John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because of Gaunt's royal origin, advantageous marriages, and some generous land grants, he was one of the richest men of his era, and was an influential figure during the reigns of both his father and his nephew, Richard II. As Duke of Lancaster, he is the founder of the royal House of Lancaster, whose members would ascend the throne after his death. His birthplace, Ghent in Flanders, then known in English as Gaunt, was the origin of his name.
Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster was the third wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the fourth son of King Edward III.
Joan Beaufort was the youngest of the four legitimised children and only daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, by his mistress, later wife, Katherine de Roet. She married Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland and in her widowhood became a powerful landowner in the north of England.
John Beaufort, 1st Marquess of Somerset and 1st Marquess of Dorset, later only 1st Earl of Somerset, was an English nobleman and politician. He was the first of the four children of John of Gaunt (1340–1399) by his mistress Katherine Swynford, whom he later married in 1396.
Margaret Holland was a medieval English noblewoman. She was a daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, who was the son of Joan "the Fair Maid of Kent". Margaret's mother was Alice FitzAlan, daughter of Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel and Eleanor of Lancaster.
The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, the fourth surviving son of Edward III. In time, it also represented Edward III's senior line, when an heir of York married the heiress-descendant of Lionel, Duke of Clarence, Edward III's second surviving son. It is based on these descents that they claimed the English crown. Compared with its rival, the House of Lancaster, it had a superior claim to the throne of England according to cognatic primogeniture, but an inferior claim according to agnatic primogeniture. The reign of this dynasty ended with the death of Richard III of England at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. It became extinct in the male line with the death of Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, in 1499.
Anya Seton, born Ann Seton, was an American author of historical fiction, or as she preferred they be called, "biographical novels".
John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset, 3rd Earl of Somerset, KG was an English nobleman and military commander during the Hundred Years' War. He was the maternal grandfather of Henry VII.
Philippa of Lancaster was Queen of Portugal from 1387 until 1415 as the wife of King John I. Born into the royal family of England, her marriage secured the Treaty of Windsor and produced several children who became known as the "Illustrious Generation" in Portugal.
Katherine is a 1954 historical novel by American author Anya Seton. It tells the story of the historically important, 14th-century love affair in England between the eponymous Katherine Swynford and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the third surviving son of King Edward III.
Joan Beaufort was Queen of Scotland from 1424 to 1437 as the spouse of King James I of Scotland. During part of the minority of her son James II, she served as the regent of Scotland.
Blanche of Lancaster was a member of the English royal House of Lancaster and the daughter of the kingdom's wealthiest and most powerful peer, Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster. She was the first wife of John of Gaunt, the mother of King Henry IV, and the grandmother of King Henry V of England.
John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke was the son of John Hastings, 2nd Earl of Pembroke and Anne Manny, 2nd Baroness Manny. He was also Baron Abergavenny.
Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Devon was a great-granddaughter of King Edward III (1327–1377).
Elizabeth of Lancaster was the third child of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, and his first wife Blanche of Lancaster. Elizabeth was made a Lady of the Garter in 1378.
Elizabeth of York, Duchess of Suffolk also known as Elizabeth Plantagenet was the sixth child and third daughter of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York and Cecily Neville. She was thus a sister of kings Edward IV and Richard III.
Alison Weir is a British author and public historian. She primarily writes about the history of English royal women and families, in the form of biographies that explore their historical setting. She has also written numerous works of historical fiction.
Thomas Beaufort, styled 1st Count of Perche was a member of the Beaufort family and an English commander during the Hundred Years' War.
Kettlethorpe Hall is a Victorian house in Kettlethorpe, Lincolnshire, noted for its connection to Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster. It encloses fragments of the former manor house including the medieval gatehouse, within the surviving moat. It is a Grade II listed building.
Paon de Roet, also called Paon de Roët, Sir Payn Roelt, Payne Roet and sometimes Gilles Roet, was a herald and knight from Hainaut who was involved in the early stages of the Hundred Years' War. He became attached to the court of King Edward III of England through the king's marriage to Philippa of Hainaut.
