by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2017

Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales; 18th-century engraving; Credit – Wikipedia

Edward of Westminster was one of the seven Princes of Wales who never became King. The others are:

• • Edward of Woodstock (the Black Prince), predeceased his father King Edward III
  • Edward of Middleham, predeceased his father King Richard III,  two years later, his father lost his crown and his life at the Battle of Bosworth Field
  • Arthur Tudor, predeceased his father King Henry VII
  • Henry Frederick Stuart, predeceased his father King James I
  • James Francis Edward Stuart, his father King James II was deposed
  • Frederick Louis, predeceased his father King George II

Edward of Westminster was born on October 13, 1453, at the Palace of Westminster in London. He was the only child of King Henry VI of England and Margaret of Anjou. In 1454, Edward was created Prince of Wales.

Shortly before his son was born, Henry VI had some kind of mental breakdown. He was unable to recognize or respond to people for over a year. These attacks may have been hereditary. Henry’s maternal grandfather, King Charles VI, suffered similar attacks, thinking he was made of glass. Sometimes Henry had hallucinations, which makes some modern medical experts think he may have had a form of schizophrenia. Porphyria, which may have afflicted King George III, has also been suggested as a cause. During Henry VI’s incapacity, Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, the next in line to the throne after Henry V’s son, governed as Lord Protector.

Even before Edward’s birth, factions were forming, and the seeds of the Wars of the Roses were being planted. Edward’s mother, Margaret of Anjou, was an intelligent, energetic woman and realized she would have to take on most of her husband’s duties.  She aligned herself with Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset. Margaret believed her husband was threatened with being deposed by Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, who thought he had a better claim to the throne and would be a better king than Henry. After Henry’s recovery in 1455, the Duke of York was dismissed, and Margaret and the Duke of Somerset became all-powerful. Eventually, things came to a head between the Lancastrians and the Yorkists, and war broke out.

At the First Battle of St. Albans on May 22, 1455, the Duke of Somerset was killed. Afterward, there was peace, but hostilities started again four years later. On July 10, 1460, Henry VI was captured at the Battle of Northampton and forced to recognize the Duke of York as his heir instead of his own son. Margaret rallied the Lancastrian forces and was victorious at the Battle of Wakefield on December 29, 1460. Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York and his second son Edmund, Earl of Rutland were both killed in the battle.

The leader of the Yorkists was now the late Duke of York’s eldest son Edward, Earl of March, the future King Edward IV. During the Second Battle of St. Albans on February 17, 1461, Henry VI’s freedom was secured, and it is alleged that he laughed and sang insanely throughout the battle. The Yorkists regained the upper hand at the Battle of Towton on March 29, 1461, when Edward, Earl of March defeated the Lancastrian forces in a snowstorm. Henry fled to Scotland, and England had a new king, as Edward, Earl of March became King Edward IV from the House of York.

Henry VI returned from Scotland in 1464 and participated in an ineffective uprising. In 1465, Henry was captured and taken to the Tower of London. His wife Margaret, exiled in France, wanted to restore the throne to her husband. Coincidentally, King Edward IV had a falling out with his major supporters, his brother George, Duke of Clarence and Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, known as the Kingmaker. Margaret, Clarence, and Warwick formed an alliance at the urging of King Louis XI of France. Edward IV was forced into exile, and Henry VI was restored to the throne on October 30, 1470.

Margaret of Anjou was suspicious of Warwick, and to ease her suspicions, Warwick betrothed his daughter Lady Anne Neville to Edward, Prince of Wales. On December 13, 1470, 17-year-old Edward and 14-year-old Anne were married in Angers Cathedral in France, and Anne became Princess of Wales. It is suspected that the marriage was never consummated.

However, once again, Edward IV got the upper hand. Edward IV returned to England in early 1471 and killed Warwick at the Battle of Barnet. The final decisive Yorkist victory was at the Battle of Tewkesbury on May 4, 1471, where Margaret led the Lancastrian forces, and her son Edward, Prince of Wales was killed.  The only Prince of Wales to be killed in battle, he was buried at Tewkesbury Abbey, where a plaque on the floor in the center of the sanctuary marks his grave.  The plaque has an inscription in Latin, translated into English says: “Here lies Edward, Prince of Wales, cruelly slain whilst but a youth. Anno Domini 1471, May 4th. Alas, the savagery of men. Thou art the sole light of thy Mother, and the last hope of thy race.”

