Edward Stafford, 4th Baron Stafford

For other people with the same name, see Edward Stafford (disambiguation).

The Lord Stafford
Born1572 (1572)
Died26 September 1625(1625-09-26) (aged 52–53)
BuriedStafford Castle Church[1]
Noble familyStafford
Spouse(s)Isabel Forster
IssueEdward Stafford
FatherEdward Stafford, 3rd Baron Stafford
MotherMary Stanley

Edward Stafford, 4th Baron Stafford (1572 – 16 September 1625), was the son of Edward Stafford, 3rd Baron Stafford, and Mary Stanley, daughter of Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby, and Dorothy Howard. He became 4th Baron Stafford on the death of his father in 1603.

He married Isabel Forster, the daughter of Thomas Forster of Tong, Shropshire.[2] Isabel was reported to be a family chambermaid in a letter to the Earl of Leicester which includes "My Lorde Stafford's son is basely married to his mother's chambermaid."[3]

Edward Stafford continued on with his father's patronage of the Lord Stafford's Company, a travelling group of players, who were active until at least 1617.[4]

Death and succession

Stafford had one son, Edward (1602 – 6 April 1621). This son married Ann Wilford, daughter of James Wilford, Newman Hall, Quendon, Essex, and had two children:

  1. Mary Howard, Countess of Stafford, who married Sir William Howard, younger son of Thomas, Earl of Arundel. Following her brother Henry Stafford's death, and the forced surrender of the barony, on the ground of his poverty, by the next heir, Mary's distant cousin Roger Stafford, 6th Baron Stafford in 1637, William and Mary were created Baron and Baroness Stafford on 12 September 1640. Two months later, William was created Viscount Stafford.[5]
  2. Henry Stafford, 5th Baron Stafford (24 September 1621 – 4 August 1637). Born after his father's death, he inherited the barony upon his grandfather the fourth baron's death in 1625.[3]

References

  1. ^ Castle Church History
  2. ^ Pierce, Frederick Clifton (1 January 1899). Foster genealogy. Dalcassian Publishing Company. ISBN 9781290660174. Retrieved 22 March 2020.
  3. ^ a b A general and heraldic dictionary of the peerages of England, Ireland, and Scotland, extinct, dormant, and in abeyance.by John Burke Publisher Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley, 1831
  4. ^ English Dramatic Companies 1558-1642. Author - John Tucker Murray, Published by London Constable. In Archive.org checked 19 Jan 2010
  5. ^ Burke, John (1831). A general and heraldic dictionary of the peerages of England, Ireland, and Scotland, extinct, dormant, and in abeyance. England. H. Colburn & R. Bentley.
Peerage of England
Preceded by Baron Stafford
1603–1625 		Succeeded by
Henry Stafford