"Fauconbridge, Knight of the Noble Orders of St. George, "St. Michael, and the Golden Fleece, Great Marfhal to King "Henry the Sixth of his realm of France."

We have already taken notice of the Earl of Shrewsbury's marriage with Maud, daughter of Thomas Nevil, Lord Furnival. By her he had iffue John, who fucceeded him in his honours and eftates; and alfo Sir Chriftopher and Sir Humphrey Talbot, Knights. But the Earl alfo married a fecond wife, named Margarer, daughter of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, by whom he had another fon John, in right of his wife ftiled Vifcount Lifle, who was flain with his father; Sir Humphrey Talbot; a daughter, named Elizabeth, married to John Mowbray, Earl of Norfolk; and another named Eleanor, married to Thomas, Lord of Sudley caftle. He had alfo a natural fon, whom we have before had occafion to mention, named Henry Talbot, who was killed, together with Lord Lifle and his father, near Chatillon.

46

Camden, in his Remains concerning Britain, fays, that the Earl of Shrewlbury's fword was not long fince found in the river "of Dordon, and fold by a peafant to an armourer of Bour"deaux, with this infcription; but pardon (he adds) the Latin, for it was not his, but his camping chaplain's.

"SVM TALBOTI M. IIII. C. XLIII.
"PRO VINCERE INIMICO MEO."

The Life of RICHARD NEVIL,

Earl of Warwick.

HE celebrated Nobleman whofe life we are now entering upon, made fo confpicuous a figure in the public tranfactions of his times, that it would be a kind of injuftice to neglect him in a series of British Biography; though he has been, indeed, entirely omitted, as well as the fubject of our preceding life, in fome of the most confiderable compilations of this kind.

RICHARD NEVIL, eldest fon of Richard Nevil, Earl of Salisbury, was born in the beginning of the reign of King Henry the Sixth. He was very early diftinguished for his valour and perfonal accomplishments. In 1448, he accompanied his father, the Earl of Salisbury; who, in conjunction with the Earl of Northumberland, entered into Scotland with a body of troops, and burnt the towns of Dunbar and Dumfries; and Lord Richard Nevil acquired much reputation for his bravery in this affair. He married Anne, daughter of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick. That Nobleman, who died in 1439, was fucceeded by his fon Henry, afterwards created Duke of Warwick; but he dying alfo in 1445, and leaving only an infant daughter as his heirefs, who died in January, 1449, in the fixth year of her age, Lord Richard Nevil, in right of his wife, fucceeded to all the great eftates of the Warwick family, and had also the title of Earl of Warwick confirmed to him by patent, July 23, 1449, with all the preheminencies enjoyed by any of his wife's ancestors, before her brother Henry was cre ated Duke of Warwick.

nour.

This was a very great acceffion of fortune, as well as of hoFor it appears that the annual income of the lands poffeffed by Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, in the twelfth year of King Henry VI. which all now devolved upon our Earl, amounted to no lefs than eight thousand fix hundred and fix marks, which Dugdale computes to have been equal to at leaft fix times that fum in his time. And our Richard, Earl of Warwick, with Anne his Countefs, in the twenty-eighth year of Henry VI. entailed the caftle of Warwick, with a great number of fine Lordships, in that and fixteen other counties, upon the iffue of their bodies, lawfully begotten. So that, on account of his great eftates, family connections, and perfonal influence, the

Earl

Earl of Warwick was juftly confidered as one of the most powerful Noblemen in the kingdom.

But in order to understand the fubfequent tranfactions in the Earl of Warwick's life, it will be neceffary to take a view of the fate of parties, and of the public affairs, in England, at this period. The Prince upon the Throne, King Henry VI. was remarkably harmless and inoffenfive in his manners, but of a very weak understanding, and entirely governed by those who furrounded him. His Queen, Margaret of Anjou, was a woman of a bold and intriguing fpirit, and who poffeffed abilities greatly fuperior to the generality of her fex. Almost immediately on her arrival in England, fhe had fallen into close connection with Cardinal Beaufort, and the Duke of Suffolk, and their party. We have in the two preceding lives had occafion to fpeak of the animofity between Cardinal Beaufort, and the Duke of Gloucefter. The Duke of Gloucefter had endeavoured to prevent the marriage of King Henry with Margaret; and was, therefore, the object of her averfion. And as the Cardinal's party were now ftrengthened by the influence of the Queen, they had determined to effect the ruin of Gloucefter. Accordingly they accufed him of treafon, and caufed him to be arrested, and put under a ftrong guard; foon after which he was found dead in his bed. It was pretended, that he died a natural death; but it was more generally fuppofed, that he had fallen a facrifice to the malice of his enemies. As the Duke of Gloucefter was extremely popular, his death excited univerfal clamours against the Cardinal and the Duke of Suffolk, who were confidered as the authors of it; nor was the Queen free from a ftrong fufpicion of being privy to it. The Cardinal, however, furvived the Duke of Gloucefter but fix weeks; dying, as it is faid, with all the horrors of a guilty confcience. But befides these things, the people were highly incenfed at the bad conduct of the Miniftry, and their negligence in whatever related to the national interefts, and in confequence of which the English dominions in France were entirely left. And the Duke of Suffolk, to whom Queen Margaret was very much attached, was particularly the object of the public avertion.

