Marriage of Margaret of York (3rd Continuation of the Croyland Chronicle)

I now come to the sixth year of the reign of the said king,
when Elizaheth, the eldest daughter hy his marriage already
mentioned, was bom. This took place in the month of Feb-
ruary, it being the year of our Lord, according to the computa-
tion of the English church, 1465, but according to that of the
church of Eome, 1466. About this time, ambassadors were
sent to England from Flanders, to ask the lady Margaret,
sister of king Edward, in marriage for the lord Charles, the
eldest son of Philip, duke of Burgundy, his father being then
living. This marriage accordingly took place, and was solem-
nized in the month of July in the year following, being the
year of our Lord, 1467. At this marriage, Bichard Neville,
earl of Warwick, who had for some years appeared to favour
the party of the French against the Burgundians, conceived
great indignation. For he would have greatly preferred to
have sought an alliance for the said lady Margaret in the king-
dom of F^[unce, by means of which, a favourable understanding
might have arisen between the monarchs of those two king-
doms; it being much against his wish, that the views of
Charles, now duke of Burgundy, should be in any way pro-
moted by means of an alliance with England. The fact is,
that he pursued that man with a most deadly hatred.

This, in my opinion, was really the cause of the dissensions
between the king and the earl, and not the one which has been
previously” mentioned — the marriage of the king with queen
Elizabeth. For this marriage of the king and queen (although
after some murmuring on the part of the earl, who had previ-
ously used his best endeavours to bring about an alliance be-
tween the king and the queen of Scotland, widow of the king
of that country, lately deceased), had long before this been
solemnly sanctioned and approved of at Beading, by the earl
himself, and all the prelates and great lords of the kingdom.
Indeed, it is the fact, that the earl continued to show favour
to all the queen’s kindred, until he found that her relatives and
connexions, contrary to his wishes, were using their utmost
endeavours to promote the other marriage, which, in conformity
with the king’s wishes, eventually took place between Charlei
and the lady Margaret, and were favouring other designs to
»« P. 445.

458 009TnnTATI03r of the HISIORT of CBOYLLSm, A.D. 1469.

wliich he was strongly opposed. It is to reasons of tbis
nature that may be attributed the overthrow and slanghter of
the Welch, with their leader, William Herbert, lately created
Mrl of Pembroke, at the battle previously mentioned, which
took place at Hegecot, near Banbury : for that nobleman, at
this period, had great weight in the counsels of the king and
queen, his eldest son having previously married one of tbe
queen’s sisters. The queen^s £either also perished, Blchard,
earl of Rivers, already mentioned, together with Sir John
Wydville, his son.