Thomas Vaughan (died 1483)
Sir Thomas Vaughan | |
---|---|
Born | c. 1410 |
Died | 25 June 1483 (aged 72/73) |
Occupation | statesman |
Spouse | Eleanor Arundel |
Parent(s) | Robert Vaughan, Margaret Vaughan |
Sir Thomas Vaughan (c. 1410 – 25 June 1483) was a Welsh statesman and diplomat, who rose to prominence before and during the Wars of the Roses. He began as an adherent of Jasper Tudor and King Henry VI of England, and was appointed to several offices by Henry. He was nonetheless a Yorkist by inclination, as were many Welshmen of the time. After the Yorkist victory in 1461 he became a loyal and important servant of King Edward IV. In 1483, he was executed by Richard III as part of his seizure of the throne.
Life
Vaughan was the son of Robert and Margaret Vaughan of
Despite his early association with Jasper Tudor, Earl of Pembroke, Vaughan was accused of plotting against King
After Henry's defeat at Saint Albans in 1461, Vaughan, along with Philip Malpas and William Hatclyf, sailed for Ireland with Henry's treasury, but were captured by French pirates. Edward IV, surprisingly, ransomed Vaughan from the pirates, for which Vaughan was forever afterwards loyal. Edward soon came to trust Vaughan and placed him in high offices.
Vaughan was appointed
Edward also sent Vaughan as ambassador to the courts of
In 1475, on the same day that Edward's eldest son, the future Edward V, was invested as Prince of Wales, Vaughan was knighted, having acted for some years as Chamberlain to the young prince.
In 1478, he was elected to parliament as knight of the shire for Cornwall.
After Edward IV died in 1483, Vaughan was accompanying Edward V from Ludlow to London when the party was intercepted by the future King Richard III, then Duke of Gloucester. Richard had Vaughan arrested and executed along with Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers and tutor for Edward V. Also arrested was Edward V's half brother, Sir Richard Grey, son of Sir John Grey of Groby, the first husband of Elizabeth Woodville. All three were beheaded at Pontefract Castle on 25 June 1483, in West Yorkshire.
Vaughan was the second husband of Eleanor Arundel, widow of
In
Notes
- ^ Richardson I 2011, pp. 338–9.
- ^ Jones 1959.
References
- Jones, Evan David (1959). "VAUGHAN, Sir THOMAS (died 1483), soldier, court official, ambassador, chamberlain to the prince of Wales". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales.
- Richardson, Douglas (2011). Everingham, Kimball G. (ed.). Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families. Vol. I (2nd ed.). Salt Lake City. ISBN 978-1449966379.)
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