It was in this fituation of affairs, under a weak Prince, and under the adminiftration of an odious and unpopular Miniftry, that Richard Plantagenet, the lineal heir to the Crown, on whom, we have before obferved, the title of Duke of York had been conferred, firft began to hint his pretenfions to the Crown. He was a Prince of much courage and ability; and his caufe was favoured by fome of the principal Nobility, particularly the family of Nevil, to which he was allied, he having married the daughter of Ralph Nevil, Earl of Weftmoreland, the grandfather of our Earl of Warwick. The family of Nevil was the mof powerful and confiderable at this time in England; for

befides

befides the Earls of Westmoreland, Salisbury (x), and Warwick, the Lords Latimer, Fauconbridge, and Abergavenny. were of this family. And befides thefe Noblemen, the Duke of York had alfo in his intereft Courtenay, Earl of Devonshire, and Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk. Thus fupported, the pretenfions of the Duke of York were very formidable, though the Court at firft did not feem fufficiently apprized of this; for the Duke conducted himself with great prudence and caution.

The Earl of Warwick was thus, by his family connections, early engaged in the York interest. "And the difcontents, "which univerfally prevailed among the people, (as Mr. Hume "obferves,) rendered every combination of the Great, the

more dangerous to the established Government." In 1450 the public clamour against the Duke of Suffolk, who was confidered as Prime-Minifter, and chief favourite of the Queen, being very great, a charge of high treafon was exhibited against him by the Commons; however, an expedient was found to fave him from prefent ruin; for the King, by his own authority. banished him the kingdom for five years; but this only haftened his deftruction; for he was intercepted by fome employed by the oppofite party, in his paffage to France, feized near Dover, and his head ftruck off on the fide of a boat.. But the public difcontent did not ftop here; an infurrection was raifed in Kent, by one John Cade, who affumed the name of John Mortimer, intending, it is fuppofed, to pafs for a fon of Sir John Mortimer, brother to the late Earl of Marche, who was illegally executed, without a trial, in the beginning of this reign. And though this rebellion was at length quelled, yet the numbers who joined Cade, fufficiently fhewed how much the people were difcontented with the prefent Government, and how well affected great numbers were to the Mortimer family (y). And, indeed, though the Duke of York had not openly countenanced this rebellion, it was yet ftrongly fufpected, that he had fecretly fomented

(x) The Earl of Salisbury, father to our Earl of Warwick, was the eldeft fon by a fecond marriage of Ralph, Earl of Westmoreland. He acquired the title and eftates of the Salisbury family, as his fon did thofe of Warwick, by marriage, he having married the daughter and heirefs of Thomas Montacute, Earl of Salif bury, who was killed at the fiege of Orleans.

(y) Cade is faid to have been a native of Ireland, who had been obliged to fly into France for his crimes. On his affuming the name of Mortimer, the common people of

Kent, to the number of twenty thoufand, flocked to his ftandard. He excited their zeal, by publishing complaints against the Government, and demanding redrefs of the national grievances. Sir Humphrey Stafford, with a body of troops, was fent against him; but Stafford was defeated and flain in an action near Sevenoak; and Cade advancing with his followers towards London, encamped at Blackheath. Notwithstanding his victory, he ftill preferved the appearance of moderation. He fent a plausible lift of grievances to the Court, and promifed that when

thefe

fomented it, in order to try how the people were disposed to wards his title and family.

The Duke, however, proceeded with the utmost prudence; and avoided giving his enemies any handle for charging him with treafonable defigns. But in 1452, obferving the extreme diffatisfaction both of the Parliament and people at the Government, he raised an army of his adherents, to the number of ten thousand men, with whom he marched to London; but declaring, at the fame time, that he had no defign in taking up arms, but to ease the people, who were miferably oppreffed with exceffive taxes, impofed upon them in confequence of the evil counfels given to the King, and to punish the authors of thofe counfels and oppreffions. In fhort, he demanded a reformation of the Government, and that the Duke of Somerset, who was become the chief Minifter, and favourite of the Queen, fince the death of Suffolk, might be removed from his power and au thority. However, on his arrival at London, he found the gates of the city fhut against him; he, therefore, retired into Kent, where he was followed by the King at the head of a superior army; upon which a parley enfued.

It fhould feem, that the Court was not at this time fufficiently apprized of the attachment of our Earl of Warwick, and his father, the Earl of Salisbury, to the interefts of the Duke of York. For thefe Noblemen now both attended King Henry's army; and when a parley was agreed upon between the King and the Duke of York, they received a commiffion from Henry, in conjunction with the Bifhops of Winchester and Ely, to dif courfe with the Duke of York, in order to know the reafon of his taking arms, and upon what terms he would lay them down. The Duke affumed a great appearance of moderation; and declared himself willing to lay down his arms, whenever the purpofe for which he took them up was anfwered; that is, the wicked, Council with which the King was befet, removed.

thefe were redreffed, and Lord Say, the Treasurer, and Cromer, high Sheriff of Kent, received the pu. nishment due to their demerits, he would immediately lay down his arms, The King was carried for fafety to Kenilworth, and the city of London opened their gates to Cade, who maintained at first great order and difcipline among his followers. However, this was not long contiqued; Lord Say was taken out of the Tower, and beheaded in Cheapfide, and Cromer was taken out of the Fleet, and beheaded at Mile-end. They then began to plunder the houfes of fome of the most wealthy inhabitants of the city; upon which

the citizens fhut their gates against them, and being feconded by a detachment of foldiers, they repulfed the rebels with great flaughter. Great numbers of the citizens, how. ever, loft their lives in this affair ; but the Kentifhmen were to dif heartened with their lofs, that upon receiving the offer of a general pardon, if they would lay down their arms, they retreated towards Rochefter, and then difperfed. However, as Cade himself, with fome few followers, had ftill continued in arms, a price was fet upon his head, and accordingly he was killed by a gentleman of Suffex.