Plaque marking the grave of Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales; Credit – www.susanhigginbotham.com

Henry VI was returned to the Tower of London and died on May 21, 1471, probably murdered on orders from Edward IV.  Edward, Prince of Wales’ widow Anne Neville married Edward IV’s brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who eventually succeeded to the throne as King Richard III in 1483.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Contemporary drawing of Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales; Credit – Wikipedia

Edward of Middleham was one of the seven Princes of Wales who never became King. The others are:

• Edward the Black Prince, predeceased his father King Edward III
• Edward of Westminster, his father King Henry VI was deposed, and then Edward was killed in battle
• Arthur Tudor, predeceased his father King Henry VII
• Henry Frederick Stuart, predeceased his father King James I
• James Francis Edward Stuart, his father King James II was deposed
• Frederick Louis, predeceased his father King George II

Edward of Middleham was probably born in December 1473 at Middleham Castle, near York, England. At the time of his birth, his parents were the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the future King Richard III and his wife Lady Anne Neville. Edward was a sickly child and spent most of his time at Middleham Castle.

Middleham Castle; By CJW – CJW, Attribution, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2831364

Two years before Edward’s birth, his paternal uncle King Edward IV had once and for all defeated King Henry VI and the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses. On April 9, 1483, King Edward IV died, several weeks before his 41st birthday, and his 13-year-old son became King Edward V with his uncle (and Edward’s father) Richard, Duke of Gloucester as his Lord Protector. Richard feared that the Woodvilles, the family of Edward IV’s wife, Elizabeth Woodville, would attempt to take control of the young king. Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers, the young king’s maternal uncle, and Sir Richard Grey, the young king’s half-brother, were arrested and executed.

The Duke of Gloucester had his nephew brought to the Tower of London on May 19, 1483, to await his coronation, which never happened. The widowed Elizabeth Woodville and her children sought sanctuary at Westminster Abbey, fearing the Duke of Gloucester’s further actions. Elizabeth was persuaded to let her second son, Richard, Duke of York, leave sanctuary and join his lonely brother at the Tower of London. Richard joined his brother on June 16, 1483. The two boys, who were Edward’s first cousins, were seen less and less until by the end of the summer of 1483, when they disappeared from public view altogether. Their fate is unknown.

Richard, Duke of Gloucester was then informed that Edward IV’s marriage was invalid because he had previously contracted to marry Lady Eleanor Butler, who was living when the marriage to Elizabeth took place. This made Edward IV and Elizabeth’s children illegitimate and upheld Richard’s claim to the throne. The citizens of London drew up a petition asking Richard to assume the throne, which he agreed to on June 26, 1483. On July 6, 1483, Richard and his wife Anne Neville were crowned in Westminster Abbey, but their son Edward did not attend, probably due to illness.

On August 24, 1483, Edward was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester.  During the summer of 1483, King Richard III and Queen Anne made a royal progress of their kingdom.  Edward joined them at Pontefract Castle in West Yorkshire, England, and accompanied them to York.  On September 8, 1483, Edward’s ceremonial investiture as Prince of Wales was held at York Minster in York, England

Contemporary illumination of Richard III, his queen Anne Neville, and their son Edward the Prince of Wales; Credit – Wikipedia

King Richard III and Queen Anne were on a royal progress and had reached Nottingham when they heard the news that on April 9, 1484, Edward died of unknown causes at the age of ten at his birthplace, Middleham Castle. The Croyland Chronicle reported, “You might have seen his father and mother in a state almost bordering madness, by reason of their sudden grief.”  His burial place is unknown.  For a very long time, it was thought that an effigy on a cenotaph (empty tomb) in St. Helen and Holy Cross Church in Sheriff Hutton, England was Edward, but it is now thought to be an earlier member of the Neville family.

