Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester

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English Royalty
House of Plantagenet

Armorial of Plantagenet
Edward III
   Edward, Prince of Wales
   Lionel, Duke of Clarence
   John, Duke of Lancaster
   Edmund, Duke of York
   Thomas, Duke of Gloucester
   Joan of England
   Isabella, Countess of Bedford
Grandchildren
    Richard II
    Philippa, Countess of Ulster
    Philippa, Queen of Portugal
    Elizabeth, Baroness Fanhope and Milbroke
    Henry IV
    Catherine, Queen of Castile
    Edward, Duke of York
    Richard, Earl of Cambridge
    Constance of York
    Anne, Countess of Eu

Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester (January 7, 1355September 8 (or 9), 1397) was the thirteenth and youngest child of King Edward III of England and Queen Philippa. He was the fifth of the five sons of Edward III who survived to adulthood. Thomas was murdered by Nicholas Colfox in Calais in 1397 on behalf of his nephew, King Richard II of England, causing an outcry amongst the nobility of England which is considered by many to have added to Richard's unpopularity.

[edit] Early life

Thomas was born after two short-lived sons, one of whom had also been baptised Thomas. He was born at Woodstock Palace in Oxfordshire. He married Eleanor de Bohun in 1376, and inherited the title Earl of Essex from his father-in-law, Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford. Woodstock's wife's younger sister, Mary de Bohun, was subsequently married to Henry "Bolingbroke," who eventually became Henry IV of England.

At the age of 22, in 1377, Woodstock was created Earl of Buckingham. In 1385 he received the title Duke of Aumale, and at about the same time was created Duke of Gloucester.

[edit] Offspring and heirs

Thomas and his wife had one son and four daughters. Following his murder (probably on the orders of his nephew, King Richard II of England), at Calais in 1397, his title was forfeit and did not pass to his son, Humphrey.

His eldest daughter, Anne of Gloucester, married into the powerful Stafford family, who were Earls of Stafford and Dukes of Buckingham, and four generations after Thomas, the disposition of the de Bohun estates may have been a motivating factor in the involvement of Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham in plots against the crown during the period of Richard III. She later married into the Bourchier family (the Earls of Bath) and established a long American line of descendants.

[edit] References

    Preceded by
    The Earl of Hereford and Essex
    Lord High Constable
    1372–1397
    Succeeded by
    The Earl of Buckingham
    Preceded by
    New Creation
    Duke of Gloucester
    1385–1397
    Succeeded by
    Forfeit