Jacquetta WOODVILLE

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• _UID: 4D3E3CDF8C2245A586BEE7F28EF2286568DB

Notes:

Jacquetta was the sister to Elizabeth Woodville whose marriage, to Edward IV, was a cause célèbre of the day, thanks to Elizabeth's great beauty and lack of great estates. They were married in secret. The Woodville's were not a noble family, and Edward was only the second king of England since the Norman Conquest to have married one of his subjects.

Her parents had a socially unequal marriage that had briefly scandalized the English court. Her father, Sir Richard Woodville, was merely a knight at the time of her birth. The Woodvilles, though an old and respectable family, were genteel rather than noble; a landed and wealthy family that had previously produced commissioners of the peace, sheriffs, and Members of Parliament rather than peers of the realm. Sir Richard's own father had made a good career in royal service.

Sir Richard followed his father into service with the duke, and so first met his wife Jacquetta of Luxembourg. The daughter of Peter of Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol, and Margaret de Baux. She had been married to the Duke of Bedford in 1433 at the age of 17. The duke was significantly older than Jacquetta of Luxembourg, his second wife, and he was in ill health. He died in 1435, leaving Jacquetta of Luxembourg a childless, wealthy widow.

She was required to seek permission from King Henry VI before she could remarry. But in March 1437, it was revealed that she had secretly married Sir Richard Woodville, who was far below her in rank and not considered a suitable husband for the lady. The couple was fined £1000,

The marriage of her sister, Elizabeth to the King, greatly enriched her siblings and children, but their advancement incurred the hostility of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, 'The Kingmaker', and his various alliances with the most senior figures in the increasingly divided royal family.

This hostility turned into open discord between King Edward and Warwick, leading to the Wars of the Roses, between the Houses of Lancaster and York, leading to the rise of the Tudor dynasty.

Jacquetta witnessed her sister fight for her son Edward V to become King. This nephew along with his brother Richard, Duke of York were the Princes in the Tower who mysteriously disappeared [were presumed murdered], allowing Richard, the brother to Edward IV to take the crown, as Richard II. Richard declared all Edward IV ten children with Elizabeth Woodville to be illegitimate, and the family was stripped of any titles and lands given to them by the previous king.

These were tumultuous times. Her sister, Elizabeth, and her mother, Jacquetta, were accused of witchcraft, her brother Anthony was arrested and later executed, and the family had few friends. They became allies with Lady Margaret Stanley, born Lady Beaufort, and espoused the cause of Margaret's son Henry Tudor, a great-great-great-grandson of King Edward III. To strengthen Henry's claim and unite the two feuding noble houses, Elizabeth Woodville and Margaret Beaufort agreed that the latter's son should marry the former's eldest daughter, Elizabeth of York, who upon the death of her brothers became the heiress of the House of York. Henry Tudor won the crown at the Battle of Bosworth Field, and become Henry VII of England.

Her mother found rich and influential spouses for her children and helped her grandchildren achieve high posts. The Le Strange family was created as the Baron Strange de Knokyn or Baron Strange of Knokyn in 1299. Interestingly the baronies of Strange were created by writ, which means that they can pass through both male and female lines.

So Jacquetta was the aunt of the Queen of England, Elizabeth of York, the Tudor Rose. Jacquetta's daughter married into the Stanley family, an alliance made during the War of the Roses, who were stepbrothers to the future King of England, Henry VII.

While much is not known directly about her life, we can safely say she had friends in high places.

Grave inscription:
Sub hac tumba jacet nobilis Joannes Dominus Le Strange, Dominus de Knocking, Mohun, Wasset, Warnell et Lacy, et Dominus de Colham; una cum pictura Jagnettae quondam uxoris suae, quae quidem Jagnetta suit soror Elizabethae Reginae Angliae quondam uxoris Edwardi Quarti, qui quidem Joannes obiit 15 die Octobris, anno Regni Edwardi Quarti 17; quam quidem tumbam Johanna Domina Le Strange, una cum pictura Jagnettae ex sumptibus suis propriis sieri fecit, 1509.

Google Translate:

Under this lies the tomb of the famous Lord John Le Strange, Lord Knocking, Mohun, Wasset, Warnell and Lacy, and the Colham; once together with a picture Jagnettae [Jacquetta] of his wife, the sister of Elizabeth, Queen of England , which had once been, indeed, Jagnetta [Jacquetta] suit, wife to Edward IV, who died John recalls the day 15 of October, the 17 year of the reign of King Edward the Fourth; which, indeed, the tomb of John, the Le Strange, with the produce of his own, together with the Jagnettae [Jacquetta] accustomed to the painting he made, 1509.

