William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke KG ( 142327 July 1469), known as "Black William", was a Welsh nobleman, soldier, politician, and courtier.

Life

He was the son of William ap Thomas, founder of

Raglan Castle Raglan Castle () is a Late Middle Ages, late medieval castle located just north of the village of Raglan, Monmouthshire, Raglan in the county of Monmouthshire in south east Wales. The modern castle dates from between the 15th and early 17th cent ...

, and Gwladys ferch Dafydd Gam, and grandson of

Dafydd Gam Dafydd ap Llewelyn ap Hywel (c. 1380 – 25 October 1415), better known as Dafydd Gam, anglicized to David or Davy Gam, was a Welsh warrior, a prominent opponent of Owain Glyndŵr. He died at the Battle of Agincourt fighting for Henry V, Ki ...

, an adherent of King

Henry V of England Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the Hundred Years' War against ...

. His father had been an ally of Richard of York, and Herbert supported 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, th ...

cause in the

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...

. In 1461 Herbert was rewarded by King Edward IV with the title Baron Herbert of Raglan (having assumed an English-style surname in place of the Welsh

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...

), and was invested as a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, it is outranked in ...

. Soon after the decisive Yorkist victory at the

Battle of Towton The Battle of Towton took place on 29 March 1461 during the Wars of the Roses, near Towton in North Yorkshire, and "has the dubious distinction of being probably the largest and bloodiest battle on English soil". Fought for ten hours between a ...

in 1461, Herbert replaced Jasper Tudor as

Earl of Pembroke Earl of Pembroke is a title in the Peerage of England that was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title, which is associated with Pembroke, Pembrokeshire in West Wales, has been recreated ten times from its origin ...

which gave him control of Pembroke Castle – and with it, he gained the wardship of young Henry Tudor. However, he fell out with Lord Warwick "the Kingmaker" in 1469, when Warwick turned against the King. Herbert was denounced by Warwick and the

Duke of Clarence Duke of Clarence was a substantive title created three times in the Peerage of England. The title Duke of Clarence and St Andrews has also been created in the Peerage of Great Britain, and Duke of Clarence and Avondale and Prince Leopold, Duke ...

as one of the king's "evil advisers". William and his brother

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 ...

were executed by Warwick in Northampton, after the Battle of Edgcote, which took place in South Northamptonshire, near Banbury. Herbert was succeeded by his son,

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, but the earldom was surrendered in 1479. It was later revived for a grandson, another William Herbert, the son of Black William's illegitimate son, Sir Richard Herbert of

Ewyas Ewyas () was a possible early Welsh people, Welsh kingdom which may have been formed around the time of the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century. The name was later used for a much smaller commote or administrative sub-division, which ...

Marriage and children

He married Anne Devereux, daughter of Walter Devereux, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and Elizabeth Merbury. They had at least ten children: *

William Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke William Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (5 March 145116 July 1491) was an English nobleman and politician. Early life He was the son of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (8th Creation), William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke and Anne Devereux. ...

(5 March 1451 – 16 July 1491). *Sir Walter Herbert. (c. 1452 – 16 September 1507) Married Lady Anne Stafford, sister to the Duke of Buckingham. *Sir George Herbert of St. Julians. *Philip Herbert of Lanyhangel. *Cecilie Herbert. *Maud Herbert. Married Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland. *Katherine Herbert. Married George Grey, 2nd Earl of Kent. *Anne Herbert. Married John Grey, 1st Baron Grey of Powis, 9th Lord of Powys (died 1497). *Isabel Herbert. Married Sir Thomas Cokesey. *Margaret Herbert. Married first Thomas Talbot, 2nd Viscount Lisle, and secondly Sir Henry Bodrugan. William had three illegitimate sons but the identities of their mothers are unconfirmed: * Sir Richard Herbert of Ewyas. Father of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (of the 10th creation). Probably son of Maud, daughter of Adam ap Howell Graunt (Gwynn). *Sir George Herbert. The son of Frond verch Hoesgyn. Married Sybil Croft. *Sir William Herbert of Troye. Son of Frond verch Hoesgyn. Married, secondly, Blanche Whitney (née Milborne). They had two sons."Ruth E. Richardson,'Mistress Blanche, Queen Elizabeth I's Confidante'"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pembroke, William Herbert, 01st Earl Of 1420s births 1469 deaths Year of birth uncertain *01 1 Executed Welsh people William Herbert, 01st Earl of Pembroke (1468 creation) Knights of the Garter People executed under the Plantagenets by decapitation People executed under the Yorkists People of the Wars of the Roses

Life

Marriage and children

See also

References