John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset

John Beaufort
Earl of Somerset
Head of effigy
Drawing of an alabaster tomb effigy of John Beaufort, wearing a Collar of Esses and plate armour, Canterbury Cathedral
Bornc. 1373
Died16 March 1410 (aged ~37)
Hospital of St Katharine's by the Tower, London, England
Burial
St Michael's Chapel, Canterbury Cathedral
SpouseMargaret Holland
Issue
Detail
HouseBeaufort
FatherJohn of Gaunt
MotherKatherine Swynford

John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset (c. 1373 – 16 March 1410), known as the Marquess of Somerset and Marquess of Dorset from 1397–99, was an English nobleman and politician. Beaufort was the second son of John of Gaunt (1340–1399; third surviving son of King Edward III), eldest of the four children by his mistress Katherine Swynford, whom he later married in 1396.

The Beaufort children were declared legitimate twice by parliament, first during the reign of King Richard II, in 1397,[1] which was confirmed by Henry IV, as well as by Pope Boniface IX in September 1396.[2]

  1. ^ Chris Skidmore, The Rise of the Tudors: The Family That Changed English History (St. Martin's Press, 2013), 17, 22.
  2. ^ Michael K. Jones and Malcolm G. Underwood, The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, (Cambridge University Press, 1995), 19–20.

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