Buried:
Grave location, historical portrait and grave inscription in Latin:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=103742650&ref=acom

Jacquetta married John LE STRANGE. John (son of Lord Richard LE STRANGE and Elizabeth DE COBHAM) was born Abt 20 May 1443, Knockyn, Shropshire, England; died 15 Oct 1477, England; was buried , St John the Baptist Churchyard Hillingdon London Borough of Hillingdon Greater London, England. [Group Sheet]

1. Baroness Joan LE STRANGE was born 1463, Knockin, Shropshire, England; died 20 Mar 1513/14, St John the Baptist Churchyard Hillingdon, London Borough of Hillingdon, Greater London, England .

Notes:

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Woodville,_1st_Earl_Rivers

He was the son of Sir Richard Wydeville (Woodville), chamberlain to the Duke of Bedford, and Joan Bittlesgate (or Bedlisgate), the daughter of Thomas Bittlesgate of Knighteston, Devon.

He was a captain in 1429, served in France in 1433 and was a knight of the regent Duke of Bedford in 1435. He was at Gerberoy in 1435 and served under William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk, in 1435?6. He then fought under Somerset and Shrewsbury in 1439 and the Duke of York in 1441?2, when he was made captain of Alençon and knight banneret. He was created Baron Rivers by Henry VI on 9 May 1448. Two years later, as Sir Richard, he was invested as a Knight of the Garter in 1450.

Following the duke's death, the younger Richard married the widowed duchess, Jacquetta of Luxembourg (1416?1472). This was initially a secret marriage, for which the couple were fined when it came to public notice. It was a socially unequal marriage that had briefly scandalized the English court. They had at least 13 children.

Their daughter, Elizabeth married Edward IV. It was a cause célèbre of the day, thanks to Elizabeth's great beauty and lack of great estates. They too were married in secret, which lead to severe problems for the country.

The marriage to the King, greatly enriched the family, but their advancement incurred the hostility of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, 'The Kingmaker', and his various alliances with the most senior figures in the increasingly divided royal family.

Edward V died at a young age, leaving the throne to Edward V, who was a child.

After the Yorkist defeat at the Battle of Edgecote Moor on 26 July 1469, Rivers and his second son John were taken prisoners at Chepstow. Following a hasty show trial, they were beheaded at Kenilworth on 12 August 1469.

Richard married Jacquetta of Luxembourg. Jacquetta (daughter of Pierre/Peter I de Luxembourg-Saint Pol and Marguerite/Margaret de Baux, Countess of Saint-Pol, of Brienne, and of Conversano) was born 1415/1416, Luxembourg; died 30 May 1472, Northamptonshire, England. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacquetta_of_Luxembourg

She was the eldest daughter of Peter I of Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol, Conversano and Brienne and his wife Margaret of Baux (Margherita del Balzo of Andria). Jacquetta's paternal great-grandmother, Mahaut of Châtillon, was descended from Beatrice of England, daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. Jacquetta's mother, Margherita del Balzo, was a daughter of Francesco del Balzo, 1st Duke of Andria, and Sueva Orsini. Sueva descended from Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester and Eleanor of England, the youngest child of King John of England and Isabella of Angoulême.

The Luxembourgs claimed to be descended from the water deity Melusine through their ancestor Siegfried of Luxembourg (AD 922-998). Jacquetta was a fourth cousin twice removed of Sigismund of Luxembourg, the reigning Holy Roman Emperor and king of Bohemia and Hungary.

At age 17, Jacquetta married John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford. The Duke was the third son of King Henry IV of England and Mary de Bohun, and thus the grandson of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, himself the third son of Edward III. The marriage was childless.

As was customary at the time, after her second marriage Jacquetta retained the title of her first husband and was always known as the Duchess of Bedford, this being a higher title than that of countess. Jacquetta inherited one-third of the Duke's main estates as her widow's share.

Sir Richard Woodville, son of Sir Richard Wydevill, who had served as the late Duke's chamberlain, was commissioned by Henry VI of England to bring Bedford's young widow to England. During the journey, the couple fell in love and married in secret (before 23 March 1437), without seeking the king's permission. Jacquetta had been granted dower lands following her first husband's death on condition that she did not remarry without a royal licence. On learning of the marriage, Henry VI refused to see them, but was mollified by the payment of a fine of £1000. The marriage was long and very fruitful: Jacquetta and Richard had fourteen children, including the future Queen Consort Elizabeth Woodville.

