John Golafre (died 1442) was an English courtier and Member of Parliament. He was born the only son of Thomas Golafre of Radley Manor in

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

(now

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

). An uncle was Sir John Brocas, Master of the King's Horse. A cousin, Sir John Golafre, was a close friend of the king. By 1395 he had secured a position at the court of Richard II. In 1396 he inherited the extensive estates of his uncle, another Sir John Golafre. The older Sir John was the Constable of

Wallingford Castle Wallingford Castle was a major medieval castle situated in Wallingford in the English county of Oxfordshire (historically Berkshire), adjacent to the River Thames. Established in the 11th century as a motte-and-bailey design within an Anglo-Sa ...

and had married Philippa, daughter of

Lord Mohun Charles Mohun, 4th Baron Mohun (c. 1675 – 15 November 1712) was an English politician best known for his frequent participation in duels and for his reputation as a rake. He was killed in the celebrated Hamilton–Mohun Duel in Hyde Park. ...

, but died without issue. He is buried in Westminster Abbey. In 1397 he was appointed

Sheriff of Oxfordshire The High Sheriff of Oxfordshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'. The title of High Sheriff is therefore much older ...

and

. He was also that year elected as a

Knight of the Shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistributio ...

(MP) for Oxfordshire. In 1399 he was briefly imprisoned by Henry IV for his support of King Richard but in 1404 was reappointed sheriff. He was afterwards appointed sheriff for 1414 and 1424. During much of this period he also served as a Justice of the Peace (JP) for Oxfordshire. He was elected MP for

in 1401 and re-elected on another 11 occasions between then and 1429. He also served on a number of commissions and was tax controller (1404), escheator (1409–1410), controller and surveyor of

Woodstock Palace Woodstock Palace was a royal residence in the English town of Woodstock, Oxfordshire. Henry I of England built a hunting lodge here and in 1129 he built of walls to create the first enclosed park, where lions and leopards were kept. The lodge b ...

(1413–1438) in Oxfordshire and verderer of Woodstock Park (1398 to his death in 1442). In 1406 he gained possession of Fyfield Manor in Berkshire (now Oxfordshire), which he made his home. He was amongst Henry V's army on his second French expedition in 1417 and was appointed Receiver-General of the Duchy of Normandy and all occupied France in 1418. On his death in 1442 he was buried under a remarkable two-tier "

memento mori ''Memento mori'' (Latin for 'remember that you ave todie' He married three times: firstly Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir Edmund de la Pole of Boarstall Castle in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

, co-heiress of her mother, Elizabeth Handlo, and widow of Sir Ingram Bruyn of

South Ockendon South Ockendon is a town, former civil parish and Church of England parish within the Thurrock borough in Essex in the East of England, United Kingdom. It is located on the border with Greater London, just outside the M25 motorway. The area to th ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

; secondly Nicola, the daughter and heiress of Thomas Devenish of Greatham in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

and widow of John Englefield of

Englefield House Englefield House is an Elizabethan country house with surrounding estate at Englefield in the English county of Berkshire. The gardens are open to the public all year round on particular weekdays and the house by appointment only for large gr ...

in Berkshire; and thirdly Margaret, the daughter of Sir John Heveningham, and widow of Sir Walter de la Pole of Dernford in

Sawston Sawston is a large village in Cambridgeshire in England, situated on the River Cam about south of Cambridge. It has a population of 7,260. History Prehistory Although the current village of Sawston has only existed as anything more than a ha ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Golafre, John Date of birth unknown 1442 deaths High Sheriffs of Oxfordshire High Sheriffs of Berkshire English MPs September 1397 English MPs 1401 People from Vale of White Horse (district) People from Radley English MPs October 1404 English MPs 1407 English MPs 1410 English MPs May 1413 English MPs April 1414 English MPs March 1416 English MPs May 1421 English MPs 1422 English MPs 1426 English MPs 1427 English MPs 1429 Members of the Parliament of England for Berkshire