John de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk

John de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk, born 27th September 1442

The 2nd Duke of Suffolk is less well known than his father or son. His childhood was severely hampered by the unpopularity of his father, who was murdered in 1450. The demise of his father, coupled with the subsequent loss of grants and patronage, left John with limited resources when he came of age and inherited his titles. Wealth that the family once had was simply not there anymore.

In his childhood he had been married, albeit briefly, to Margaret Beaufort. His rank led to a later marriage of equal importance. He was married to Elizabeth of York, daughter of Richard of York (and not to be confused with the Elizabeth who married Henry Tudor).

Despite being married into the House of York John avoided national politics as far as was possiblr. His marriage affected patronage and grants of positions in the 1450s as his ties to the Yorkist faction made him a potentially untrustworthy magnate. He didn’t actually bear arms in the Wars of the Roses until the 2nd Battle of St. Albans, fighting there and at Towton. Though these are relatively early in the conflict, he could quite easily have chosen a more aggressive support of the Yorkist cause at an early stage.

Even with his brother-in-law on the throne he was overlooked for major roles in Government. For a Duke to be limited to being a Justice is unusual. Instead, he concentrated on local issues and regularly appears in the Paston Letters as a result of his clashes over land rights in East Anglia.
He did spring into military life in 1470. As the Lincolnshire Rebellion broke out, John took an active part in its suppression.

Consequently he was forced into exile when Warwick orchestrated the readeption.
John returned with Edward and fought at both Barnet and Tewkesbury. He received little reward though and at one point in the 1470s failed to attend parliament as he could ill afford the expenses associated with it. Similarly when joining the French campaign of 1475 he mustered a few lower number of men-at-arms and archers than other magnates of similar rank.

A change in fortunes appeared to be on the cards when Richard III took the throne. John de la Pole carried the sceptre at Richard’s coronation. His son, John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln was named heir apparent due to being the kings nephew. Neither resulted in any promotion or grants. When the Tudor invasion force landed, de la Pole, unlike his son, opted not to join the kings army.

Thus by steering clear of national politics on many occasions, joining fights when he had little option but to and through being overlooked for positions of note, John de la Pole was able to survive the Wars of the Roses unscathed, though impoverished for a man of his rank. He died in May of 1492.