyalty to her son".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jones & Underwood |first=Michael & Malcolm |date=1985 |title=Lady Margaret Beaufort |journal=History Today |volume=35 |page=25 }}</ref> Henry is said to have been likewise devoted. A surviving letter written by Henry to his mother reveals his sense of gratitude and appreciation: <blockquote>"All which thyngs according to your desire and plesure I have with all my herte and goode wille giffen and graunted unto you... I shall be as glad to plese you as youre herte can desire hit, and I knowe welle that I am as much bounden so to doe as any creture lyvyng, for the grete and singular moderly love and affection that hit hath plesed you at all tymes to ber towards me".<ref>King Henry VII (n.d.) King Henry VII to his mother, Margaret Countess of Richmond. In ''Original letters illustrative of English history; including numerous royal letters; from autographs in the British Museum, the State Paper office, and one or two other collections'', edited by Sir Henry Ellis. Retrieved 8 April 2020.</ref></blockquote> Henry VII died on 21 April 1509, having designated his mother chief [[executrix]] of his will. For two days after the death of her son, Margaret scrambled to secure the smooth succession of her grandson, [[Henry VIII]].<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=316}}</ref> She arranged her son's funeral and her grandson's coronation. At her son's funeral she was given precedence over all the other women of the royal family.<ref name="O'Day2012">{{Cite book |last=Rosemary O'Day |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PgKSouk9fHUC&pg=PR1 |title=The Routledge Companion to the Tudor Age |date= 2012 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-1369-6253-0 |page=5}}</ref> Before her death, Beaufort also left her mark on the early reign of Henry VIII; when her 18-year-old grandson chose members of his privy council, it was Margaret's suggestions he took.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Seward |first=Desmond |title=The Wars of the Roses: And the Lives of Five Men and Women in the Fifteenth Century |publisher=Constable and Company Limited |date=1995 |location=London |pages=332}}</ref>
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