Katherine (Roet) Swynford (1350 - 1403)

Born 1350 in Somme, Picardie, France

Wife of Hugh (Swynford) de Swynford — married about 1362 in St Clement Danes, Westminster, Middlesex, England

Wife of John (Plantagenet) of Gaunt KG — married 13 Jan 1396 in Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England

Descendants

Died 10 May 1403 at about age 53 in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England

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Biography

Katherine (Roet) Swynford is a member of the House of Lancaster.

Around 1352, Katherine de Roet went to work in Queen Phillipa of Hainaut's house. Philippa was married to English King Edward III.^[1]Like the Queen, she was from Hainaut, which is now divided between Belgium and France.^[1] She later became the governess of the children of Blanche and John of Gaunt.^[1] C.L Kingsford was the first to propose that Katherine was born in 1350, but there is no documented evidence.^[1] She could have been born prior to this date.^[1]

Vitals

name: Katherine de Roet^[1][2][3]

born: County of Hainault, (modern day Belgium)

death: 10 MAY 1403^[4]

burial: Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln^[4]

Family

Parents: Sir Paon de Roet and Mother Unknown^[1]

1st Husband: "Hugh" Ottes Swynford, Knt. 1366 at St Clement Danes Church.^[5]

Issue:^[4]

1. Blanche (b.01 May 1367)
2. Thomas (21 Sep 1368 – 1432)
3. possible) Margaret Swynford (b. abt 1369). Nun: Barking Abbey

2nd Husband: John of Gaunt; married in 1396 after 20 years of her being his mistress.^[1]

Issue (called "de Beaufort;" all were legitimized by King Richard II in 1397):^[6]

1. John de Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset (1373–1410)
2. Henry de Beaufort, Bishop of Lincoln, Winchester, then a Roman Catholic Cardinal (1375–1447)
3. Thomas de Beaufort, Duke of Exeter (1377–1427)
4. Joan de Beaufort (1379–1440)

Death and burial of Katherine Swynford

(Royal Tombs of Medieval England) She was the third wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. Their eldest son Henry (b. 1375), was made bishop of Lincoln Cathedral - known in full as The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln or sometimes St. Mary's Cathedral - in 1398 and in the same year, his father John of Gaunt founded a chantry for Katherine and himself at Lincoln. Following the duke's death in 1399, Katherine retired to Lincoln where she died on 10 May 1403. She was buried to the south of the high altar in the Angel Choir, a position of seniority most likely secured by the involvement of her son, Bishop Henry Beaufort. The church must have had particular appeal for the duchess as it owned two relics of her name-saint: Saint Katherine's finger and the chain with which she bound the devil, as well as two giant candelabras presented by the duke. The tombs of Katherine and her daughter Joan Beaufort stand today south of the high altar with Katherine's to the west and Joan's tomb to the east.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7} Weir, Alison (2008). Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and his Scandalous Duchess. London: Vintage Books. E-book
2. ↑ Weir: alternate surname spellings: Rouet, Roelt, Ruet
3. ↑ Roberts, Gary Boyd (2008). The Royal Descents of 600 Immigrants to the American Colonies or the United States. Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co.

   Roderick W. Stuart, Roderick W. (2002). Royalty for Commoners: The Complete Known Lineage of John of Gaunt, Son of Edward III, King of England, and Queen Phillipa, 4th ed. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Co.

4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Wikipedia: Katherine Swynford
5. ↑ from Kettlethorpe manor in Lincolnshire; p. Thomas Swynford and Nicole Druel.
6. ↑ John of Gaunt article on Wikipedia

• Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham (Salt Lake City, Utah: the author, 2013),
  • Vol. I, p. 88
  • Vol. III, p. 492-500
  • Vol. IV p. 503 Footnote 22: Edward Grimston, Esq., married (2nd) 26 Sept. 1459 Mary Drury, daughter of William Drury, Knt., by Katherine, daughter of Thomas Swynford, Knt. Mary Drury's great grandmother was Katherine de Roet, wife successively of Hugh de Swynford, Knt., and John of Gaunt, Duke of Aquitaine and Lancaster.

• Halsted, Caroline Amelia. 'Life of Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, mother of King Henry the Seventh', Pgs 9-12. Published by London : Smith, Elder, and Co., 1839. archive.org.

• Royal Tombs of Medieval England 2003 M. Duffy p. 196-199

• Wikipedia:Lincoln_Cathedral

• Wikipedia: Katherine Swynford