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in: Plantagenet (surname), Born in 1375, Died in 1415,
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Richard of Conisburgh, 1st Earl of Cambridge (c1376-1415)

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  • Earl of Cambridge
  • Key figure in 1415 Southampton Plot

Richard of Conisburgh, 1st Earl of Cambridge was born circa 20 July 1375 to Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York (1341-1402) and Isabella de Castilla (1355-1392) and died 5 August 1415 of execution by decapitation. He married Anne de Mortimer (1390-1411) June 1408 JL . He married Matilda Clifford (-1446) 1414 JL .

Biography

Richard of Conisburgh, Earl of Cambridge was a prominent figure during the late medieval period in England. He was born in 1385 as the second son of Edmund of Langley, Duke of York, and his wife Isabella of Castile. Richard's father was the fourth son of King Edward III, which made Richard a grandson of the King.

In 1406, Richard married Anne Mortimer, the granddaughter of King Edward III's third son, Lionel of Antwerp. This marriage gave Richard a claim to the throne of England, as his wife was a direct descendant of King Edward III. Richard and Anne had a son named Richard, who would later become the Duke of York and play a significant role in the Wars of the Roses.

Richard of Conisburgh was involved in several political intrigues during his lifetime. In 1415, he was implicated in a plot to overthrow King Henry V and replace him with the Earl of March, who was Richard's nephew and heir to the throne. The plot was uncovered, and Richard was executed for treason on August 5, 1415, at Southampton.

Richard's involvement in the plot to overthrow King Henry V tarnished his family's reputation, and his descendants were viewed with suspicion by the English monarchy. However, his son Richard, the Duke of York, continued to assert his claim to the throne, leading to the start of the Wars of the Roses in 1455.

In summary, Richard of Conisburgh, Earl of Cambridge was a nobleman with a claim to the English throne, who was executed for treason in 1415. His son, Richard, the Duke of York, would later become a central figure in the Wars of the Roses.

Southampton Plot and Execution

In the Parliament of 1414, Richard was created Earl of Cambridge, a title formerly held by his elder brother, Edward, 2nd Duke of York, who had earlier ceased to be Earl of Cambridge either by resignation or deprivation of the title.[1]

Richard's creation as Earl of Cambridge in 1414, however, brought with it no accompanying grant of lands, and according to Harriss, Cambridge was 'the poorest of the earls' who were to set out on Henry V's invasion of France. As a result, he lacked the resources to equip himself properly for the expedition.[2] Perhaps partly for this reason, Richard conspired with Lord Scrope and Sir Thomas Grey to depose Henry V of England and place his late wife Anne's brother Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, on the throne. On 31 July, Mortimer revealed the plot to the king. Later, he served on the commission that condemned Richard to death. Although Richard pleaded with the king for clemency, he was beheaded on 5 August 1415 and buried in the chapel of God's House at Southampton (now St. Julien's Church, Southampton[3]). The fleet set sail for France a few days later, on 11 August 1415.

The Southampton Plot is dramatised in Shakespeare's Henry V, and in the anonymous play, The History of Sir John Oldcastle. In the parliament of 1461, King Edward IV had the sentence that had been passed on his grandfather, Richard, Earl of Cambridge, annulled as 'irregular and unlawful'.[4]

Marriages and issue

1st Marriage: Anne de Mortimer

Early in 1408 Richard married Anne de Mortimer (1390-1411), the eldest of the four children of Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, and Eleanor Holland. Anne was a niece of Richard's stepmother [[Joan Holland ,[5] and the granddaughter of his first cousin, Philippa of Clarence. Thus, Richard and Anne are first cousins twice removed, yet they are close in age; Richard is actually only three years older than she.

The marriage took place secretly, without parental consent, and was validated on 23 May 1408 by papal dispensation. It brought Richard no financial benefit, since Anne's only income was an annuity of £50 granted for her maintenance by Henry IV in 1406.[6]

By his first wife, Richard had two sons and a daughter:[7]

  1. Isabel of York (1409 – 2 October 1484), who in 1412, at three years of age, was betrothed to Sir Thomas Grey, son and heir of Sir Thomas Grey of Heaton in Norham, Northumberland, and his wife, Alice Neville, the daughter of Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, by whom she had one son.[8] Before 25 April 1426, Isabel married secondly Henry Bourchier, 1st Earl of Essex, by whom she had seven sons and one daughter.[9] This marriage was later validated by papal dispensation.
  2. Henry of York.[10]
  3. Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York (22 September 1411 – 30 December 1460), who married Cecily Neville, the youngest daughter of Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, by whom he had twelve children: Anne of York, Duchess of Exeter; Henry; King Edward IV; Edmund, Earl of Rutland; Elizabeth of York, Duchess of Suffolk; Margaret of York, Duchess of Burgundy; William; John; George, Duke of Clarence; Thomas; King Richard III; and Ursula.[11]

Anne de Mortimer died on 22 September 1411 soon after the birth of her son Richard. She was buried at Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, once the site of Kings Langley Palace, perhaps in the conventual church which houses the tombs of her husband's father Edmund and his first wife Isabella of Castile.[12]