By the mid-1440s, the Woodvilles were in a powerful position. Jacquetta was related to both King Henry and Queen Margaret by marriage. Her sister, Isabelle de Saint Pol, married Margaret's uncle Charles du Maine while Jacquetta was the widow of Henry VI's uncle. She outranked all ladies at court with the exception of the queen. As a personal favourite, she also enjoyed special privileges and influence at court. Margaret influenced Henry to create Richard Woodville Baron Rivers in 1448, and he was a prominent partisan of the House of Lancaster as the Wars of the Roses began.

The Yorkists crushed the Lancastrians at the Battle of Towton on 29 March 1461, and Edward IV, the first king from the House of York, took the throne. The husband of Jacquetta's oldest daughter Elizabeth (Sir John Grey) had been killed a month before at the Second Battle of St. Albans, a Lancastrian victory under the command of Margaret of Anjou. At Towton, however, the tables turned in favour of the Yorkists.

Edward IV met and soon married the widowed Elizabeth Woodville in secret; though the date is not accepted as exactly accurate, it is traditionally said to have taken place (with only Jacquetta and two ladies in attendance) at the Woodvile family home in Northamptonshire. The marriage, once revealed, ruined the plans of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, Edward's cousin, who had been negotiating a much-needed alliance with France via a political marriage for Edward.

With Elizabeth now Queen of England, the Woodvilles rose to great prominence and power. Jacquetta's husband Richard was created Earl Rivers and appointed Lord High Treasurer in March 1466. Jacquetta found rich and influential spouses for her children and helped her grandchildren achieve high posts.

The rise of the Woodvilles created widespread hostility among the Yorkists, including Warwick and the king's brothers George and Richard, who were being displaced in the king's favour by the former Lancastrians.

In 1469, Warwick openly broke with Edward IV and temporarily deposed him. Earl Rivers and his son John were captured and executed by Warwick on 12 August at Kenilworth.

Shortly after her husband's execution by Warwick, Thomas Wake, a follower of Warwick?s, accused Jacquetta of witchcraft. The case fell apart when Warwick released Edward IV from custody, and Jacquetta was cleared by the king?s great council of the charges.

Richard III revived the allegations of witchcraft against Jacquetta when he claimed that she and Elizabeth had procured Elizabeth's marriage to Edward IV through witchcraft; however, Richard never offered any proof to support his assertions. Jacquetta had much sorrow during this time including the execution of her son, Anthony, the 2nd. Earl Rivers, and her two grandsons, Edward V and Richard, the Two Princes in the Tower, presumably murdered by their uncle, Richard II.

Jacquetta survived her husband by three years and died in 1472, at about 56 years of age. Through her daughter Elizabeth, Jacquetta was the maternal grandmother of Elizabeth of York, wife and queen of Henry VII, and therefore an ancestor of all subsequent English monarchs.

Notes:

"Woodville" is the modern spelling of the name and was not so spelled at the time, even though uniform spelling was not established for almost two centuries. The spelling used at the time was "Wydeville" or "Wydville".

Notes:

Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Woodville,_1st_Earl_Rivers

Sir Richard Wydeville, 1st Earl Rivers was born at Maidstone in Kent, he was the son of Sir Richard Wydeville (Woodville), chamberlain to the Duke of Bedford, and Joan Bittlesgate (or Bedlisgate), the daughter of Thomas Bittlesgate of Knighteston, Devon. He was also grandson to John Wydeville who was Sheriff of Northamptonshire (in 1380, 1385, 1390)
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Sir Richard Wydeville, or Woodville (1385-1441) was steward to the Duke of Bedford, Constable of the Tower of London, and Sheriff of Kent. He was also Captain of English Calais.

Wydeville's spouse was Elizabeth Joan Bedelgate (1390-1448).

Sources:

Aileen Lewers Langston and J. Orton Buck, Jr., Pedigrees of Some of the Emperor Charlemagne's Descendants, Vol. II (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1974), 28, 133.

Frederick Lewis Weis, The Magna Charta Sureties, 1215, 5th ed. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1999).

Douglas Richardson, Plantagenet Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2004), 334.

Gary Boyd Roberts, Royal Descents of 500 Immigrants (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002), 242.

