Sir Humphrey Stafford (c. 1427 – 8 July 1486) of

Grafton Manor Grafton Manor (13 miles north-east of Worcester and 2 1/2 miles south-west of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire) was established before the Norman Conquest. Grafton means "settlement at or near the wood" and may indicate a role in woodland management w ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

, was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteristi ...

who took part in the

War of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the throne of England, English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These w ...

on the

Yorkist The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, t ...

side. He was executed by Henry VII following his fighting for

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 ...

and his role in the Stafford and Lovell rebellion.

Origins

Bromsgrove Church of St John, memorial to the Staffords

Humphrey Stafford was born in about 1427 in Grafton, Worcestershire, the son of Sir Humphrey Stafford (1400–1450) who was slain in 1450 in

Jack Cade's Rebellion Jack Cade's Rebellion was a popular revolt in 1450 against the government of England, which took place in the south-east of the country between the months of April and July. It stemmed from local grievances regarding the corruption, maladmini ...

Career

Humphrey Stafford inherited Grafton and Upton Warren in 1449–50. He fought at the

Battle of Bosworth 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 ...

with

Stafford and Lovell rebellion

Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother Thomas Stafford, joined by

Francis Lovell, 1st Viscount Lovell Francis Lovell, 9th Baron Lovell, 6th Baron Holand, later 1st Viscount Lovell, KG (1456 – probably 1487) was an English nobleman who was an ally of King Richard III during the War of the Roses. Sir William Catesby, Sir Richard Ratcliffe and h ...

, led the inauspicious Stafford and Lovell Rebellion in 1486. After a Yorkist defeat at The Battle of Bosworth, Sir Humphrey Stafford, with Thomas Stafford and Lord Lovell, sought

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a saf ...

together at

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

where they planned the rebellion. The conspirators hoped to restore the

monarchy. While Lord Lovell went to Yorkshire, the Stafford brothers went to the Midlands. On 23 April 1486, after a failed attempt to seize Henry VII in York, Lord Lovell escaped to

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

. In the meantime, the Stafford brothers' rebellion in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

had failed, in part due to lack of proper planning and in part because King Henry had some support in that area. After a period of uncertainty caused by the

, there was a general consensus for peace among English people, meaning few supported the idea of a rebellion. Furthermore, rumours surrounding

after the alleged murders 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 ...

, and his brother

Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

Tim Thornton
"More on a Murder: The Deaths of the ‘Princes in the Tower’, and Historiographical Implications for the Regimes of Henry VII and Henry VIII."
''History'' 106.369 (2021): 4-25. meant a lack of support for Richard III loyalists. During this time King Henry was on a nationwide tour of the country. As soon as he advanced towards Worcester in order to eliminate Yorkist support, on 11 May 1486 the Stafford brothers fled to

Culham Culham is a village and civil parish in a bend of the River Thames, south of Abingdon in Oxfordshire. The parish includes Culham Science Centre and Europa School UK (formerly the European School, Culham, which was the only Accredited Europea ...

. Despite the fact that Stafford had sought sanctuary, he was forcibly removed from his sanctuary on the night of 13 May on charges of treason by John Barrowman and one follower. Henry then ordered Humphrey's execution, but pardoned the younger Thomas. The arrest prompted a series of protests to

Pope Innocent VIII Pope Innocent VIII ( la, Innocentius VIII; it, Innocenzo VIII; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death in July 1492. Son of th ...

over the breaking of sanctuary; these resulted in a Papal bull in August which severely limited the rights of sanctuary, excluding it completely in cases of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

, thereby vindicating the King's actions. Humphrey was executed at

Tyburn Tyburn was a manor (estate) in the county of Middlesex, one of two which were served by the parish of Marylebone. The parish, probably therefore also the manor, was bounded by Roman roads to the west (modern Edgware Road) and south (modern Ox ...

on 8 July 1486.

Marriage and family

Humphrey Stafford married Catherine Fray (1437–1482), the daughter of Sir

John Fray Sir John Fray (died 1461) was an English lawyer who was Chief Baron of the Exchequer and a Member of Parliament. He was elected Member of Parliament for Hertfordshire in 1419 and 1420. He served on a number of commissions before being appointe ...

Chief Baron of the Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who pre ...

, in Grafton. They had eight children: # Anne Stafford, married

Richard Neville, 2nd Baron Latimer Richard Neville, 2nd Baron Latimer KB (c.1468 – c. 28 December 1530) of Snape, North Yorkshire, was an English soldier and peer. He fought at the battles of Stoke and Flodden. Richard Neville was the eldest son of Sir Henry Neville, who ...

# Joyce Stafford # Margarita Stafford (1456–1530) # Elizabeth Stafford (b. circa 1465) # William Stafford (d. 1556) # Thomas Stafford (b. circa 1450) # Henry Stafford (b. 1455) # Humphrey Stafford (died 1545) of Blatherwick,

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 ...

, married Margaret Fogge, of daughter

John Fogge Sir John Fogge (born c. 1417/c. 1425) was an English courtier, soldier and supporter of the Woodville family under Edward IV of England, Edward IV who became an opponent of Richard III of England, Richard III. Family John Fogge, born about 141 ...

References

Sources

*{{Cite journal , title = The Rebellion of Humphrey Stafford in 1486 , last = Williams , first = C.H. , journal = English Historical Review , publisher =

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, volume = 43 , issue = 170 , date=April 1928 , pages = 181–9 , jstor = 552001 , doi=10.1093/ehr/xliii.clxx.181 People of the Wars of the Roses 15th-century English people People executed under Henry VII of England

Humphrey Humphrey is both a masculine given name and a surname. An earlier form, not attested since Medieval times, was Hunfrid. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name Medieval period :''Ordered chronologically'' *Hunfrid of P ...