Portrait of George, Duke of Clarence.
English School, c1597-1603. Philip Mould & Co.
GEORGE, DUKE OF CLARENCE, younger son of Richard, Duke of York, by his wife Cicely, daughter
of Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, was born in Dublin on the 21st of October 1449. Soon after
his elder brother became king as Edward IV in March 1461, he was created duke of Clarence, and his youth
was no bar to his appointment as lord-lieutenant of Ireland in the following year.
Having been mentioned as a possible husband for Mary, daughter of Charles the Bold, afterwards Duke of
Burgundy, Clarence came under the influence of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, and in July 1469 was married
at Calais to the earl's elder daughter Isabella. With his father-in-law he then acted in a disloyal manner towards the king. Both
supported the rebels in the north of England, and when their treachery was discovered Clarence was deprived of his office as lord-lieutenant
and fled to France.
Returning to England with Warwick in September 1470, he witnessed the restoration of Henry VI, when the crown
was settled upon himself in case the male line of Henry's family became extinct. The good understanding, however, between Warwick and
his son-in-law was not lasting, and Clarence was soon secretly reconciled with Edward. The public reconciliation between the brothers
took place when the king was besieging Warwick in Coventry, and Clarence then fought for the Yorkists at Barnet
and Tewkesbury. After Warwick's death in April 1471 Clarence appears to have seized the whole of the vast
estates of the earl, and in March 1472 was created by right of his wife Earl of Warwick and Salisbury.
He was consequently greatly disturbed when he heard that his younger brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was
seeking to marry Warwick's younger daughter Anne, and was claiming some part of Warwick's lands. A violent quarrel between the brothers
ensued, but Clarence was unable to prevent Gloucester from marrying, and in 1474 the king interfered to settle the dispute, dividing the
estates between his brothers. In 1477 Clarence was again a suitor for the hand of Mary, who had just become duchess of Burgundy. Edward
objected to the match, and Clarence, jealous of Gloucester's influence, left the court.
At length Edward was convinced that Clarence was aiming at his throne. The duke was thrown into prison, and in January 1478 the king
unfolded the charges against his brother to the parliament. He had slandered the king; had received oaths of allegiance to himself and
his heirs; had prepared for a new rebellion; and was in short incorrigible. Both Houses of Parliament passed the
bill of attainder, and the sentence of death which followed was carried out on the 17th or 18th of February
1478. It is uncertain what share Gloucester had in his brother's death; but soon after the event the rumour gained ground that Clarence
had been drowned in a butt of malmsey wine.
Two of the duke's children survived their father: Margaret, countess of Salisbury (1473-1541), and
Edward, earl of Warwick (1475-1499), who passed the greater
part of his life in prison and was beheaded in November 1499.
Excerpted from:
Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Ed. Vol VI.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1910. 428.
Other Local Resources:
Books for further study:
Ashdown-Hill, John. The Third Plantagenet: George, Duke of Clarence.
The History Press, 2014.
De Massue, Melville Henry. Plantagenet Roll of the Blood Royal:
The Clarence Volume, Containing the Descendants of George, Duke of Clarence.
Genealogical Publishing Co., 1994.
Hicks, Michael. False, Fleeting, Perjur'd Clarence: George, Duke of Clarence 1449-1478.
Plantagenet Press, 1992.
More, Sir Thomas. History of King Richard III.
Hesperus Press, 2005.
Shakespeare, William. Richard III.
Folger Shakespeare Library, 2004.
Weir, Alison. The Wars of the Roses.
Ballantine Books, 1996.
George, Duke of Clarence, on the Web:
- Biography - Michael Hicks
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