The Lancastrian Heir

Bill the Barber is forgetting the Exeter connection. John of Gaunt
had another legitimate daughter, Elizabeth, who married John Holland,
Duke of Exeter. By English law her descendents had a right to a half
share of the Lancastrian inheritance with the Portuguese line.
The last Duke of Exeter was thrown overboard by Edward IV in 1475,
and his only daughter Anne (by Anne of York) died young. However his
sister had married Lord Neville of Westmoreland, so on Richard's
accession the heir of the Earl of Westmoreland, who inherited the
Earldom in 1484, could have reasonably laid claim to half the Duchy
of Lancaster, even if we discount their claim to the throne in
preference to the Yorkist line.

http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/PLANTAGENET2.htm

This connection is descibed in R.L. Storey's End of the House of
Lancaster, although Storey is dismissive of the Exeter claim.
However he describes Exeter touring the county just before the
outbreak of the wars distributing his badges with the slogan "take
here the Duke of Lancaster's Livery".
While Henry VI and his son lived the claim was false as well as
treasonous, but after Tewkesbury it was very much alive and
definately superior to any Tudor claim. Don't know who represents
this line today, but whoever it is has a pretty good claim to some
real estate from the present Duke (the Queen).

Of course as far as the crown is concerned it was not practical to
divide the Kingdom in half, but the Duchy itself was a huge estate
which was still administered separately from other crown lands and
even a half share would have made anyone the richest landholder in
England beside the King.

--- In , "theblackprussian"
<theblackprussian@...> wrote:
>
> Bill the Barber is forgetting the Exeter connection. John of Gaunt
> had another legitimate daughter, Elizabeth, who married John
Holland,
> Duke of Exeter. By English law her descendents had a right to a
half
> share of the Lancastrian inheritance with the Portuguese line.
> The last Duke of Exeter was thrown overboard by Edward IV in 1475,
> and his only daughter Anne (by Anne of York) died young. However
his
> sister had married Lord Neville of Westmoreland, so on Richard's
> accession the heir of the Earl of Westmoreland, who inherited the
> Earldom in 1484, could have reasonably laid claim to half the Duchy
> of Lancaster, even if we discount their claim to the throne in
> preference to the Yorkist line.
>
> http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/PLANTAGENET2.htm
>
> This connection is descibed in R.L. Storey's End of the House of
> Lancaster, although Storey is dismissive of the Exeter claim.
> However he describes Exeter touring the county just before the
> outbreak of the wars distributing his badges with the slogan "take
> here the Duke of Lancaster's Livery".
> While Henry VI and his son lived the claim was false as well as
> treasonous, but after Tewkesbury it was very much alive and
> definately superior to any Tudor claim. Don't know who represents
> this line today, but whoever it is has a pretty good claim to some
> real estate from the present Duke (the Queen).
>
> Of course as far as the crown is concerned it was not practical to
> divide the Kingdom in half, but the Duchy itself was a huge estate
> which was still administered separately from other crown lands and
> even a half share would have made anyone the richest landholder in
> England beside the King.
>
Well, you know my interest. It was an Earl of Westmorland who retook
Scarborough Castle for the Crown in 1557 and he was Stafford's uncle.
I will have a look at this line beyond Tudorplace's cut-of point,
which ought to be 1603 but is more often 1649.