William Catesby (1450 – 25 August 1485) was one of

Richard III of England Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

's principal councillors. He also served as

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...

and

Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...

during Richard's reign. The Catesbys’ medieval wealth derived from

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...

and the zenith of their political achievement came during his career. The son of Sir William Catesby of

Ashby St Ledgers Ashby St Ledgers is a village in the West Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England.OS Explorer Map Map 223 - Northampton & Market Harborough (1:25 000) The post town is Rugby in Warwickshire. The population of the civil parish at ...

, Northamptonshire (died 1478) and Philippa, daughter and heiress of Sir William Bishopston, he was trained for the law in the Inner Temple. As an aspiring lawyer Catesby initially progressed in the service of

William, 1st Lord Hastings William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings KG (c. 1431 – June 1483) was an English nobleman. A loyal follower of the House of York during the Wars of the Roses, he became a close friend and one of the most important courtiers of King Edward IV, ...

. He married Margaret, daughter of William La Zouche, 6th Baron Zouche of Harringworth; the couple had three sons. Upon the death of his father he inherited many estates in the English Midlands and was land-agent for many others. He was a member of the Council that ruled during the reign of

Edward V Edward V (2 November 1470 – mid-1483)R. F. Walker, "Princes in the Tower", in S. H. Steinberg et al, ''A New Dictionary of British History'', St. Martin's Press, New York, 1963, p. 286. was ''de jure'' King of England and Lord of Ireland fro ...

. After Richard was enthroned, Catesby was one of King Richard's closest advisors. He served as

, and as Speaker of the English House of Commons during the Parliament of 1484, in which he sat as knight of the shire for

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

. He also received a substantial grant of land from the king, enough to make him richer than most knights. In July 1484,

William Collingbourne William Collingborn (c. 1435–1484) was an English landowner and administrator. He was an opponent of King Richard III – corresponding with his enemies and penning a famous lampoon – and was eventually executed for treason. Family ...

, a Tudor agent, tacked up a lampooning poem to

St. Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Gr ...

, which mentions Catesby among the three aides to King Richard, whose emblem was a white boar: (The dog here refers to Lovell's

heraldic Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...

symbol, a wolf.)Fields, Bertram. ''Royal Blood: Richard III and the Mystery of the Princes''. 2000 The poem was interpolated into

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...

's film ''

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

'', a screen adaptation of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's play. Collingbourne was hanged, drawn and quartered for this and other alleged treasonable activities. William Catesby was one of the two councillors (the other being

Richard Ratcliffe Sir Richard Ratcliffe, KG (died 22 August 1485) was a close confidant of Richard III of England. Life Ratcliffe came from a gentry family in the Lake District, and became a companion of Richard when the latter was still Duke of Gloucester (1461 ...

) who are reputed to have told the king that marrying Elizabeth of York would cause rebellions in the north.Weir ''The Princes in the Tower'' p. 211-212. He fought alongside Richard at the

Battle of Bosworth Field The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 Augu ...

and was captured. Alone of those of importance, he was executed three days later at

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

. The suggestion that he might have made a deal with the Stanleys before the battle comes from his will when he asked them "to pray for my soul as ye have not for my body, as I trusted in you." After his death, his estates were largely confiscated by Henry VII. Catesby was succeeded by his eldest son, George, to whom the family seat of Ashby St Legers was later restored. Robert Catesby, leader of the Gunpowder Plot, was a descendant.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Catesby, William 1450 births 1485 deaths Chancellors of the Exchequer of England Speakers of the House of Commons of England People of the Wars of the Roses Knights Bachelor People executed under Henry VII of England Executed people from Northamptonshire English MPs 1484 People from West Northamptonshire District Male Shakespearean characters Date of birth unknown People executed by Tudor England by decapitation English politicians convicted of crimes