Identity area
Reference code
SJLM/4/3
Unique identifier
Title
Date(s)
- 1472-1482 (Creation)
Level of description
Series
Extent and medium
2 files, parchment
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Lord Stanley was an English nobleman and the third husband of Lady Margaret Beaufort. He married Lady Margaret in 1472, following the death of his first wife, Eleanor Neville, daughter of Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury.
A powerful magnate and politician, Stanley inherited a number of significant estates and offices, including the suzerain title King of Mann, by which he assumed certain authoritative powers and control over the Isle of Man. He was made 1st Earl of Derby by his stepson, Henry VII of England, in 1485, and also served as Lord High Constable of England (1483-1504) and High Steward of the Duchy of Lancaster.
Over the course of his life, Stanley advanced his influence both within the English royal court and in the north-west of England, where he held vast estates in Cheshire and Lancashire. He died at Lathom in Lancashire in 1504.