An incompetent wastrel

Near the close of the 15th century, John de Vere made his appearance to the world at Castle Hedingham in Essex, England, the only surviving son of George de Vere, son of 12th Earl of Oxford. He appears too far back in my family tree to show a relationship, but he does show up in the direct line of succession.

His father had been destined for the priesthood, and George's grandfather gave him a benefice -- an appointment to a church that involved property and an income for his pastoral services. But George's father and his eldest son were gruesonely executed in 1462, convicted of treason against the king, Edward IV, for aligning themselves with forces opposed to the king. Never a good idea in the Middle Ages.

Edward took the high road and granted George's older brother, also named John, the title and lands that formerly belonged to their father. John, the 13th Earl, managed to get himself into several scrapes with the king, but survived and became a favorite of the Tudors when they ascended to the throne. He died, I suppose from natural causes, "without issue," and his title passed to his nephew and namesake, John, who became the 14th Earl of Oxford.

Meantime George abandoned the priesthood and joined his brother in his struggle against the king. He was punished by Parliament and stripped of his rights. No official pardon was issued, but he may have been restored by Henry VII when he took over the throne. He died when his son, John, was 4.

John, the 14th earl, received his uncle's inheritance at the age of 14 and served as chief mourner at his uncle's funeral. At the ceremony, " mounted knight, armed with an axe, was led into the choir by two knights. The axe was presented to the Bishop, who gave it to John.

Sometime around his uncle's death, John entered an arranged marriage with Anne Howard, daughter of the 2nd Duke of Norfolk. John would have been about 12-14 years old. A few years later, though, for reasons I could not find, Henry VIII became involved. Henry insisted that John and Anne's marriage was invalid because John was technically underage at the time of the wedding and suggested his own choice for John's bride. John would have none of it, and Henry relented but gave control of John's land and hereditary titles to his father-in-law until he reached the age of majority, which at that time was 21.

When he reached that birthday, John regained his lands. Because he was a minor at the time of his inheritance, John became a royal ward. In that capacity he traveled with Henry and attended to him during a high profile meeting between Henry and the king of France, which was supposed to cement an alliance but quickly became an opportunity for both sides to try to impress each other. 

Again, for reasons not explained, Henry continued to meddle in John's life. By the time he'd reached his 24th year, John had gained a reputation as a profligate, and Henry decided he needed reining in. A modern biographer called him an incompetent wastrel.

Henry sent word through Cardinal Wolsey -- Henry had not separated from the Catholic Church yet -- that John was to discharge his servants, go to live with his father-in-law, and give more attention to his wife.

He was not allowed to have more than 20 servants (oh, the horror!), barred from granting any offices or annuities, and was ordered to moderate his hunting, drink less, go to bed early, eat less meat, and tone down the way he dressed.

Two years later, he died, cause unknown -- to me at least. He died without an heir, and his lands and title passed to his second cousin, yet another John de Vere. His wife outlived him by more than three decades but felt she was ill treated by the 15th Earl during her life.

Now if you were paying attention, you may be wondering, "If he had no kids, how in the world could he be your ancestor?" Well, he couldn't. I searched high and low and could not find any other source for his siring the daughter listed in my family tree, even as a child born out of wedlock. I'm hoping the caretakers of Family Search will somehow discover that. This would mean another trimming of my family tree, but I'm almost getting used to it. And who needs that many relatives anyway -- especially incompetent ones?

Note: This post summarizes a listing for John de Vere on Wikipedia. This seems to rely a great deal on the book John de Vere, Thirteenth Earl of Oxford (1442-1513), 'The Foremost Man of the Kingdom'. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Boydell Press, 2011, by James Ross.

Picture: Hedingham Castle in Essex, primary seat of the Earls of Oxford, taken by Nick Barker. Used under Creative Commons license. Retrieved from commons.wikimedia.com.