Edward’s mother Anne survived her son by less than a year, dying most likely of tuberculosis, on March 16, 1485, at the Palace of Westminster. Her husband King Richard III survived her by only five months, losing his crown and his life on August 22, 1485, at the Battle of Bosworth Field.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited
“Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales.” Wikipedia. N.p.: Wikimedia Foundation, 5 Oct. 2016. Web. 5 Nov. 2016.
Susan. “Anne Neville, queen of England.” British Royals. Unofficial Royalty, 19 June 2016. Web. 5 Nov. 2016.
Williamson, David. Brewer’s British Royalty. London: Cassell, 1996. Print.

On each Christmas Day at 3 PM United Kingdom time, Queen Elizabeth II’s Christmas Broadcast is viewed by families across the United Kingdom, even by the Royal Family who sit down to their Christmas dinner at Sandringham House at 1:15 PM so they will be ready to watch the broadcast together. This year’s broadcast can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvSsmBDY_fk

Official Website of the British Monarchy: History of the Christmas Broadcast

Queen Elizabeth II missed Christmas services for the first time in 28 years because of a heavy cold.  A palace spokesperson said, “Her Majesty the Queen will not attend church at Sandringham this morning. The Queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery. Her Majesty will participate in the Royal Family Christmas celebrations during the day.”  Zara and Mike Tindall were not seen as the Royal Family made their annual walk to Christmas services.  It was announced yesterday that the Queen’s granddaughter had suffered a miscarriage.  However, her mother Princess Anne, The Princess Royal and her brother Peter Phillips and his family attended the Christmas services. Click on the links for more photos.

• BBC: Queen misses Christmas Day church service ‘because of cold’
• Daily Mail: The Queen misses traditional Christmas day church service at Sandringham for the first time in 30 years as she is ‘recovering from a heavy cold’ but the rest of the Royal family attend
• Getty Images: The Royal Family Attend Church On Christmas Day

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince George and Princess Charlotte are spending Christmas with the Middleton family in Bucklebury, Berkshire and attended Christmas services there.

• Daily Mail: Prince George and Princess Charlotte steal the show as their parents take them to the church in Kate’s home village of Bucklebury where Pippa is thought to be getting married in May
• Getty Images: The Middleton Family Attend Church On Christmas Day

Prince Albert, The Prince Consort; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

December 14 was the worst day of the year for Queen Victoria. On that day in 1861, her beloved husband Prince Albert had died at the age of 42. Besides the death of Prince Albert, December 14 marked several other events in Queen Victoria’s family.

• Unofficial Royalty: December 14 – Queen Victoria’s Dire Day

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by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

The effigy of Lady Frances Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk; Credit – Wikipedia

A granddaughter of King Henry VII of England and the mother of the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey, Lady Frances Brandon was the second child of the four children and eldest daughter of Mary Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England, and Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk. Lady Frances Brandon was born on July 16, 1517, at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire, England. At the time of her birth, Hatfield House belonged to the Bishop of Ely. Her mother was making a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk, England when she unexpectedly went into labor, so she stopped at Hatfield House to have her baby.

Frances’ parents Mary Tudor and Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk; Credit – Wikipedia

Frances had two brothers and one sister, but only her sister survived childhood:

• Henry Brandon (1516 – 1522)
• Lady Eleanor Brandon (1519 – 1547), married Henry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland, had two sons and one daughter, only the daughter survived
• Henry Brandon, 1st Earl of Lincoln (circa 1523 – 1534)

Although Frances and her siblings were only the children of a duke, they had their mother’s royal blood. They were the grandchildren of King Henry VII of England and the nieces and nephews of King Henry VIII of England and therefore had claims to the English throne.  Frances and her siblings along with their older half-sisters Anne and Mary Brandon, grew up under the supervision of their nurse Anne Kynge at Westhrope Hall in Suffolk, England.

