Henry VI – Part One
Marriage of Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou

Illustration from Vigilles de Charles VII by Martial d’Auvergne
In 1444 two Lancastrian factions – one led by Cardinal Beaufort and his brothers and the other by the Duke Humphrey – each hoped to arrange a marriage for Henry VI, then aged 23. The Beauforts prevailed and their ally, the Duke of Suffolk was sent to France, ostensibly to just to arrange a truce but with a hidden agenda of seeking the hand of Margaret of Anjou (niece of the King of France) for King Henry. The marriage took place in 1445 amidst great splendour. The king was happy with the match and both Houses of Parliament recorded their thanks to Suffolk, who was promoted to marquis and several of his relatives ennobled. In 1448 he was promoted still further when he was raised up to be Duke of Suffolk.
Murder of Duke Humphrey
In 1447 Edmund Beaufort (now Duke of Somerset) and the Marquis of Suffolk, together with the Duke of Buckingham and with the support of Queen Margaret, arrested Duke Humphrey when he attended a Parliament at Bury St. Edmunds. A few days later his unmarked body was displayed. It was thought that he had been murdered on the order of those who had him arrested him but it has been suggested that he could have died due to a stroke because of his amazement at his apparent downfall. In the same year Cardinal Beaufort died. The power and influence of the Beaufort faction is illustrated in the fact that John Stafford (Bishop of Bath and later Archbishop of Canterbury), who was Lord Chancellor from 1432 to 1450, hardly ever gets a mention in historical accounts of the period.
Maine ceded to France
In 1448 it became known that in the negotiations for a truce and the hand of Margaret of Anjou in 1444 the Earl of Suffolk (as he was at the time) had agreed that Maine would be ceded to France. The anger at this ‘give away’ came from both high and low sections of the population. It was said that England had given away a whole province for a French woman without a dowry. His good and kind nature now being well known, the king was absolved from any blame. On whom, then, did the blame lie? It could only be those responsible for government policy.