Richard married Joan Bedelgate. Joan (daughter of Thomas Bittlesgate) was born 1390, Knighteston, Devon; died 1448. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Woodville,_1st_Earl_Rivers

Sir Richard Wydeville, 1st Earl Rivers was born at Maidstone in Kent, he was the son of Sir Richard Wydeville (Woodville), chamberlain to the Duke of Bedford, and Joan Bittlesgate (or Bedlisgate), the daughter of Thomas Bittlesgate of Knighteston, Devon. He was also grandson to John Wydeville who was Sheriff of Northamptonshire (in 1380, 1385, 1390)
-----------------

Sir Richard Wydeville, or Woodville (1385-1441) was steward to the Duke of Bedford, Constable of the Tower of London, and Sheriff of Kent. He was also Captain of English Calais.

Wydeville's spouse was Elizabeth Joan Bedelgate (1390-1448).

Sources:

Aileen Lewers Langston and J. Orton Buck, Jr., Pedigrees of Some of the Emperor Charlemagne's Descendants, Vol. II (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1974), 28, 133.

Frederick Lewis Weis, The Magna Charta Sureties, 1215, 5th ed. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1999).

Douglas Richardson, Plantagenet Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2004), 334.

Gary Boyd Roberts, Royal Descents of 500 Immigrants (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002), 242.

Notes:

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_I_of_Luxembourg

Peter was the John of Luxembourg, Lord of Beauvoir, and mother, Marguerite of Enghien. They had co-reigned as Count and Countess of Brienne from 1394 to her death in 1397.

He succeeded his father and his aunt Jeanne of Luxembourg, Countess of Saint-Pol and Ligny, as Count of Saint-Pol in 1430.

Peter married Margaret de Baux (a descendant of the Baron of Lisarea Gilbert d'Escors, daughter of Francesco del Balzo's third wife Sueva Orsini, a relation of Clarice Orsini (wife of Lorenzo de' Medici). Peter and Margaret had nine children including:

Louis of Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol, de Brienne, de Ligny, and Conversano, Constable of France (1418-19 December 1475), married firstly, in 1435, Jeanne de Bar, Countess of Marle and Soissons (1415-14 May 1462), by whom he had issue, and from whom descended King Henry IV of France and Mary, Queen of Scots. He married secondly, Marie of Savoy (20 March 1448-1475), by whom he had further issue. He was beheaded in Paris in 1475 for treason against King Louis XI.

Jacquetta of Luxembourg (1415/1416-30 May 1472), married firstly in 1433, John, Duke of Bedford, and secondly, in secret, c.1436, Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers, by whom she had sixteen children, including Elizabeth Woodville, Queen consort of King Edward IV of England. Every English monarch after 1509 descended from her.

The Black Death had hit Luxembourg, France, England and Spain in the 1340s when it caused the deaths of millions of people; and it continued to re-appear at intervals over the succeeding centuries. Peter was among its victims. He died at Rambures on 31 August 1433, aged 43 years, and was buried in the abbey at Cercamp, near Frévent. His wife died 36 years later.



Buried:
Grave location and photo of abbey:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=86369125

Pierre/Peter married Marguerite/Margaret de Baux, Countess of Saint-Pol, of Brienne, and of Conversano. Marguerite/Margaret (daughter of Francois de Baux, Duke of Andria and Sueva Orsini) was born 1394, Provincia di Bari Puglia, Italy; died 15 Nov 1469, France; was buried , Cercamp Abbey Frevent Departement du Pas-de-Calais Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_of_Baux

Margaret was born in 1394, the daughter of Francis of Baux by his third wife Sveva Orsini, a descendant of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester and Eleanor of England (daughter of King John of England).

Her paternal grandparents were Bertrand III of Baux, Count of Andria and Squillace, and Marguerite d'Aulnay, and her maternal grandparents were Nicola Orsini, Count of Nola, Senator of Rome (27 August 1331-14 February 1399), and Jeanne de Sabran.

Margaret married Peter of Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol, of Brienne, and of Conversano (1390 ? 31 August 1433), the eldest son of John of Luxembourg, Lord of Beauvoir and Marguerite of Enghien, Countess of Brienne and of Conversano, Heiress of Enghien. Peter inherited his mother's fiefs, which included the counties of Brienne and Conversano. He succeeded his aunt Jeanne of Luxembourg, Countess of Saint-Pol and Ligny, as Count of Saint-Pol.

