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FIRST MARRIAGE: 1444-1453
With the disgrace and early death of her father, Margaret, who was only days away from her first birthday, was left in a precarious position. Before he left for France, Margaret’s father had secured the King’s agreement that, in the event of his death, his wife would be left with custody of their child. Whilst Somerset’s younger brother, Edmund Beaufort, inherited the Somerset earldom and some estates entailed on the male line, Margaret was left very wealthy, and certain members of the court began to look greedily towards her wardship and eventual marriage. Although Somerset had secured the King’s agreement to Margaret’s wardship remaining with her mother, following his disgrace, the King and his council were in no mood to grant the family any favours. In the medieval period, when a minor inherited land, their wardship and the rights to their marriage immediately passed to the king. This meant that the king could benefit from the revenues of the estates during the heir’s minority and arrange their marriage, something that could be very lucrative. Wardships were frequently given as rewards to favoured members of the court, and within weeks of Somerset’s death, Henry VI had granted Margaret’s wardship to his most favoured councillor, William de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk, declaring to his chancellor, the Archbishop of Canterbury, that:
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