Margaret Beaufort ( 1437 – 1474) was a daughter of

Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset, 4th Earl of Somerset, 1st Earl of Dorset, 1st Marquess of Dorset styled 1st Count of Mortain, KG (140622 May 1455), was an English nobleman and an important figure during the Hundred Years' War. His riva ...

and Lady

Eleanor Beauchamp Lady Eleanor Beauchamp, Baroness de Ros and Duchess of Somerset (September 1408 – 6 March 1467) was the second daughter of Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick and Elizabeth de Berkeley, daughter of Thomas de Berkeley, 5th Baron Berkele ...

. Her maternal grandparents were

Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick Richard Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick (25 or 28 January 138230 April 1439) was an English medieval nobleman and military commander. Early life Beauchamp was born at Salwarpe CourtRichard Gough, ''Description of the Beauchamp chapel, adjoin ...

and his first wife Elizabeth Beauchamp, 4th Baroness Lisle. Elizabeth was daughter of

Thomas de Berkeley, 5th Baron Berkeley Thomas de Berkeley, 5th Baron Berkeley (5 January 1352/53 – 13 July 1417), ''The Magnificent'', of Berkeley Castle and of Wotton-under-Edge in Gloucestershire, was an English peer and an admiral. His epithet, and that of each previous and s ...

and

Margaret de Berkeley, 3rd Baroness Lisle Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...

, becoming the main heiress of her mother.

Marriages

Margaret's father led forces loyal to the House of Lancaster in the

First Battle of St Albans The First Battle of St Albans, fought on 22 May 1455 at St Albans, 22 miles (35 km) north of London, traditionally marks the beginning of the Wars of the Roses in England. Richard, Duke of York, and his allies, the Neville earls of Salisb ...

(22 May 1455) against his main rival

Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York (21 September 1411 – 30 December 1460), also named Richard Plantagenet, was a leading English magnate and claimant to the throne during the Wars of the Roses. He was a member of the ruling House of Plantage ...

. Henry Stafford followed his father-in-law into battle. Margaret's father was killed; her husband, Stafford, was wounded. Margaret could no longer count on the support of her father. She became a widow when her husband died of plague three years later.

Ancestry

Sources

*Weir, Alison. ''Britain's Royal Families: The Complete Genealogy.'' London: Vintage Books, 2008. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Stafford, Margaret Beaufort, Countess Of 1420s births 1474 deaths British courtesy countesses

Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Stafford Margaret Beaufort ( 1437 – 1474) was a daughter of Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset and Lady Eleanor Beauchamp. Her maternal grandparents were Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick and his first wife Elizabeth Beauchamp, Countess o ...

15th-century English women 15th-century English people Daughters of English dukes