Frances’ father tried to arrange a marriage for her with Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, eldest son of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk. However, the marriage proposal was rejected because Frances’ dowry was not large enough. When Frances was 12-years-old, she was betrothed to Henry Grey, 3rd Marquess of Dorset. In 1533, with the permission of her uncle King Henry VIII, Frances married Henry Grey at Suffolk Place, her father’s mansion in Southwark, London. Frances’ wedding was the last public appearance of her mother Mary Tudor. Immediately after the wedding, the already seriously ill Mary went back to Westhorpe Hall where she died on June 25, 1533.

Frances and Henry’s home was Bradgate House in Leicestershire, one of the homes of the Grey family. Their first two children, a son and a daughter, both died young. They then had three daughters.

• Lady Jane Grey (1537–1554), married Lord Guildford Dudley, no children; Queen of England from July 10, 1553 – July 19, 1553, executed 1554
• Lady Catherine Grey (1540–1568), married (1) Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, marriage annulled, no children; (2) Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford, had two sons
• Lady Mary Grey (1545–1578), married Thomas Keyes, no children

Three months after his wife’s death, Frances’ father Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, married his ward, 14-year-old Catherine Willoughby, Baroness Willoughby de Eresby in her own right. She had been betrothed to his son Henry Brandon, Earl of Lincoln, but he was too young to marry. Suffolk did not wish to risk losing Catherine’s lands, so he married her himself. Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk died in 1545. He had two sons with Catherine Willoughby, Henry, 2nd Duke of Suffolk (1535–1551) and Charles, 3rd Duke of Suffolk (c. 1537–1551), who both died of the sweating sickness within an hour of each other.

As the niece of King Henry VIII, Frances was one of the highest-ranking women at court and often took on ceremonial duties. Together with her first cousins who were almost the same age, Princess Mary (Henry VIII’s daughter, later Queen Mary I) and Lady Margaret Douglas (Margaret Tudor’s daughter), she led the funeral procession for her uncle’s third wife Jane Seymour and was among the ladies who welcomed Henry VIII’s fourth wife Anne of Cleves to England. Along with her younger sister Eleanor, her stepmother Catherine Willoughby, and her cousin Margaret Douglas, Frances served as a lady-in-waiting to her uncle’s sixth wife Catherine Parr. This was a great honor and it allowed Frances’ eldest daughter Jane to be introduced into the higher circles at court.

After the death of Frances’ half-brothers Henry and Charles in 1551, the title Duke of Suffolk reverted back to the crown. Since Frances was now the rightful heir to her father, her husband Henry Grey was granted the title Duke of Suffolk “jure uxoris” (by right of his wife). This was a social advancement that improved the family’s financial situation.

Frances was aware of the role her daughters, especially her eldest daughter Jane, could play in England. Jane was very well educated. She studied Greek and Hebrew with John Aylmer, later Bishop of England, and Italian and Latin with Michelangelo Florio, a former Franciscan friar who converted to Protestantism. In 1547, Jane was sent to live in the household of King Edward VI’s uncle, Thomas Seymour, who married King Henry VIII’s widow, Catherine Parr. Jane lived with the couple until the death of Catherine in childbirth in September 1548 and acted as chief mourner at Catherine’s funeral.

The powerful John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland thought marrying one of his sons to Lady Jane Grey would be a good idea. On May 25, 1553, three weddings were celebrated at Durham Place, the Duke of Northumberland’s London home. Lord Guildford Dudley, the fifth surviving son of the Duke of Northumberland married Lady Jane Grey, Guildford’s sister Lady Katherine Dudley married Henry Hastings, the Earl of Huntingdon’s heir, and Jane’s sister Lady Catherine Grey married Henry Herbert, the heir of the Earl of Pembroke.

As King Edward VI lay dying in the early summer of 1553, the succession to the throne according to the Third Succession Act looked like this, and note that number four in the succession was the Duke of Northumberland’s daughter-in-law.

