Catherine Woodville, Duchess of Buckingham


Catherine Woodville was an English medieval noblewoman. She was the sister-in-law of King Edward IV of England and gave birth to several illustrious children. Catherine was the daughter of Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers, and Jacquetta of Luxembourg. When her sister Elizabeth married King Edward IV, the King elevated and promoted many members of the Woodville family. Elizabeth Woodville's household records for 1466/67 indicate that Catherine was being raised in the queen's household.
Sometime before the coronation of Elizabeth in May 1465, Catherine was married to Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham; both were still children. A contemporary description of Elizabeth Woodville's coronation relates that Catherine and her husband were carried on squires' shoulders due to their youth. According to Dominic Mancini, Buckingham resented his marriage to a woman of inferior birth. However, the couple had four children:
In 1483, Buckingham first allied himself to the Duke of Gloucester, helping him succeed to the throne as King Richard III, and then to Henry Tudor, leading an unsuccessful rebellion in his name. Buckingham was executed for treason on 2 November 1483.
After Richard III was defeated by Henry Tudor at Bosworth in 1485, Catherine married the new king's uncle Jasper Tudor on 7 November 1485.
After Jasper's death in 1495 - not later than 24 February 1496, - Catherine married Sir Richard Wingfield, who outlived her.

Depiction in fiction

Catherine is the main protagonist in Susan Higginbotham's 2010 historical novel The Stolen Crown. She is briefly mentioned in Philippa Gregory's historical novels The White Queen, The Red Queen, and The White Princess.