Katherine Woodville, Duchess of Buckingham

Katherine Woodville (also spelt Catherine Wydville, Wydeville, or Widvile^[a]) (c. 1458^[1] – 18 May 1497^[2]) was the Duchess of Buckingham and a medieval English noblewoman.

Katherine Woodville
Duchess of Buckingham Duchess of Bedford Countess of Pembroke
Katherine with her second husband Jasper Tudor on stained glass windows in Cardiff Castle
Born	c. 1458 Grafton Regis, Northamptonshire, Kingdom of England
Died	18 May 1497 (aged 38–39)
Noble family	Woodville
Spouse(s)	Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham Jasper Tudor, 1st Duke of Bedford Sir Richard Wingfield
Issue	Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham Elizabeth Stafford, Countess of Sussex Henry Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire Anne Stafford, Countess of Huntingdon
Father	Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers
Mother	Jacquetta of Luxembourg

Early life

Katherine was the daughter of Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers, and Jacquetta of Luxembourg.^[3] When her sister Elizabeth married Edward IV of England, the King elevated and promoted many members of the Woodville family. Elizabeth Woodville's household records for 1466/67 indicate that Katherine was being raised in the queen's household.

First marriage

Sometime before the coronation of Elizabeth in May 1465, Katherine was married to Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham;^[4] both were still children. A contemporary description of Elizabeth Woodville's coronation relates that Katherine and her husband were carried on squires' shoulders due to their youth. According to Dominic Mancini, Buckingham resented his marriage to a woman of inferior birth; though Katherine's sister Elizabeth had married the King of England. However, the couple had four children:

• Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham (3 February 1478 – 17 May 1521)^[5]
• Elizabeth Stafford, Countess of Sussex (c. 1479 – 11 May 1532)
• Henry Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire (c. 1479 – 6 April 1523)
• Anne Stafford, Countess of Huntingdon (c. 1483 – 1544)

In 1483, Buckingham first allied himself to the Duke of Gloucester, helping him succeed to the throne as King Richard III, and then to Henry Tudor, leading an unsuccessful rebellion in his name. Buckingham was executed for treason on 2 November 1483.

Second marriage

After Richard III was defeated by Henry Tudor at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, Katherine married the new king's uncle Jasper Tudor on 7 November 1485^[6] who was about 25 years older than her.

Third marriage

After Jasper's death on 21 December 1495 at Thornbury Castle where they were living, Katherine married – not later than 24 February 1496 – Sir Richard Wingfield, who was twelve years younger than Katherine and who outlived her. After Katherine's first two marriages having been arranged, it's thought her final marriage was one for love, especially as it took place about eight weeks after the death of her second husband. Her third marriage took place without licence and the couple were fined £20. It is thought her elder son, Edward Stafford, paid his mother's fine.

Depiction in fiction

Katherine is the main protagonist in Susan Higginbotham's 2010 historical novel The Stolen Crown. She is briefly mentioned in Philippa Gregory's historical novels The White Queen (2009), The Red Queen (2010), and The White Princess (2013).

Notes

1. Although spelling of the family name is usually modernised to "Woodville", it was spelled "Wydeville" in contemporary publications by Caxton and her tomb at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle is inscribed thus; "Edward IV and his Queen Elizabeth Widvile".