2nd Marriage: Matilda Clifford

After the death of Anne de Mortimer, Richard married Maud Clifford, the divorced wife of John Neville, 6th Baron Latimer, and daughter of Thomas de Clifford, 6th Baron de Clifford, by Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas de Ros, 4th Baron de Ros, of Helmsley.[13]

After Richard’s death in 1415, his second wife, Maud Clifford, is said to have lived in 'great state' at Conisbrough Castle and elsewhere.[14][15] She died on 26 August 1446 and was buried at Roche Abbey, Yorkshire.[16] She left a will dated 15 August 1446 in which no mention is made of her stepchildren.[17]


Children


Offspring of Richard Plantagenet and Anne de Mortimer (1390-1411)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Isabella Plantagenet (1409-1484)
Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York (1411-1460) 20 September 1411 30 December 1460 Sandal Magna, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom Cecily Neville (1415-1495)


Offspring of Richard Plantagenet and Matilda Clifford (-1446)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Alice Plantagenet (c1415-)



Siblings


Offspring of Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York (1341-1402) and Isabella de Castilla (1355-1392)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York (1373-1415) 1373 25 October 1415 Beatriz of Portugal (1372-1408)
Philippa de Mohun (-1431)
Constance of York (c1374-1416) 1374 28 November 1416 Reading, Berkshire, England Thomas le Despenser, 1st Earl of Gloucester (1373-1400)
Edmund Holland, 4th Earl of Kent (1383-1408)
Richard of Conisburgh, 1st Earl of Cambridge (c1376-1415) 20 July 1375 5 August 1415 Anne de Mortimer (1390-1411)
Matilda Clifford (-1446)


Arms

Arms of Richard of Conisburgh, 3rd Earl of Cambridge

Arms of Richard, Earl of Cambridge

Richard bore his father's arms (those of the kingdom, differenced by a label argent of three points, each bearing three torteaux gules), differenced by a bordure Leon.[18][19]

See Also

Bibliography


External Links

Ancestry Trees

Contemporary References

ConigsburghP2

Plaque noting the execution of Richard

The best contemporary sources about Richard of Conisburgh, Earl of Cambridge's life and death include, but note that due to political events, some of these accounts may be a bit biased:

  1. "The Parliament Rolls of Medieval England" - This is a collection of official records from the medieval English parliament, including proceedings related to Richard's trial and execution.
  2. "The Chronicle of London" - This is a contemporary chronicle of events in London, which includes a brief account of Richard's execution.
  3. "The Cely Papers" - This is a collection of letters and documents from a London merchant family, including a letter from one of the Cely brothers mentioning Richard's execution.
  4. "The Paston Letters" - This is a collection of letters between members of the Paston family, who were prominent landowners in Norfolk. The letters mention Richard's execution and the impact it had on local politics.

Original Citations

'1415: Chronicle of London'

"The Chronicle of London" (ed. Charles Lethbridge Kingsford, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1905), p. 109:

"Also the V. day of August was beheded at Suthampton Richarde Erle of Cambrigge and other, that were take with him, as Thomas Wyndesore Squyer, and other, for trason that thei had conspired ayenst our kynge Henry the fyfthe, and thei were had to London to be hanged and quartred; and the saide Erle was beheded at Suthampton the saide V. day of August."

Translation: "Also, on the 5th day of August, Richard, Earl of Cambridge, and others who were captured with him, including Thomas Wyndesore, a squire, and others, were beheaded at Southampton for treason. They had conspired against our King Henry V, and they were taken to London to be hanged and quartered. The said Earl was beheaded at Southampton on the 5th day of August."

Royal Succession Charts

Peerage of England
Preceded by
Edward of Norwich 		Earl of Cambridge
1414–1415 		Attainted

Footnotes

  1. ^ Cokayne 1912, p. 494.
  2. ^ Harriss 2004.
  3. ^ Peberdy, Philip (1971). Historic Buildings of Southampton. The Libraries and Arts Committee of the City of Southampton. p. 21. 
  4. ^ Harriss 2004; Cokayne 1932, p. 495.
  5. ^ Pugh 1988, p. 94.
  6. ^ Cokayne 1912, p. 494; Pugh 1988, p. 94; Richardson IV 2011, p. 400; Harriss 2004.
  7. ^ Richardson IV 2011, pp. 400–5.
  8. ^ Burke's Peerage & Baronetage, 106th Edition, Charles Mosley Editor-in-Chief, 1999, page 15, 1222
  9. ^ Richardson IV 2011, pp. 401–3.
  10. ^ Henry is not mentioned by Pugh.
  11. ^ Richardson IV 2011, pp. 403–11.
  12. ^ Richardson IV 2011, pp. 400, 404; Harriss 2004.
  13. ^ Richardson I 2011, p. 507; Richardson III 2011, p. 245; Richardson IV 2011, p. 400.
  14. ^ Cokayne 1932, p. 495.
  15. ^ A bit of contridiction given that all above Richard complains of his poor inheritance.
  16. ^ Richardson IV 2011, p. 401.
  17. ^ Surtees Society 1855, pp. 118–24.
  18. ^ Marks of Cadency in the British Royal Family
  19. ^ Fox-Davies 1909, pp. 188, 189, 493.


Footnotes (including sources)

Thurstan, Phlox, Rtol, MainTour

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