northumberland
northumberland
Henry Percy, the First Earl of Northumberland, was born 10 November 1342 to Henry, Third Lord Percy, and Mary, daughter of Henry Plantagenet. He married Margaret Neville (aunt of Ralph Neville, the future Earl of Westmoreland) in 1358, and they had three sons together: Henry (nicknamed "Hotspur"), Thomas, and Ralph.
Henry started out his involvement in the English government as a loyal follower of King Edward III, holding high administrative offices during his reign. He fought in France in the Hundred Years War, then later became Warden of the Scottish Marches. He was created Earl of Northumberland by King Richard II, Edward's successor, in 1377. For a while he was as loyal to Richard as he had been to his grandfather, but he eventually went over to the side of Henry Bolingbroke in his bid to seize the crown from Richard. The complexities of Northumberland's motivations cannot be known, but some historians hypothesize that his betrayal was partially prompted by his displeasure over Richard's appointment of Ralph Neville (though a member of his wife's family, still a chief rival) as Earl of Westmoreland. The northern territories of Westmoreland were near the Percys holdings in Northumbria, and they seem to have had designs on possessing all the lands of the North.
After King Henry IV's coronation, Northumberland became Constable of England and governor of the Isle of Man. He became displeased with Henry as well, though, and plotted with his son Hotspur and his brother Thomas, the Earl of Worcester, to rebel against the throne once more. Their attempt was not successful, but since Northumberland had not actually participated in the Battle of Shrewsbury (he fell ill and by the time he was well again and began to set out with his troops, the battle had ended) he lost only his Constableship and not his life. Two years later, in 1405, Northumberland was involved in another attempt at overthrow, this one headed by the Archbishop of York. It, too, was unsuccessful, so Northumberland fled to Scotland, where he would remain in hiding for several years. In 1408, he made his last stand, launching a final invasion of England. The rebellion was once more put down, and Northumberland died at the Battle of Branham Moor in February, having lived until the ripe old age of 66.