Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby
(circa 1433-1504), MagnateSitter associated with 5 portraits
A nobleman and stepfather to King Henry VII. In 1459, he inherited the titles of King of Mann and Baron Stanley. Stanley managed to remain in favour with successive kings throughout the Wars of the Roses. His first wife was Eleanor, sister of the Yorkist Earl of Warwick, and his second was Margaret Beaufort, whose son, Henry Tudor (later King Henry VII), was the leading Lancastrian claimant to the throne. Richard III continued to trust Thomas Stanley and his brother, William, even after the king had briefly imprisoned the Stanleys in 1483 on suspicion of conspiracy. At the Battle of Bosworth Field, they betrayed him, transferring allegiance to the Lancastrians at a crucial moment.
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