Peter and Margaret had nine children including:

Louis of Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol, de Brienne, de Ligny, and Conversano, Constable of France (1418-19 December 1475), married firstly, in 1435, Jeanne de Bar, Countess of Marle and Soissons (1415-14 May 1462), by whom he had issue, and from whom descended King Henry IV of France and Mary, Queen of Scots. He married secondly, Marie of Savoy (20 March 1448-1475), by whom he had further issue. He was beheaded in Paris in 1475 for treason against King Louis XI.

Jacquetta of Luxembourg (1415/1416-30 May 1472), married firstly in 1433, John, Duke of Bedford, and secondly, in secret, c.1436, Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers, by whom she had at least 13 children, including Elizabeth Woodville, queen consort of King Edward IV of England. Every English monarch after King Henry VII of England descends from Jacquetta's granddaughter, Elizabeth of York, queen consort of England.

Margaret died on 15 November 1469 at the age of 75 and was buried in Cercamp Abbey, Frévent, Pas-de-Calais. Her husband Peter had died of plague in 1433.

Buried:
Grave location:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=86369032

Notes:

Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Woodville,_1st_Earl_Rivers

Sir Richard Wydeville, 1st Earl Rivers was born at Maidstone in Kent, he was the son of Sir Richard Wydeville (Woodville), chamberlain to the Duke of Bedford, and Joan Bittlesgate (or Bedlisgate), the daughter of Thomas Bittlesgate of Knighteston, Devon. He was also grandson to John Wydeville who was Sheriff of Northamptonshire (in 1380, 1385, 1390)

Notes:

Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Woodville,_1st_Earl_Rivers

Sir Richard Wydeville, 1st Earl Rivers was born at Maidstone in Kent, he was the son of Sir Richard Wydeville (Woodville), chamberlain to the Duke of Bedford, and Joan Bittlesgate (or Bedlisgate), the daughter of Thomas Bittlesgate of Knighteston, Devon. He was also grandson to John Wydeville who was Sheriff of Northamptonshire (in 1380, 1385, 1390)

Notes:

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_of_Baux

He was the son of Bertrand III of Baux, Count of Andria and Montescaglioso and his second wife, Marguerite d'Aulnay. Francis's father was a Senator of Rome, Captain General of Tuscany, and Justiciar of Naples. The half-royal Baux family was one of the greatest families of the kingdom after the Duke's marriage to Marguerite of Taranto in 1348.

In 1349, Francis was given an extensive grant by Louis, Prince of Taranto. Prince Louis had married Joanna I of Naples in 1346 as her second husband, and had become King of Naples; he was crowned in 1352/53. The King was brother to Francis's second wife, Margaret, whom he had married in 1348. Francis was created Duke of Andria and was the first magnate to be raised to ducal dignity in the kingdom. Andria had been a royal fief which the Duke's father received from Beatrice of Anjou, by virtue of her dower.

On the death of Philip II, Prince of Taranto in 1373, Marguerite and Francis claimed Taranto and Philip's Greek lands (chiefly the Principality of Achaea and its dependent territories) and titles for themselves and their son, James of Baux, as the last male descendant of Philip I, Prince of Taranto. Margaret's claim was supported by Pope Gregory XI. Queen Joanna, however, decided to exercise direct rule over the Prince of Taranto's Greek possessions. In April 1374, Queen Joanna decided to suppress the family and stripped Francis of all his lands and titles. This action led to a civil war between the Queen and the Baux family.

Francis married three times. In 1337, he married firstly to Luisa de San Severino, daughter of Tamasso III de San Severino, Count of Marsico; they had no children.

In 1348, Francis married secondly to Margaret of Taranto, daughter of Philip I, Prince of Taranto by his second wife, Catherine of Valois, titular Latin Empress of Constantinople. She died about September 1380 in imprisonment. They had two children:

James of Baux, Prince of Achaea and the last titular Latin Emperor of Constantinople.

Antonia of Baux, queen consort to Frederick III, King of Sicily.

In 1381, Francis married thirdly to Sueva Orsini, by whom he had issue including Margaret of Baux; mother of Jacquetta of Luxembourg. Through Margaret, Francis was a great-grandfather of queen consort Elizabeth Woodville, wife of King Edward IV of England.



Buried:
Grave location and church photo:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=92735282

Francois married Sueva Orsini. Sueva (daughter of Nicola Orsini, Count of Nola and Jeanne de Sabran) was born ca 1360, Cosenza Calabria, Italy; died ca 1430, Italy; was buried , Church of Sant'Agostino Andria Provincia di Barletta - Andria - Trani Puglia, Italy. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Buried:
Grave location and church photo:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=92749181