Beaufort, Henry

Beaufort, Henry (c.1375–1447), cardinal bishop of Winchester. The second son of John of Gaunt and Catherine Swynford, Beaufort rose rapidly in the church, becoming bishop of Lincoln in his early twenties, translating to Winchester in 1404. As half-brother of Henry IV, he was rarely far from the heart of Lancastrian government, being chancellor of England under three kings in 1403–5, 1413–17, and 1424–6. A capable administrator and tireless diplomat, his skills and wealth were indispensable to the regime for over forty years. Yet his relationship with the royal family was ambivalent. He quarrelled both with Henry V, over his acceptance of a cardinal's red hat, and with Humphrey of Gloucester for pre-eminence in England during the minority of Henry VI. His immense wealth secured him in power, guaranteed by extensive loans made to the crown from 1417. He shamelessly used his position to the advantage of his family, but there can be no doubting his commitment to the dynasty. In his later years he endeavoured, without success, to achieve a peace settlement with France. Being created cardinal legate in 1427, he was content to be the papal representative in England. Proud, ambitious, and avaricious, delegating his spiritual responsibility in his diocese to subordinates, he stands as the exemplar of a worldly political prelate in late medieval England, outshining even Thomas Wolsey. He was buried in Winchester cathedral.

Anthony James Pollard

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Bibliography

Harriss, G. L. , Cardinal Beaufort (Oxford, 1988).