John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset

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Not to be confused with John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset.

John Beaufort
John, Duke of Somerset
  • Thomas, Count of Perche
  • Edmund, Duke of Somerset
  • Margaret, Countess of Devon
    • HouseBeaufort
    FatherJohn of Gaunt
    MotherKatherine Swynford

    John Beaufort, 1st Marquess of Somerset and 1st Marquess of Dorset, later only 1st Earl of Somerset,

    Edward III) by his mistress Katherine Swynford
    , whom he later married in 1396.

    The Beaufort children were declared legitimate twice by parliament, first during the reign of King

    Richard II, in 1397,[1] which was confirmed by Henry IV, as well as by Pope Boniface IX in September 1396.[2] Even though they were the grandchildren of Edward III and next in the line of succession after their father's legitimate children by his first two wives, the Beauforts were barred from succession to the throne by their half-brother Henry IV.[3]

    Early life

    Map showing location of the Castle of Beaufort in the Champagne region of France, probable birthplace of John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset[4]
    Flat countryside surrounding the site of the now-demolished Beaufort Castle, Champagne

    Beaufort's surname (properly de Beaufort, "from Beaufort") probably reflects his birthplace

    House of Commons, is believed to have been based on that of the castle of Beaufort, now demolished.[7]

    Heraldic badge of the House of Beaufort: A portcullis chained or, believed[4] to represent the portcullis defending the gate of Castle Beaufort in Champagne, birthplace of John Beaufort 1st Earl of Somerset. Today it continues to be used as the badge of two officers of the College of Arms in London, namely the Somerset Herald and the Portcullis Pursuivant, is the symbol of the British House of Commons and has appeared on several British coins.[8]

    Between May and September 1390, Beaufort saw military service in North Africa in the

    Teutonic Knights.[9]

    John was created

    Henry Bolingbroke
    (later Henry IV) was banished from England in 1398.

    Later career

    After Richard II was deposed by Henry Bolingbroke in 1399, the new king rescinded the titles that had been given to the counter-appellants, and thus John Beaufort became merely

    Constable of England
    .

    Family

    John Beaufort and his wife Margaret Holland, the daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent and Alice FitzAlan, had six children. His granddaughter Lady Margaret Beaufort married Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond, the son of Dowager Queen Catherine of Valois by Owen Tudor.

    John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset, died in the Hospital of St Katharine's by the Tower. He was buried in St Michael's Chapel in Canterbury Cathedral.

    His children included the following:

    Appointments

    Arms

    As a legitimised grandson of King Edward III, Beaufort bore that king's royal arms, differenced by a bordure gobony argent and azure.[12]

    • Early arms of John Beaufort with a bend dexter
      Early arms of John Beaufort with a bend dexter
    • Beaufort arms (ancient): Royal arms of King Edward III within a bordure compony argent and azure
      Beaufort arms (ancient): Royal arms of King Edward III within a bordure compony argent and azure
    • Beaufort arms (modern): Quarterly, 1st & 4th: Azure, three fleurs de lis or (France); 2nd & 3rd: Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale or (England); all within a bordure compony argent and azure[13]
      Beaufort arms (
      England); all within a bordure compony argent and azure[13]

    Arms of Beaufort, legitimised progeny of John of Gaunt, third surviving son of King Edward III: Royal arms of King Edward III within a bordure compony argent and azure (see

    Henry Somerset, 3rd Marquess of Worcester (1629–1700), was created Duke of Beaufort
    . These arms are thus used by Beaufort, Duke of Somerset (extinct) and Somerset, Duke of Beaufort (extant).

    Ancestry

    Notes

    1. ^ Chris Skidmore, The Rise of the Tudors: The Family That Changed English History (St. Martin's Press, 2013), 17, 22.
    2. ^ a b c d e Michael K. Jones and Malcolm G. Underwood, The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, (Cambridge University Press, 1995), 19–20.
    3. ^ This prohibition was not specified in the original act of 1397, but appears in a 1407 confirmation by Henry IV (Pollard 158), making the ultimate legality of the addition uncertain. While this legal wrangling ultimately caused an enormous amount of bloodshed and destruction, it did result in one of the Beaufort descendants ascending the throne as Henry VII.
    4. ^ a b c Willement, Thomas, Heraldic Notices of Canterbury Cathedral; with Genealogical and Topographical Notes, London, 1827, p.3, note (e).[1]
    5. ^ Pollard, A. (1901). "Beaufort, John, first Earl of Somerset and Marquis of Dorset and of Somerset (1373?–1410)" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography (1st supplement). Vol. 1. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
    6. ^ Armitage-Smith 196–199
    7. ^ Willement
    8. ^ The Beaufort Portcullis was shown on the reverse of British pennies minted between 1971 and 2008.
    9. ^ G. E. C., ed. Geoffrey F. White. The Complete Peerage. (London: St. Chaterine Press, 1953) Vol. XII, Part 1, p. 40.
    10. ^ Pollard 158
    11. ^ Michael K. Jones and Malcolm G. Underwood, The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, 23.
    12. ^ Marks of Cadency in the British Royal Family
    13. ^ Debrett's Peerage, 1968, p.125
    14. ^ Brown 2004.
    15. ^ Marshall 2003, p. 50.
    16. ^ Weir 2008, p. 232.
    17. ^ a b c d Weir 2008, p. 93.
    18. ^ Weir 2007, p. 6.
    19. ^ a b Weir 2008, p. 92.
    20. ^ a b Weir 2008, p. 87.
    21. ^ a b Weir 2008, p. 89.

    References

    External links
    Political offices
    Preceded by
    The Duke of York
    		 Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
    1398–1399     		Succeeded by
    Sir Thomas Erpynham
    Peerage of England
    New creation
    Earl of Somerset

    1397–1410     		Succeeded by
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