Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Stafford

For other people of the same name, see Margaret Beaufort (disambiguation).

Margaret Beaufort
Countess of Stafford
Spouse(s)	Humphrey Stafford, Earl of Stafford Sir Richard Dayrell
Issue Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham Margaret Dayrell, Baroness Audley
Father	Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset
Mother	Lady Eleanor Beauchamp
Born	1437
Died	1474

Margaret Beaufort (c. 1437 – 1474) was a daughter of Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset and Lady Eleanor Beauchamp.

Her maternal grandparents were Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick and his first wife Elizabeth Beauchamp, 4th Baroness Lisle. Elizabeth was daughter of Thomas de Berkeley, 5th Baron Berkeley and Margaret de Berkeley, 3rd Baroness Lisle, becoming the main heiress of her mother.

Marriages

Margaret was first married to Humphrey Stafford, Earl of Stafford. He was the eldest son and prospective heir of Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham by his wife Anne Neville. Anne was daughter of Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland and his 2nd wife, Joan Beaufort, youngest daughter of John of Gaunt and his mistress / third wife Katherine Swynford. They had only one known child:

• Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (4 September 1454 – 2 November 1483).

Her father led forces loyal to the House of Lancaster in the First Battle of St Albans (22 May 1455) against his main rival Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York. The Earl of Stafford followed his father-in-law into battle. Margaret's father was killed; her husband, Stafford, was wounded. Margaret could no longer count on the support of her father; and she became a widow when her husband died of plague three years later.

She had a second marriage to Sir Richard Dayrell. They were parents to at least one child:

• Margaret Dayrell. She married James Tuchet, 7th Baron Audley and was mother of John Tuchet, 8th Baron Audley.

Ancestry

Family of Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Stafford

16. Edward III of England               8. John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster                       17. Philippa of Hainault               4. John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset                             18. Payne de Roet               9. Katherine Swynford                       2. Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset                                   20. Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent               10. Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent                       21. Joan of Kent               5. Margaret Holland                             22. Richard Fitzalan, 10th Earl of Arundel               11. Alice Fitzalan                       23. Eleanor of Lancaster               1. Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Stafford                                         24. Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick               12. Thomas de Beauchamp, 12th Earl of Warwick                       25. Katherine Mortimer               6. Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick                             26. William Ferrers, 3rd Baron Ferrers of Groby               13. Margaret Ferrers                       27. Margaret de Ufford               3. Lady Eleanor Beauchamp                                   28. Maurice de Berkeley, 4th Baron Berkeley               14. Thomas de Berkeley, 5th Baron Berkeley                       29. Elizabeth le Despenser               7. Elizabeth de Berkeley                             30. Warin de Lisle, 2nd Lord Lisle               15. Margaret de Lisle, Baroness Lisle                       31. Margaret Pipard

Sources

• Weir, Alison. Britain's Royal Families: The Complete Genealogy. London: Vintage Books, 2008. ISBN 0-09-953973-X.