John Vaughan, 1st Earl of Carbery (1574 or 1575 – 6 May 1634) was a Welsh

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

and politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

in 1601 and from 1621 to 1622. He served

Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (; 10 November 1565 – 25 February 1601) was an English nobleman and a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during th ...

, and later

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

, heir to the throne of King James I. However, his career ended when the Prince acceded to the throne in 1625, and he later estimated that serving the Prince had cost him £20,000, which went unrecompensed.

Early life

Born to a

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

family, Vaughan was the son of Walter Vaughan of Golden Grove,

Llandeilo Llandeilo () is a town and Community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, situated where the River Towy is crossed by the A483 road, A483 on a 19th-century stone bridge. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census the community had ...

(who died 1597),
Walter Vaughan, accessed January 2015 and his wife Katherine, a daughter of Gruffydd ap Rhys of Dinefwr Castle, Dinefwr. His Vaughan grandfather, another John, was the first of the family to settle at Golden Grove and claimed descent from Bleddyn ap Cynfyn (died 1075), a Prince of

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

and of

Powys Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...

of the Royal

House of Mathrafal The Royal House of Mathrafal, also known as the House of Powys, began as a cadet branch of the Royal House of Dinefwr, taking their name from Mathrafal Castle.

. Vaughan's father married secondly Letitia, a daughter of

Sir John Perrot Sir John Perrot (7 November 1528 – 3 November 1592) was a member of the Welsh people, Welsh gentry who served as Lord Deputy of Ireland under Queen Elizabeth I of England during the Tudor conquest of Ireland. It was formerly speculated that he ...

, Lord Deputy of Ireland.VAUGHAN family, of Golden Grove, Carms.
at Welsh Biography Online (web site of the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales (, ) in Aberystwyth is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals, and the l ...

) accessed 19 March 2008 His brothers included the writer William Vaughan. and the MP

Henry Vaughan Henry Vaughan (17 April 1621 – 23 April 1695) was a Welsh metaphysical poet, author and translator writing in English, and a medical physician. His religious poetry appeared in ''Silex Scintillans'' in 1650, with a second part in 1655.''Oxfo ...

Vaughan

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from

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship ...

in 1592 at the age of 17. He became a member of the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1596. His early career was linked with

– Essex described Vaughan as his "servant" in 1598 and Vaughan married the daughter of Essex's steward in Wales. He followed Essex on his expedition to Ireland in 1599 and was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

ed by him. When Essex revolted against

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen B ...

, Vaughan's links to Essex meant that he came under suspicion for a time. He represented the constituency of Carmarthenshire in the

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

of 1601 (and also in the 1621 Parliament), and his reputation was restored. He concentrated on his position in Carmarthenshire in the years following the accession of King James I in 1603. He was appointed High Sheriff of Carmarthenshire for 1605.

Service with Prince Charles

Vaughan worked to obtain a position in the household of

, the heir to the throne, and in 1614 asked the Earl of Somerset, who was close to the king, to use his influence. He was successful, gaining the profitable office of comptroller when Prince Charles's household was formed in 1616. He was raised to the

Irish peerage The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

Mullingar Mullingar ( ; ) is the county town of County Westmeath in Ireland. It is the third most populous town in the Midland Region, Ireland, Midland Region, with a population of 22,667 in the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census. The Counties of M ...

whilst Parliament was in recess in 1621, which caused questions to be raised as to whether he was thereby disqualified from sitting as a member of the

. He did not seek election to Parliament thereafter. He accompanied Prince Charles in the misadventure of the "

Spanish Match The Spanish match was a proposed marriage between Prince Charles I of England, Charles, the son of King James VI & I of Kingdom of Scotland and Kingdom of England, England, and Infante, Infanta Maria Anna of Spain, the daughter of Philip III of ...

", when the prince travelled to Spain in 1623 to seek a marriage with

Maria Anna of Spain Maria Anna of Spain (18 August 160613 May 1646)Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

whilst in Spain, and the mission cost him (he said) between £3,000 and £4,000. Charles succeeded to the throne in 1625, and Vaughan was removed from his position as comptroller without compensation or further appointment. In 1628, he sought reimbursement for his expenses on the expedition to Spain, saying to Sir John Coke that his service with Prince Charles had cost him in all some £20,000. Though in 1628 he was created Earl of Carbery in the

Irish Peerage The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

, it is unclear whether this was intended as compensation or whether he had to pay for this advancement. He remained at Golden Grove, the Vaughan estate in

Llanfihangel Aberbythych Llanfihangel Aberbythych () is a Community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. The population recorded at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 1,344. It is bordered by Llangathen, Llandeilo, Dyffryn Cennen, Llandybie, Gorsl ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

and died there in May 1634. He was buried in the family vault in the church of Llandeilo Fawr, Carmarthenshire. He was succeeded by his only surviving son,

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

Marriages and children

Vaughan married Margaret, a daughter of Sir Gelly Meyrick, with whom he had issue. Vaughan's father-in-law Sir Gelly Meyrick took part in the Earl of Essex's revolt and was executed for treason on 13 March 1601. Meyrick's daughter Margaret Vaughan and his son Roland Meyrick were restored in blood and name by King James I in 1606. He married secondly to Jane (c.1563 – Nov 1643), daughter of Sir Thomas Palmer of Wingham, Kent, widow and relict of Sir William Meredith, 1st Baronet of Stainsty, county Denbigh, Wales, who by her marriage to Vaughan was styled Countess of Carbery, and who survived him. Vaughan's surviving children by his first marriage were his eldest son

, and his daughter Elizabeth (d. by 1642) who married Sir Henry Salusbury, 1st Baronet.Elizabeth Vaughan
at stirnet.com, accessed 20 March 2008 Vaughan's sister Elinor married John Protheroe of Nantyrhebog, River Severn, Powys, Wales.Walter Vaughan
at llanelli-history.i12.com, accessed 20 March 2008

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carbery, John Vaughan, 1st Earl Of 1570s births 1634 deaths People from Llandeilo Earls in the Peerage of Ireland Members of the Inner Temple Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for constituencies in Wales Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford High sheriffs of Carmarthenshire 17th-century Welsh politicians English MPs 1601 English MPs 1621–1622 Peers of Ireland created by James I