1) Mary, daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon
2) Elizabeth, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn
3) Duchess of Suffolk (Lady Frances Brandon), daughter of Mary Tudor
4) Lady Jane Grey, daughter of Frances Brandon
5) Lady Catherine Grey, daughter of Frances Brandon
6) Lady Mary Grey, daughter of Frances Brandon
7) Lady Margaret Clifford, daughter of Countess of Cumberland (born Lady Eleanor Brandon, daughter of Mary Tudor)

King Edward VI’s death and the succession of his Catholic half-sister Mary would cause trouble for the English Reformation. Many on Edward’s Council feared this, including the Duke of Northumberland. What exact role the Duke of Northumberland had in what followed is still debated, but surely he played a big part in the unfolding of what happened. The king opposed Mary’s succession not only for religious reasons but also because of her illegitimacy and his belief in male succession. Both Edward’s half sisters Mary and Elizabeth were still considered legally illegitimate.

King Edward composed a document “My devise for the succession” in which he passed over his half-sisters and Frances. Edward meant for the throne to go to Frances’ daughters and their male heirs.  Frances and her husband were outraged at her removal from the succession, but after a meeting with the ailing king, Frances renounced her rights in favor of her daughter Jane.  Jane did not have any idea of what was occurring.

After great suffering, fifteen-year-old King Edward VI died on July 6, 1553, most likely from tuberculosis. On July 9, Jane was told she was Queen of England and reluctantly accepted the fact. She was publicly proclaimed Queen with much pomp after Edward’s death was announced on July 10. Queen Jane made a state entry into the Tower of London. Frances carried her train and the rather short Queen Jane wore raised shoes to give her height. Jane showed some spirit when she refused to allow her husband to be proclaimed king.

The Duke of Northumberland had to find Mary and hopefully capture her before she could gather support.  However, as soon as Mary knew her half-brother was dead, she wrote a letter to the Privy Council with orders for her proclamation as Edward’s successor and started to gather support.  By July 12, Mary and her supporters had assembled a military force at Framlingham Castle in Suffolk.  The Duke of Northumberland set out from London with troops on July 14.  The nobility was incensed with Northumberland and the people,  for the most part, wanted Mary as their Queen, not Jane.  In Northumberland’s absence, the Privy Council switched their allegiance from Jane to Mary and proclaimed her Queen on July 19, 1553.  Mary arrived triumphantly in London on August 3, 1553, accompanied by her half-sister Elizabeth and a procession of over 800 nobles and gentlemen.

The Duke of Northumberland was executed on August 22, 1553. Lady Jane Grey and Lord Guildford Dudley were charged with high treason as was Jane’s father Henry Grey, Duke of Suffolk. They were all found guilty. Queen Mary appeared as if she was going to be lenient, but the Protestant rebellion of Thomas Wyatt the Younger in January 1554 sealed Jane’s fate, even though she had nothing to do with the rebellion. Wyatt’s Rebellion was a reaction to Queen Mary’s planned marriage to the future King Philip II of Spain. Lady Jane Grey and Lord Guildford Dudley were executed on February 12, 1534. The Duke of Suffolk was executed on February 23, 1554.

Frances’ life was now in ruins. Because her husband was a traitor, all his possessions reverted to the Crown. Frances managed to plead with her cousin Queen Mary I to show mercy. Mary agreed that some of the Duke of Suffolk’s property could remain with the family. Frances married her Master of the Horse Adrian Stokes in March 1555. They had two stillborn children and a daughter who died in infancy. Frances, aged 42, died on November 20, 1559, at her residence Charterhouse in London with her daughters Catherine and Mary at her side. The cost of her funeral was paid by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I. With her daughter Catherine acting as chief mourner, Frances was buried at Westminster Abbey. Four years later, her widower Adrian Stokes had a beautiful tomb and effigy placed over her grave with this epitaph in Latin:

Nor grace, nor splendor, nor a royal name,
Nor widespread fame can aught avail;
All, all have vanished here.
True worth alone survives the funeral pyre and silent tomb.

Tomb of Frances Brandon in Westminster Abbey; Credit – Wikipedia

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited
Abrufstatistik. “Frances Brandon.” Wikipedia. N.p.: Wikimedia Foundation, Jan. 2008. Web. 30 Oct. 2016.
“Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk.” Wikipedia. N.p.: Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Oct. 2016. Web. 30 Oct. 2016.
Susan. “Lady Jane Grey, Queen of England.” British Royals. Unofficial Royalty, 10 July 2013. Web. 30 Oct. 2016.